For example, the Cisco Sales Associate Program (CSAP) at Cisco is using Second Life as a meeting place for their globally dispersed team. The CSAP folks get together in this virtual environment regularly to ensure synergy with their program and to talk about the latest in technology such as WAAS and virtualization. The team is also leveraging the virtual environment for team building activities like global team photo days. This leads to a sense of belonging to something greater than ones self, to a sense of being part of something.

Isolation is a killer for the remote worker. It is common for the remote worker to feel out of sync with the office worker. The sense of being left out of desicions because one is not part of the 'water cooler' conversations at the office is palpable for the remote worker. Virtual environments allow for the potentially disenfranchised worker to reengage and realize their contribution potential. There are many folks exploring this subject and I would like to quote directly from Peter Quirk’s excellent post about how virtual worlds address this:

1) by making meetings more engaging than is possible through 2-D web conferencing solutions
2) by creating a sense of a workplace separate from the employee’s home environment, helping to focus the employee on the tasks at hand
3) by creating places for real-time collaboration with other employees
4) by creating a workplace that can be seen from afar, reducing the likelihood that the remote employees will be “out of sight, out of mind”
5) by creating places for remote workers and their office-bound colleagues to hang out with each other over lunch, after work, or after long meetings

I would like to add one to that list:
6) by allowing workers to personalize their appearance in the virtual environment to create a brand for oneself and allow for creative expression

I feel that personal expression and brand is something we all do on a day to day basis, without really thinking about it. Our clothing, hair styles, office accoutrements, etc. say much about who we are, and about our life styles and interests. (Walk past my cube and you can see that I am in to Star Wars, technology and the Muppets. Hmmm, once I apply that idea to my self it makes me wonder whether folks think I am just a big kid?) Participation in a virtual environment can allow remote workers to do much the same thing with their avatar. This enables the remote worker to have a sense of ownership and self when engaging with their peers in a virtual work space.

The consensus is in and the conclusion is that virtual and real world will meld in the work place over the next 5-10 years so intrinsically that we will not think of them as separate. The lines of separation will be blurred to the point of making the separation between virtual and real world not relevant.

I'll toast to that!

While there are daily virtual conferences in the various metaversal platforms, there are infrequent 'live' meetings of people in the virtual world business. A top show in this space is the Virtual Worlds conference, arranged by Chris Sherman. I was a speaker at the 2007 event, and they are holding their 2008 New York VW show today and tomorrow at the Javitz center in Manhattan.

Although many have been concerned about the industry after the standard hype/backlash cycle that has been applied to virtual worlds over the last year, the attendance at the show is a record 1200 people (which, although small by Interop or Comdex standards, is actually very large for an emerging technology-centric conference). The audience for this show (as was the case at last year's NYC show) is primarily composed of people from the advertising and entertainment industries, with the Rosie O'Neill, Chief Barbie Officer from Mattel providing this morning's keynote presentation on how the Barbie brand is extending into virtual communities.

And no, I didn't make up that title, that's her real title.

If you are in the New York area, there is one more day (Friday) of conference proceedings and I would suggest stopping by and experiencing the excitement and creative energy of this emerging industry.

Combined, they present an excellent leading-indicator of the future of the virtual workspace. Be sure to check it out.

Here is a rough recap of the conversation....
Puzzled Person: Why Second Life...?
Dannette: Because it is a fluid environment for having very intimate (but not proprietary) conversations and developing deeper relationships.
Puzzled Person: Deep avatar relationships...you must be kidding.
Dannette: Hmmm, no not so much.
Puzzled Person: Seriously!
Dannette: I know sorry, my bad, couldn't resist. Seriously though, think of it this way...in say a Netpro discussion forum you can take part in Cisco to you, you to Cisco and peer to peer interactions but not in real time. In say a Cisco TechTalk webcast you can take part in Cisco to you and you to Cisco interactions real time but no peer to peer interactions are possible. In a virtual environment you can take part in Cisco to you, you to Cisco, and peer to peer interactions and all in real time. So figure out what you are looking to glean and how quickly, then choose your accordingly. Cisco utilizes many communication vehicles, such as the three mentioned here, and will continue doing so as we recognize that people learn and communicate in very different ways. We aren't making anyone drink one flavor of kool aid, you can take your pick ;-)

All kidding aside this is really a question that is best answered by the end users goal...meaning if you want a quick, touch-free communication then Second Life (and virtual environments as a whole more than likely) are not for you. However, if you aren't satisfied with the level of interaction and immersion you get from more traditional communication vehicles then networked virtual environments may be right up your alley.

I guess my thinking is what have you got to loose? A bit of your time yes and some hard drive space for the application. Of course, if you don't like the experience you can always 'uninstall'...

So if you haven't to date, I encourage you to come out next week and test the water. We will hold our monthly TechChat on Learning 2.0 at the Cisco High Bandwidth stage, http://slurl.com/secondlife/Cisco%20Systems%204/65/35/22/.

Hope to see you out for either a first visit or as a repeat attendee.

If you haven't already heard, "on March 4th, life on the network gets better." http://www.cisco.com/web/solutions/uberusers/index.html.
Cisco is dubbing this as a "quantum shift in networking."

Cisco will be hosting a live event in Second Life at a special new build: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Cisco%20Systems%204/47/33/21/ on March 4th starting at 10:00 am Pacific, with Doug Webster, Director of Service Provider Marketing. It's an interactive event you surely don't want to miss, as Cisco for the first time, will be demonstrating some new virtual experiences and discussing a Quantum Shift in networking. If you can't wait that long, come check out the new build now, or view this Machinima http://randyciscossystems.blip.tv/file/706774/. This build content is being updated until our Quantum Shift event on the 4th, so keep coming back!

Cisco will also be hosting the Quantum Shift Music Day on Saturday, March 1st between 1:00-8:00 p.m. PST at Bandwidth Stage on the Cisco SL campus: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Cisco%20Systems%204/65/35/22/.

Featured for our Live Music event are:

Orangelife Holmer,
Rich Desoto,
Cylindrian Rutabaga,
Groucho March,
Edward Lowell,
Jeff Tully,
Capos Calderwood

DON'T MISS THESE BIG EVENTS!

Roger Farnsworth, who runs our Executive Thought Leadership team at Cisco, is busy attending the always-entertaining TED conference in Monterey California. He blogged last night about the newest work being done on combining surfaces and displays, and even speculated about their use in 3D spaces.

Being a user of 2nd-generation VGA goggles, a projector, and a Wiimote to navigate around Second Life, I can personally attest that the current user interaction model is still clunky and unintuitive. There has been some recent work done on gestural interfaces that was discussed at the MetaverseU conference that may go a long way towards helping facilitate the true immersive effects of these environments. This would allow you to take your visual-metaphor of an office (and your networked colleagues) with you anywhere......be it at 35000 feet on a networked aircraft, or just in the Red Carpet Lounge between flights.

For those of you who missed the preliminary announcement from our developer partner Millions of Us on Friday, we are excited to announce the launch of the 'Hospital of the Future' in Second Life. Working with Palomar West Hospital, the largest health system provider in Southern California, we have created a healthcare campus to showcase the foresight of PalomarWest and the Cisco Connected Health vision.

The official ribbon cutting ceremony is at 0800 PST today at the PalomarWest Hospital Island! In the event you haven't already registered for Second Life, we've streamlined the process for you by following this link

The formal press release follows the page break. Be sure to come by and check out the future of healthcare!

PPH and Cisco Offer First Glimpse of Advanced Building Design and Connected Hospital Technologies in Online Virtual World

ORLANDO, Fla. – HIMSS CONFERENCE - Feb. 25, 2008 – Cisco® and Palomar Pomerado Health (PPH) today cut the ribbon on a new hospital in the online virtual world Second Life. The virtual hospital, a simulation of a real-world hospital campus due to open in 2011, gives visitors the opportunity to tour the hospital years before its doors actually open

The virtual hospital showcases the rich assortment of design and technology innovations planned for the real-world Palomar West Medical Campus in San Diego, Calif., and to gather feedback that will be used to enhance the way that care is delivered. The immersive quality of Second Life allows visitors to experience the progressive nature-embracing design of the hospital firsthand. Visitors will also be able to experience Connected Hospital technologies that will be delivered in the real hospital by Cisco.

Highlights of the virtual Palomar West include:

• Cisco TelePresence. Visitors are welcomed to Palomar West in “Second Life” by a virtual receptionist appearing via Cisco TelePresence, a new technology that uses high-definition video and spatial audio to create unique ”in person” experiences via the network.
• Advanced Robotics. The simulation shows Palomar West’s operating rooms, which include advanced robotics and functional imaging systems capable of supporting medical procedures spanning interventional radiology, cardiovascular surgery, urology and gastroenterology. An advanced surgical cockpit, from where a surgeon can manipulate robotic systems remotely while viewing vital signs and functional imaging information in real time, is also featured.

• Communication and Collaboration. The simulation shows how the Cisco Unified Communications system facilitates smooth patient and clinician communication. For example, a radiologist can locate specialists, contact them on their phones, laptops or PDAs, and initiate a desktop collaboration session to review and consult on patient scan images thanks to the network that links picture archiving systems with communications tools.
• 3D Holographic Medical Imaging. Palomar West will feature mobile, remote-controlled, 3D holographic whole-body multimodality medical imaging systems that can be directed into any patient room.
• Connected Real Estate. In the real Palomar West, all building, communication, IT, and clinical systems will be converged onto a single Cisco Medical-Grade Network. The simulation shows how nearly all aspects of a patient’s stay (including ventilation, air conditioning, lighting, security, fire and life safety, digital devices, and signage) will be monitored and managed via applications running on a single network, freeing up clinicians to focus on providing the very best care.
• Visibility and Tracking Solutions. Visitors are guided through Palomar West by radio frequency-enabled sensors that enhance security and safety through patient tracking, and that protect hospital property by tracking equipment in real time.
Construction of the real-world $811 million Palomar Medical Center West campus is due to be completed in 2011. The new facility is designed to positively transform the traditional healthcare experience that is normally associated with staying or working in a hospital.

The campus will epitomize Cisco and PPH’s shared vision of a “Connected Hospital,” where technology and the physical environment seamlessly integrate to enhance patient care through the sharing of timely, accurate information among the right people at the right time, between hospitals and the extended ecosystem of care.

In addition to embracing the latest connected health technologies, Palomar West has been physically designed to provide a high-performance healing environment through a constant connection with nature. Outdoor features of the campus showcased in the “Second Life” simulation include garden spaces, areas for dining, meeting or relaxing; a pedestrian path and garden connecting all buildings; a green roof bringing gardens up onto the building, with views from patient rooms; and garden terraces on the nursing floor.

Palomar West in “Second Life” also provides visitors with a view of the design of individual patient rooms on the new Palomar West campus. Features of these rooms will include:

• Same-handed, acuity-adaptable rooms and cross-discipline interventional procedure/operating rooms. Acuity-adaptable rooms can be transformed, even if a patient’s condition changes, without having to move patients from unit to unit. Any necessary equipment can be brought into the room on an as-needed basis, further reducing the need for patient transport.
• Each patient room is designed with a nursing station immediately outside the room, so the intensity of service can be adjusted as needed.
• Every room in Palomar West is single occupancy and identical in layout and design. This maximizes efficiency and minimizes medical errors.

About Palomar Pomerado Health
Palomar Pomerado Health, California’s largest public health district, is North County’s most comprehensive health care delivery system, recognized for clinical excellence in cardiac care, women’s services, bariatric surgery, cancer, orthopedics, trauma, rehabilitation and behavioral health services. Facilities include Palomar Medical Center, Pomerado Hospital, Villa Pomerado, Palomar Continuing Care Center, Escondido Surgery Center, Palomar Pomerado Behavioral Health Services and Palomar Pomerado Home Care.

About Cisco
Cisco, (NASDAQ: CSCO), is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, go to http://newsroom.cisco.com. For information about Cisco Connected Health technologies, visit www.cisco.com/go/healthcare

Contacts

Palomar Pomerado Health – Andy Hoang, (858) 675-5018 or andy.hoang@pph.org
Cisco – David McCulloch (408) 221-6015 or damccull@cisco.com

We hope to see you out for what should prove to be a lively discussion.

So, on January 23rd at 8:30am Pacific please join us in Second Life to hear Jayshree Ullal, SVP, Data Center, talk about Cisco's recent announcement regarding the Application Network Services (ANS) expanding portfolio. Including the business application vendors (such as Microsoft) jointly worked with to validate their applications over the Cisco network infrastructure and the new products added to the ANS portfolio. Cisco recognizes that business applications are critical to an organizations productivity, profit, and operations. ANS transforms your existing branch, data center, and campus networks into a business-enabling platform; ultimately reducing the total cost of ownership and enabling better utilization of resources.

Looking forward to a stimulating discussion. Hope to see you out at the events.