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Lately, the phrase 'Magic Circle' has been in articles related to Second Life. 'Is a virtual world publisher within the magic circle?' is one such example though the topic itself seems almost too subtle and too much of a reach. Certainly, the choice [w:Linden Lab] made could be seen as one which allows itself isolation from the community in this instance - but then, it also set a precedent as well. On that particular topic, about commemorating the death of a Second Life user, I think Linden Lab did the only sensible thing - and I do believe that they made the right choice in that regard. I didn't know Ginny Talamasca, and I want to respect the wishes expressed in this blog entry.

If I were to write an article about Linden Lab and the magic circle, I would have written about something else. In fact, a lot of what I have been writing has been related to the weaknesses in the magic circle.

But what is a magic circle?

The phrase '[w:magic circle]' arguably comes from [w:Wicca]; the concept of a circle which serves as a barrier was not new then and was probably not new even as far back as written history goes. It may have started when people huddled around campfires in a circle, where they were protected from heat and so forth. It may have been from defending the group by forming a circle and striking outward. There are so many ways that the circle affords power, one could even look to [w:Panopticon] architecture. Benjamin Duranske pointed to the book Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play Element in Culture by Dutch historian Johan Huizinga, who wrote of the concept of the “magic circle” in protecting play spaces and from real spaces, and vice versa. Benjamin even quotes an interesting passage:

Every place from which justice is pronounced is a veritable temenos, a sacred spot cut off and hedged in from the “ordinary” world. The old Flemish and Dutch word for it is vierschaar, literally a space divided off by four ropes, or, according to another view, four benches. But whether square or round, it is still a magic circle, a play-ground where the customary differences of rank are temporarily abolished. Whoever steps inside it is sacrosanct for the time being.

That is probably the best definition of a 'magic circle', so far, in the context of virtual worlds. Still, the question remains: Is Second Life a game? The answer, of course, depends on the person - and everyone is as right as they believe that they are. Yes, Second Life is a game for some people. No, Second Life is not a game for other people. That said, where does Linden Lab's role fall? The CNET article says it may stop at the technology architecture, but that is not true - the very fact that community standards exist defies the logic of that unless you are in a magic circle shouting, "You can't see me! I'm invisible!"

The paradox is the magic circle - that is, the paradoxes created by Linden Lab. Consider the following statements which the Linden Lab marketing department will never write, but are nonetheless true:

• 'The Linden dollar is fictional currency, but you can buy Linden dollars with US dollars and sell them for US dollars. You can make real money!'
• 'You can own land in Second Life, but if you don't pay us every month we won't let you own it anymore.'
• 'We will take credit for the good parts of Second Life but shall distance ourselves by silence when it comes to the negatives.'

All of these truths, and many more, make up the magic circle. Personally, I don't think that Linden Lab's decision to stay out of the community recognition of a deceased resident is a part of the magic circle - I think it was an odd but well intentioned query that found a response that perhaps should have been expected. And yet Linden Lab does deify some residents over others - so was it reasonable to expect that they should post on one of the residents who does not fall in the group Linden Lab deifies through the book that they push on their own website?

Is it a paradox? While my gut reaction screams 'no!', it is worth considering that there could be a paradox in there somewhere. Even recently, when I got my response on the commercial licensing of the Second Life client, I saw paradoxes - where I was expected to give a lot of information to a source I would not trust (Linden Lab) for fear that they would share that information with some of their favored. The system is too easy to skew, and it is painfully obvious that it is skewed. But that is not really a part of the magic circle - what is being a part of the magic circle is saying that a select group standing decides who they support - and when.

And if I set up a coffee shop and make a blend of coffee that is virtually good, will I be able to market Second Life Coffee just as someone came up with First Bling? I somehow doubt it.

You can always tell where the magic circles are. Its the paradoxes and/or inequality. That said, Linden Lab has never said that Second Life has equal opportunity. It has never said that you can get ripped off by ponzi schemes, and it also hasn't even tried to point out to people on its own weblog that there are ways to transfer mainland without being ripped off.

But Linden Lab isn't alone when it comes to magic circles.

Consider that WSE has its own magic circle that seems to mesh just fine with the magic circle of Linden Lab. Indeed, there are many other magic circles... some are visible, and some are well hidden though made possible by the... architecture that Linden Lab says its responsible for.

Paradox? Yes, magic circle. When you can snatch the prim from Philip Linden's hand, you will be ready to leave.

I've snatched my prim, but I'm hanging out in Second Life and in a few other places... there is potential, and it is quite interesting to see how real Law will evolve these magic circles