Which is Better: Virtual Reality or Actual Reality?

Pixelated Geek blog posed an intriguing question: if you could live in a Virtual Reality world, would you be better off than living in the real one?

He was under the opinion that a VR (Virtual Reality) world would be far better than an actual world. We talked under the conditions that in the VR world: you would be medically fine and taken care of, you had enough information about the world to shape it as you wished, you
had potentially unlimited amount of time to be in the VR world.

His argument was that he could do anything he wanted to, So why not live in that space? You could learn in this space via online classes, which are popular for the busy and the reclusive. You could go on adventures like in your favorite video games. You could also be a god to some measure, with the space around you bending to your will.

Sounds like a solid gig. You could be who you want, do what you want, and be with who you wanted to.

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Well I really can't seem to guess what people would try first in their unrestricted VR worlds, populated by attractive VR people who never say no. Online classes? Maybe after a couple of years...
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You would also consume resources from the real world, if only in the form of electricity, food, water, medical services, housing (though this last wouldn't be much if you were jacked in 24/7). What would you give back to the 'real world'? What would the 'real world's' incentive be to keep your virtual world thriving? There would have to be enough tangible benefit to support such a thing, or else those who were always in the virtual and never in the real would be nothing but parasites on the larger population they are inseparably a part of. Even if they could download their entire consciousness into that matrix, something would have to power it and maintain its servers...
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After 54 years, I have a reasonable handle on the physical world. I am loath to start out as a relative teenager in a virtual world.

As for the argument that virtual worlds provide one with unlimited fresh starts, so does the physical world.
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I think a bit part of the decision would be whether or not there were communal spaces. A VR would with only you in it I'd think would get very boring and lonely. If it have connectivity to it, then that would be something else. Even if only in certain 'areas' of the VR world.

Another thing to think about would be time-perception. If the VR was so immersive that a person could experience, say, hours of time, but only have 1 minute pass for their biological body, that would be very neat.

Also, everyone, go read Snow Crash. :)
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