I have to wonder why people insist on masking their identities and creating "pretend lives." I can't say that I understand or can relate to the type of virtual realities described in our readings. Nakamura describes these fantasy worlds as a vacation from fixed identities and locales and it offers the satisfaction of a desire to "fix the boundaries of cultural identity and exploit them for recreational purposes." I can understand the wish or fantasy to be part of something where anything is possible and you can go anywhere or be anyone, but I wonder about appeal of living separate lives. The whole idea of changing your entire identity interested me, but I guess the question I wonder is why, I mean if you're really that unhappy with your true identity, then why not try to improve upon that instead of creating an entirely new identity? The Internet has become a common tool for communication, traditional boundaries of socialization and status, and their inflicted constraints are increasingly obsolete. Social virtual realities are primarily dependent on how and what one chooses to communicate about themselves. People create new, alternate identities, without the physical boundaries of race, ethnicity and gender, the Internet becomes a place where people can put aside many of the inequalities of real life. Going back to Turkle's article, multi-user domains allow identity developments (link) that include anonymous social interaction where you can play a role that is as close or as far away from your real self as you choose.