A "mini user case study" was conducted in April 2020 to explore the question, "What’s needed to be attracted to a virtual world and to stay there afterwards?" The results are relevant to virtual presence platform providers moving products from beta through production to broad commercialization, and to their prospective platform users.

1. FINAL REPORT - SineSpace Mini User Case Study 28-Apr-2020
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A "mini user case study" was conducted in April 2020 to explore the question, "What’s needed to be
attracted to a virtual world and to stay there afterwards?" The results are relevant to virtual presence
platform providers moving products from beta through production to broad commercialization, and to
their prospective platform users.
Twelve (12) people were invited to try ​SineSpace​, a virtual world application launched in 2016. All had
been active in virtual worlds for over ten years. Of the 12 invited, 6 accepted. Of the 6 who accepted,
3 remained at the end of the study who were most likely to continue to explore and adopt the platform,
with relative levels of commitment to sharing and inviting others.
Initial emphasis was on the make-or-break nature of users' experiences when dropped “cold” into a
foreign platform user interface. The importance of the “high-tech” user interface factor in retention was
validated immediately - at different points and times in the study, at least half of the team wanted to
quit. It became clear that almost anything in the user interface experience could be forgiven if the
"high-touch" net user experience were sufficiently improved through closeness of relationship and
relevance to interests.
Easing and accelerating user onboarding is mission-crucial to any virtual presence platform provider
moving its product suite from beta testing through production to commercialization. In the current
environment of increased demand, newcomers are platform users, not testers.
The study recommends that a “process flow approach”, illustrated in the tables below, be used by
virtual presence application providers to identify and prioritize high-tech / high-touch adjustments to
their user onboarding process. Live-fire examples from the study team experiences are demonstrated
in the report.
ONBOARDING SUCCESS MAPPED TO NET USER EXPERIENCE FACTORS (User Interface + Relationship + Interest)
1. Will You Try It Had Experiences Relevant to Interests
Felt Safe
Felt Curious to Learn/Connect More
Yes? Continue to Step 2
No? Abandon For Now
2. Will You Adapt To It Met New People With Strongly Similar Interests
Felt More at Home
Saw Opportunities to Further Interests & Connections
Yes? Continue to Step 3
No? Abandon For Now
3. Will You Adopt It Having Positive Experiences & Material Results
Seeing Ways to Do More
Seeing Ways for Connections From Other VW’s to Do More Also
Yes? Continue to Step 4
No? Abandon For Now
4. Will You Share It Establishing a Colony of a New Shared-Interests Community
Becoming a Stakeholder in Stabilizing & Developing the Platform
Yes? Continue to Step 5
No? Abandon For Now
5. Will You Help Grow It Collaborating in Overall Platform Growth Beyond Personal Use tbd
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2. FINAL REPORT - SineSpace Mini User Case Study 28-Apr-2020
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1
ACKNOWLEDGMENT 2
INTRODUCTION 2
OVERVIEW 2
RESULTS & ANALYSIS 4
USER ONBOARDING AS A PROCESS FLOW 5
SPECIALIZED COMMUNITIES OF USER INTEREST 6
RECOMMENDATIONS 6
RELEVANCE 7
EPILOGUE 8
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The investigator extends warm thanks to the study team members who agreed to be part of this “mini
user case study,” deliberately dropped “cold” into a foreign platform user interface, who accepted
because of relationships built working on other projects, and shared interests to make virtual presence
applications more broadly and easily available to new adopters. Thanks go to the SineSpace
residents and staff who assisted us by providing a safe and aesthetic region in which to meet, and the
invitation to share improvement suggestions and consider them with an open mind.
James Neville (Sitearm)
Principal Investigator
n.b. SineSpace Mini User Case Study is an independent exploration project of Development One LLC. This
report is owned by the study team and is shared for public use.
INTRODUCTION
This constitutes the final public report of the SineSpace Mini User Case Study performed and
completed in April 2020. This report is owned by the study team and shared for public use. Its intent is
to expand user options and success rates for trying, adapting to, and adopting virtual presence tools
for ongoing collaborative use. Almost anything in the “high-tech” user interface experience can be
forgiven if the "high-touch" net user experience is strengthened through closeness of relationship and
relevance to interests.
OVERVIEW
Twelve ​(​12) people from ​Second Life​, a virtual world application launched in 2003, were invited to try
SineSpace​, a virtual world application launched in 2016. The investigator had known some invitees for
over 10 years and others for less than 3 months. All, active in multiple virtual worlds for over ten
years, received the notecard below.
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3. A) INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE
What’s needed to be attracted to a virtual world and to stay there afterwards? - CASE STUDY PROJECT
Case Study: SineSpace
Challenge: Create avatars in SineSpace, keep note of experiences
Constraints: Principal Investigator cannot help. All else is fair game.
Meet: 13-Apr-2020 11:00 SLT at GreenLea, The Buzz, SineSpace to discuss
Goal: Prioritized “tweak” recommendations to SineSpace engineering and event leads.
Participant Benefits: Data summary provided to participants to use as they see fit.
Investigator Benefits: Part of current independent exploration project working title Is One World Enough - Web 2.0 and Web 3-D and
Beyond
PI: James G Neville / Sitearm Madonna
Participants: 3 confirmed, 3 pending
as of 08-Apr-2020
Credentials: ​https://www.linkedin.com/in/sitearm/
Disclosure: This is an independent exploration project of Development One LLC
Six (6) accepted the quest and are listed below:
B) STUDY PARTICIPANTS
SineSpace Name Second Life Name Area of Virtual Presence Interest and
Practice
Ajay McDowwll Ajay McDowwll Aesthetics
Futurist Peter from New York (peterfromnewyork) University Futures
Metabasalt2017 Dae Miami Science Education
selbyevans ThinkererSelby Evans (thinkerer.melville) Learning Design
Synapse Zabelin Synapse Zabelin Construction
TrashPandaWasTaken MrsSpooky (spook.maroon) Entertainment
Two questions, one general and one specific, motivated the study:
C) STUDY MOTIVATION - ​QUESTIONS
“What’s needed to be attracted to a virtual world
and to stay there afterwards?”
This was discussed at the ​01-Apr-2020​ ​MuseWeb Linden Lunch​ event in Second
Life by experienced and newcomer residents coming from a traditional physical
conference which had been moved entirely online. Discussion focused on the
importance of being able ​a) to personalize one’s avatar and clothing so that it
represented the user, b) to find events of interest to attend, c) to find a home base
community of common interests to belong to, and d) to feel safe.
“Has there been consideration for a package of user
interface tweaks to better streamline the entry
experience for SineSpace newcomers and recent
newcomers?”
This was asked at the ​01-Apr-2020​ ​Sine Wave Entertainment Tech Hour​ event in
SineSpace referencing the ​0001359: Feature Request: Live TP to the Current
Event Via the Event Board​ submitted 14-mar-2020 citing “​Benefits: Faster, further
and more in-depth SS newcomer onboarding with increased coming back to visit
and becoming regulars in SS​.” Response was that staff was not aware of the
issue however the asker was ​invited to email a list of suggestions​.
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4. RESULTS & ANALYSIS
Three meetings were held. The first meeting ​13-Apr-2020​established introductions and virtual
presence areas of interest and practice. The investigator then moderated a discussion focusing on
feedback expressed as “likes and wishes” regarding the team’s experiences of “getting to the meeting
on time” in an unfamiliar virtual presence platform. The team agreed to a follow-up meeting in one
week to visit a project of mutual interest being constructed in SineSpace.
The Principal Investigator sorted through meeting notes and continued to check in with team
members, asking “Where are you tempted to abandon this quest?” and “What keeps you going?” A
first-pass User Onboarding Flow Chart to map feedback-to-date to flow was identified and shared:
D) ONBOARDING SUCCESS MAPPED TO ​USER INTERFACE FACTORS
Phase User Status Abandonment Stages
Trying 3 were ok
3 wanted to abandon but persevered due to strength of
relationship with team
Learning Basic Avatar Movement
Learning Basic Avatar Customization
Adapting 3 were ok
3 wanted to abandon but persevered due to strength of
relationship with team
Finding Helpful Others
Finding Common Interests
Learning Advanced Avatar Customization
Adopting 5 were ok so far
1 wanted to abandon but is persevering due to strength of
common interest with team
Learning Platform Building Tools
Sharing 1 was ok so far
5 were thinking about it
The second meeting ​20-Apr-2020​focused on updates from the team in the week prior wherein they
each “tried in depth” by variously focusing on a) Avatar And Home Customization, b) Region And
Event Exploration, and c) Platform Access And User Interface Design. Responses resulted in updated
analysis models on the part of the investigator which added the factors of closeness of relationship
and strength of common interest:
E) ONBOARDING SUCCESS MAPPED TO ​USER RELATIONSHIP & INTEREST FACTORS
ODDS OF STAYING Relationship Closeness High Relationship Closeness Low
Common Interests High HIGH MEDIUM
Common Interests Low MEDIUM LOW
F) ONBOARDING SUCCESS MAPPED TO ​NET USER EXPERIENCE FACTORS ​(User Interface + Relationship + Interest)
1. Will You Try It Had Experiences Relevant to Interests
Felt Safe
Felt Curious to Learn/Connect More
Yes? Continue to Step 2
No? Abandon For Now
2. Will You Adapt To It Met New People With Strongly Similar Interests
Felt More at Home
Saw Opportunities to Further Interests & Connections
Yes? Continue to Step 3
No? Abandon For Now
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5. 3. Will You Adopt It Having Positive Experiences & Material Results
Seeing Ways to Do More
Seeing Ways for Connections From Other VW’s to Do More Also
Yes? Continue to Step 4
No? Abandon For Now
4. Will You Share It Establishing a Colony of a New Shared-Interests Community
Becoming a Stakeholder in Stabilizing & Developing the Platform
Yes? Continue to Step 5
No? Abandon For Now
5. Will You Help Grow It Collaborating in Overall Platform Growth Beyond Personal Use tbd
The final meeting ​27-Apr-2020​focused on providing feedback to a team member’s science education
exhibit in SineSpace featuring a Natural History museum with interactive exhibits.
USER ONBOARDING AS A PROCESS FLOW
User Onboarding can be modeled as a process flow that can be “debottlenecked.” Bumps and
abandonment points can be addressed by mapping user feedback to stages in the flow, including both
high-tech and high-touch points, and thus address as a whole the net user experience of “trying,
adapting to, and adopting” the platform. Almost anything in the “high-tech” user interface experience
can be forgiven if the "high-touch" net user experience is strengthened through closeness of
relationship and relevance to interests.
Net user experience can be streamlined and improved using a process flow model designed and
detailed as shown below. Streamlining benefits can accrue to platform staff as well as platform users
in the form of reduced frustration and increased efficiency.
G) USER ONBOARDING AS A ​PROCESS FLOW - MODEL DESIGN
Design: ● Each platform onboarding phase has key gates in the flow where users opt to continue to the next phase
or abandon the platform. Phase names provide high and detail-level reference points.
Purpose: ● Streamline the user onboarding process such that user decisions to remain with a platform trend net
positive.
● Match user feedback to high and detail-level points.
● Identify frequently recurring issues with newcomers, recent newcomers, and experienced users.
● Identify key choke points in the process flows and map them to enhancements not only in the platform but
in availability of, and ease of access to, platform information and knowledgeable others.
● Prioritize enhancements so as to optimize use of limited staff and volunteer time while still improving
overall user onboarding experiences and hence platform retention and growth.
● Continue to identify where further feedback and enhancements are opportune.
H) USER ONBOARDING AS A ​PROCESS FLOW - MODEL DETAIL
Onboarding - Phase Gates Onboarding - Phase Details
1: Trying - First Pass
Entry: Will You Try It?
Exit: Will You Adapt To It?
Try1 Opt to try
Try2 Learn about platform app by word of mouth and/or press
Try3 Find platform app online
Try4 Download and install platform app
Try5 Select an app username
Try6 Login to app
Try7 Learn how to, and begin to use basic avatar movement and camera and action controls
Try8 Learn how to, and begin to use advanced controls
Try9 Learn how to, and begin to communicate with others
Try10 Learn how to, and begin to personalize avatar and profile
Try11 Opt to continue trying the app, or to abandon for now
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6. 2: Adapting - Trying In Depth
Entry: Will You Adapt to It?
Exit: Will You Adopt It?
Adapt1 Opt to continue trying
Adapt2 Learn how to, and establish a home base
Adapt3 Learn how to, and begin to shop
Adapt4 Learn how to, and begin to attend networking events
Adapt5 Learn how to, and find and use learning resources faq’s guides how to’s
Adapt6 Learn how to, and find and connect with helpful others
Adapt7 Learn how to, and find and connect with knowledgeable others with common interests
Adapt 8 Learn how to, and establish a home community
Adapt9 Opt to continue adapting to the app and community, or to abandon for now
3: Adopting - Embedding Into
Ongoing Use
Entry: Will You Adopt It?
Exit: Will You Share It?
Adopt1 Opt to continue adapting
Adopt2 Learn how to, and begin to use app & platform building tools
Adopt3 Opt to invite others, or not
4: Sharing - Recruiting & Partnering
With Others
Entry: Will You Share It?
Exit: Will You Grow It?
Share1 Opt to, and invite others
Share2 Share app experiences by word of mouth and/or press and/or other to attract partners
Share3 Help partners onboard quickly to collaborate in projects of common interest
Share4 See possibilities and opportunities to collaborate in overall app growth beyond personal
use.
Share5 Opt to grow app, or not
5: Growing - Getting Word Out to
People You Don't Even Know
Entry: Will You Grow It?
Grow1 Opt to collaborate in overall app growth beyond personal use
Grow2 Share by word of mouth, articles, posts, presentations, etc.
SPECIALIZED COMMUNITIES OF USER INTEREST
Improving platform features and user interface for all users is important and relates to one half of what
is needed for broad platform adoption. Equally important to continued platform sustainability and
growth is facilitating ways for newcomers, recent newcomers, and experienced users to find and
network with others in specialized communities of user interest. These ways can include regularly
scheduled events as shown below. As user retention expands further mechanisms will be needed, as
discussed in the detailed recommendations.
I) STUDY TEAM ​INTERESTS MAPPED TO EVENTS
Virtual Presence Interest Area Events (as of Apr-2020)
Aesthetics ​- avatar personalization, fashions, accessories Costume Contest ​held monthly
Construction ​- regions, buildings, furnishings, vehicles Tech Hour ​event held weekly
Entertainment ​- music, arts, dances Music ​events held daily
Learning Design - project based learning -
Science Education - interactive exhibits, replicas -
University Futures - advanced coding languages -
RECOMMENDATIONS
This study recommends that a process flow approach, as demonstrated in the report, be used by
virtual presence application providers to identify and prioritize high-tech / high-touch adjustments to
their user onboarding processes. This will help improve the quality of the net user experience, reduce
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7. frustration and time incurred by residents and staff, and contribute to net user retention and platform
growth.
J) ONBOARDING PROCESS FLOW MODEL RECOMMENDATIONS - DETAIL
1. Use the “onboarding process flow model approach”
modeled in this study, or similar, to prioritize
development and support work and the “high-tech”
side of platform enhancements and releases.
A. Residents and staff will be able to better see and understand
each other’s points of view by relating them to a shared
process model delineating user onboarding phases and
gates.
B. For example, feature requests can be tailored by residents,
and prioritized by staff, through pinpointing feature relevance
to the part of the user onboarding process in play (e.g.,
“beginner issue”, “adapter issue”, “adopter issue”, “sharer
issue”, “grower issue” etc.)
C. Also, residents and staff will be able to more materially
progress their shared interest in overall net positive user and
platform growth with substantive dialogues more detailed
than “We are working hard. We understand your frustration.”
2. Use the “onboarding process flow model approach”
modeled in this study, or similar, to add more depth
to the “high-touch” side of the virtual platform user
onboarding process.
A. Valiant efforts are made daily by volunteer residents to help
newcomers and recent newcomers. These efforts mostly
address issues related to the “beginner” phase of user
onboarding.
B. The ability to quickly and naturally respond evaporates when
newcomers demand advanced help and information related
to their specialized interests. These are “adapter” and
“adopter” issues that require the assistance of users who
have similar interests and relevant knowledge.
C. One way to provide specialized assistance is having users
who are already onboard recruit and invite their own partners
from other virtual world projects to join them in the new
platform and personally help them onboard quickly. These
are “sharer” issues.
3. Assess, and redesignate as needed, staff roles
dedicated to “commercial production operation”
versus “technical enhancements and new
development” for the platform. Include a designated
liaison role, with clout, to help keep disparate teams
of the enterprise synchronized. Teams who are
tunnel-visioned in their work areas may seem
oblivious to the big picture and where things are
being held up, or where opportunities for future
growth are being missed. Little things to one team
may be critical-path needs for the other.
A. Review and clear feature request queues regularly by
identifying those that are closed, open, irrelevant, need
priority, need details, need deleted etc.
B. Continuously incorporate feedback received, whether at
formal meetings or in casual interactions, into the feature
request / enhancement & development planning cycle
process
C. Many ad hoc special interest groups have already
self-formed but there is no quick way for staff or other
residents, to find out about them - recognize and
acknowledge these existing niche groups and give them air
time.
RELEVANCE
In the current environment of increased user demand, virtual presence platform providers must quickly
move their products from beta through production to users. The pool of prospective new users, waiting
to “try, adapt to, and adopt” virtual presence will only consider a platform, and stay with it, if they
perceive that it serves their professional and social needs. These newcomers are platform users, not
testers. This recognition is necessary towards growing a thriving virtual economy.
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8. EPILOGUE
Entry starts with marketing and the marketing is based on use cases.
The flow is dependent on the use cases and the use cases must be of interest to each customer.
The initial experience must fit with the use cases to retain the potential customers.
A company offering virtual worlds will need entries designed for specific use cases.
Dr. Selby Evans, Retired Professor of Psychology, Retired Consultant in Applied Psychology, Active Blogger at Virtual Outworlding
It's a bit hard to adapt.
Ajay McDowwll, Hostess, DJ Manager, Office Manager, Comptroller, Architectural Designer
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