Thing #15-Online Games and Libraries

It has been fascinating for me to watch the growth of the relationship between online gaming and libraries. In my past life as a children's librarian we were always looking for the quick way to jump into new trends and somehow tie in reading. It is really interesting to see how different libraries are allowing their young adult patrons to go crazy in the online gaming world, providing access through the library as well as creating content for the library. Online gaming at the Library would definitely get those unusual non-users in to the building--or at least on the website.
After watching the video for Second Life, I didn't learn all that much about the libraries that are present. I have never even looked at Second Life, but I understand that making your avatar walk, run sit down, etc. is very difficult. So I would guess that the creator of the Second Life video attached to Thing 15 is really displaying his or her Second Life skills, with all the roller skating, flying,etc. I really don't see a worthwhile use of Second Life for libraries. I feel there are many other more valuable 2.0 features, such as Flickr and LibraryThing, that I would pursue first. We already have enough people using the library who are existing in a parallel universe--I don't really want to add even another universe!
I couldn't get Puzzle Pirates to work, so I decided to try Gaia Online, which was a website suggested by a blog comment on the Thing #15 blog entry on 23 Things. I really enjoyed playing the puzzle feature, and you could do it as a guest. Obviously I didn't create an account and then an avatar, etc. I was never into video games, and even though I play around with my stepsons occasionally I don't really enjoy any of the current state of the art stuff. Although, I would like to try the Wii, because I like the physical aspect. However, I can certainly see the appeal of online gaming, and my youngest stepson, 17, is into it heavily. Outside of programming to attract gamers to the Library, however, I'm somewhat skeptical of other library applications. It was fun, though!