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There (virtual world)

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Viridis (talk | contribs) at 07:42, 30 June 2007 (Unnecessary, would be much better at a fansite. It's too in depth for a general Wikipedia article.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

There.com
There.com Logo
Developer(s)Makena Technologies
Publisher(s)Makena Technologies
Platform(s)Windows 98

Windows ME
Windows 2000
Windows XP

Windows Vista (Partially Supported)
Release2003
Genre(s)Multiplayer
Mode(s)Multiplayer

There is a 3-D online virtual world created by Will Harvey and Jeffrey Ventrella. There Inc. was founded in the spring of 1998. Closed beta began in July of 2001, with various stages of beta following and ending with an October 2003 launch date. In June of 2004, There Inc. went through a major restructuring and announced major layoffs. In April of 2005, There Inc. announced that the commercial side of the company would be branching out to form two companies Forterra Systems (the government contracted client), and Makena Technologies (the commercial client). In 2007, Makena Technologies announced a partnership with MTV Networks to create another client for the MTV reality show [1] Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County. There contains 12 major islands and numerous smaller islands, 500,000 members and many community places including businesses. There is another competitor against Second Life, Moove, Active Worlds, and more virtual worlds that exist on the web.

Membership Types

Basic Membership:

  • Free
  • Text chat, IM, and Buddy List features
  • Customizable avatar
  • Ability to shop in auctions and the There catalog
  • Listen to streamed radio
  • The ability to join 20 groups

Premium Membership:

  • One time $9.95 fee
  • All the features of basic membership
  • Voice chat
  • Explorer Pack
  • List items in the auctions
  • Ability to join 30 more groups and create own, host events, post in the forums and own your own neighborhood

Source

In-World Money:

  • With either membership, users can purchase Therebucks (Tbuxs), the currency used in There, for the price of 1800 Therebucks for each US dollar.

Details

There is not a game, but a venue for socializing with less role-playing than is typically found in MMORPGs. Billed on its homepage as "...an online getaway where you can hang out with your friends and meet new ones...", There defines itself as a service providing a shared experience that allows people to interact in an online society.

Each new member enters the community by choosing a unique name and a male or female avatar. The avatar's name and gender are permanently set, but various attributes such as hair color and style, head and body shapes, skin and eye color, clothing, etc. can be changed as desired.

Most items such as furniture are designed to be used within houses or zones, although some items such as vehicles and dogs are not due to their mobile nature. Monetary transactions in There's economy are done using Therebucks, virtual currency with real world value. Therebucks can be purchased directly from There, from other members, or from any of the third party online "banks" which usually offer competitive exchange rates. Members can also sell their Therebucks to banks in exchange for real world currency, usually USD.


Screenshots

Official sites
Maps
Online There newspapers
Other on-line worlds using the There engine
Other
There videos