Yes, I was “that guy” who joined in the chorus – “Second Life? No thanks, I have a real life.” So while I passively watched organizations like Coca-Cola, IBM  and countless universities recreate themselves in a virtual word, I was skeptical that it would amount to much.

That’s why Wired’s recent coverage of the quickly emptying online world, and Chris Anderson’s about-face on the virtues of the virtual space have been intriguing:

Well, partly it was the whole “there’s nobody there” problem, which is of course just anecdotal. Like everyone else, I had fun exploring the concept and marveling at all the creativity. Then I got bored, and I started marveling at something else: all the empty corporate edifices. By day I’d speak at marketing conferences that usually had someone pitching SL services, complete with staged demonstrations (the “inhabitants” invariably paid employees). By night I’d go back to the same places, which had reverted to ghost towns once the demonstration was over.

What do you think? Is there hope for Second Life yet?