When Mr Alexis Wong (not his real name) is interacting in the virtual world, he leaves his real life at the door.

He sheds his fair skin, short hair and manly physique for freckles, a messy bob, and a tiny waist. In his online persona, he becomes a woman.

"For most people, if they are musicians in real life, they want to be musicians in their virtual life. But then you don?t fully explore the freedom that you get in this world to try different things," he explained.

That world is Second Life, a computer simulated environment in cyberspace. As a virtual world, it resides on thousands of servers based mostly in San Francisco, and is accessed through the Internet.

Created in 2003 by Linden Labs, it has now become a home to some 5.3 million residents, as users are called in Second Life.

Second Life is part of a growing trend of virtual worlds that have popped up in cyberspace. Unlike online games, in Second Life and virtual worlds there are no winners or losers, levels and an end-strategy. Residents do not play for the highest scores or kills.

Their online personas or avatars can explore, meet other each other, socialise, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade virtual property and services from one another.

Residents can choose to do whatever they want in Second Life, even changing their appearance and gender.

For the 24-year-old Mr Wong, the virtual world lets him live out his fantasy.

Not of being a woman, but of being a successful craftsman, creating his art pieces online and selling them in Second Life.

This ability to live out your fantasies has attracted more than 2,500 Singaporean users who have registered with this virtual world.

Former financial consultant, Ms Aileen Sim, has been drawn to it because she can live out her entrepreneurial dream without incurring any work risk or financial losses in the real world. She has set up a company, First Meta Bank, and is in the process of launching a credit card in Second Life to take advantage of the virtual capitalist economy there.

"There is a huge retail industry in Second Life, because people like to buy clothes and accessories for their avatars and furniture for their homes," said Ms Sim, 24. In Second Life, goods can be bought and sold with Linden dollars. On the LindEx currency exchange, L$265 can be exchanged for US$1 (S$1.53).

Everyday, Lindens worth about US$1.5 million change hands in Second Life. And last month, 152 of its residents made more than US$5,000 each.

This economy has seen the likes of real world companies such as sporting brands Addidas and Reebok and carmakers Pontiac, Nissan and Toyota setting up shop there to sell their virtual autos.

For these companies, building relationships and mind share with consumers, not raking in cash, is the main goal. They hope this will translate to business in the real world.

Educational institutions are also using Second Life as teaching tools. In Nanyang Polytechnic, one group of students attend class as avatars. Their real selves and their avatars are shown here and in the next few pages.

For other people, like Mr Alvin Loo, 29, Second Life allows them to socialise with more people at greater convenience.

"I like to talk to people, to learn more new things. In real life, it can be troublesome to meet friends. You have to shower and change into new clothes, you need to go out, and you need to spend money," he quipped.

And while others might scoff at virtual friendships, social psychologist, Dr Angeline Khoo says there is value in them.

"The relationships are virtual only in the sense that they're not face-to-face, but that is like pen pals in the old days. Just because you don't see the person, it doesn't mean they are unreal. In fact, these relationships can be more real because you are less inhibited online, and you pour out your emotions," she said.

Real prospects in new world

The realism, or at least pseudo-realism of online social interactions, have also seen researchers and companies rushing into Second Life to test social and market behaviour.

They use the virtual world to model real-world problems, like how a contagious disease spreads, or consumer behaviour, like how they react to new features in cars.

But in a world where people can change their gender and even species, there are also aspects unlike the real world.

For Mr Wong though, that is precisely why he needs to traverse the virtual world as a woman.

He chose a female character, after a little sociological experiment he conducted. He created a female and male avatar and set them out to do similar things at the same time. The female ended up getting more friends and more help. The male avatar quietly disappeared.

"It?s like a reverse patriachal society in Second Life, it's easier for women to make friends and earn money," he said.