My original point was, and is, that the idea that your idea of reality inside the computer is exactly as real as you think it is. Which is as real as you would

My original point was, and is, that the idea that your idea of reality inside the computer is exactly as real as you think it is. Which is as real as you would like it to be. Also, as unreal. When the water doesn't come out of the tap, the shit doesn't get flushed away, or for some other reason you're forced to deal with the mundane reality of life, your perspective will change slightly. Your reality will shift. Or if you buy a house, or have to do repairs. What I am saying is, is that this is absolutely no different than everyone else - the other people, who also do not live in reality. They don't understand how the plumbing works either, but their reality most likely involves intrigues, dramas and scripts with other people, played out perhaps on a slightly different stage. There is nothing in understanding facebook or moving a mouse around which requires new neural hardware. P.S: > "Reality is what doesn't go away when you stop believing in it" This is kind of ironic when you're talking about "online" as a place. If we're to use that metric, "online" is extremely unreal. (I think it's as real a place as any other, and not especially more unreal than other unrealities we live in).