Postscript

Did any of this help my friends?

To be honest, probably not—it was by then too late for most of them. It did help denerd those that followed, though.

It also set a lasting precedent: Virtual worlds are seen as acceptable shielding contexts. To this day, playing a character in a virtual world with a gender different from your own does not suggest anything about your sexuality—just your readiness to spread your wings and fly.