It's fairly often that I might be talking with someone and remark that the degree I'm in is the one I chose because the one I wanted doesn't exist. I then have the tough time of describing what is it that I've long considered "my life's work". If you read my stuff regularly you might have seen several hundreds of words on the topic. If you continue to read my stuff you'll probably find scattered throughout several hundreds more words on the subject, as it is something so close to home.
Designing Virtual Worlds would be the core of at least one fundamental course in that degree program. It seems to be an excellent introduction to areas and topics that I've spent so many years contemplating, observing, and analyzing... to the areas that I hope to one day be paid to work in. Only a few chapters in and its already become a good place to point for those who may be interested in my "applied systems analysis" (aka "(Virtual) World Making") degree.
So far in the few chapters I've read I haven't found much that I haven't before been at least introduced to, but Bartle's writing style is friendly and sometimes slyly funny so I've enjoyed reading even stuff that I already knew. It's also nice just to have those "I remember that" and "I remember discussing that" moments leading back to some of my own insights and thoughts on some of these subjects. It makes me wish for a conversation with Bartle himself as opposed to just reading the book. (Which perhaps means that I may make a post or two at the book's associated website...)