Avatar

In computing, an avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user’s alter ego or character. It may take either a three-dimensional form, as in games or virtual worlds, or a two-dimensional form as an icon in Internet forums and other online communities. It can also refer to a text construct found on early systems such as MUDs. It is an object representing the user. The term “avatar” can also refer to the personality connected with the screen name, or handle, of an Internet user.
The use of the term avatar for the on-screen representation of the user was coined in 1985 by Chip Morningstar and Joseph Romero in designing LucasFilm’s online role-playing game Habitat. The computer game Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar was released in 1985, but does not use the word in this sense, only in its original religious sense; the player’s in-game final objective is to become an “Avatar”. Later games in the Ultima series use the term in the same sense as Habitat and introduce Habitat…