Virtual Worlds in the near future are going to play an increasing role in our lives. The fact that Google with Google Lively its first footsteps in the digital universe continues, suggests that more has happened than just a new gimmick. The number of virtual worlds is also growing. Most of the virtual worlds in the Netherlands we hear nothing or very little about. Yet another far-from-us-bed-show? Gary Hayes is currently engaged in an investigation into virtual worlds and he has recorded his journey on YouTube. This provides a seven-minute film in which 50 virtual worlds pass the revue.

Second Life, HiPiHi, Kaneva, Twinity, ActiveWorlds, LagunaBeach vMTV. There.com, Habbo, Google Lively, FootballSuperstars, Weblin, AmazingWorlds, CyWorld, Whyville, Gaia Online, RocketOn, Club Penguin, YoVille, Webkinz, BarbieGirls, Prototerra, IMVU, Spore, vSide, Tale in the Desert, SpineWorld, Stardoll The Manor, There.com, ExitReality, Vastpark, Qwaq, PS3Home, GoSupermodel, Grockit, Croquet, Metaplace, Coke Studios, Dreamville, Dubit, Mokitown, Move, Muse, The Palace, Playdo, Sora City, Voodoo Chat, TowerChat, Traveler , Virtual Ibiza… Are you on your journey?

On his site Gary also refers to a beautiful visual of the Examination Kzero where several virtual worlds in a useful overview (jpg) are plotted against each other.

EVERYONE should be doing videos

- I have seen this video 3 times before reading the content above - andrew peters aka aplink

PS: theRedlightcentre missed a debute in the video - i wonder why ?

Ok, es ist wirklich nicht viel, aber man kann Robert zugute halten, dass er oft genug etwas auschweifender wird, und das ist auch gut so ;D

Die Studie mit dem Titel "Planetary-Scale Views on an Instant-Messaging Network" stammt von Juni 2007 und wurde im Auftrag von Microsoft Research erstellt.
Jurij Leskovec und Eric Horwitz verarbeiteteten dafür mehr als 30 Milliarden Konversationen zwischen rund 240 Mio. IM-Verbindungen, die im Juni 2006 über den Microsoft Messenger geführt wurden.

Nächsten Monat soll der Bericht auf der 17th International World Wide Web Conference (WWW2008) im alten Peking, das heute Běijīng heisst, vorgestellt werden.

Ich finde die Verbindung Microsoft <> WWW <> China ganz interessant, werde mich dazu aber nicht weiter auslassen .. nö, keine Lust jetzt ;D

Die Studie, auf die mittlerweile auch der Kölner Stadtanzeiger und andere verweisen, habe ich vorhin beim Abendessen mal schnell überflogen, nachdem ich Robert's Post dazu entdeckte, und dabei schon ein paar sehr interessante "Maps" gesehen, auf die ich gerne verweisen würde - was bei einem .pdf leider meist etwas schwieriger ist :

einmal Figure 5 auf Seite 7 : erstaunlich viele 100-jährige, die da den MS Messenger benutzen, wahrscheinlich in etwa soviele wie auch bei Myspace zu finden sind ;D

dann Figure 10 auf Seite 12, die fast eine "World Map" erkennen lässt,

sowie Figure 14 auf Seite 14 : in Saudi Arabien lässt man den Messenger wohl den ganzen Tag laufen, wie mein früherer Mitbewohner das auch machte, selbst wenn er tagelang nicht zu Hause war .. aber mitgezählt wurds trotzdem.

Was Robert und viele andere an der Studie besonders hervorheben, ist die dort scheinbar wieder bewiesene These, dass jeder Mensch auf der Erde jeden anderen über höchstens 6 Ecken kennt : auf englisch nennt man's "Six degrees of separation", auf deutsch das "Kleine-WeltPhänomen".

Laut der Studie ergab sich zwar eine genauere Zahl von 6,6 Personen, sagen wir also ruhig mal 7 Personen, aber das ist ja auch schon Hammer genug - und bestätigt nicht nur den Erfinder der These, Stanley Milgram, sondern auch die Slogans all der Social Web Networks und Online Communities, die in den letzten 10 Jahren entstanden sind.

Mario Sixtus hat dazu auch schon früher etwas geschrieben, und ich erinnere mich an eine Kolumne aus der Zeit von 1999, in der diese These von den Redakteuren anhand eines konkreten Beispiels bewiesen werden wollte, nämlich der Verbindung über 6 Ecken von einem Berliner Falafelverkäufer zu seinem Idol Marlon Brando.
Zumindest hab ich die gerade im Archiv der Zeit gefunden; eigentlich erinnere ich mich an eine noch frühere Kolumne mit noch mehr Beispielen - aber vielleicht wars ja doch nur die eine ?
Die Autorin dieser Kolumne, Heike Faller, hat übrigens damals auch einen grottenschlechten Artikel über Activeworlds geschrieben, "Die Zukunft ist schon da", in der sie über ihre Erfahrungen in diesen virtuellen Welten berichtete, und der leider keinen solchen Hype wie den auf "Second Life" generierte - aber das nur am Rande.
Ich habe sie so um 2001 herum, als ich für das Nikoworld-Projekt arbeitete, mal angerufen, um zu fragen, ob ich ihn ins Netz stellen könne, da er hier nicht zu finden war ist, aus welchem Grund auch immer. Ich erhielt eine sehr kühle Abfuhr, die ich nicht ganz nachvollziehen konnte, denn gerade übers Telefon kann ich oft wirklich Berge bewegen, oder wie das heisst. Na jedenfalls hab ich mich auch dran gehalten, der Artikel ist weiterhin nicht ( über Google ) im Netz zu finden, nur ein paar Zitate daraus fand ich hier und hier.

Grottenschlecht habe ich gesagt, hm - ja, der Artikel liess einiges an Einfühlungsvermögen vermissen, wie aber auch bei vielen "Second Life"-Artikeln späterer virtueller Welten-Reporter .. schnelles Rein- und Raus, mögliche Vorurteile bestätigt, drüber geschrieben, Sold kassiert, und wieder weg.

Oder nochmal Frau Faller, wenn sie z.B. minderjährige InternetUserInnen recht intim interviewt und dann so ganz nebenbei auch noch nach ihren Nicks fragt, wie ich grade fand. Ansonsten ist ihre Schreibe eigentlich ganz gut, aber .. naja.

Ich schweife ab - und mache mal besser Schluss hier, wollte doch die Studie noch weiterlesen ;D

Oh, und ne neue Headergrafik hab ich noch eingebaut hier .. die letzte ( "Der Trick hält Nachtwache" ) war doch leider etwas sehr dunkel.

Der neue Header zeigt eine Aufnahme aus dem unterirdischen BIC ( Binford Information Center ) in Activeworlds kurz nach der erfolgreichen Landung der STS-114 Mission Shuttle Crew auf der legendären Edwards Airforce Base in der Mojave Wüste am 9.8.2005. Die gesamte Mission wurde damals im BIC von mehreren Membern der BINFORD Corp überwacht.
So, nu aber .. tschö.

With all these virtual places, navigating virtual worlds has startling (to me at least!) similarities to navigating the real world. To make things interesting, some of the problems navigating the real world are magnified. My first experience of Second Life was teleporting to a totally random set of locations and some subsequent aimless wandering/flying. I have absolutely no idea where any of those places are! I did try and go back to one of them later but without any GPS I didn't stand a chance. To start with teleporting reminded me of stepping out of tube stations in London- I gradually get to know the area round stations I visit frequently, without realising that they are in fact practically next to each other! To make matters worse, navigating by landmarks can be unreliable when the landmarks can change so quickly and completely. It's like going back to a home town after moving away for years, when new roads and buildings have replaced old familiar landmarks. Except that change happens much faster in a virtual world, and even mountains can move!

I quickly learnt to save landmarks of places I might want to return to in Second Life, which leads to the next tiny problem. Places change. In the real world, people and businesses move. In the virtual world they seem to do it a lot! I might go back to a cake shop I visited a month or two ago in the real world to discover that it now sells clothes. In the virtual world, I might go back to a shop to discover that the shop has gone, along with the town it was in! I might teleport in to the middle of a battlefield! It will get even more interesting when places move from one virtual world to another- my Second Life landmark is not going to do much good in Kaneva!

The DNS system already provides a way to look up the address of a computer based on a name. So the computer this weblog is hosted on could move from one country to another and the name you use to view it would stay the same. Instead of a post code (isn't a zip what you use on clothes?!) system, maybe a Place Name Service (PNS) would help. No need to restrict this one to virtual worlds either. Register your place name and when someone uses it, they could end up with a real world address, a Second Life landmark, etc. etc.

That doesn't solve the problem of finding places in the first place. This is a bigger problem on a general purpose virtual world, since not finding a place you think is interesting or useful is likely to mean you leave thinking that the whole virtual world is not interesting or useful. There could have been the most amazing place just round the corner and you would never know. (You'll live without it but thats a big problem for a virtual world that wants more active users.) In the real world, you might use a guide book or go on a tour to find interesting places. Why not do the same in a virtual world? Or, as with anything on the internet, look out for where other people are going. Tom Werner's blog might be a good place to look, although I must admit I am slightly biased!

So what are your top 5 virtual places (Second Life or anywhere else)?

Without people, you're left with 3d graphics, or not even that for some virtual worlds. If you want to show off some 3d design on a web page, there would certainly be better ways to do it if slick graphics, simplicity or speed were you primary concern. You could mash up 3d content and social software in some sort of google CAD application so people can collaborate on garden layouts/kitchen designs/pimping their ride, and there are already instant messaging tools, voice over IP and web cams, so who needs a virtual world? There's no one thing that you can do in a virtual world that you can't do another way but virtual worlds tie it all together in a natural way. (Well, I'm sure there's room for improvement but the potential is definitely there.)

If you just try out your first virtual world without anyone else, you're unlikely to see them at their best. It's a lot like arriving in a big city- there must be things to do and people to talk to, but where do you start? Exploring with someone you already know can help a lot. That's certainly my experience with Second Life; the first time I logged in was very nearly my last. It was only after being shown round a few places and meeting up with people in-world that I began to see the potential. I think linking up virtual worlds with social networks is a great idea in this respect, which I think Kaneva does, and you can now do with the Second Life Link on Facebook.

Trying out virtual worlds with a specific purpose in mind also seems like a good way to experience the people power early on, whether they're people you already know, or just other people with a common interest. The I am Legend Second Life game is a fun example, but I recently heard about talkademy which just sounds fantastic. One of my excuses for being so bad at languages is just not having the chance to practice. I rarely go to Spain or Germany, and when I do, everyone is far too kind and happily talks in English before I've barely struggled through my first sentence! Using virtual worlds to practice sounds like a great use of virtual worlds. Another killer app?

When I've had a chance to talk with educators about virtual worlds I've noticed a considerable amount of interest, but also some concerns or apprehensions. One concern is related to the technology as mentioned above, the other relates to time issues. We'll address them both below.

Guide for getting started

Navigating the waters in a virtual world might seem complex, but it's really a matter of learning what keys to press. Expect to be confused and somewhat disoriented at first. Resist the urge to flee, hang in there a bit, no one you know is probably watching, so you can proceed at your own pace. Here's a step-by-step guide to getting started:

• Choose a world. I would suggest either the Active Worlds Educational Universe or There.com for your first voyage. If you prefer to get your feet wet without a number of other virtual people around (as well as get a glimpse of some educational uses of this technology) try the Active Worlds Educational Universe. If you're the sociable type and want to interact with or at least observe others in virtual space right away, select There.com.

• Download the software from their website. It's free and doesn't take long to download (5-15 minutes) if you have a high speed internet connection. Save it to a place you can locate on your computer, the desktop is often the easiest. Active Worlds Download There Download

• Install the software (usually just double-click the file) and it will install more or less automatically, leaving an icon on your desktop to start the program.

• Log in. Double click on your world icon and the program will start up and lead to the login page. Active Worlds makes this process quite simple, you don't even have to create an account. You simply select the tourist option, choose the name you wish to use in the world and provide an email address (don't worry, they don't seem to badger you with commercial emails). For There.com you create an account on their website before logging in where you select an ID and a password. Use that information when you reach the log-in screen.

• Choose a character (avatar). Active Worlds simplifies that process by choosing a male or female tourist for you, not glamorous, but simple. You can change your appearance later, but it should suffice for getting started. There.com gives you some choice in avatars, as I recall. Some worlds provide not only a number of choices, but allow you to custom design your avatar down to the type of nose you want, but that's for later.

• Scotty has beamed you in, now what? There are really only two things you need to know to get started, how to move and how to talk. Use the arrow keys on your computer to move around. To talk using text chat, simply click on the white box or strip (chat box) located on the lower part of your screen and you can now type in anything you wish to say. Press the enter key once you've finished and the text will be visible to those around you (in their chat box and/or as a bubble above your head). That's all there is to it, really. Later, you can learn how to send someone a private message as well. Some worlds also have voice communication available, but get comfortable with chat before moving on to speech.

• Explore, both the interface and the world. You'll see a bunch of unfamiliar icons and options in your virtual world interface. Don't be afraid to click on them to see what happens, you won't break anything. It's the best way to learn. If you want to be more organized about the process, there is usually a help file available for you within the interface. Some worlds also have "in world" tutorials and during my first trip to There.com a helpful avatar acted as my guide. Just be patient with yourself and the new world around you. It's like visiting a new country for the first time. Most of the natives are quite friendly and someone is usually willing to help if you ask.

• Other worlds. Once you start to feel comfortable in one of these worlds, you might want to branch out. Second Life is probably the best known of these open-ended worlds, and has received a lot of attention for it's educational applications, but it is a bit more complex. Trying out one of the theme based Massive Mulitplayer Online Role-Playing Games like Lord of the Rings Online is more involved, but that's an option you can pursue. We'll go over the steps to enter those worlds in another post.

Time Issues

One of the roadblocks to trying virtual worlds is time pressures. Most teachers are already overwhelmed with class preparation, grading and other responsibilities. Who has time to investigate and develop something totally new? I have a couple of suggestions.

First of all the initial setup described above doesn't take long, you can do it in 30 minutes or less: 10 minute download, a few minutes to install, and 10 minutes to create an account if you choose There.com. After the setup, it's all a question of when you'll choose to visit the online world.

I prefer spending time in these spaces when I wouldn't otherwise be doing anything productive (see, no guilt). Most of us have some scheduled downtime during the day. It might be a short break when we come home from school or work. For others, it's generally in the evenings when you've reached a point where you've done what you can for the day and need a bit of relaxation before going to bed.

Relaxing and Stimulating

I've found that many of these worlds have two psychological effects that might at first seem to be conflicting... they're both relaxing and stimulating. They can help you relax, reduce stress and provide a chance to "get away" for a while like a good novel or movie. At the same time, even if you're feeling exhausted at the time, after a few minutes in a virtual world you may discover that your energy will pick up and you'll be good to go. They can actually function as a good break when you reach the point you think you cannot grade one more test or essay. Jump into your virtual world for about 30 minutes and you'll return refreshed. I really can't say that about other "down-time" activities like television or even reading for pleasure.

If you want to explore these worlds to learn more about them while investigating their educational potential the technical skills and time required do not have to present a barrier. Just be careful you don't enjoy your virtual time too much or you'll have a challenge finding time for all your other activities.

Before getting started, Roo Reynolds very eloquently explains why you might want a virtual world in the first place.

There are quite a variety of virtual worlds out there, so some of the ingredients will only need to be added to taste. I have an idea of where I'm going to start but if there are any suggestions that would be great too; just bring your own ingredients a la Ready Steady Cook!

Nobody Fugazi posted on his frustrating experiences to understand the commercially licensing costs of the SL viewer. Aside from the perception that Linden would prefer not to talk to you (unless you're worthy enough of a future press release) he has been put in a position where he can't provide information back to a client on options for a custom viewer.

While I'd argue that the push-back he got from the SLDev list is primarily because of a widening belief that the idea of multiple viewers may further fragment the SL landscape, rather than an aversion to open information, I can't quibble with the lack of service and support from Linden.

Anyone remember the Grid?

Announced with much fanfare by Linden as a resource for businesses wanting to work in SL, it's really nothing more than an elaborate brochure with links to sources on the main site, WIKIs, etc. Lack of updating reflects, to my mind, either confusion, a lack of focus or resources, or an early indicator of a shift in strategy.

While corporations continue to pile into Second Life, the coming flood of competitors including entries from Asia may have Linden either looking at a joint venture, IPO, or shift in strategy. The lack of a significant impact by the Electric Sheep Company on their CSI New York venture leaves me wondering whether SL's days as a potential consumer platform are numbered, smoothing the way towards more collaborative, educational and training type activities once considered the primary domain of ActiveWorlds.

Linden always treads a fine line between its various interests groups, and has adopted an open source strategy that is half in half out. It needs to negotiate the interests of the user community (and its interest groups), the property communities (mainland vs. island and those who have built objects in world vs. those who would import them from 3rd party applications), businesses, and developers.

Prokovy Neva looks at this balancing act and sees a 'fetid core', and I won't argue that (especially as I don't have the history to know). Nobody sums up:

It is easy to speculate that the Electric Sheep Company got a special deal - but effectively negating any option others might have through not having information available seems like the creation of a market owned by Linden Lab and the Electric Sheep Company. Whatever the reasoning, the fact that the information is not available to people who may be considered competitors of the Electric Sheep Company or part of some exotic group that Linden Lab whispers information to does seem unfair. It is dangerously close to giving even Prok some credence when it comes to the concept of a 'Fetid Inner Core' - I won't agree with that, but if you read the facts, it is certainly hard to make an argument against it.

It's interesting to note that the idea of the fetid core, or whatever you want to call it, has a long and well documented history in online gaming. Developers rely on a dedicated, passionate group of early adapters to drive a game and then, if the game is to have wider adoption, cuts the core loose. There is extensive literature on how this is handled - might be time to send the Lindens to a game developers conference to see what they can learn that can be applied to 'LifeSims'.

What seems increasingly clear is that Linden has not communicated a clear vision of where Second Life will be a year or 5 years from now if evidenced by its actions. It speaks a good game about portability but excludes, for example, Multiverse from considerations around a portable avatar. It speaks a good game about creating a more open architecture but sends mixed signals on timing, plans and progress. It speaks a good game about opening its arms to business but then leaves its brochure-ware online and does little to support business.

On a separate but related note, Nobody - you are not alone. I have 4 requests in to Linden on various business-related issues to which I've not received a reply in weeks or months. I'd suggest you not sit around staring at your in box, I don't suspect the reply will come any time soon.

I'm interviewing all the major virtual world platform providers at the moment to establish the various platforms advantages and disadvantages in terms of audio implementation. Hopefully going to tie this in with the guys over at www.metaversed.com with both the grid safari and project metaversed

Although it's one of the older platforms now, Activeworlds still has alot to offer and has numerous worlds built on its technology with large communities still functioning. It also still has some attractions for audio developers. I caught up with Activeworlds representative Tom Fournier.

Dizzy Banjo: How important do you think environmental audio and soundtracks are in the virtual immersion experience ?

Tom Fournier: Audio plays a large role in making an environment feel real. Besides the graphics themselves, I think, audio is the second most important thing to consider when trying to create a 3D environment.

Dizzy Banjo: Virtual worlds have become quite a medium for unsigned musical artists, do you see Activeworlds a good platform for live music ?

Tom Fournier: It is a decent platform for streaming music and users have presented "LIVE" shows in the past.

Dizzy Banjo: OK, so aside from streamed music for live shows, how does the Activeworlds architecture support audio in world ?

Tom Fournier: Using the "media" command audio is usually attached to an object and played via someone clicking on or bumping into the object, depending on the assigned command.

Dizzy Banjo: Does the Activeworlds support uploading audio to servers ? If so are there limits on file sizes or time of clips ?

Tom Fournier: Activeworlds can stream audio from the net, but you can also save audio files in an object path for more consistent user access. Users can limit the size of the audio files they are willing to listen to. If a file is bigger than a users allowed settings their browser will automatically ignore it.

Dizzy Banjo: So no file limits / audio length limits are placed on the developer by the Active Worlds interface ?

Tom Fournier: None at all, but the user can set limits to the size of audio, video and texture files they are willing to display and download

Dizzy Banjo: Is there a moderation process for uploaded audio sounds - similar to the There.com model ?

Tom Fournier: No. However, Activeworlds' worlds are different than environments in Second Life, There and other places. Each world has its own object path controlled by the world owner. The world owner or path admin has the complete control of what's on that path. It is also possible to link to audio and video on sites not related to Activeworlds. This content is regulated by the environment owner, but is hard to track if you don't see it. We have content guidelines in the Activeworlds Universe banning porn, but a private Universe or Galaxy owner is not limited by these guidelines.

Dizzy Banjo: How do you feel ActiveWorlds compares to other platforms - Secondlife, There.com, HiPiHi, vSide, Kaneva etc in terms of ease of implementation of audio ?

Tom Fournier: Unfortunately I have not played with audio in these environments. Activeworlds is generally considered a good fit for corporations and private users trying to create environments for others to experience. The Activeworlds solution is very flexible so a creator/admin has a lot more options and control features and usually at a fraction of the cost for a similar setup with less options from say Second Life or other 3D environment solutions.

Dizzy Banjo: Is there a voice system in Activeworlds ?

Tom Fournier: Yes, though it is not utilized in most AWI public building worlds.

Dizzy Banjo: What future plans do you have for audio in Activeworlds?

Tom Fournier: We are not currently working on any audio changes or updates.

Free-Form Worlds

The first category is most widely used for educational purposes. Second Life is probably the best known of these worlds and offers much to explore. There are also a number of published guides to this world to assist you. However, I have found its interface unique and somewhat complex for beginners.

If you want to start with a somewhat simpler interface before exploring Second Life, a world like There.com would be an easy starting point. There is essentially a social space that appears to simulate spring break at the beach. The controls are easily learned and guides seem generally available to assist you.

Somewhat more complex, but still a good place for beginners is Active Worlds. Active Worlds has both a public world and an educational world. If you want to see some examples of the variety of educational uses of a virtual world, the Active Worlds Educational Universe is good place to begin. You can visit any of these worlds for free by setting up an account and downloading their software. Another advantage of these worlds is that they are not terribly demanding in terms of computing power and will run on most modern computers.

Theme Based Worlds

If you're feeling daring and up for adventure, if your imagination and inner child want a chance to play, then the MMORPGs may be for you. Beware, they can be captivating, and many a visitor has decided to take up residence in these worlds, including a surprising number of academics, their families and friends. You have many choices among these worlds, but some are clearly better designed for beginners.

World of Warcraft (WoW), the most popular of these worlds with over 9 million members world wide is known as a good MMOG for those new to the genre. Lord of the Rings Online (LoTR), a world released in 2007 based on Tolkien's literature, is also a good starting world. WoW is the least demanding in terms of computing power, while LoTR is known for a somewhat more mature community. LoTR may also be the most beautiful of these worlds to experience from a graphics perspective.

My personal favorite among current MMOGs is Everquest 2 which offers beauty, humor, depth and a mature population. It is somewhat more complex then the other two worlds and benefits from having a good computer (particularly video card), but it can be an enchanting experience.

Be aware that there are differences in the themes of these worlds. The most popular themes are based on medieval fantasy literature, but there are sci-fi and super hero worlds and soon to be released pirate worlds as well. In addition, while many of these worlds offer a free trial period of play, they generally require a monthly fee for continued participation. Finally, because of their graphical sophistication they tend to require a more powerful computer with a decent video card.

Virtual World News, Reviews and Discussions

An excellent site for news, reviews and discussion of virtual worlds, particularly MMORPGs is mmorpg.com. There are a lot of virtual world veterans in the discussion forums with lively debates on a variety of issues, but no lack of information for those who want to explore these spaces. The following link takes you to one of these discussions and begins with a solid analysis of some of the more popular worlds and their individual strengths and weaknesses. http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/post/1669579#1669579

Key Terms

A few descriptions of key terms may be helpful in understanding the analysis linked to above. "Grind" refers to the almost "work-like" effort sometimes required to advance your character forward. Most worlds use a level system for character advancement with anywhere from 50 to 80 levels being available. "PVE" (player versus environment) refers to those worlds where play is essentially cooperative and the computer generated environment presents the challenges. "PVP "(player versus player) refers to a world in which players can be competitors and adversaries. A number of worlds provide elements of both kinds of play, but individuals often have strong preferences for the type of world they prefer to inhabit. Finally, most worlds also feature crafting, allowing the members to create objects for use or decoration.

If you have any further questions or suggestions about choosing a virtual world or navigating the experience as a "newbie" feel free to post them on the blog comments.