Merging the Web into Virtual Worlds

Merging the Web into Virtual Worlds : 

Merging the Web into Virtual Worlds Peter Miller Biological Sciences University of Liverpool

Slide 2: 

Second Life (SL) is a virtual world

Slide 3: 

…with user-generated content Hales & Earle, University of Bristol

Slide 4: 

…and avatars

Slide 5: 

2008: the web arrives inworld (sort of)

2010: Shared media : 

2010: Shared media Drag/drop favicon from web browser onto your object Additional controls for zooming, access & security Shared at URL level, e.g. password-protection works No support for Java or PDF (unless converted) Max 8 sources; audio issues

Shared Media Dashboard : 

Shared Media Dashboard

Asynchronous vs Synchronous : 

Asynchronous vs Synchronous Web updates generally asynchronous unless tech allows or display refreshed Bad: breaks shared presence (everyone sees same) Good: concurrent users view single URL/multi-page display at own pace, e.g. Xerte e-learning page-turner Synchronous display includes Streaming live video (Livestream), desktop (Connect) Google Wave and (if configured) Doc, Spreadsheet, Image (and many others) POTENTIAL FOR CONFUSION

Slide 9: 

Shared media on SlideTalk screens co-launched with image texture [1]: ietherpad shared text editor [2], PDF [via swftools, 3], YouTube [4] 1 2 3 4

Type 1 vs Type 2 shared media : 

Type 1 vs Type 2 shared media Type 1: could be done on web exclusively, albeit with loss of context & shared presence Students could use prims and gadgets like Dashboard and slideTalk to compile a web/video trail in SL Type 2: scripted & manual integration LSL scripting language to control shared media Interactions with external systems, e.g. HTTP-in allows web pages to control SL objects Manual combination of tools, e.g. overlays

Type 2: augmented search : 

Bibliographic search [hubmed.org; 1] Touch creates annotated object that can be saved (reloads page on collision) [2] Loads text mining page on CiteXplore [3] Loads Google Translate and translates title [4] Generates QR code for record [5] 1 2 3 4 5 Type 2: augmented search

Type 2: HTTP-in : 

Web page [1] uses HTTP-in to play selected video [2] Colour tabs control display of red/green fluorescence [3] Semi-transparent shared media whiteboard used for annotation [4] Type 2: HTTP-in 1 2 3 4

Conclusion : 

Conclusion Shared media are a significant advance Real-life use needs to balance Capacity for innovation Potential for confusion Bandwidth issues Developments may be evolutionary SL expected as web application “soon” http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Shared_Media Hales & Earle (2009). http://sydenhamcrystalpalace.wordpress.com/ Media from Kriebel et al. (2008). J Cell Biol 183: 949-961