Large Scale Collaborative Virtual Environments

ISBN-13: 9781447112228 / Angielski / Miękka / 2011 / 229 str.

Chris Greenhalgh

Opis

Collaborative virtual environments are multi-user virtual realities which actively support communication and co-operation. This book addresses the theory, design, realisation and evaluation of such systems, with a particular emphasis on support for large numbers of distributed users. A broad approach is taken, which ranges from the sociology of interpersonal communication to the management of communication in distributed systems. The emphasis on multi-user environments distinguishes this book from the many general books on virtual reality which only deal with single-user systems. This book presents: models of multi-party awareness and interaction in space-based systems; detailed designs of two prototypes (MASSIVE-1 and MASSIVE-2); experiences with collaborative virtual environments created using these; and analyses of the corresponding network requirements. Many of these results and ideas are applicable to other systems and approaches.

Spis treści

1. Introduction.- 1.1. Collaborative Virtual Environments.- 1.2. Issues of Scale.- 1.3. Approach.- 1.4. Thesis Structure and Reading Plan.- 2. CVEs: a Review.- 2.1. CSCW.- 2.2. Multi-user Virtual Reality.- 2.2.1. Scoping Interaction.- 2.2.2. Communication Architecture.- 2.3. Summary.- 3. The Spatial Model of Interaction.- 3.1. Motivations.- 3.2. The Model.- 3.3. Extensions and Developments.- 3.4. Demonstrations and Examples.- 4. MASSIVE-1.- 4.1. User Interface.- 4.1.1. Graphical Client.- 4.1.2. Audio Client.- 4.1.3. Text Medium Client.- 4.2. Tools.- 4.2.1. Message Board.- 4.2.2. Text to Speech Convertor.- 4.2.3. Adapters.- 4.2.4. Summary.- 4.3. Distribution Model.- 4.4. Implementation Overview.- 5. Direct Awareness.- 5.1. Implementation.- 5.1.1. Peer Interface.- 5.1.2. Evaluating Awareness.- 5.1.3. Adapters.- 5.2. In Use.- 5.2.1. Presentation.- 5.2.2. Focus and Nimbus Control.- 5.2.3. Context-Driven Interaction.- 5.2.4. Tool Control.- 5.3. Evaluation.- 5.3.1. Trials.- 5.3.2. Effectiveness.- 5.3.3. Subjective Awareness.- 5.3.4. Navigation and Control.- 5.4. Summary and Conclusions.- 5.4.1. CVEs.- 5.4.2. CSCW.- 5.4.3. The Spatial Model.- 6. Spatial Trading.- 6.1. Implementation.- 6.1.1. Aura Relationship.- 6.1.2. Managing Multiple Spatial Traders.- 6.2. Use.- 6.3. Evaluation.- 6.3.1. User Model.- 6.3.2. Application Model.- 6.3.3. Traffic Model.- 6.3.4. Reflections.- 6.3.5. Spatial Trading.- 6.3.6. Unicast CVEs.- 6.4. Summary and Conclusions.- 6.4.1. Spatial Trading.- 6.4.2. Unicast-Based CVEs.- 6.4.3. Bridge.- 7. Third Party Objects.- 7.1. Theory.- 7.1.1. Effects.- 7.1.2. Activation.- 7.1.3. General Observations.- 7.2. Examples.- 7.3. Exploitability.- 7.4. Summary.- 8. MASSIVE-2.- 8.1. User Interface.- 8.2. Third Party Objects.- 8.3. Distribution Model.- 8.4. Implementation Overview.- 8.4.1. Processes.- 8.4.2. Classes.- 9. Contextualised Awareness.- 9.1. Implementation.- 9.1.1. Focus, Nimbus and Awareness.- 9.1.2. Third Party Objects.- 9.2. Use.- 9.2.1. Poetry.- 9.2.2. The Arena.- 9.2.3. The Panopticon Plaza.- 9.2.4. WWW-3D.- 9.2.5. Other Use.- 9.3. Evaluation.- 9.3.1. Success.- 9.3.2. Visibility and Usability.- 9.3.3. Implementation and Capabilities.- 9.4. Summary.- 10. Awareness Driven Communication.- 10.1. Implementation.- 10.2. Use.- 10.3. Evaluation.- 10.3.1. Application Model.- 10.3.2. User Model.- 10.3.3. Process Behaviour and Communication Protocols.- 10.3.4. Distribution Architecture.- 10.3.5. Overheads.- 10.3.6. Putting It Together.- 10.3.7. Network Traffic Model.- 10.3.8. State and Updates.- 10.3.9. Heartbeat Messages.- 10.3.10. Multicast and Unicast.- 10.3.11. Unit of Replication.- 10.3.12. Accuracy of Replication.- 10.3.13. Replication Overheads.- 10.3.14. Replication Management.- 10.3.15. Abstraction and Secondary Sourcing.- 10.3.16. Examples.- 10.4. Summary and Conclusions.- 11. Conclusions.- 11.1. Summary.- 11.2. Main Contributions.- 11.2.1. Philosophy.- 11.2.2. Theory.- 11.2.3. Realisation.- 11.2.4. Experience.- 11.2.5. Modelling of Use.- 11.3. Reflection.- 11.3.1. Future Work (or What I Didn’t Do).- 11.3.2. Personal Reflections.- 11.3.3. The Big Picture.- Appendix A. User Profiling.- A. 1. Data Sources.- A.1.1. MASSIVE-1 Log Files.- A. 1.2. Network Traffic Data.- A.2. Movement.- A.2.1. Time Spent Moving.- A.2.2. Group World Transitions.- A.2.3. Returning to Worlds.- A.3. Audio.- A.3.1. Network Audio Data.- A.3.2. Visual “Mouth” Data.- A.3.3. Audio Data Conclusions.- Appendix B. Exploitation and Dissemination.- B.1. Primary Publications.- B.2. Secondary Publications.- B.3. Project Input.- References.

O autorze

Chris lived and worked in Italy and Athens for five years before returning to the UK to complete his PhD on the American poet, Frank O'Hara. In 1992 he received an Eric Gregory Award from the Society of Authors. He has since published three volumes of poetry, a novel, and written the screenplay for Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky, which was selected to occupy the prestigious closing slot at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. He is married to Ruth, has two young sons, Saul and Ethan, and is Deputy Head Academic at Sevenoaks School in Kent.