Journal For Virtual Worlds Research (Texas Digital Library - TDL E-Journals)
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No full textThe development of virtual worlds began long before the invention of computers; the minds of children at play would create fantasy or virtual worlds in which to explore or interact. However, the development of the computer provided an opportunity for these
worlds to expand from within an individua
The Lessons of Lucasfilm\u27s Habitat
No full textHabitat is a "multi-player online virtual environment", created by Lucasfilm Games, a division of LucasArts Entertainment Company, in association with Quantum Computer Services, Inc. It was arguably one of the first attempts to create a very large scale commercial multi-user virtual environment in 1985. The system we developed could support a population of thousands of users in a single shared cyberspace. Habitat presented its users with a real-time animated view into an online simulated world in which users could communicate, play games, go on adventures, fall in love, get married, get divorced, start businesses, found religions, wage wars, protest against them, and experiment with self-government.
Our experiences developing the Habitat system, and managing the virtual world that resulted, offer a number of interesting and important lessons for prospective cyberspace architects. The purpose of this paper is to discuss some of these lessons. We hoped that the next generation of builders of virtual worlds can benefit from our experiences and (especially) from our mistakes
Editor
No full textWelcome to the inaugural edition of the Journal of Virtual Worlds Research on the theme o
Second Life Mixed Reality Broadcasts: A Timeline of Practical Experiments at the NASA CoLab Island
No full textPersonnel at the Second Life NASA CoLab island have been experimenting with providing live, virtual world broadcast events for the benefit of the space and technology community. The broadcasts range from simple one-way stream feeds to more complex two-way interactive events. This paper will provide background information about the NASA CoLab, sketch an evolutionary timeline of experimental events held at the NASA CoLab island, and compare a couple of similar two-way mixed reality events
Symbolic and Experiential Consumption of Body in Virtual Worlds: from (Dis)Embodiment to Symembodiment
No full textThis study examines the symbolic meanings of the body concept in a virtual world called Second Life (SL). Using audio-visual approach to netnography, we investigate the ways in which consumers are involved in SL, the meanings attached to their avatars, the process of (re)constructing their avatars, and the experiences lived through their avatars. In light of our findings, we draw attention to the conceptualization of body as experience, which brings the enhancement in the perception of body as a means of self-presentation to experiencing the body for the sake of the body. Furthermore, we introduce the concept of symembodiment as a means of articulating the presence of body in SL and reemphasizing the non-resolvable embodiment/disembodiment paradox of the body in the virtual world