October 17, 2008 at 07:25Virtual Worlds - how to use them.
So, having written my post about virtual worlds, I got a very expected reaction - people do not believe or doubt.
One of the comments raised the question: “What problem do virtual worlds solve?” Let's try to think. Once upon a time, all the information on the web was text. There was no HTML, no CSS, no JavaScript. Yet, it was a network that people used. However, there were problems, the text was unformatted, and depending on the number of characters that fit on your monitor, the page might look anyway. At this point, people thought about formatting. The first sprouts of HTML appeared. This allowed us to solve the problem with the number of columns on the screen. Later, CSS appeared that solved the problem of how the browser should render the page. Where which fonts should be used and what size they should be.
At what point did the network become the Internet? Answer. The moment the links appeared. This is what made it possible to connect all the documents of the network together, and made it possible to navigate. This was a turning point. The Internet has become a huge document. It is this metaphor that I propose to use when describing the Internet.
Each technology is designed to solve a particular problem. If the technology was created without a goal, then this technology will never take root. It is the aimlessness of virtual worlds that seems to many to be the reason that they will never become massive.
The internet is extremely static. If you send an e-mail to China, then you must wait for the recipient to wake up and answer you a letter. If you leave a message in the Brazilian forum, then you hope that someone will read it and answer it. It’s like throwing a ball into the dark, you don’t know if there is a wall there from which it will bounce or not. Imagine that now there is an opportunity to “shake” the person to whom you sent the letter. In addition, you can see that this person is now in front of you and speaks with you, and is not doing anything else. This is exactly what is achievable in the virtual worlds. Just as the Internet is a metaphor for a huge document, virtual worlds are a metaphor for a huge space in which you can be anywhere. It all sounds, probably, too abstract.
1. The first, and probably most important, is the possibility of organizing virtual rallies. For a demonstration, I think it's worth watching a video from Project Wonderland:
2. Tourism. Imagine that you are going to go to Disney Land. What are you doing now? You go to the site and study the map of the park. And if you had the opportunity to walk along a copy of this park, before you go there. This would allow you to get acquainted with all the attractions and in reality go exactly where you want. And if you add the rest, like you, who are also exploring this park in the virtual world. Together you could discuss this or that attraction. Or perhaps agree on when you could ride this attraction together.
3. Sale of clothing. This is probably the most unprofitable business on the Internet. Clothing needs to be measured and it is extremely difficult to buy it from the picture. Now imagine that in the virtual world there is your copy with your size and physique. You can see how this or that thing will look at you. In addition, dozens of people can be in the same place with whom you can discuss your new outfit. The implementation of such an idea will produce another boom in online commerce.
4. Sale of real estate. Instead of driving around the city and looking for a new apartment. How do you like the opportunity to walk through the same apartments and the same district, but in a virtual world, and see how it looks? And maybe even chat with people who live there or will live. Or maybe to arrange furniture in a new house?
This list can be continued indefinitely, it’s enough to think a little wider ...
One of the comments raised the question: “What problem do virtual worlds solve?” Let's try to think. Once upon a time, all the information on the web was text. There was no HTML, no CSS, no JavaScript. Yet, it was a network that people used. However, there were problems, the text was unformatted, and depending on the number of characters that fit on your monitor, the page might look anyway. At this point, people thought about formatting. The first sprouts of HTML appeared. This allowed us to solve the problem with the number of columns on the screen. Later, CSS appeared that solved the problem of how the browser should render the page. Where which fonts should be used and what size they should be.
At what point did the network become the Internet? Answer. The moment the links appeared. This is what made it possible to connect all the documents of the network together, and made it possible to navigate. This was a turning point. The Internet has become a huge document. It is this metaphor that I propose to use when describing the Internet.
Each technology is designed to solve a particular problem. If the technology was created without a goal, then this technology will never take root. It is the aimlessness of virtual worlds that seems to many to be the reason that they will never become massive.
The internet is extremely static. If you send an e-mail to China, then you must wait for the recipient to wake up and answer you a letter. If you leave a message in the Brazilian forum, then you hope that someone will read it and answer it. It’s like throwing a ball into the dark, you don’t know if there is a wall there from which it will bounce or not. Imagine that now there is an opportunity to “shake” the person to whom you sent the letter. In addition, you can see that this person is now in front of you and speaks with you, and is not doing anything else. This is exactly what is achievable in the virtual worlds. Just as the Internet is a metaphor for a huge document, virtual worlds are a metaphor for a huge space in which you can be anywhere. It all sounds, probably, too abstract.
1. The first, and probably most important, is the possibility of organizing virtual rallies. For a demonstration, I think it's worth watching a video from Project Wonderland:
2. Tourism. Imagine that you are going to go to Disney Land. What are you doing now? You go to the site and study the map of the park. And if you had the opportunity to walk along a copy of this park, before you go there. This would allow you to get acquainted with all the attractions and in reality go exactly where you want. And if you add the rest, like you, who are also exploring this park in the virtual world. Together you could discuss this or that attraction. Or perhaps agree on when you could ride this attraction together.
3. Sale of clothing. This is probably the most unprofitable business on the Internet. Clothing needs to be measured and it is extremely difficult to buy it from the picture. Now imagine that in the virtual world there is your copy with your size and physique. You can see how this or that thing will look at you. In addition, dozens of people can be in the same place with whom you can discuss your new outfit. The implementation of such an idea will produce another boom in online commerce.
4. Sale of real estate. Instead of driving around the city and looking for a new apartment. How do you like the opportunity to walk through the same apartments and the same district, but in a virtual world, and see how it looks? And maybe even chat with people who live there or will live. Or maybe to arrange furniture in a new house?
This list can be continued indefinitely, it’s enough to think a little wider ...