simon@cuisun.unige.ch (07/16/90)
A lot of what I've seen in this group seems to deal with user interface devices for entering a virtual reality. I was wondering if someone could send me pointers to work on modelling and the internal representation of virtual worlds. In particular I'd be interested to know if there are any modelling languages for describing/constructing virtual worlds. For example, are there world models which include processes in the virtual world as well as descriptions of object locations and attributes? If so, has anyone devised representations which make it easy to change global properties of a virtual world (such as a world's physical laws)? I'll post a summary of replies to the net... --------------------------------------------------------------------- Internet: simon@cui.unige.ch Bitnet: gibbs@cgeuge51.bitnet Usenet: mcsun!chx400!cui!simon@uunet.uu.net --------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon J. Gibbs Centre Universitaire d'Informatique 12 rue du Lac, Geneva 1207 SWITZERLAND --------------------------------------------------------------------- Tel: +41 (22) 787.65.87 Fax: +41 (22) 735.39.05 Telex: 423 801 UNI CH ---------------------------------------------------------------------
simon@cuisun.unige.ch (08/12/90)
Thanks to everyone who responded to my request about modelling virtual realities. Here's a summary of the initial replies I received. (Sorry for not posting earlier but I've just returned from vacation). Simon Gibbs (simon@cui.unige.ch) University of Geneva ============================================================================ > From: jgsmith@bcm.tmc.edu Sorry for the vagueness of this response, but (don't you love messages that start out with disclaimers) I really think that an important part of the interface to virtual worlds is going to grow out of object oriented hypermedia, especially HyperCard. In a recent post somewhere (I forgot where) I thought I heard someone mention a software product that would tranlsate hypercard stacks to a similarly formatted program that works under windows (I think it uses "books" instead of "cards"). The interesting thing was that this translation occured through some intermediary (standard?) language for describing object oriented environments. If there really is such a standard object oriented environment language, I think virtual world interfaces will use it. Sorry I don't have more info. I'm gluing my eyes to the nets waiting to hear more about it. If you get any interesting news I would hope you pass it on to the net. ============================================================================ > From: wex@pws.bull.com >> I was wondering if someone could send me pointers to work on modelling >> and the internal representation of virtual worlds. As much as I hate to keep tooting my own horn, I have been working on this. I will have a chapter in the forthcoming book, or you can see the abstracts. Tim McFadden of Altos also had some interesting things to say based on an Actors model. --Alan Wexelblat Bull Worldwide Information Systems internet: wex@pws.bull.com phone: (508) 294-7485 (new #) Usenet: spdcc.com!know!wex ============================================================================ > From: Stan Shebs <shebs@apple.com> I've designed and implemented a language for building virtual worlds to be used for multi-player games. Unfortunately, in the push to be more general, and despite some effort, I ended up reinventing a strongly-typed Scheme with a set of predefined object types (objects, spaces, etc). I don't believe a procedural language is entirely appropriate for this type of model building, so am in the process of re-evaluation of the task, will maybe do a purely declarative language (such as a constraint logic language). stan shebs shebs@apple.com
brucec%phoebus.phoebus.labs.tek.com@RELAY.CS.NET (08/17/90)
> >> From: Stan Shebs <shebs@apple.com> > I've designed and implemented a language for building virtual worlds to be > used for multi-player games. Unfortunately, in the push to be more general, > and despite some effort, I ended up reinventing a strongly-typed Scheme with > a set of predefined object types (objects, spaces, etc). I don't believe a > procedural language is entirely appropriate for this type of model building, > so am in the process of re-evaluation of the task, will maybe do a purely > declarative language (such as a constraint logic language). > > stan shebs > shebs@apple.com This looks like an interesting topic of discussion in itself: what programming models suit world design best. My own prejudice is that Stan is right as far as saying that "a procedural language is [not] entirely appropriate", but that a purely declarative language won't cut it either. I tend towards a constraint description layer over an action layer in which actions are described in some sort of polymorphic-procedural way, i.e., you declaratively state how parts of the model are constrained, and then state what actions will be taken to enforce the constraints, the actions to be in fact dynamically bound so that knowledge of the actions' implementation is not available to and not needed by the constraint declaration. The object of the polymorphism is to allow evolution of the model both as it is used and in redesign. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: USE THIS ADDRESS TO REPLY, REPLY-TO IN HEADER MAY BE BROKEN! Bruce Cohen, Computer Research Lab email: brucec@tekcrl.labs.tek.com Tektronix Laboratories, Tektronix, Inc. phone: (503)627-5241 M/S 50-662, P.O. Box 500, Beaverton, OR 97077 -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: USE THIS ADDRESS TO REPLY, REPLY-TO IN HEADER MAY BE BROKEN! Bruce Cohen, Computer Research Lab email: brucec@tekcrl.labs.tek.com Tektronix Laboratories, Tektronix, Inc. phone: (503)627-5241 M/S 50-662, P.O. Box 500, Beaverton, OR 97077