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The open distributed Metaverse

Beware Second Life and other proprietary virtual worlds, the open distributed metaverse is coming fast! Some of the most interesting initiatives are outlined below.

Yesterday I found some time to check what is going on at openmetaverse.org. OpenMetaverse hosts projects related to Open Source Metaverse development based on OS emulation of the Second Life platform. The OpenMetaverse project started with a Second Life reverse engineering initiative known as LibSecondLife and now has a server component known as OpenSim (see also the new website OpenSimulator). Last time I checked I was too lazy to install and test the OpenSim server, but yesterday I found out that there is a directory of public access servers run by the DeepGrid project.

I created a DeepGrid account and used the standard Second Life client to connect according to the instructions given here. It is very important that the standard Second Life client can be used to connect to the DeepGrid: no new software to install and no learning curve. Most of the regions available on DeepGrid did not respond, which is not too surprising since I believe most of them are hosted on home computers. The default region for a DeepGrid user is changed as a DeepGrid account option. I logged on the OpenSim IRC channel and asked which regions were up and running. I immediately received a reply, changed my home region, launched the Second Life client directed to DeepGrid, and my brand new avatar Giulio Beta appeared in the Open Metaverse (picture above) and had a chat with the server operator who was also there.

I could chat, walk and explore this almost desert world, but I could not (yet) dress my avatar properly: Poor Giulio Beta is still naked and freezing in the wild Open Second Life. I could not (yet) upload textures. I could build simple objects with the standard wood material and texture, but when I tried to edit them I found that a copy of the previous iteration of the object was left in-world. I built the green O of Open in the picture. Compared to the large and growing list of features of the Second Life built and operated by Linden Lab, this is really (still) a toy.

But, it is a start!

The development of commercial software development projects is linear and predictable (well...), but the development of OS software development projects is _exponential_! OS software development projects start with a few initially very committed developers on a volunteer, part-time basis. Most projects fail in the first few months and are forgotten, but a few projects manage to achieve a critical mass of developers, early users, motivating results and media visibility, and enter a phase of exponentially increasing growth. From that point on, a well managed OS project will produce better and more robust software than any commercial project, and much faster. Based on what I have seen and reasonable (even conservative) projections, I think the OpenSim project will produce a usable metaverse in a few months, say in Q1 2008, and break even with Second Life in Q1 2009. At that point, there will be a solid OS server and client platform that everyone on the planet can use to build and deploy Second Life -like virtual worlds that can be interconnected in a global grid like in the DeepGrid project. This global grid may then leverage the Second Life user base (tens or even hundreds of millions by 2009 according to current projections, already familiar with the Second Life system and with client software already installed) and become the main open distributed metaverse platform.

Linden Lab, creator of the proprietary Second Life, placed their client code in the OS domain a few months ago and are considering following up with OSing also the server code. This is, I believe, the smartest thing they could do. As soon as their OS counterpart grows beyond critical mass, there will be nothing a single company can do to compete with thousands of smart and motivated programmers and operators all over the world. Better if they take the lead in the development of the OS distributed metaverse.

I will install the OpenSim software on our metaxlr8 streaming media and game server, and start experimenting. Once the Second Life metaverse is based on OS software and runs on a distributed network of independent servers, I am sure there will be a market for professional independent hosting services, with a choice of different server-side features for different clients. For example, banks will certainly be interested an a strong encryption and authentication layer, and operators of popular SL worlds will certainly be interested in powerful hardware and optimization to increase the number of avatars that may use their server simultaneously.

Open Croquet is another example of emerging distributed metaverse development platform based on the OS language Squeak (a popular implementation of Smalltalk also used as development platform for other important initiatives such as e-learning systems for children). The picture above is a souvenir of my first visit to a remote Croquet virtual world a couple of months ago, showing how you can write on a whiteboard. Open Croquet itself is not a finished and usable virtual world, but a development kit for virtual worlds, entirely based on OS technology and with built-in P2P features. Open Croquet is a “swiss knife” that will permit building a distributed P2P metaverse of VR words, from MMOGs to e-learning systems. Open Croquet, that has been described as a “metaverse operating system” is certainly another very serious candidate development platform for the open distributed metaverse. Its native P2P features permit running a virtual world without central servers or, more realistically, with central servers only used to perform certain management tasks like directory services, access control and caching while the virtual worlds themselves live on their creator’s home systems.

The power of the Open Croquet development environment is demonstrated by Qwaq Forums, a commercial value added layer aimed at professional collaboration and productivity. It has integrated VoIP, collaborative document editing and web browsing. A minimalist avatar is browsing this website in the image above. Qwaq Forums is specifically aimed at corporate users as a virtual office / intranet infrastructure, but it demonstrates how very powerful end user applications can be built on top of the Open Croquet development platform.

Posted by G.P. on 07/07 at 09:30 AM
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