RDECOM EVALUATOR GUIDE

DAVISON ASSOCIATES ENTRIES IN THE

FEDERAL VIRTUAL REALITY CHALLENGE

Entry to ActiveWorlds

• Go to www.activeworlds.com• “Launch” (download and install the

browser client)• Activate the software• Select “Autoconfigure” when asked about

connectivity• Sign on & read the how to move web page• Look on the left side of the browser for the

Tabs • Click the World Tab• Scroll down the list and click “Harps”

Entries

The Africa InfoSphere

Killeen Texas Crisis Action CenterArmy Family Support Center

INITIAL ORIENTATION• Please use Harps as your base

while evaluating• On arrival please read the how

to move web page– http://www.activeworlds.com/h

elp/move.html

• Note:– ActiveWorlds is undergoing a

major upgrade. There may be service issues.

– All entries are in a public building world you may encounter actual users

– These are live working sites

• Everything you need is in the RDECOM Evaluator Center

Bots You Will Encounter

• The following are bots and are not real people

– Calliope in Harps– Clarissa at the Army

Family Support Center– Charles at the Africa

InfoSphere

• Their purpose is to capture chat and links mentioned in chat

– You can them ask basic questions

• Where am I?• Who is here?• What time is it?

The Project Tour Schedule Board

• To assist the evaluators a schedule board is next to the orientation center

• Project briefings are posted by icon on specific dates with times

• If you require a special time - contact VR4YourPC@aol.com or call 703 644-7312 after 3 PM week days

Administrative Instructions

• Teleports, project specific briefings and supporting articles are in the RDECOM welcome center. Projects are color coded.

• Entry related content is color coded• Davison Associates supporting documentation is accessed through

the black signs• Teleports are marked by a glowing star• There are RDECOM RETURN objects at each site to get back to the

welcome center• All briefings are in PowerPoint, copyright by Davison Associates but

available for unrestricted download and use royalty free • Address questions to:

– VR4YourPC@aol.com– Or Call 703 644-7312

The Information Room Concept

What’s behind the Information Room Projects and Knowledge Solutions crafted by Davison Associates?

INFORMATION ROOMS

• All Projects are in ActiveWorlds• All Entries are Information Room

Constructs• The Goal is to Integrate People and Their

Relationships with Information and Data Sharing

THE FOUNDATIONof the InformationRoom Concept

Six degrees of separation (also referred to as the "Human Web") refers to the idea that if a person is one step away from each person they know, and two steps away from each person who is known by one of the people they know, then everyone is at most six steps away from any other person on Earth.

Why not harness the human web using VR and Information Rooms?

It’s the missing piece

The Concept of Knowledge

• Knowledge Centers are warehouses of information and so is the world wide web

• The contents do not become knowledge until a person uses the information to make a decision

• Information rooms provide a way to integrate people and facts by allowing information and data to be shared among people from stored resources

• VR removes distance from the equation

knowledge noun[S or U] understanding of or information about a subject which a person gets by experience or study, and which is either in a person's mind or known by people generally.

Why ActiveWorlds?

• ActiveWorlds (AW) is the choice of Davison Associates for implementing Information Rooms– It significantly less expensive than Second Life– It uses cache rendering and levels the bandwidth

playing field– The client is small– The object scripting is simple– It works with small bandwidth (anywhere in the world)– The browser is available in multiple languages– It has a strong capability to use web based resources

in-world– It will run behind a fire wall– It can be owned by the user– It is not dependent on the vendor’s server

Enjoy Your Visit!