Graphical/Avatar Chat Software

Version 2.0 of The Palace is available now in a CD-ROM package at a computer software store near you. Retail price: $59.95

The retail version of The Palace can also be purchased online from http://www.thepalace.com for $59.95.

The Palace can also be downloaded with a $25 registration fee. However, although the manual and software upgrades are included in the retail package, the registration fee only covers registration of The Palace. The user's manual may be purchased for another $9.95 and the software upgrade package is an additional $20.

The Palace personal server is available through http://www.thepalace.com for $50. Able to host up to 40 simultaneous connections, this server package includes 90 days of free software upgrades from the website.

Installation is a breeze for the user. After putting in the CD and running setup, it is only a click of the button before The Palace is ready to run.

On the server-side, installation of The Palace should also be easy on a UNIX machine. Though not as simple as the user program, The Palace server can be installed by someone who knows nothing about coding. A set of instructions is provided on The Palace web site to tell you exactly what to type at the prompt.

Using The Palace

The Palace is a stand alone application. The Palace can run off any SLIP connection. This includes CompuServe, DePaul Online, and most major online providers. Once the Internet SLIP connection is made, the Palace is ready to go.

The graphical interface is simple. Pull-down menus are available at the top of the main window, and the icons on the bottom serve the same purpose. Very little text is involved, allowing the user to focus on the aesthetically pleasing 3D backdrop.

Communication

For basic communication, users should find The Palace easy to manage. All they have to do is type and press enter. Whatever they want said will appear in a talk bubble. Special effects, such as emotes and entrance messages, are a different matter, as their complexity can range greatly, from typing in a simple :) to actual manipulation of the scripts. For the most part, not much training would be needed to give the user the knowledge needed to get by in class aside from the concept of "point and click." A small instruction/introduction packet would probably be enough to get the student started, provided he/she is already familiar with "point and click" and pressing enter/return after typing in words.

Similiar to chatting, expression of thought is enabled by adding ":" before tpying what is to appear in the thought bubble. In simulation of the real world, users can show facial expression as well. However, there are no voice projection capabilities for this program, except in the case of Macintosh computers. Otherwise, sounds are limited to sound files which can be obtained online for usage as enchancements to the daily chat.

Avatars

The users are represented by images, which can range in size from the size of a pin head to roughly 4 square inches in the shape of a square. The graphics representing the user are easily modifiable through The Palace, which has its own graphic editor. The picture representing the avatar can also be changed through any graphics program, such as Paintbrush, a standard found on all Windows 3.1 systems. For those who want a more immediate alternative, there is a room on most Palace sites offering a variety of images for the avatar to wear. Thus, the appearance of each avatar is left up to the user.

Conversation logs

A logging feature allows recording of the conversations in text. You can view them simultaneously as they occur, though the logging window can get to be bulky, even when you minimize the Palace window.

Privacy

In regards to a private room setting, The Palace has a feature specific to this need. This feature can be made available to people visiting a site. First, they would have to create the room. Then the creator of the room would have to give it a password. Henceforth, only people who know that password can enter that room. Unfortunately, the room disappears after the last person leaves it. However, a bot could be placed in the room so that the room would not disappear.

A bot is a computer controlled avatar, normally used to watch over events in a given room, i.e. on various MUDs, the bot "gags" users who shout out profane language, rendering the users mute. Bots are also often used as a silly sort of welcoming device for users. For example, some bots may greet people everytime they sign on to that site.

Management

For the "wizard" or the person in charge of managing The Palace server, some training would be required -- familiarity with the documentation of The Palace UNIX server as well as the IPSCRAE language would be necessary. Since IPSCRAE is a scripting language developped specifically for The Palace, no programming knowledge would be necessary other than for IPSCRAE. Still, a computer illiterate would be hard pressed to learn the IPSCRAE. This would mean a lot of hours of studying on the side. On the other hand, someone familiar with the workings of a MUD or a talker would already know the concepts involved and so would only have to substitute new words for the same commands.

Changing the group of users every ten weeks should not be a problem, as the only task involved would be changing the password of the site. This is about as hard as changing the combination on a lock or changing the password of a unix account. It is one simple command, taking only an instant to change.

Problems and disadvantages

Yet despite the simplicity of its structure, people unfamiliar with The Palace can easily get lost. With the misplaced click of a button, one can easily leave the room. More important is the difficulty of tracking conversations. Word bubbles disappear after a given period of time or after a new word bubble appears. In a crowded room, this problem is enhanced. With such a clutter of objects, the eyes are dashing from one corner to the other, with nothing to focus on.

The logging feature somewhat ameliorates this problem, but the logging window is can be so bulky that it distracts from the main Palace window. In short, the user is either focusing on the main Palace window, or he is staring at the logging window. The logging window records the conversation text as well as the changes in expression. It is also unfortunate that the expressions, also known as emotes, are limited to those porting a virtually unmodified avatar. In other words, anyone wanting to go for an image that doesn't include the smiley face default cannot project a change of emotion without a text bubble.

Virtual Places

The software can be downloaded from http://www.vplaces.com/vpnet for free.

Again, installation should be easy. The setup program runs smoothly so that when it is done, Virtual Places is ready to go. Upon the first login, the user is prompted to enter info -- name, etc -- before using the chat program.

There is no true server version of the program.

Using Virtual Places

Virtual Places, like the Palace, is a 2D avatar chat, but whereas The Palace is a stand-alone application, Virtual Places serves as an attachment to Netscape (vers. 2.0 and above) or Microsoft Internet Explorer. By double-clicking on the Virtual Places icon, the user starts the program, which automatically opens the browser if it is not already open.

The familiar structure of Netscape will be a comfort to those already familiar with it. The interface of Virtual Places appears at first glance to simply be an extension of netscape so netsurfers will easily slip into using it. Just like The Palace, there are icon buttons as weel as pull-down menus. VP tends to focus more on pull-down menus, but there is an online help available for the users.

The main advantage with Virtual Places is that any web page can serve as a chat room. Thus, the background of the room is determined by the author of the web page, allowing for any type of background, ranging from 3D to simplistic. With web pages as chat rooms, the users have more of a freedom as they can even use their own web page as a virtual meeting place. The tour group feature adds to this effect by letting the users travel in a group, with one person leading.

Communication

Due to the myriad windows of Virtual Places, it is important to make sure that the cursor is in the grey text box before typing. Otherwise, the user may open up another window and get further confused. although there are no thought bubbles in this program, the uses can use varying expressions of the same avatar as emotes.

Avatars

Users are shown as images of uniform size (roughly the size of a thumbnail in a rectangular shape). The avatars of Virtual Places are less diverse than those of The Palace, due to the uniformity of size. However, people can create their own avatars or derive one from an image off the Internet, while retaining the ability to emote. In fact, users may create their own emotes with the aid of a graphics program used specifically for the emotes in Virtual Places.

Conversation logs

And like its counterpart, The Palace, word bubbles tend to disappear after they are made, but the advantage of Virtual Places lies in the fact that it is an attachment to Netscape. On the bottom, there is a window showing the conversations taking places as of login. This log can be reviewed while the conversation is taking place and saved into a file. To the right, the other window keeps track of who is in the room.

Privacy

In order to prevent certain users from entering the virtual room, modifications may have to be made to the program to allow that if it is not already a feature. As of yet, the closest would be a feature which sets a maximum number of users.

Miscellaneous features

Another useful command in Virtual Places is the ability to view the identity of other avatars. That is, the identity and e-mail address that the users enter in. To facilitate contact, you can serch for a user via *find...* and contact that person with a personal message or send/receive an identity in the same fashion. *Find..* shows the location of the user as well as basic identity info.

Problems and disadavntages

Unfortunately, the find function also makes it easier to stalk someone once you have their login name. Other disadvantages of Virtual Places include the common problem of all virtual chat programs -- the cluttered appearance when the "room" is packed. With the uniformity of size and shape, the chat room looks even more confusing, as if a box of legos was spilled on the floor. Also, Virtual Places does not offer the sound feature available in The Palace, though just as in any browser, one can view video files or listen to sound bites.

The lack of server software poses another problem. With Virtual Places, all users are equal. There is no wizard to manage the room should the going get rough. And if users are having any particular private meeting, there is no way to boot out the intruders.

WorldsAway

WorldsAway can be downloaded from http://www.worldsaway.com

Installation is fairly simple. There is a setup program to install it into the computer. Then, when the user first logs in, he is prompted to select a name and fill in all the needed details. For example, the user can start off by changing the image -- clothing, type of face, etc.

Using WorldsAway

Although WorldsAway is not a browser dependent application, it requires a Compuserve account. WorldsAway requires Compuserve membership to access the virtual world. In fact, starting the WorldsAway program initializes the CompuServe Information Manager.

The interface is relatively simple. Like The Palace, there are pull-down menus at the top of the window. The text box is located at the bottom of the screen, and several icons lay to the right of it. To do something with an object, you click on it with the mouse to bring up a menu and then make a selection.

Communication

There are three types of communication in WorldsAway: speech, thoughts, and private tells. Speech can be heard by all who are present within the virtual room, thoughts appear as thought bubbles, and private tells are only heard by the one receiving the tell. The user selects the type of communication by clicking on the appropriate button. Then the user enters in the dialogue.

Gestures and facial expressions are made by clicking on the avatar to bring up a menu and then selecting the movement.

Avatars

Avatars are all roughly the same size, about half the size of the window. they consist of a body, a head, a torso, and some others. The avatars are in humanoid form, with only the head and clothing (but mostly the head) distinguishing one avatar from another. The avatars are two dimensional against a two-dimensional backdrop, all draw in the same style of animation. It looks similar to a random cartoon on MTV, with details drawn in to give a pseudo feeling of depth.

Miscellaneous features

Similar to the Watching mode in Virtual Places, users of WorldsAway can enter a ghost mode. As a ghost, one can travel and observe things without necessarily taking part in events. The user becomes anonymous and there is more room in the virtual room.

Problems and disadvantages

The flat appearance of WorldsAway unfortunately does not capture the eye as easily as a 3D backdrop in The Palace or Worlds Chat Gold. It only enhances the mechanical feel of the program. It does not help that WorldsAway is also a silent program. The combination of the flatness and the silence makes for a bland atmosphere in comparison to the large range of sound effects available on The Palace.

Worlds Chat Gold

The Worlds Chat 1.1 Demo can be downloaded from http://www.worlds.net/wcg/wcg-download.html. The demo version does not include all the features of Worlds Chat Gold.

Like the typical programs of today, it is easy to install. Activate the install/setup file, and a program guides the user through the process. Unfortunately, problems may arise when the user initially tries to use the program. No instructions are included in physical form. They are located in a side window of the screen after the user starts the program.

Using Worlds Chat Gold

Worlds Chat Gold is a stand alone application, like The Palace. Only a SLIP connection is needed before running the software.

Worlds Chat Gold is set up with the screen divided into 4 separate sections. The main bulk of the screen is the view of the avatar, and below it, there is the box containing conversation heard by the avatar. no word bubbles are used. At the bottom right, there is a depiction of the overall view of where the avatar is, with a window above specifying the area. The section in the top right hand corner keeps track of miscellaneous items, such as login info, tips of the day, etc.

Communication

Like The Palace, Worlds Chat Gold has two types of communication. By simply typing, the user can say something that everyone in the virtual room will hear. However, the user can also send private tells by typing the login of the other person and following it directly by a ":" before typing the rest of the tell.

Although avatars cannot physically emote as avatars do in 2D chats, body language can be used somewhat. Just as in real life, if a user moves too close to another avatar, the other avatar will react. This is not a reaction of the computer but of the other user. It is a sort of body language shown strictly by the proximity of one user to another.

While the program is in walking mode, the mouse serves to direct the avatar. The arrow key can also be used if the user is too uncomfortable with the mouse. A click of the icon in the lower right-hand corner of the view screen will put the mouse in a command mode. In the command mode, the mouse can be manuevered to click on the pull-down menus without moving the user all over the place.

Avatars

Users choose their 3D avatar before they are able to enter the chat world. The avatars range in size and shape from humanoid to animal, and from large to small. The environment of Worlds Chat Gold is also three-dimensional, based on a script similar to VRML. In effect, the chat program gives the user a sense of reality similar to that of the computer game Doom.

Each avatar has its own style of movement: Some will saunter, some walk, and other just float in space. From the view of the avatar, the movement style is reflected so that a user may see a bobbing view as he moves the avatar around. This bobbing feature can be toggled off if the user chooses to.

Miscellaneous features

The background music is a nice change from the typically silent chat programs. In addition, there are various sounds triggered by the actions of other users, i.e. to let you know if someone is sending you a "whisper." However, this is the only sound you will be hearing in the program. There are no sounds caused by any of the users, as there are in The Palace. Due to the buggy nature of the program, the music tends to turn itself off when the user accesses the pull down menus. The music must be toggled a couple of times to remedy this problem.

Problems

First of all, unless the new user is prone to randomly trying out commands and playing with new programs, many features will probably be easily overlooked. This is something which most users do not do. In other words, most users won't be able to take advantage of all the features offered by Worlds Chat Gold.

In a way, Worlds Chat Gold is a reversion to the old dependency on text. without the ability to express emotions via avatar expressions, the user is left with smileys as emotes. Thus, in comparison to The Palace, it is a trade of expression and 2D avatars for music and a completely 3D world.

Unfortunately, this 3D aspect can be another disadvantage. With a 3D perspective, the user cannot see all of the environment. The view window allows for a meager range of vision, causing a blind side of over 180 degrees. This makes mass communication difficult unless you are used to talking to people behind you. The narrow range of vision makes it difficult to keep many people in the line of sight. In addition, those unfamiliar with games like Doom will find it hard pressed to adapt to the manner of manueverability. So as far as motion is concerned, World Chat Gold will be a dizzying experience.

Yet another disappointment with Worlds Chat Gold is the lack of a logging feature. Although users can scroll back the conversation, they cannot go back and review what was said once they go offline. All review must be done before they disconnect from worlds chat. The user cannot close the connection in worlds chat without exiting the program.