I finally got around to write some comments on the requirements document. I reversed the numbering, since the last bit is the most controversial.
1.4.3. Authoring "There shall be a bidirectional mapping between X3D and Interreality 3D capabilities and semantics." I assume this include Collada as well, and maybe other file formats? Can the mapping truly be bidirectional, considering that VOS contains *more* information than just a scene graph? What about X3D scripting and VOS scripting, is there supposed to be a mapping too? 1.4.1. Scripts and 1.4.2. Interactivity This seems a bit unclear to me, regarding the role of the client and server. Some passages seem to indicate server control, others independent client-based simulation. How do these two fit together? Does the server prescribe client interaction? Can the client ignore any server commands? 1.2 Multiuser Requirements "Users shall be able to establish accounts which persist when the user is not logged in." This section is relatively open in *how* this works. I assume it refers to a "traditional" user account database held at the servers end. I've had may difficulties with that concept for some time now, since it seems to me that it does not really scale. If you have a single big world, or at least a central authority, this works fine. But if you aim for a loose clustering of relatively small worlds, you need an account on every single one of them. Its a big hassle for users to create and maintain all of them, even if they just need most of the accounts only to pass through most worlds. My idea is to create a user profile once, and let the user carry it around with them. The profile is a small VOS graph. It describes the user, capabilities, current inventory, game state, RPG stats, whatever, each aspect in a distinct subgraph. A server can add, modify, and remove a subgraph independent from other subgraphs; most importantly, it can also *sign* it cryptographically, to certify its authenticity. When a user wishes to join a particular world, he uploads the profile to the server. The server looks for subgraphs it understands/ requires, and verifies that it is certified by itself *or another trusted server*. The big assumption here is that neighboring servers know and trust each other. If the profile lacks prerequisite parts or cannot be verified, access is denied. When the users leaves the server, he downloads the (modified) profile, to provide it to another server on its way. He can also keep multiple copies of the profile on its private computer, sort of as a "saved game" (thats what the idea was originally designed for). I originally designed this for RDF graphs, but VOS is similar enough to transfer the idea. I also did some experimentation with this, on a cluster of private servers, which worked out nicely. I also have a paper on the idea, If you're interested I can post the PDF. What do you think? Too radical? Utter nonsense? Comments welcome. Regards, Karsten Otto (kao) _______________________________________________ vos-d mailing list vos-d@interreality.org http://www.interreality.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/vos-d
