The Universal Campus: An open virtual 3-D world infrastructure for research and education

Abstract

The Universal Campus is a 3-D virtual world infrastructure consisting of a campus with multiple buildings and meetings rooms together with a set of avatars. The Universal Campus is built using a server-client architecture, with an OpenSim-based server and a Second Life-based client. The entire infrastructure is open and can be fully downloaded, replicated, shared, and customized. The Universal Campus enables the deployment and exploration of virtual worlds in research and education, in particular the deployment of meetings of various sizes, such as group meetings, classes, and conferences, in a 3-D virtual world where avatars can move around, view presentations, meet serendipitously, and engage in multiway communication supported by both chat and voice.