Virtual worlds as a public commons and the code of this commons

Lessig/Dibbell Class @ Stanford University (Mar 11, 2003)

I. Origins of the visual interfaceII. Early uses of virtual worldsIII. Evolution of dimensional and community cyberspacesIV. Key Question: Where do you want to live?V. What happens in a creative public commons?VI. Code of a public virtual world commonsVII. Prospects for the public commons of virtual worldsVIII. Acknowledgements and ResourcesIX. Demo of environmentsX. Code and the virtual worlds commons - discussion

I. Origins of the visual interface

Bush (Memex), NelsonEngelbart’s visionSRI - NLS1968 – Mother of all DemosE&S 60s–1970s

Visual Interfaces – Xerox PARC and elsewhere, 1970s-80s

3D interfaces - evolution

1970s wireframe to solid to ray traced - SIGGRAPHAlvy Ray Smith – PARC to PIXAREarly 80s SGIReal time renderingImmersive VRCommodity Virtual Worlds/Internet – 90s-2000s

II. Early uses of virtual worlds

Simulation – weather, aerodynamics, cold warRender to film – Hollywood and TVExperimental informational interfacesArt/Experience - placeholder

Geographical Information Systems

Geographical Information Systems - GeoFusion textured 3D model of earth with real satellite imagery

Geographical Information Systems

Overlay of real time data – Salt Lake Winter Olympics locations

Artistic and Pedagogical applications

Art/Experience – Placeholder, Osmose, Ars Electronica, SIGGRAPH, KruegerExperimental Pedagogy – cyberfora @ ArtCenter- Vlearn SIG

Artistic and Pedagogical uses

VLearn3D SIG and annual cyberconference

Far Frontiers of 3D environments

Evolutionary virtual worlds (Sims, Biota.org)Modeling the large and the small scale (cosmology, quantum dynamics)Tele-immersion

III. Evolution of dimensional andcommunity cyberspaces

The original Maze War - ARPANET1970s-80s DOD simulation and training1980s - MUDs, Moos text-based worlds1990s – Wolfenstein 3D, DOOM2000s Massive Multiplayer Online Gaming

Killer App Driving Evolution - GamesEverQuest

75,000 to 100,000 users online at any one timeFeature film level budget and box office

Killer App - GamesThe Sims

Design and run your own “soap opera”, households, towns, businesses, in a sort of “puppet theater”

Killer App - GamesVenture rush into

the virtual worlds medium

There.comLinden Labs “Second Life”Star Wars GalaxiesNever Winter’s Night (DandD)20 other projects in the works

What characterizes these spaces?They are all commercial and centrally managedTurnstiles to “theme parks” or “shopping malls”.

The same struggle over the public commons is occuring in cyberspace

What about worlds that are “community”, a public commons?

Where in our society (US) is there an IRL (physically manifested) creative commons that is not behind a

turnstile?

IV. Key Question:Where would you want to live?

How about Burning Man?

Radical self expression

Group expression

Sense of total immersionthrough set and setting

Invented shared rituals

Right next doorthe “turnstiles” of Reno Casinos

A citizen-built virtual world commonsAlphaworld (pioneering “accident”, 1995)

Worlds Inc, user buy-out, IPONeighborhoods of construction

Succeed as a business?

User-created emergent social structures &activities - wedding

V. What happens in a creative public commons?

Select projects & experiments 1995-2003

Building and community experimentsLearning spacesCollaboration spacesCyber-conferencesNASA mars mission simulation

Building and Community experimentsin Alphaworld and Active Worlds

Sherwood Forest Towne

Learning SpacesVirtual walk on the moon with Apollo IX astronaut

Russell Schweickart

Learning SpacesVirtual walk on the moon with Apollo IX astronaut

Russell Schweickart

Collaboration Spaces –Datafusion “war room”

Collaboration Spaces –Datafusion “war room”

AVATARS Cyber-conferencesAnnual festival of the avatar commons

“the Burning Man of Bits”

Avatars2001 a cyberspace odyssey

Avatars2001 a cyberspace odyssey

Avatars2002 a merry cyber party

Avatars2002 a merry cyber party

“Serious” virtual worldsNASA Mars Mission Simulation –Life aboard the FMARS habitat

NASA Mars Mission Simulation –Life aboard the FMARS habitat

NASA Mars Mission Simulation –Volunteers modeled Mars from orbit

“Mojo” Mars

MOLA and surface texture data creating a real time model of Mars surface that is “walkable”

NASA Mars Mission Simulation –Drive on Mars – MER rovers

VI. Code of a public virtual world commonsNecessary exposure of code to the citizenry

yielding issues in control, creativity, contradiction

Platform CodeCode for authorityCode for identity & privacyCode for communicationCode for propertyCode for behavior and automataCode for economy

Kinds of Code that can affect a virtual world commons

Platform Code

Network protocolsUI affordancesAssumptions and limitations

“Locked-in” code, underlying assumptions

Code for authority

Powers granted, login profileHierarchical structuresInsurrections and schismsEarly virtual worlds emphasized a “flat” model

Began with “wizard” traditions in MUDs

Code for identity & privacy

Login, profiles - public and privateAnonymityTo appear or not to appear, the visibility questionTexting and joining permissionsBotsNo best practices, developed over time

Code for communication

Reach: loudness, whisper, public speaker, PABot intervention: spoofingTexting and other message leaving, abuseCommunication with objects, botsText – graphics modification ;)

Example of code for communicationat work in the Palace

The Palace is not the first graphic multi-user domain ever created, but it is probably the least strict. Many powers possessed by the average Palace memberópainting, spoofing, nickname-changing, etc. would be reserved for wizards and gods. The way we decide to handle these powers determines to a great degree what kind of community we are. These powers have been given to all of us as a design decision on the part of The Palace Inc., but it is important to remember that it's all software; should certain powers prove unmanageable or harmful, they may be curtailed or removed entirely from subsequent versions.

In a way, The Palace can be seen as a massive, progressive social experiment in which we are all participating. For this reason, I invite you to participate in the Community Standards Discussion Group at http://www.thepalace.com/discussion-groups.html.

Example of code at play in the Palace

IptScrae 101: Use the Palace Script Language to Automate Yourself

; spoof somebody by positioning the mouse on their mouth ; and then typing "msay blah blah" { "$1" GREPSUB chatter = chatter MOUSEPOS SAYAT "" CHATSTR = } CHATSTR "^msay (.*)$" GREPSTR IF

If you're into spoofing people (putting words in their mouths), this atomlist makes it a lot easier than using the @X,Y function. It waits for you to say anything that starts with the word "msay." When you do, everything after the word "msay" is sent to a cartoon balloon which appears at your mouse pointer's position. It then sets the CHAT string to (nothing) so that no one sees your original utterance. This is such a useful routine that you should probably keep it just the way it is.

Code for property

Building rights and easementsSharing rightsTerm and conditions of titleIdentity of object ownersBot buildingSpoofing property

Code for behavior and automata

Latches and doors/teleportersVisibility of objectsBots and their powers to build, change, represent a userK9 type bots for tracking of abusive returning users

Code for economy

Virtual currencies prices and private accountsVending systems and barter trade, gift givingPrivate object collectionsTheft of objects, prosecution

VII. Prospects for the public commonsof virtual worlds

Investment largely in turnstile environmentsNotable exceptions: Adobe Atmosphere, fully distributed, user-ownedVRML/X3D and other open efforts in nichesUniversal availability of 3D hardware, costs lowered for hobbyistsGreat deal of academic/research activity“The Metaverse” cannot make up for a reduced public commons IRL

The inevitable drift of cybersociety?

VIII. Acknowledgements and Resources

Lawrence Lessig, Julian DibbellDigiBarn Computer MuseumContact Consortium, Bonnie DeVarcoDatafusion Inc. Monsanto, Safety-KleenNASA Ames Research CenterActive Worlds Inc.Adobe Systems Inc.GeoFusionMike Heim

Online Resources

This presentation is at: http://www.digitalspace.com/presentations/lessig-class/Contact: http://www.digitalspace.com/forms/comment.htmlwww.digitalspace.com The Digital Space Commonswww.ccon.org Contact Consortiumwww.vlearn3d.org VLearn3D Special Interest GroupDrive on Mars: www.driveonmars.comBurning Man pages: www.burningman.comDigiBarn Computer Museum: www.digibarn.com

IX. Demo of Environments

X. Code and the virtual worlds commons - discussion

Make a buck, sustain high development and content creation costs (Electronic Arts example)Creating inclusive community experiences, memoryShared realities, political organizationNew medium of artistic expressionLearning spaces, research environmentsOpen source?Your thoughts?

XI. Bonus!(This has been a vision of cyberspace for a long time)

“Escape” in Finite State Fantasies (1976) by Rich Didday

“Moral of the story”