Compounding the Results: The Integration of Virtual Worlds With the Semantic Web
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Date
2010
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Authors
Lesko, Charles J. Jr.
Hollingsworth, Yolanda A.
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Abstract
Over the past 20 years, governmental use of Web-base information and
technologies has continually expanded taking advantage of the Web's vast, ever-
expanding volumes of browser-accessible information. Now, it infuses two new
technologies, the first one espousing a world where semantic-powered applications
become knowledgeable assistants for Web users. The second new technology takes a
perceivably flat two-dimensional approach to presenting current Web-content and
adds a three-dimensional perspective to the presentation. Welcome to the Semantic
Web as seen through the eyes of a Virtual World participant, an environment where
Web users no longer are browsing for information that is largely static, where Web
users interact through their proxies (avatars) query applications (Web agents)
soliciting them to collect, filter, verify, correlate and present answers to their queries
often in a more visually palatable three-dimensional format. Following a brief
overview of these two technologies, this article presents several of the key force
drivers behind their evolution and the benefits gleaned from their collective use.
Further discussion identifies new methods for visualizing semantic content in virtual
worlds. Finally, as with any technological evolution, the merge of these two
technologies brings on a whole new set of challenges from a Web userÕs perspective
as well as perspectives from technology developers both in academia and
government.
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Citation
Journal of Virtual World Research; 2:5 p. 1-20
DOI
10.4101/jvwr.v2i5.787