3D Internet: Changing Lives

From chatting with friends online to walking through the virtual world, we
have seen most of what cyberspace has to offer. The concept of the virtual world
and our existence therein is changing by the minute and is slowly giving rise to
what is called 3D Internet.

Internet, as we understand it today, is mostly 2D. However, increased use of
Second life, MySpace, Google Earth and a whole lot of gaming advancements is
getting us closer to the 3D Internet.

Speaking about this concept at the ongoing IDF in Taipei, Kevin Kahn, Senior
Fellow-Corporate Technology Group and Director-Communications Technology Lab,
Intel said, “Immersive 3D online environ-ments are available for people to
interact now, and virtual environments today are increasingly being adopted by
users and are slowly moving away from being just entertainment. As we move from
a 2D to a 3D interface, such environments are increasing the demand for
providing users with experiences that are closest to real life situations.”

With 3D environments getting more socially accepted, behavioral expectations
of these environments by users in terms of how close it can get to reality is
also increasing. In order to meet these needs, Intel is trying to evolve better
standards for browsers, servers as well as tools that enable a better user
experience. Most tools available today are proprietary and the need for
standardization has finally risen.

In order to give users better visual effects in a 3D environment, Intel is
working with what is called 'ray-tracing technology' which helps create better
effects which are very real-life like in a 3D situation. Intel, according to
Kahn, would work to develop such technologies in order to further enhance user
experience as they increase adoption to the 3D world in the days to come.

While the transition from 2D to 3D occurs, what is most significant is how
these 3D interfaces are helping revolutionize people's lives by enabling many
other applications besides entertainment or gaming. A case in point here is
medicine. Especially doctors-surgeons are able to benefit from the

fact that they are able to visualize and simulate most complicated surgeries in
real time, and then perform the same so as to assure the best results. Such and
other applications, according to Kahn, will revolutionize the way Internet would
operate and get us closer to its 3D environment.

While the technology itself seems like a great tool, Kahn wondered if a 3D
environment and virtual world therefore would adversely affect social lives of
human beings. That according to him was still debatable. If a child that ought
to play with his friends was surfing the net and walking in the virtual world
24x7, it was a negative impact. However, if a doctor used the technology to
correct a cleft palate, it was the best possible thing to happen. The choice
therefore is for us to make, he said.

Subbalakshmi BM

subbalakshmibm@cybermedia.co.in