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Techdox
The "request for proposal" will be our primary development
documentation, refered to as "techdox".
These techdox are just a proposal, a working draft and will be extended
over the time and grow in detail. We suggest to download it as
a whole (but you can also read it online). Sections, details, pictures,
and everything else as contribution is welcome. We will also try to
compile an essence of the mailinglist into this.
Check this section
frequently.
Features
Here is a simple outline of the basics and features of this
project.
- Based on Linux, X11R6 and OpenGL
- Server/Client Application
A lot like the X11 system with the difference that the client
will be headed on a X11R6 system and the server will not need
anything aside a common Linux system.
- Local/LAN/WAN connectivity
The client may work as well over the internet or LAN as locally
on the same machine as the server.
- Directory oriented
Every directory is beeing viewed as a seperate space. With design
the directory may be folded within directories but with the
basic template they are simply somehow linked spaces with
interconnective gates.
- Designed environment possible
There are two directions to go: Firstly the environment should
be designed within 3Dsia dynamically ("a wall from here to here
and let it be that high"). Secondly, we want to import objects from
external programs.
- Communication script
The client/server communication will be based on an assembler-like
script which is possible to interpreted by a very simple stack-machine
with a minimum of computation necessary. We will not waste cycles on it. This script
will be dynamically generated by the server and transmitted to the
client in a binary packaged form. The client and server also has to share
a symbol-space which is connected to the script.
The result of this technique is a simple way of transmitting OpenGL-Commands.
- Server scripts
Actually we are not sure if we will make a own scripting language for
server commandment or utilize Perl for this.
- User rendering
Users will be displayed as Persons and will make personal contacts with
each others. Users will interact by chat or voice connections.
- Collision detection
We will use a simple and elegant concept for this. Every user will have
it's actual matrix which is a grid where the objects are freely
placed onto. This grid is a pointer-array to object list and will
enable us to make collision detections and volume clipping very fast
without checking every single object.
- Applications
Applications will be one of several styles:
- Shell commands
will be wrapped within standard icons. Every shell command will get
a small config file which will describe a lot of options and
some help texts. This will be everything neccessary to render
the shell command in a proper way. (Sure - they may be piped!)
- X11 applications
Will be mapped onto polygons. If selected you can interact with
them like always.
- 3Dsia applications
Will render themself. You can write e.g a skyglobe program which
generates you a time-dependend view of the sky, as well as a postman which hands your avatar
a letter as the newest biff clone.
Position
This section will describe our actual position. Steps already achieved will be
in larger fonts, the smaller lines are the next steps to take.
- Beer and pizza phase
- Prototype as design study
- Request for proposal
- Going online
- Limited server skeleton (ACTUAL WORK STAGE)
- Client prototype
- Server prototype
- First release Version 0.1.0
- Refining and advancing
- Alpha
- Beta
- Release 1.0
Prospects
The first revision of 3Dsia will be limited to the visualization of one
machine at a time. We know this is some way to go.
The next step (and we want to take this one early) is to generate a
information daemon which is able to provide the outline of a whole
LAN, where you can fluently step outside of your machine (with designed
icon) into the larger cyberspace. This concept will be scalable (like
nameservers) that it will be divide the whole internet into sections
which will be linked to the physical architecture of the internet.
Closer systems, faster connection.
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