Whalechat - a social networking version of Env3D
jmadar
For the last couple of months, I have been toying with the idea of
creating a version of Env3D, where students can create and share their
work very easily.
I also wanted to target the CS0 crowd where we teach scripting
languages rather than Java.
What I came up with is whalechat (http://whalechat.com). On the
surface, it is similar to online applications like "Second Life" where
the player assumes the identity of an avatar and can move around and
chat with others in real time.
Under the hood, the system is based on Env3D and has a python
scripting interface (using jython - http://jython.org). The entire
environment can be extended using the python language - new rooms, new
commands, etc. The python source code to all the commands can be
found under http://whalechat.com/asset_server/
Best of all, because jython integrates tightly with Java, the entire
Env3D library is accessible from the scripting language - so you can
think of it as a python networked version of Env3D!
I have written a few basic tutorials under the "tutorials" section of
the website. More will be coming as I develop this further. If you
have any questions in the meantime, please feel free to ask.
Jason