Despite the fact that virtual worlds and other types of multi-user 3D collaboration spaces have long been subjects of research and of application experiences, it still remains unclear how to best benefit from meeting with colleagues and peers in a virtual environment with the aim of working together. Making use of the potential of virtual embodiment, i.e. being immersed in a space as a personal avatar, allows for innovative new forms of collaboration. In this paper, we present a framework that serves as a systematic formalization of collaboration elements in virtual environments. The framework is based on the semiotic distinctions among pragmatic, semantic and syntactic perspectives. It serves as a blueprint to guide users in designing, implementing, and executing virtual collaboration patterns tailored to their needs. We present two team and two community collaboration pattern examples as a result of the application of the framework: Virtual Meeting, Virtual Design Studio, Spatial Group Configuration, and Virtual Knowledge Fair. In conclusion, we also point out future research directions for this emerging domain.© Institute for Computer Sciences, Social-Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering 2010.
CITATION STYLE
Schmeil, A., & Eppler, M. J. (2010). Formalizing and promoting collaboration in 3D virtual environments - A blueprint for the creation of group interaction patterns. In Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social-Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering (Vol. 33 LNICST, pp. 121–134). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11743-5_10
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