Interface
River City Interface
Similar to some online multi-player games, the River City multi-user virtual environment (MUVE) enabled multiple participants to access virtual worlds simultaneously, communicate with teammates via an instant messenger interface, and to interact with digital artifacts.
In general, MUVEs enable multiple simultaneous participants to:
- access virtual contexts
- interact with digital artifacts (such as online microscopes and pictures)
- represent themselves through graphical "avatars"
- communicate both with other participants and with computer-based agents, enacting collaborative learning activities of various types
- take part in experiences incorporating modeling and mentoring about problems similar to those in real world contexts
The Four Areas of the Interface
The River City simulation utilized four key areas of the computer screen.
1. View and Action Space
This space allowed users to change their viewpoint (how they viewed the 3-D space inside the simulation) and allowed their avatar to perform different actions (such as spinning, jumping, and waving). Each avatar had a different set of actions (emotes) he, she, or it could perform.
2. Virtual Space
This space contained the 3-dimensional world of River City, which users navigated and explored through their avatar. The Virtual Space contained interactive people, objects, and tools that carried information about River City, which was revealed by clicking on them. The arrow keys on the keyboard allowed you to move.
Some special “MUVEs”
- Flying – In the River City simulation, the + (plus) key on the numeric keypad moved an avatar up into the air, and the - (minus) key moved the avatar back down again. Holding these keys down allowed the user to move higher or lower.
- Moving faster – Avatars would run when users held down the CTRL (Control) key while moving their avatar in a given direction.
- Sliding sideways – Users could use the SHIFT key along with the left or right arrow to “slide” sideways.
- Swimming – If a user walked his or her avatar into the river in River City, the avatar automatically began to walk along the river bottom.
3. Chat Window
This space displayed all dialogue between a user and residents of River City as well as among a student and his or her teammates. While in River City, users could see avatars of all other visitors and residents but could only communicate with residents and teammates.
Teammate Chat
Typing in the main text input box displayed a user's message to other team members.
Resident Chat
Users could talk to River City residents by right-clicking on them and then choosing a question to pose to them.
4. Student Workspace
The Student Workspace consisted of four tabs and three tools.
The Guide
In earlier years, students used a paper-based Laboratory Notebook to navigate the River City curriculum. For academic year 2007-08 we seamlessly integrated the Student Laboratory Notebook into the River City simulation. The Guide was the primary resource students used to navigate the River City curriculum. The Guide scaffolded students through their River City experiences across the River City Project while inside of the simulation.
The Notebook
Once information was recorded and saved in the Guide, it could be viewed, sorted, and added to through the Notebook.
Map
The interactive map showed students where they are and allowed them to teleport to any part of the city.
