AlphaWorld -- Worlds, Inc. seems to know exactly what the VRML language should evolve into. I wasn't prepared for anything new from this amazing company until later this fall when the greatly anticipated Worlds Fair is expected to be released. I couldn't have been more surprised to learn of the release of a new, 'super' version of Worlds Chat called AlphaWorld. While still in beta, this program shows promise of being extremely interesting and entertaining to individual users as well as being profitable at the corporate level . Like Worlds Chat, AlphaWorld is a 3-dimensional landscape complete with scenery, realistic objects, and generic avatars. Once you naturalize yourself with the AlphaWorld immigration patrol, youll be able to control your own avatar and converse with others as you venture out into the world. While the extremely useful and time-saving hot-spots feature (similar to bookmarks but on a 3D level -- think of them as teleportation devices) of VRML isnt included in the beta release, you can navigate in many new ways including a flying mode and a 3rd person point of view, as well as the more common walking mode. So what gives AlphaWorld even more potential than Worlds Chat? In addition to its ability to portray realistic landscapes and objects (including trees, houses, and even fire hydrants), every object in Alpha World has the potential for acting as a link to a web site, gopher site, mail address, newsgroup, and more. Combine this with a forum for conversing with hundreds of others and you have the beginning of an extremely new and fascinating technology that corporations will be able to use in augmenting typical activities like training sessions, presentations, conferences, and perhaps most importantly, marketing and advertising promotions. Worlds Chat also has many of these features but is limited in the types of objects that can be represented. This is perhaps best evidenced by AlphaWorlds potential for virtual communities. Entire communities can be created with AlphaWorld -- communities that we may well learn to call our second home someday in the future. Inns, houses, malls, and stores are just a few examples of the virtual real estate that can be found in AlphaWorld. With the aid of any common web browser, you can also create links to any site on the Internet from your virtual home. While AlphaWorld does have potential, users should be aware that this technology is still in beta and will likely witness considerable changes during its development. For example, cool new features include a much-improved rendering engine, automatic updates for AlphaWorld, and multiple avatars -- you can now choose from over ten different 3-D personas. This is amazing technology that is almost too good to be true. If youre getting impatient for Worlds Fair to arrive, take a look at AlphaWorld -- you wont be disappointed. Pros: Super Worlds Chat -- a New 3-Dimensional world to explore with near limitless possibilities Cons: Slow, limited to one generic avatar, communications problem with some video drivers New: Improved performance; automatic updates; New avatars (more than ten to choose from) Version Reviewed: Release 79 Date of Review: 4/23/96 Reviewer: Forrest Stroud apps conference Main Menu