<s>
The	O
virtual	B-Application
world	I-Application
framework	I-Application
(	O
VWF	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
means	O
to	O
connect	O
robust	O
3D	O
,	O
immersive	O
,	O
entities	O
with	O
other	O
entities	O
,	O
virtual	B-Application
worlds	I-Application
,	O
content	O
and	O
users	O
via	O
web	B-Application
browsers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
provides	O
the	O
ability	O
for	O
client-server	O
programs	O
to	O
be	O
delivered	O
in	O
a	O
lightweight	O
manner	O
via	O
web	B-Application
browsers	I-Application
,	O
and	O
provides	O
synchronization	O
for	O
multiple	O
users	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
common	O
objects	O
and	O
environments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
using	O
VWF	O
,	O
a	O
developer	O
can	O
take	O
video	O
lesson	O
plans	O
,	O
component	O
objects	O
and	O
avatars	B-Application
and	O
successfully	O
insert	O
them	O
into	O
an	O
existing	O
virtual	O
or	O
created	O
landscape	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
EDGE	O
or	O
Open	B-Protocol
Sim	I-Protocol
)	O
,	O
interacting	O
with	O
the	O
native	O
objects	O
and	O
users	O
via	O
a	O
VWF	O
interface	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
Imagine	O
running	O
a	O
tank	O
simulation	O
with	O
aviation	O
assets	O
,	O
provided	O
by	O
two	O
different	O
simulations	O
suites	O
,	O
but	O
executed	O
together	O
and	O
passing	O
imagery	O
and	O
sensor	O
data	O
between	O
them	O
,	O
working	O
over	O
a	O
common	O
landscape	O
and	O
feeding	O
a	O
constructive	O
mapping	O
simulation	O
run	O
on	O
a	O
third	O
platform	O
,	O
all	O
seamlessly	O
and	O
transparent	O
to	O
remote	O
users	O
via	O
their	O
browsers	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VWF	O
is	O
meant	O
as	O
a	O
useful	O
tool	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
differing	O
types	O
of	O
entities	O
(	O
objects	O
,	O
avatars	B-Application
,	O
simulations	O
,	O
spaces	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VWF	O
is	O
under	O
development	O
to	O
work	O
with	O
Massively	B-Protocol
Multiplayer	I-Protocol
Online	I-Protocol
Role	I-Protocol
Playing	I-Protocol
Games	I-Protocol
(	O
MMORPG	B-Protocol
)	O
such	O
as	O
EDGE	O
,	O
and	O
ideally	O
will	O
be	O
developed	O
to	O
interface	O
with	O
the	O
latest	O
object	O
encodings	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Unity	O
and	O
MP4	O
)	O
,	O
environments	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
OpenSim	O
MOSES	O
)	O
and	O
other	O
simulations	O
platforms	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
truly	O
agnostic	O
interfacing	O
tool	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Even	O
though	O
it	O
has	O
a	O
suggestive	O
name	O
,	O
the	O
VWF	O
is	O
not	O
a	O
virtual	B-Application
world	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nor	O
is	O
it	O
a	O
virtual	B-Application
world	I-Application
generation	O
tool	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VWF	O
is	O
meant	O
to	O
extend	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
active	O
client-server	O
simulations	O
in	O
order	O
that	O
they	O
can	O
be	O
accessed	O
via	O
a	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
VWF	O
is	O
not	O
an	O
avatar	B-Application
,	O
nor	O
does	O
it	O
require	O
an	O
avatar	B-Application
to	O
run	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VWF	O
does	O
not	O
require	O
a	O
virtual	O
space	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
work	O
;	O
it	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
generate	O
a	O
virtual	O
space	O
within	O
the	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
or	O
locally	O
on	O
the	O
host	O
machine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VWF	O
does	O
not	O
need	O
an	O
avatar	B-Application
to	O
function	O
,	O
and	O
does	O
not	O
necessarily	O
generate	O
avatars	B-Application
for	O
use	O
with	O
virtual	B-Application
worlds	I-Application
,	O
but	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
produce	O
or	O
interact	O
with	O
avatars	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
We	O
are	O
surrounded	O
by	O
immersive	O
,	O
personalized	O
social	O
media	O
and	O
technology	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Smart	B-Application
Phones	I-Application
,	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
Pandora	B-Application
Radio	I-Application
,	O
Project	B-Application
Glass	I-Application
and	O
augmented	O
reality	O
sites	O
such	O
as	O
Layar	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VWF	O
is	O
for	O
developers	O
of	O
simulations	O
,	O
education	O
systems	O
,	O
training	O
content	O
,	O
games	O
,	O
information	O
sharing	O
,	O
private	O
individuals	O
,	O
really	O
anyone	O
with	O
an	O
interest	O
in	O
sharing	O
information	O
with	O
multiple	O
users	O
in	O
a	O
lightweight	O
fashion	O
using	O
a	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
as	O
a	O
delivery	O
mechanism	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
designers	O
are	O
David	O
A	O
.	O
Smith	O
(	O
computer	O
scientist	O
)	O
(	O
Lockheed	O
Martin	O
Chief	O
Innovation	O
Officer	O
–	O
project	O
oversight	O
,	O
design	O
,	O
architecture	O
)	O
,	O
David	O
Easter	O
(	O
LM	O
Engineer	O
-	O
Development/Architecture	O
)	O
,	O
Richard	O
Boyd	O
(	O
Lockheed	O
Martin	O
Virtual	B-Application
world	I-Application
Labs	O
Chief	O
Architect	O
-	O
governance	O
and	O
ecosystem	O
design	O
)	O
,	O
Allison	O
Corey	O
(	O
LM	O
Engineer	O
–	O
development	O
)	O
,	O
Scott	O
R	O
.	O
Haynes	O
(	O
LM	O
Engineer	O
-	O
Development	O
)	O
,	O
Michael	O
J	O
.	O
Vacirca	O
(	O
LM	O
Engineer	O
-	O
Development	O
)	O
,	O
Steven	O
D	O
.	O
Carr	O
(	O
LM	O
Engineer	O
-	O
Development	O
)	O
,	O
Cynthia	O
L	O
.	O
Moore	O
(	O
contractor	O
,	O
OSD( P&R	O
)	O
TRS	O
–	O
design	O
,	O
future	O
specs	O
,	O
governance	O
)	O
,	O
Carlton	O
Rosengrant	O
OSD( P&R	O
)	O
TRS	O
–	O
overall	O
Program	O
Manager	O
,	O
Frank	O
C	O
.	O
DiGiovanni	O
(	O
Director	O
,	O
OSD( P&R	O
)	O
TRS	O
)	O
,	O
Coles/RDECOM	O
(	O
Edge	O
interfacing	O
)	O
,	O
Robert	O
Chadwick	O
(	O
ADL	O
–	O
code	O
efficiency	O
and	O
applications	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
emerging	O
partners	O
as	O
new	O
functions	O
and	O
libraries	O
are	O
proposed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
paper	O
"	O
A	O
Virtual	B-Application
World	I-Application
Ecosystem	O
Framework	O
"	O
,	O
presented	O
at	O
the	O
IITSEc	O
conference	O
in	O
2012	O
,	O
explains	O
the	O
philosophy	O
of	O
contribution	O
to	O
the	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
is	O
nothing	O
special	O
required	O
to	O
run	O
completed	O
applications	O
outside	O
of	O
having	O
access	O
to	O
a	O
compatible	O
browser	B-Application
with	O
WebGL	B-Library
and	O
potentially	O
web	O
sockets	O
capability	O
depending	O
on	O
the	O
location	O
of	O
the	O
source	O
objects	O
and	O
interactions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
many	O
applications	O
available	O
which	O
advertise	O
themselves	O
as	O
Thin	B-Device
Clients	I-Device
or	O
web	O
interfaces	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
no	O
open	O
source	O
development	O
tools	O
in	O
widespread	O
use	O
that	O
interface	O
different	O
entities	O
in	O
a	O
persistent	O
,	O
secure	O
manner	O
using	O
a	O
thin	B-Device
client	I-Device
through	O
web-browsers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
still	O
other	O
tools	O
which	O
produce	O
virtual	O
environments	O
,	O
avatars	B-Application
,	O
and	O
content	O
,	O
but	O
none	O
of	O
the	O
ones	O
known	O
tie	O
them	O
together	O
,	O
spontaneously	O
create	O
interfaces	O
among	O
them	O
or	O
provide	O
seamless	O
communications	O
to	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
entities	O
regardless	O
of	O
their	O
timing	O
and	O
without	O
a	O
heavy	O
burden	O
in	O
bandwidth	O
or	O
processing	O
power	O
for	O
the	O
client	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VWF	O
utilizes	O
web	O
sockets	O
and	O
WebGL	B-Library
,	O
directly	O
providing	O
a	O
content	O
link	O
between	O
entities	O
and	O
build	O
3D	O
objects	O
in	O
the	O
quickest	O
,	O
most	O
efficient	O
manner	O
possible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Simulations	O
do	O
not	O
take	O
place	O
"	O
in	O
"	O
the	O
Virtual	B-Application
World	I-Application
Framework	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Developers	O
use	O
the	O
VWF	O
to	O
build	O
simulations	O
using	O
Java	B-Language
script	I-Language
and	O
functionality	O
provided	O
through	O
the	O
VWF	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
use	O
of	O
secure	B-Protocol
socket	I-Protocol
layer	I-Protocol
encryption	O
(	O
SSL	B-Protocol
)	O
,	O
virtual	B-Application
private	I-Application
networks	I-Application
(	O
VPN	B-Application
)	O
,	O
public	B-Application
key	I-Application
encryption	I-Application
(	O
PKI	O
)	O
,	O
proprietary	O
encryption	O
,	O
hardware	O
secured	O
network	O
systems	O
,	O
etc	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
IPv6	B-Protocol
,	O
bit-wise	O
security	O
protocols	O
are	O
available	O
that	O
were	O
previously	O
not	O
available	O
to	O
data	O
transport	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
problem	O
with	O
opening	O
a	O
continuous	O
connection	O
between	O
two	O
computers	O
via	O
a	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
using	O
Web	O
sockets	O
is	O
that	O
it	O
potentially	O
opens	O
up	O
the	O
link	O
to	O
something	O
called	O
cache	O
poisoning	O
,	O
in	O
which	O
someone	O
can	O
directly	O
introduce	O
viruses	O
or	O
other	O
malware	O
to	O
the	O
link	O
,	O
compromising	O
the	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WebGL	B-Library
(	O
web	B-Library
graphics	I-Library
library	I-Library
)	O
is	O
a	O
JavaScript	B-Language
Application	B-Application
Programming	I-Application
Interface	I-Application
(	O
API	B-Application
)	O
for	O
rendering	O
interactive	O
3D	O
graphics	O
within	O
any	O
compatible	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
without	O
using	O
plug-ins	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WebGL	B-Library
programs	O
include	O
control	O
code	O
(	O
written	O
in	O
Java	B-Language
Script	I-Language
)	O
and	O
shader	O
code	O
which	O
is	O
executed	O
on	O
the	O
graphics	O
processing	O
unit	O
on	O
the	O
video	O
card	O
(	O
GPU	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WebGL	B-Library
is	O
designed	O
and	O
maintained	O
by	O
the	O
non-profit	O
Khronos	O
Group	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
So	O
far	O
,	O
Internet	O
Explorer	O
does	O
not	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
and	O
has	O
not	O
announced	O
any	O
plans	O
to	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
.	O
</s>
<s>
Chrome	O
Frame	O
and	O
IEWebGL	O
plug-ins	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
for	O
IE	O
6.0	O
onward	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
WebGL	B-Library
standard	O
is	O
affected	O
by	O
the	O
Khronos	O
Group	O
,	O
Mozilla	O
,	O
Apple	O
and	O
Google	O
along	O
with	O
influence	O
from	O
United	O
States	O
Computer	O
Emergency	O
Readiness	O
Team	O
which	O
raises	O
security	O
concerns	O
to	O
which	O
the	O
WebGL	B-Library
consortium	O
(	O
headed	O
by	O
the	O
Khronos	O
Group	O
)	O
react	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
PCs	O
,	O
laptops	O
,	O
and	O
tablets	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
capable	O
browsers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mobile	O
support	O
for	O
WebGL	B-Library
is	O
nascent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Expectations	O
are	O
that	O
current	O
mobile	O
bindings	O
for	O
JavaScript	B-Language
and	O
WebGL	B-Library
are	O
not	O
good	O
enough	O
but	O
there	O
is	O
an	O
Android	O
version	O
of	O
Firefox	O
with	O
WebGL	B-Library
(	O
only	O
about	O
10%	O
of	O
potential	O
users	O
access	O
content	O
via	O
mobile	O
device	O
requiring	O
WebGL	B-Library
support	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Opera	O
also	O
supports	O
WebGL	B-Library
on	O
Android	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
iPhone	O
does	O
not	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
yet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
does	O
not	O
have	O
plans	O
to	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
due	O
to	O
security	O
concerns	O
over	O
handshake	O
vulnerabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
two	O
plug-ins	O
for	O
Internet	O
Explorer	O
which	O
support	O
WebGL	B-Library
interfaces	O
:	O
Chrome	O
Frame	O
and	O
IEWebGL	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
true	O
that	O
native	O
support	O
tends	O
to	O
run	O
better	O
than	O
plug-in	O
support	O
,	O
and	O
not	O
all	O
security	O
organizations	O
will	O
support	O
the	O
installation	O
of	O
additional	O
plug-ins	O
to	O
web	B-Application
browsers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Java	B-Language
Script	I-Language
is	O
a	O
prototype-based	O
scripting	O
language	O
that	O
is	O
dynamic	O
,	O
weakly	O
typed	O
,	O
general	O
purpose	O
and	O
supports	O
object	O
oriented	O
,	O
imperative	O
,	O
and	O
functional	O
programming	O
styles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
means	O
that	O
JavaScript	B-Language
enables	O
the	O
programmer	O
to	O
build	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
prototypes	O
and	O
interact	O
with	O
them	O
using	O
a	O
mostly	O
literal	O
syntax	O
based	O
on	O
C	O
.	O
Due	O
to	O
its	O
ease	O
of	O
use	O
and	O
widespread	O
appeal	O
,	O
JavaScript	B-Language
quickly	O
became	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
programming	O
languages	O
for	O
web	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Java	B-Language
Script	I-Language
runs	O
locally	O
in	O
the	O
browsers	B-Application
,	O
does	O
not	O
require	O
additional	O
plug	O
ins	O
or	O
environments	O
(	O
like	O
the	O
Java	O
runtime	O
environment	O
)	O
to	O
run	O
,	O
and	O
does	O
not	O
require	O
compilation	O
or	O
.exe	O
files	O
to	O
be	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
client	O
machine	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
work	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
HTML	O
5.0	O
,	O
ECMAScript5	O
,	O
WebGL	B-Library
,	O
Web	O
Sockets	O
,	O
Collada	O
(	O
or	O
other	O
later	O
file	O
formats	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
others	O
as	O
the	O
tool	O
matures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VWF	O
is	O
meant	O
to	O
interface	O
content	O
via	O
the	O
web	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
also	O
contains	O
construction	O
pieces	O
enabling	O
the	O
creation	O
of	O
games	O
or	O
communications	O
services	O
wholly	O
executable	O
within	O
the	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
:	O
A	O
game	O
company	O
might	O
use	O
VWF	O
to	O
create	O
an	O
online	O
game	O
using	O
their	O
proprietary	O
graphics	O
,	O
and	O
store	O
both	O
the	O
graphics	O
and	O
the	O
program	O
files	O
on	O
their	O
own	O
servers	O
while	O
delivering	O
that	O
content	O
through	O
the	O
web	O
;	O
a	O
teleconference	O
company	O
might	O
more	O
efficiently	O
create	O
an	O
e-classroom	O
with	O
the	O
VWF	O
to	O
take	O
their	O
own	O
streaming	O
media	O
codec	O
and	O
pass	O
their	O
video	O
through	O
the	O
web	O
to	O
a	O
digital	O
classroom	O
environment	O
created	O
wholly	O
with	O
the	O
VWF	O
,	O
complete	O
with	O
avatars	B-Application
and	O
interactive	O
objects	O
.	O
</s>
