Google launches Beta of “Lively” 3D virtual world

Google Lively is a free, browser-based virtual environment with tight integration to social networks like MySpace, Facebook and OpenSocial, as well as Google gadgets like Picasa and YouTube. Unlike some previous integration’s of virtual worlds and social networks, Lively helps users’ friends lists, feeds, and logins to tie directly to the social network. Google’s platform will run in a browser, differentiating it from client-centric worlds like Second Life and can be embedded in a Web site.

There isn’t any currency used in Lively, so users will be able to add objects from Lively’s catalog to their rooms free of charge. With all these features and more rolling out later, Lively is likely to give Second Life and other popular virtual worlds a run for their money. Like most Google products, Lively is free.

While some have compared Lively to Second Life, the better comparison is with IMVU. The core of Lively content are avatars, rooms and catalog. This is true for IMVU as well, though IMVU offers home pages, groups, forums and more. In particular, Lively chose the IMVU-like metaphor of the virtual “room” instead of a sprawling virtual world or land like Second Life. However, Lively is currently a free offering, while IMVU charges for each accessory used and Second Life charges a flat fee, with the basic version provided free.

The minimum hardware requirement for running Lively is, Pentium III 800 MHz System with 512 MB RAM, a 32 MB 3D graphics card such as GeForce 2 or above and a broadband connection. Currently, Lively only runs in IE and Firefox on Windows XP and Vista machines, though the company has said that a Mac OS X client is a priority for the future.

Source- RTTNews
http://www.lively.com

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Tags: Firefox, Google, live, MAC, Windows, Windows XP