Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/103965
MetaVR's military UAV simulation and training software (left) is compared against Earthling Technology's "Geoception" (right), a free UAV combat game using Google Earth. anywhere on Earth and not just on an artificially engineered map? What if the game-like user interface of modern UAV control systems was indistinguishable from popular video-game versions? What if people started playing first-person shooters on real-world maps? Would governments ban the games or at least try to restrict access and content? Coming Attractions The "interactive geospatial simulation" has truly gone mainstream. A formerly classified technology has evolved into a cultural mainstay and become the backdrop for casual games for the masses. There's no telling what will happen in a few years as the accustomed aerial/satellite photography is replaced with fused live video and an augmented-reality interface. eeGeo's new 3-D virtual globe application, paired with its associated ActionScript SDK, will allow developers to create a wide range of browser-based video games and apps using its stylized Earth model. Imagery/LIDAR Special Issue This isn't science fiction; in 2013, Urthecast plans to launch and fit a publicly viewable HD Web camera on the International Space Station, providing a twoto three-hour-delayed video feed from space. As this becomes more mainstream, people might be able to look down at their phone and zoom in on the top of their own head. Eventually, it will all fuse together— virtual reality, augmented reality, simulation, training and gaming. Our Holodec is getting closer. In the near-term, the future for GIS gaming and simulation depends on the improved availability of virtual-globe APIs and SDKs for software developers to work with. KML is a start, but it's not a programming language. Since its introduction in 2008, the Google Earth Plug-in and JavaScript API has probably been the best and most popular free programming interface for a virtual globe. Requiring the installation of a browser plug-in, it was one of the first attempts at offering a hardware-accelerated 3-D globe visualization in a Web browser. AGI's new open-source Cesium project is similar, providing a JavaScript API for its version of a WebGL, plug-in-free, browser-based 3-D globe. WebGL Earth, the open-source 3-D globe, still is in its infancy, and its JavaScript API continues to improve. In addition, the new ActionScript SDK from eeGeo is promising and probably provides the best animation framework for a virtual globe to date. As its map coverage improves, so will the engine's utility. And although they're a relatively recent entry into the 3-D mapping and geo-modeling race, one must wonder what Apple will do. A solid 3-D Apple Maps API could significantly change the landscape of geo-gaming. Exactly how this terrain unfolds and is navigated in the coming years certainly will be interesting. Satyen Sarhad is founder and CEO, Earthling Technology LLC; e-mail: geoception@gmail.com. J A N U A R Y 2 O 1 3 / W W W . G E O P L A C E . C O M 17