Our virtual world will be our interface to the rest of the World Wide Web and people everywhere!  Cyberspace 2020 will likely be even more interconnecting and more social, but it will almost certainly change the way we live, work and play.

It happens in school, at work, physically, verbally, even by email and text - now researchers at The University of Nottingham say there's no escape in the virtual world.

Cyberbullies can send harmful messages several ways. Cyberbullying can come in the form of direct, attacking emails or text messages. These messages often contain threats, insults and sexual or racial slurs. Cyberbullying can also occur in Web forums. Bullies may pose as the person they’re trying to humiliate on public sites and post defamatory comments towards themselves. Bullies have also been known to reveal personal information (address, workplace phone number) about another individual on public forums or chat rooms as a way to solicit unwarranted contact.

On an average, users spend about 25 hours a week in such virtual worlds.

The new Xbox LIVE Party feature extends the concept of social interaction on Xbox LIVE with 8-person voice chat. It also provides simple mechanisms for the Xbox LIVE Party group to play multiplayer games together. This session reviews the Xbox LIVE Party feature and discusses how to integrate your game to create cutting-edge social experiences. Come find out how to make your title interact seamlessly with Xbox LIVE Party, and how doing so will improve your user experience. If you are currently enabling your title for Xbox LIVE, or are just interested in learning more about the latest features, this talk is for you.

According to Daden, there were four basic types of virtual worlds three years ago — gaming worlds like World of Warcraft, 3D chat platforms like IMVU, open virtual worlds like Second Life, and proprietary simulations used for training in businesses, government and education settings. There are technical reasons why game engines are used for gaming worlds rather than virtual world platforms, due better graphics and scalability. Similarly, simulations are often created using simulation engines.