Management of recorded data for online simulations

1 MANAGEMENT OF RECORDED DATA FOR ONLINE SIMULATIONS

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/027,368, filed on Feb. 7, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,885, 924 B2, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of online simulations and video games and more particularly relates to the field of management of recorded data for online simulations and video games.

2. Description of the Related Art

In recent years, the World Wide Web has experienced a rapid growth. In this regard, the web has begun to accommodate multiplayer games and simulations, known as online games. A plethora of multiplayer online games and simulations have appeared on the web, ranging from simple board games to complicated virtual reality worlds.

A virtual world is a computer-based simulated environment intended for its users to inhabit and interact via avatars. This habitation usually is represented in the form of two or three-dimensional graphical representations of humanoids (or other graphical or text-based avatars). Most, but not all, virtual worlds allow for multiple users. The world being computer-simulated typically appears similar to the real world, with real worldrules such as gravity, topography, locomotion, real-time actions, and communication. Communication can be in the form of text, graphics and/or real-time voice communication using VoIP. These types of virtual worlds are common in massively multiplayer online games, particularly massively multiplayer online role-playing games. A metaverse refers to fillly immersive 3D virtual worlds.

Memories and the ability to recall events are a powerfirl aspect of social communication and business exchange. Conventional virtual world applications do not allow an avatar to have a memory. This limits the ability of a user of the avatar to leverage information obtained in past communications, past commerce transactions, and past experiences in the virtual world. As a user navigates through a virtual world, he is not equipped with automated memory to recall with whom he spoke, where he traveled and how previous business transactions worked out. Thus, users are forced to rely on human recollection, which can be fallible and inefficient.

Therefore, there is a need for improvements over the prior art, and more particularly, there is a need for a way of allowing the recording of events in an online simulation and the management of those recordings.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention address deficiencies of the art in respect to online simulations. In one embodiment of the invention, a method for managing recorded data for an online simulation can be provided. The method can include determining that a first experience of a user of the online simulation shall be recorded. The method can filrther include generating a recording of the first experience and associating metadata with the recording. The method can further include reading metadata of a second experience of the user of the online simulation and determining that the metadata of the

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second experience matches the metadata of the first experience. The method can further include notifying the user that the recording is associated with the second experience.

In another embodiment of the invention, a computer system for managing recorded data for an online simulation can be provided. The computer system can include a repository for storing recordings of experiences of users of the online simulation. The computer system can include a processor configured for determining, based on the predefined criteria, that a first experience of a user of the online simulation shall be recorded and storing a recording of the first experience in the repository and associating metadata with the recording. The computer system can filrther include a processor configured for reading metadata of a second experience of the user of the online simulation and determining that the metadata of the second experience matches the metadata of the first experience. The computer system can filrther include a processor configured for notifying the user that the recording is associated with the second experience.

In yet another embodiment of the invention, an alternative method for managing recorded data for an online simulation can be provided. The method can include reading metadata of a second experience of a first user of the online simulation and reading metadata of a second user in the second experience, wherein the metadata includes membership of the second user in a social group and metadata about a plurality of recordings of the second user. The method can filrther include determining that the membership of the second user matches a membership of the first user and determining that the metadata of the second experience matches the metadata at least one of the plurality of recordings. The method can further include notifying the user that the at least one of the plurality of recordings is associated with the second experience.

Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The aspects of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. The embodiments illustrated herein are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a block diagram showing the network architecture of an application in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow chart depicting the control flow of the process by which experiences within the online simulation are recorded, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention provide an improvement for online simulations. In an embodiment of the invention, a method for managing recorded data for an online simulation is provided. The method of the present invention