Frequently Asked Questions

Overview

  1. How does Qwaq Forums work?
  2. What peer or client operating systems does Qwaq Forums support?
  3. What kind of client machine resources does Qwaq Forums require?

Navigation in Virtual Spaces

  1. How do I navigate in Qwaq Forums?

Creating Virtual Spaces and Importing Content

  1. I am not skilled at making 3-D environments, I don't even have any 3-D tools. Can I still use Qwaq Forums?
  2. How do I add content to a virtual space in Qwaq Forums?
  3. Can I copy content shared in a virtual space to my local disk?
  4. What file formats can I use to drag and drop content into a space?

Collaboration

  1. When I work on a document in a virtual space can other collaborators see my typing, editing, and commands in real-time?
  2. Does Qwaq Forums support text chat?
  3. Does Qwaq Forums support voice?

Customizing a Virtual Space

  1. How can I customize a virtual space?
  2. Can I use a web browser in a space?
  3. Can I integrate other applications into a space?
  4. Can I share a window from my desktop in a space?
  5. How can I work collaboratively with other users on a document?
  6. Can I connect multiple spaces together?
  7. Can I change the textures and colors for the walls, floor or ceiling?
  8. Can I import textures to be used for the walls, floor or ceiling?
  9. Is Qwaq Forums a 3-D modeling tool?
  10. How do I get 3-D models into a space?
  11. Can avatars be animated?

Deploying Qwaq Forums

  1. What kind of business model does Qwaq Forums have?
  2. Can Qwaq host my Qwaq Forums server for me?
  3. Can I deploy the Qwaq Forums server behind my firewall?
  4. How do I integrate Qwaq Forums with my Active Directory or LDAP service?
  5. Can I restrict access of users to parts of my Qwaq Forums virtual space?
  6. Qwaq Forums has a Peer-to-Peer architecture. Why is there a server?

Overview

  1. How does Qwaq Forums work?

Qwaq Forums uses a peer-to-peer (P2P) architecture. The peer machines provide the computational power to run a collaborative, virtual space. As more users join a virtual space, more CPU and graphics power is available to support using the virtual space.

  1. What peer or client operating systems does Qwaq Forums support?

Microsoft Windows XP and Mac OS X. Linux 2.4 and 2.6 clients are in evaluation phase -- please contact Qwaq for more information if you are interested in using the Linux client.

  1. What kind of client machine resources does Qwaq Forums require?

Your machine should have the following:

  • An Intel Pentium III processor or better is recommended. An Intel Pentium M processor with 1.6GHz is more than adequate.
  • A minimum of 1GB random access memory (RAM) is preferred.
  • Access to the Internet (WAN) is required for running the standard (hosted) version of Qwaq Forums.
  • A hardware graphics capability (GPU) for client side rendering capable of supporting OpenGL 1.3. Newer generation computers (less than two years old) are adequate to support Qwaq Forums. For systems older than two years, we recommend using graphics card such as an NVIDIA GeForce FX5200 series or better, or ATI Radeon 9600 series or better. OpenGL 1.3 library support is required and is typically pre-installed on most modern client machines.

Navigation in Virtual Spaces

  1. How do I navigate in Qwaq Forums?

Qwaq Forums supports multiple ways to move around in a virtual space. Navigation can be done by navigating to specific locations or bookmarks in the space using menus or the tab key; in addition, multiple methods are available to navigate through the virtual space: keyboard cursor (arrow) keys, gamer-type "w-a-s-d" keypad, and a virtual joystick using the mouse.

Creating Virtual Spaces and Importing Content

  1. I am not skilled at making 3-D environments, I don't even have any 3-D tools. Can I still use Qwaq Forums?

Yes, Qwaq Forums is designed for users with little or no 3-D skills. Qwaq Forums comes with pre-built templates for different types of spaces such as a personal office, a project room, a gallery and an outside campus (Qwaq Virtual Campus™). Using menu commands, you can create these types of spaces and then link them together with simple drag-and-drop commands. Qwaq Forums makes use of your existing 2-D content by sharing existing applications and documents.

  1. How do I add content to a virtual space in Qwaq Forums?

Once you have created a virtual space, you can add content from you local desktop to the space. Most content can be added using drag-and-drop placement; simply find the local content you want to add, and then drag its icon in the Qwaq Forums window. Qwaq Forums will automatically upload your local content and create a shared copy in the virtual space.

  1. Can I copy content shared in a virtual space to my local disk?

Yes. After working on shared content with other collaborators, you can save a copy of the work you have done to your local drive. Note: the shared copy will still exist in the virtual space and is part of the persistent content of the space. It is not necessary to save a local copy unless you need it for use outside of the space.

  1. What file formats can I use to drag and drop content into a space?

The following formats are supported in Qwaq Forums v1.0: MS Office files for Word, Excel and PowerPoint via OpenOffice, Open Document Format files, PDF files, image files (JPEG, GIF, and PNG), video files (MPEG-2), 3-D files (ASE / Google Sketchup Collada format) and web content, both static HTML and web-based applications.

Collaboration

  1. When I work on a document in a virtual space can other collaborators see my typing, editing, and commands in real-time?

Yes. Qwaq Forums has a technology called Qwaq Multi-Share™ that allows all users in the same virtual space to see how others are editing or modifying content. Qwaq Multi-Share is a fine-grained collaboration technology and allows multiple users to quickly and intuitively share control of an application or content.

  1. Does Qwaq Forums support text chat?

Yes. Chat is built-in into Qwaq Forums.

  1. Does Qwaq Forums support voice?

Yes. A high-quality voice channel is built-in to Qwaq Forums. Users in a space can hear each other and also hear audio content in a virtual space. Sounds sources are spatially located or spatialized so that a colleague on your left in the virtual space sounds that way on your computer's stereo headset.

Customizing a Virtual Space

  1. How can I customize a virtual space?

There are many ways to customize a virtual space in Qwaq Forums:

  1. Drag and drop content to create new data, application, or web frames in the virtual space.
  2. Add portals (gateways) to other virtual spaces to create your own navigation pathways between different working spaces. Like content, links to other spaces can be dragged and dropped onto portals in a virtual space.
  3. Change colors and textures of surfaces by using the built-in texture browser
  4. Add 3-D content by importing models or other 3-D elements from other sources.
  1. Can I use a web browser in a space?

Yes. Support for Mozilla Firefox is built-in to the environment.

  1. Can I integrate other applications into a space?

Yes. Qwaq Forums has a general application integration infrastructure. Applications that can be virtualized such as Firefox, OpenOffice, virtualized Vista, etc. can be invoked as application services for a virtual space. Applications that can not be virtualized can be shared from a client window running on one of the user machines in the session.

  1. Can I share a window from my desktop in a space?

This feature is current is beta testing. Please contact Qwaq if you are a current Qwaq user or evaluator and would like more information.

  1. How can I work collaboratively with other users on a document?

Using Qwaq Multi-Share™ you can see the edits and commands other users are executing and also take control to drive an application or edit content. This is a mode of working that encourages interaction and collaboration.

  1. Can I connect multiple spaces together?

Yes. Different spaces can be linked together. The spaces could be running on different servers and can be managed by different groups or companies; for example, a vendor and a supplier might both have virtual spaces and link them together to facilitate collaboration across the supply chain.

  1. Can I change the textures and colors for the walls, floor or ceiling?

Yes. There is a full texture browser and surface property editor available in Qwaq Forums. Like all built-in tools, these can be used simultaneously by more than one user.

  1. Can I import textures to be used for the walls, floor or ceiling?

Yes. Texture files up to 2048 x 2048 can be imported and used for texture mapping.

  1. Is Qwaq Forums a 3-D modeling tool?

Not really. You can create 3-D spaces from existing templates, make new templates or import and place 3-D content developed in other tools. If you want to make detailed 3-D models you should use an application designed for that purpose such as Google SketchUp, 3D Studio Max, or other tools designed for 3-D modeling. Once you have 3-D models, you can import them into Qwaq Forums.

  1. How do I get 3-D models into a space?

Drag and drop from a local folder into the virtual space. Once the mode has been shared it can be scaled, rotated or moved into the desired location.

  1. Can avatars be animated?

Yes. Avatars can use motion capture files to have articulated movement for walking and other movements.

Deploying Qwaq Forums

  1. What kind of business model does Qwaq Forums have?

Qwaq Forums has a Software as a Service (SaaS) business model. Qwaq Forums is available 24/7, including unlimited voice use, for a flat fee based on a per user per month fee. As new features are released in Qwaq Forums, they are immediately available to current customers as updates to the product are included in the flat fee.

  1. Can Qwaq host my Qwaq Forums server for me?

Yes. Qwaq can host the Qwaq Forums server for you. Your account will have its own private space and access will be limited only to those people you authorize.

  1. Can I deploy the Qwaq Forums server behind my firewall?

Yes. Qwaq Forums is designed to be deployed behind your firewall for self-hosted use. Qwaq will deliver the server as an appliance to you for deployment behind your firewall. All communication (voice, applications, persistence) share a single outbound connection on a single port.

  1. How do I integrate Qwaq Forums with my Active Directory or LDAP service?

Users need to authenticate to join a Qwaq Forums virtual space. User credentials can be checked against an existing authentication service such as Active Directory or LDAP in the self-hosted edition, available Q207.

  1. Can I restrict access of users to parts of my Qwaq Forums virtual space?

Yes. Qwaq Forums virtual spaces require authentication in order for a user to join a space. Authentication can be restricted so that certain spaces are only available to users with specific permissions.

  1. Qwaq Forums has a Peer-to-Peer architecture. Why is there a server?

The server in Qwaq Forums is used for the following functions: (a) holding the persistent state of a virtual space when no users are in the space, (b) providing authentication services to users requesting to join a space, and (c) routing peer-to-peer message traffic between users in a space. The server does not compute updates for users, the peer machines compute updates for the users, providing an inherently scalable architecture.