Metaverse Guide; Understanding The Basics Will Open Up a New World

The Metaverse Explained

Let’s start the Metaverse guide by explaining what the metaverse actually is. The metaverse meaning is flexible and can describe different experiences. The metaverse can be an entire virtual world that you’re immersed in via a VR headset. But the metaverse can also integrate itself into the world around you through a more mobile digital overlay. This augmented reality-based approach recently gained widespread recognition through Pokémon GO.

It’s essential to keep in mind that the metaverse has emergent properties. It allows for collaboration, even merging, of online and offline components. This opens up the prospect of continual growth and development. The metaverse is essentially a new digital universe that exists alongside our own. But it’s a universe that can merge with our own to create immersive, interactive, and hyper-realistic experiences.

The metaverse is still in development and can be thought of as an amazing experiment that’s constantly creating new surprises. Different companies and developers can create dramatically different takes on the concept. Nobody knows exactly what the metaverse will look like in the future. But you can jump into it today and see that growth firsthand.

What Are Characteristics of The Metaverse?

Within this part of the metaverse guide, you are going to learn about the characteristics of the metaverse. The metaverse is in continual development. As such, people can always expect to find new features and surprises when they log in. But there are a few features that are consistent across all implementations of the metaverse. Different implementations might indeed work with these rules in different ways. However, for the most part, you can rely on these central points within any variation on the metaverse.

There Are No Limits or Boundaries

The metaverse is essential without limits or boundaries. You might find areas that you can’t move beyond. But this is simply because nothing has been built within those areas yet. The space is essentially endless. It merely needs to be properly utilized by the metaverse-centered programmers.

No Singular Authority Is in Control

The metaverse isn’t like a single home or building that one person owns. It’s instead more like a large area of land where many different people live. In the physical world, people have deeds and proof of ownership. In the metaverse, people often demonstrate it through blockchain-related systems.

It’s Always Active and Can’t Be Turned Off

Nobody can turn off the earth. Likewise, people can’t turn off the metaverse. It’s a decentralized system that’s made up of many independent parts. True, some elements of the metaverse might only exist on a single server that might go offline. But the metaverse itself isn’t on a single server.

It Has a Functional Economy Similar to the Real World

You can expect a functional economy in the metaverse powered by cryptocurrency. People will use it to buy virtual land or goods similar to the real world. Digital assets which use art are typically protected as NFTs. All this makes it possible to buy and sell.

It Provides an Immersive Sensory Experience

The metaverse fully engages one or more senses. This is typically vision, through VR goggles. And of course, audio cues come in through headphones. But the metaverse has the potential to immerse people through any of their various senses fully. This immersion also entails letting users modify their virtual environment.

People Can Make Real Social Connections

The metaverse lets people make real social connections. These experiences typically happen with other human beings. But even interactions with AI can provide social stimulation. Social interaction means people are always surprised and can find new experiences by talking to others. This also leads to exploration and the metaverse’s economy.

The 7 Layers of The Metaverse

Within this part of the metaverse guide, you are going to learn about the 7 laters of the Metaverse. It’s helpful to think of the metaverse in terms of layers surrounding its users. People need to keep in mind that there’s no particular order to these layers. But as people enter into or enhance these layers they become more connected to the metaverse. In a sense, they’re more fully citizens of the metaverse as they gain strength or presence in each layer. The 7 layers are suggested by Jon Radoff, author of Building the Metaverse blog.

1. An Experience of Dismaterialized Reality

People often visualize the metaverse as a 3D space. And it’s true, users generally interact with the metaverse in that way. For example, VR goggles simulate 3D environments. Interface devices make it possible for users to grip or move items in those 3D environments. However, the metaverse isn’t a 3D space. It’s not a 2D space either.

The metaverse is instead a dematerialized reality where spatial dimensions are irrelevant. For example, Alexa exists within small objects that connect to massive amounts of information. And people within the metaverse can explore vast amounts of virtual land that ultimately exists as something as small as a hard drive.

The metaverse essentially dissolves people’s concept of spatial dimensions. And this isn’t just within the metaverse itself. The internet of things (IoT) can bring the metaverse into the real world just as people can find elements of the real world inside the metaverse.

2. Discovery and Exploration of a Vast and Living World

Exploration of the metaverse is a vital layer that’s not always easy to understand. Exploration doesn’t just involve looking through a simulated 3D environment. Of course, this type of exploration is part of the more extensive experience of the metaverse. Many people love the chance to be among the first to see new sights within the continually expanding landscapes of the metaverse.

However, as previously noted, there’s more to the metaverse than 3D environments. Discovery and exploration also involve inbound discoveries. For example, community-created content will often find its way to users. And there will usually be commercial interests looking for people who have specific and compatible interests.

Discovery within the metaverse can also be outbound. For example, advertisements or what most people think spam would be considered outbound discovery. But all of these examples have something in common. They all highlight people finding new experiences in the metaverse.

3. An Economy Where Creators Can Thrive

The metaverse has a whole economy. As previously noted the metaverse tends to rely on blockchain-based exchanges based on cryptocurrency. But the metaverse’s economy goes beyond the simple exchange of currency for goods and services. A creator economy sets the metaverse’s economy apart from the real world.

Both the early web and metaverse went through two initial points of development. The first is the pioneer era. This period required people to have a high level of expertise to create content in the digital realm. For example, one would have to be an expert programmer to create content for the early internet or metaverse. Next came the engineering era, where new tools make it easy for even new developers to create content.

But what makes a true metaverse is the creator era. Here average users can create goods. Likewise, they can easily sell goods too.

4. Spacial Computing That Blurs Boundaries Between the Real and Virtual Worlds

As previously noted, the metaverse tends to erase the limits of spatial dimensions. As the metaverse develops, it essentially blurs the digital and analog worlds. What’s virtual and what’s real? It’s easy to say that the digital realm isn’t real. But when you have your money, unique purchases, and even property online? That becomes very real. Likewise, a room devoted to VR might have very little to do with that location’s physicality.

Meanwhile, the digital realms can simulate 3D spaces. You can go on walks along virtual trails and see real effects. You’ll traverse virtual distances, burn calories as you move your legs or arms, and even feel relaxed watching distant horizons.

In a sense, you’re not traveling a significant distance as measured in analog terms. You might simply be walking in place or along a small track. But what matters is the feeling.

5. A Decentralized Experience With Interoperable Components

Centralized computing consists of a single entity or component which controls an entirely digital system. This is the easiest way to design or use networks. However, it doesn’t provide much freedom or power to end-users. The metaverse instead relies on decentralized development. This means that the metaverse consists of many individually owned and created components.

The exact nature of decentralization varies between implementations. However, one crucial point shared between all aspects of the metaverse is interoperability. People create elements based on standards, making them interoperable with each other. This means components can be essentially removed and replaced. This is similar to eliminating RAM from a computer and replacing it with a RAM stick from another manufacturer.

The metaverse uses shared standards to work with things like the blockchain. But it also means that people can write their extensions or apps.

6. Human Interfaces Which Allow for Direct Interaction

People often don’t realize just how much they interact with technology. For example, a smartphone is less a phone and more of a supercomputer with a powerful network behind it. These devices also have various sensors and even some limited AI to further aid interaction. And almost everyone interacts with it throughout the day without giving it much thought.

Smartphones aren’t just getting smaller and easier to use. They’re also being integrated into interface devices for the metaverse. For example, the Oculus Quest is essentially a combination of VR and smartphones. The process of integrating components effectively creates a human interface into the metaverse. People are, in large part, becoming cyborgs.

The internet of things is making everyday household items smarter. Items such as smart glasses bring a range of new capabilities. The trend of adding new sensors to people’s bodies is expected to continue.

7. An Infrastructure That Creates the Larger Virtual Network and Interfaces

Finally, the metaverse depends on a complex infrastructure. People often think of this as a nebulous system. However, the metaverse’s components are usually fairly familiar to most people. For example, everyone’s familiar with wireless networks thanks to the constant use of their phones. 5G networks aren’t just going to improve the quality of calls. It also offers better data speeds. This means that people’s ability to access the data-rich metaverse will also increase.

The increased capability of mobile devices makes for a better interface. But it also means that it’s easier to construct VR and other display devices in compact form factors. The Oculus Quest shows that manufacturers can create systems that combine mobile components with VR tech.
The large-scale convergence of features between different technologies helps to further the development of the metaverse’s infrastructure. Increased development means more widespread access to the metaverse.