This is the keynote I gave for the DoD World Wide Education Summit in 2009. In here, I discuss how the rise of technology, games, and the Internet can be harnessed for change.

1. TEACHING MACHINES
How technology is changing the way we learn, play and discover our world
Chris Melissinos
Chief Gaming Officer
Sun Microsystems, Inc.

2. introduction
• Chief
Evangelist & Chief
Gaming Officer
•@ Sun for 15 years
• host of JavaOne
• husband & father
• hardcore gamer

3. and I’m a geek
Custom arcade NeoGeo GameBoy SP XBox360
Pong arcade TurboGrafx-16 NES Sony PSP
Atari 2600 Sega Genesis SNES 3DO
Intellivision Sega 32X Nintendo 64 Atari Jaguar
Colecovision Sega Saturn GameCube Jaguar CD
Atari 5200 Sega Dreamcast Wii TurboGrafx CD
Atari Lynx Playstation Nintendo DS Wonderswan Color
Game Gear Playstation 2 Nintendo DS Lite NeoGeo Pocket Color
GameBoy Playstation 3 Coleco Ranger Pole Position Cabinet
GameBoy Advance XBox Vectrex VirtualBoy

4. how have you stayed married?

5. it’s early, so let’s start off with a
bit of nonsense

6. Potter Puppet Pals

8. Fox News Channel, 4.26 million viewers 70,000,000 unique views

9. statement
technology & connectivity has
permanently changed the parameters
of human interaction and reach

10. look back to look forward

11. 1970’s
the computers invade

12. my first computer
• 5K (3583 bytes)
• MOS 6502 @ 1MHz
• used cassette tapes for storage
• 22 x 23 text
• 176 x 184 @ 16 colors
Firefox Icon - 64KB Defender - 8K cart
(~18x larger) (8x smaller)

13. “Bit Babies”
• first generation of computer consumers
• everything was new, exciting, and advancing at a rapid pace
• our parents were confused and didn’t “get it”

14. limited community access
• online limited to BBS systems
• physical group meetings
• “schoolyard” clubs
• type in code from magazines
• hang out at local computer store
• everyone is experimenting

15. geeks then

16. where were they playing?

17. 2009
gamers raising gamers

18. geeks today
(ok, not ALL geeks)

19. where are they playing now?

20. and here

21. what’s happening?
• technology is cheap and pervasive
• access to games and computers
• technology
permeating pop culture
through games and social sites
• gamers are no longer a sub-set
• driversof new technology adoption
are 5 - 14 years old
• multi-generational connection

22. geek culture
Nerdcore & Electronica comics & art fashion

23. geek culture

24. games and humanity
• games are part of every culture
• it’s how we learn
• thrill of competition
• community and teams
• discovery and exploration
• military to business to finance
• computers changed our course

25. online video game stats
• expected to reach $11B globally by 2011
• biggest markets are Asia, North America, Europe
• fastest growing segment of $40B video game market
• casual
multiplayer online video games is biggest
market opportunity
• new tools and models are increasing competition
• women over 35 are the largest segment

26. games to educate

27. working the brain
• principal
drivers of game devices
among adults
• retention through repetition
• hugevariety of subjects:
from speed math to self help
• makingthe barrier to learning
disappear through entertainment

28. mask the learning
• solve the mystery
• logic & math puzzles
• integrate in the story
• players overcome fear of material

29. algebra FPS?

30. explore our world

31. conflict

32. persuasive games

33. ARGs
• Institute For The Future
• mash-upof traditional web
technologies
• build on community
• built on participation
• providesamazingly accurate
trend analysis

34. community storm
• collective intelligence is an amazing predictor
• community adds ownership to a platform
• ownership = protection
• customized content is paramount
• authority bubbles up from the community

35. statement
seamless connectivity changes the
parameters of personal
connection on a global scale

36. virtual world users (M)
15 19
25
20
21
Club Penguin
Poptropica
15
Habbo Hotel
Nicktropolis
6 SecondLife
3 There
vMTV
IMVU
Meez
Neopets
45 100 Whyville
goSupermodel
Gaia
Stardoll
Build-a-Bearville
Webkinz
BarbieGirls
7
20
32 8
15 sample total = 306M

37. social network users (M)
27 23 18 15
120 40
50 Cyworld
Mixi
30 Xiaonei
Bebo
48 Classmates
124
Facebook
Flixster
67 Friendster
hi5
imeem
63 Last.fm
36 LinkedIn
MySpace
Netlog
Orkut
80 Reunion
Tagged
Windows Live Spaces
Xanga
246 80
24
30 21
sample total = 1142M

38. interwoven

39. interwoven

40. game tech meets
serious application

41. what is Project Wonderland ?
• built on Project Darkstar
server technology
• open source toolkit for
creating 3D virtual worlds
• design focus on business &
education collaboration
• supports high fidelity audio,
shared applications,
telephone integration, video,
and more

42. why 3D?
• truly informal conversations
• multiple, simultaneous
• divide and converge
• spontaneous = social
• space provides context
• arrangement of space and type and position of objects impart social cues
• higher emotional and social bandwidth than IM, etc.
• potential for providing back-channel cues
• 3D space helps define corporate culture

43. world of possibilities
• significant interest in “enterprise grade”
virtual worlds for:
• internal collaboration
• distance education
• training / on-boarding
• customer outreach
• product demonstrations
• virtual conferences and events
• shared simulation
• remote monitoring/control

44. MPK20 – Sun's Virtual Workplace
44

45. 6thSpace - Malden Labs
45

46. Glasshouse – Green Phosphor
46

47. ProjectVS – Applied Minds
47

48. Virtual Academy - VEGA
48

49. recap
• new generations will never know a world without computers
or connectivity
• video
games have emerged as a powerful medium that has
extended beyond pop culture and the generational gap
• gamescoupled with community and centered around a
concept can be a powerful change agent
• weneed to meet the next generation of computer users
where they live - mobile, web, systems - all parts of their lives
• this
is only the beginning, the real explosion of the internet
has not happened yet

50. Thank You!
chris.melissinos@sun.com
http://cmelissinos.blogspot.com