Pasadena, California-based Dalilab (Dali stands for DistributedArtificial Life) is taking the fishy screensaver a massive stepfurther by making the internet into a huge ocean where virtual fishswim from one network node to another.
A recruitment drive for people to join the artificial oceannetwork (Daliworld) is in full swing. This network will be similar tothe music network Napster, representing the ocean, where the virtualfish will live out their lives. More than 200 people have alreadyregistered.
The virtual fish that inhabit Daliworld (modeled on the IndonesianOcean) decide for themselves where they will swim to, how to escapepredators, what to eat, which other fish to mate with and when torest.
Registered users with Daliworld decide how many fish they wantswimming across their screens.
Species include stoplight parrotfish, wrasse, angelfish, batfish,damsel fish, grouper, leatherjackets, triggerfish, Pacificdouble-saddle butterflyfish, and surgeonfish.
They can create an almost unlimited number of the basic virtualfish species but only one of the rare species such as the longnosefilefish and the sargassum triggerfish.
There are plans to develop the software so that the fish can carryemail attachments. The fish will also carry passports which can beviewed, revealing the creator of the fish and the route it hastaken.
More here: Daliworld
