The 3D virtual community with Instant Messaging System based on Google Earth

Google Earth, as we all know, is excellent software that provides maps by satellite images around the world. It has been applied to many fields because of its scalability. Up to now, there have been so many types of virtual communities arise. However, few of the services they provide are based on Google Earth. And almost no communities can combine the Google Earth with instant communication. In this paper, we proposed the 3D Virtual Community with Instant Communication System (3DVCIMS) based on GEPlugin. The architecture of 3DVCIMS is described and the implementation is also explained in this study. Furthermore, we introduce a tested prototype as the application of our system. Users can get their network neighbors around them and communicate with them by Instant Messaging System (IMS). It has shown great stability, accurate location of users' position and efficiency of communication among users.