Implementation of Distributed Floor Control Protocols on Overlay Networks

Collaborative multimedia applications (CMAs) on overlay networks are gaining popularity among users who are geographically dispersed. Examples of these kinds of applications include networked games and collaborative design and simulation. An important challenge in realizing CMAs is obtaining floor control, a problem in which the end-users compete among themselves to gain exclusive access to a shared resource. In this paper, we present deterministic and randomized distributed mechanisms for solving the floor control problem. In particular, we adapt the well-known MAC protocols viz. distributed queue dual bus (DQDB), ALOHA, and carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) as solutions for the floor control problem. Central to our adaptation is an algorithmic methodology that efficiently virtualizes the underlying network connecting the CMA participants so as to enhance the proposed solutions´ performance. We present analytical and experimental studies on the performance of the proposed floor control protocols that bring out their essential characteristics.