A collaborative multi-view virtual environment for molecular visualization and modeling

Molecular modeling has been a long-standing research area for biologists. However, the existing molecular modeling software lacks strong support for collaborative research. In this paper, we describe our effort to develop a collaborative multiview virtual environment for molecular visualization and modeling. In our virtual environment, the users are able to visualize large molecular structures in real-time, create their own view, or share their view with others in the system. The system allows for individual or coordinated collaborative manipulation of the virtual molecular model. Our virtual environment is integrated with a molecular dynamics simulator, and therefore our system is not merely a visualization tool, but an environment where biologists can collaboratively construct their models and test their hypotheses.