2nd International Malaysian Educational Technology Convention

A Review Of Commonly Used Pedagogical Agent Technology Software In

Electronic Learning Environment

Malliga K. Govindasamy & Balakrishnan Muniandy

Centre for Instructional Technology and Multimedia
Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM, Penang, Malaysia
mallika@myjaring.net, mbala@usm.my

Abstract

The use of virtual talking characters which elicits human like communication capabilities in electronic
environment has become the growing interest among educators and researchers. Known as Pedagogical
Agents in educational settings due to their pedagogical ability, these agents are used for engaging and
motivating instructional delivery in technology supported learning environment. Pedagogical agents are
able to simulate "human" aspect of instruction in a more interactive way than other controlled computer-
based instructional method Hence, the creation of virtual talking characters with sophisticated life-like
qualities that facilitate learning has become the wave of technological innovation in recent years. This
conceptual paper reviews some of the agent technology software which are commonly used by
developers for the creation of pedagogical agents. The review which is based on websites that promote
agent technology software, includes a brief explanation about the selected software such as Sitepal, MS
Agent, Code Baby Project, Haptek and Vox Proxy. The discussion is followed by the features and pricing.
With the availability of a variety of agent software, the users of agent technology have a selection of
software to choose from based on their requirement as well as budget.

1.0 Introduction
Seminal psychologists such as Vygotsky, Piaget and Bandura have highlighted that learning is a social
process and knowledge is socially constructed. Learning does not take place in isolation as teaching as
well as learning processes are inherently social, involving interaction, communication, negotiating and
sharing (Vygotsky, 1978). John-Steiner (1996) claimed that social interaction among participants in
learning contexts is considered as the primary source of cognitive and social development. As such,
educational interventions that are ignorant to social-cognitive dimensions of learning, will not accomplish
their pedagogical goals (Perkins, 2001). Researchers and practitioners of educational technology,
emphasise the role of social dimension and the importance of technically supported learning situated in a
social context. Taking this notion into consideration, instructional designers have begun to develop e-
learning environment that fosters human computer interaction.

The recent advances in computer and communication technology have led to the creation of
computerised characters as social entities facilitating learning in e-learning environment. The
augmentation of human computer interaction and social relation became feasible with these computerised
characters, popularly known as virtual avatars. In educational settings, due to their pedagogical ability,
these avatars are called pedagogical agents. Recent research has demonstrated that human beings
naturally react to social stimuli presented in an interactive context and these reactions often follow the
same conventions that people use with each other. Reeves and Nass (1996) presented evidence that
people apply human social interaction rules to computer characters as they do to humans in the real
world. In line with this, studies revealed that the simulated social presence of pedagogical agents in
computing environments may provide learners with a sense of companionship, hence learning become
more relevant and meaningful (Biswas, Schwartz, & Bransford, 2001). Pedagogical agents are designed
to employ verbal behaviors such as intonation or word ordering and non-verbal behaviors such as gaze,
gestures and facial expressions. These behaviors convey attitudes, identities, and emotions that color
human computer communications. The inclusion of pedagogical agent in a dynamic conversational
interface for effective instructional delivery in computer-based learning environment has been well
documented by many empirical studies (e.g. Baylor& Ryu, 2003; Moreno, Mayer, Spires & Lester, 2001;
Moreno, 2004).

Pedagogical agent technologies have taken many definitions. Clark (2003) defined pedagogical agent as
an on-screen vicarious learning partner who can trigger learner engagement by offering learning advice or
hints during the lesson. Baylor (1999) described pedagogical agents both as computer programs (with or
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without animated character components) that help users with certain tasks and as cognitive tools (mental
and computational devices) that support, guide and extend the thinking process of students. In the
broadest sense, pedagogical agents are virtual instructors who inhabit interactive learning environments
to simulate social interaction with users by presenting lesson content, asking questions, offering
assistance and providing contextualised advice and feedback.

Pedagogical agents can take the form of human, animal, or even computerised characters. Researchers
on pedagogical agent technology have mostly utilised anthropomorphic (nonhuman entities attributed with
human-like characters) or person-like characters to create more effective and interactive learning
environments. Pedagogical agents are designed in such a way that they are “embodied” – meaning it has
a visual representation and can detect external stimuli such as keyboard input, mouse position and
mouse input. The artificial intelligence beckoned agent has a mood and behaviour system to simulate
human emotions and actions as well as various components tied to learning. These agents guide learners
through the presentation of content and convey conversational and emotional signals via facial
expressions and body movements. The employment of verbal instructional explanations together with
nonverbal forms of communications has been found to enhance the perceptions of credibility and
engagement of the learner with the agent (Baylor & Ryu, 2003). However, empirical studies significantly
demonstrated learners preference and likeability for agents with human-like persona in order to create a
social context for more natural learning (Baylor & Kim, 2005; Erickson, 1997; Mulken, Andre, & Muller,
1998). With the human-like persona, animated pedagogical agents are able to simulate continuous
instructor presence in e-learning environment hence forcing students to be active participants in the
learning process.

The potential of pedagogical agent for learning has been well established through the many studies that
have examined the instructional impact of pedagogical agent-based learning environments. Veletsianos
(2007) stated that pedagogical agents’ anthropomorphous features and social affordances are able to
elicit psychological responses from learners that other media cannot afford. Johnson, Rickel and Lester
(2000) suggest that life-like characters that inhabit virtual learning environment provide a visual focus and
engaging presence that are otherwise absent from their agent-less environment. According to Lester,
FitzGerald, & Stone (1997), animated pedagogical agents residing in a multimedia learning environment
is able to promote student motivation and engagement and engender affective as well cognitive
responses.

Graesser, Moreno and Marineau (2003) stated that pedagogical agents engage learner in a dialogue to
highlight their misconceptions and to encourage deeper reasoning. Overall, studies have shown that
animated pedagogical agents are able to support cognitive functions such as learning, problem solving,
comprehension, and motivate students to learn (Dehn & van Mulken, 2000; Johnson, Rickel & Lester,
2000).

In order to bring out the best of pedagogical agent simulated learning environment, pedagogical agents
should be designed with the ability to display effective characteristics that will help to establish the human
element profoundly. As such, desirable characteristics of pedagogical agent have been one of the issue
researched in the affordances of pedagogical agent technology. In general, pedagogical agent that
executes behaviors that involves emotive responses, interactive communication and effective pedagogy
promotes learning gains. Majority of pedagogical agents researchers identified two critical roles in
designing and creating engaging and believeable agents namely emotion (Delgado-Mata & Aylet, 2004;
Gratch & Marsella, 2001) and deictic believability (Doyle, 2002; Towns, Callaway, Voerman & Lester,
1998). While emotion refers to a person’s feeling and affection, deictic believability refers to how the
coordination of behaviour, gesture, locomotion and speech can make the agent believable. Credibility and
believability have been deemed important if interface agents are to be authorised by the user (Lester &
Stone, 1997). The field of pedagogical agent technology has taken these two aspect as the focal point in
their delivery of believable agent in e-learning environment.

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Anthropomorphic image Cartoon image Inanimate objects Human like image

Figure 1 Samples of pedagogical agents’ visual representation

Enhancing applications and web pages with a visible interactive personality will both broaden and
humanise the interaction between human and computers. The growing interest in the development of
pedagogical agent which elicits human like communication capabilities resulted in the rapid emergence of
pedagogical agent technology software. Though most of the agent technology software available via
websites have similarity in terms of deictic believability, these software differ in terms of emotional
elicitation. This paper reviews some of the commonly used agent technology software in the e-learning
environment. The review which is based on websites that promotes agent technology software will include
a brief explanation about agent technology software such as Microsoft Agent, Sitepal, Codebaby, Noah
and Vox Proxy. This will be followed by the features as well as pricing.

1.1 Microsoft Agent Technology

Microsoft Agent is a set of software services that supports the presentation of software agents
(characters) as interactive personalities within the Microsoft Windows interface. Developed by Microsoft, it
is actually a part of the Windows operating system, and is pre-installed as part of Microsoft Windows 2000
and later versions. The interface is available through an Active-X control which enables software
developers and web authors to incorporate interactive animated characters that leverages natural aspects
of human social communication into applications and web pages. However, MS Agent characters are only
compatible with Internet Explorer version 3.02 or later, since alternative browsers like Opera or Mozilla
Firefox do not support ActiveX. Another advantage of Microsoft Agent software is its affordability for
development with no programming knowledge. MS Agent characters can be used as interactive
assistants to introduce, guide, entertain, or otherwise enhance web pages or applications in addition to
the conventional use of windows, menus, and controls. Hence MS Agent enables developers to create a
powerful animated and interactive technology supported environment that extend the user interface
beyond the conventional mouse and keyboard interaction.

MS Agent characters can speak, via a text-to-speech engine or recorded voice and even accept spoken
voice commands (MS Agent also supports speech recognition). MS Agent characters can move freely
around the computer display, speak aloud (and by displaying text on screen), gesture, wink, wave and be
animated in many other ways to help get your message out. Microsoft provides four agent characters for
free, which can be downloaded from the MSAgent website. These are called Peedy, Merlin, Genie, and
Robby.

Figure 1.2 MS Agent’s virtual characters

MS Agent is not a complete, integral software application that automatically does something. Instead, it is
a software technology which requires developers to program the MS Agent Technology into their
applications and websites. When users run their applications or visit their Web sites, then they’ll see one
of these animated characters appear and do as they've been programmed. MSt Agent can be used by
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developers who use languages or environments which support COM or Microsoft ActiveX control
interfaces such as:

 Microsoft Visual Studio® (Visual C++®, Visual Basic®, Visual FoxPro®)

 Microsoft Office (Visual Basic for Applications)
 Microsoft Internet Explorer (Visual Basic Scripting Edition or Microsoft Jscript®)
 Microsoft Windows® Script Host (ActiveX Scripting Language)
 Other Applications and Environments which support COM or ActiveX control interfaces

However, the use of Microsoft Agent requires the machines to be installed with:

(i) Microsoft Agent Core Components

(ii) Microsoft Agent Characters Files,
(iii) Text-to-Speech Engine
(iv) Speech Recognition Engines

Users can also download these components from Microsoft’s site for free
http://msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/imedia/agent/agentdl.asp. Users can write codes in one of the
programming environment as stated above, that commands the characters to perform scores of
animations. The table below shows some of the example of the codes used to command agent
characters.

Private Sub Form_Load()

Dim MSAgent As IAgentCtlCharacterEx
Dim Character As String
Character= "Merlin"
Agent1.Characters.Load Character, Character & ".acs"
Set MSAgent = Agent1.Characters(Character)
MSAgent.MoveTo 300, 150
MSAgent.Show
MSAgent.Speak "How are you today"
MSAgent.SoundEffectsOn = True
MSAgent.Hide
End Sub

Figure 1.3 Codes to make Agent Merlin speak

Refer to http://home.pacbell.net/cetta/msagent.html for a basic tutorial on using MS agent Technology in

applications.

1.2 SitePal
SitePal is a speaking avatar platform for small and medium sized businesses. SitePal’s virtual talking
character can be embedded in webpages (via javascript), HTML applications and Flash movies to
enhance interactivity. Accessible via http://www.sitepal.com, SitePal was developed by Oddcast for
commercial purposes whereby users can deploy “virtual employees” on websites that can welcome
visitors, guide them around the site and answer questions. With its humanlike capabilities, such as gaze
and lip sync, SitePal can bring life to websites. In addition, SitePal can be used in Flash application,
PowerPoint presentations, eBays and emails. Of lately, SitePal has been used in e-learning environment
to make instruction interesting and engaging.

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Figure 1.4 Sampels of model from SitePal’s model library

SitePal provides a number of powerful, yet easy-to-use features for designing, scripting and publishing
animated speaking characters. For example, we can pick and choose a model from the model catalogue,
add voice to the character and publish the talking character in websites, emails, Flash movies or even
Powerpoint. Even beginners or novices are able to create and publish SitePal as it does not require
programming knowledge. In addition, SitePal can also be made to interact with users via answering FAQs
using the SitePal’s FAQ player. SitePal also support very flexible and powerful features for advanced
users such as Application Programming Interface (API) extension and Artificial Intelligence bots. SitePal
interacts with user by simply saying a pre-fixed message, answering questions that are clickable and
prompt users to type email or short message that can be sent to webmaster or through API customisation
where interaction takes place when a trigger occurs in the website.

SitePal allows the use of 2D and 3D style base male, female, kids and non-human model from the model
library. Users are allowed to pick and customise one of the base models from model library.
Customisation of the model includes adjusting the age, clothing, skin and hair color and etc. Users can
also pick special models such as politicians, celebrity look-alikes, animal and more or custom design
character model using their own picture. These features are available via the add-on model options for
enhanced customisation.

SitePal avatars voice can be added via 5 different means. Users can add audio effect by calling and
record their own voice as talking character message, by recording and updating online speech using
computer mic, by using a TTS engine to create messages, by uploading any existing audio file in the
format of mp3, wmv, QuickTime audio or wav or by using professional voice talent which can be
purchased from SitePal’s store. All audio added will be lip synced automatically. SitePal also allows
control of talking character’s speech by adding the features of play, mute and volume control. This gives
visitor to the sites a control on the interactivity.

Figure 1.5 Character from model library Figure 1.6 Character from add-on model

SitePal comes with AI Management Center (AIMC) which is a powerful tool that allows the character to
respond to user questions with context-sensitive spoken answers, hence building an intelligent agent to
interact. This feature of SitePal can be used for customer support, online training, entertainment and
many other purposes. In order to build an intelligent agent, developers have to pick a SitePal model,
select an AI player for the scene, embed the scene in the webpage and edit AI knowledge base using the
AIMC. The built-in knowledge base uses AIML language and contains over 23,000 entries, and this allows
the character to be intelligent right out of the box. Advanced programming knowledge is not necessary to
implement a SitePal intelligent agent using AIMC. Javascript or Flash ActionScript programmers may use
SitePal’s Application Programming Interface (API) to create their own user interface for users to interact
with their SitePal Intelligent Agent. The API enables communication between the host and the embedded
SitePal scene. API allows programmer to affect different runtime attributes such as facial control
functions, speech functions, navigation flow functions, scene management attributes and event callbacks
from the hosting HTML page or Flash movie. When embedding talking characters in PowerPoint, SitePal
PowerPoint plug-in is required and Internet connection is necessary during presentations.

SitePal is available for purchase in three packages; (i) Basic which costs USD 9.95/month or USD
99.50/year, (ii) Bronze which costs USD 19.95/month or USD 199.50/year and (iii) Platinum which costs

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USD 39.95/month or USD 399.50/year. Users can purchase the package on monthly or yearly basis.
Each package varies in term of features offered such as number of audio streams allocated, number of
models, scenes, and domains. The main feature of the packages is the number of audio streams
allocated. Audio streams are audio playback instances and indicate the number of times the SitePal
character speaks in websites. Whenever the SitePal character speaks, the audio is streamed from
Oddcast’s servers over the Internet. SitePal also provides licenced domains as a security feature. Audio
streams are to be played back in the licensed domains so that all playback streams are not
inappropriately used. As such, users need to enforce licensed domain security for all stream playback.
The 15 day trial version for each package is available from http://www.sitepal.com/packages. Users can
browse through for more information on pricing and features.

1.3 CodeBaby
CodeBaby is a software designed to animate characters so that it can be embedded in electronic
environment for enhanced interactivity. Developed by CodeBaby Corporation, and accessible via
http://www.codebaby.com/solutions/elearning/, this software comes with Production Studio which is a
platform where users can animate a CodeBaby virtual character and create a CodeBaby production that
can be integrated into websites, IPTV platforms, PowerPoint, mobile handsets applications, e-learning
courses, self service kiosks and many other applications or devices. CodeBaby virtual characters can
employ gaze and gesture as well as locomotion on the screen. Advance users can customise a model
and animations using Autodesk’s 3Ds Max which can then be imported into the Production Studio.

Creating and implementing a CodeBaby production is typically done in three stages: (i) preparation of
assets, (ii) animating the model and (iii) generation of the content. Preparation of assets include setting
the background of the scene, choosing or customising a model and recording audio. Animation involves
animating the model using animation assets provided by the Production Studio. A CodeBaby character
can be animated to display gaze, gesture and emotive behaviours. The characters can also be designed
to employ locomotion around the scene. The third stage is generation of CodeBaby content using the
exporting feature. CodeBaby content can be exported as Flash Video or any other video formats. For
most applications or uses such as Flash projects, multi-media projects, stand alone videos on kiosks,
mobile handsets and IPTV platforms, exporting is the appropriate and preferred method for generating
CodeBaby content. CodeBaby Production also comes with publishing which is a powerful feature that
allows users to integrate CodeBaby virtual agent videos into websites or other HTML-based applications.
However the publishing requires some knowledge in modifying HTML and JavaScript.

The virtual characters in CodeBaby are represented by 3D models. These models which come in male
and female categories can be animated to move parts of or all of the model such as hand wave, a head
nod, smile, walk, stand or sitting motion. The animation behaviors of models are built-in in the Assests
Panel of CodeBaby Production Studio. These models can be lip synced to recorded dialog. The animated
behavior of the model can be created automatically by Production Studio or customised by user using
animation behavior in the Assets Panel. Idle animations make CodeBaby characters more life-like and
thus they are more appealing to users. By default, a CodeBaby character’s idle animation is set to “Idle-
Blink”, which means that whenever the character is not executing a specified animation, it will stand in a
base pose and blink. One model can be used over and over again in a production; for example, two
virtual agents in a scene can use the same character model, each in a different position, saying different
things, and animated with different animations. The Production Studio also allows users to simulate a
conversation or a situation with more than one character. Each character can be given its own position
and orientation in order to create more realistic looking interaction.

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Figure 1.7 Some of the CodeBaby characters for Characters catalogue

The background of the scenes where a model is placed can be customised by the users. The background
images can be fixed pictures in jpg format or solid colors that appear behind the models. Users can also
place a prop such as a 3D object on the scene and animate them. The dimension of the video (stage
settings) can be customised by the user. The width and height of the video depends on the size required
for the website or other multimedia projects and this can be adjusted by the user.

Audio files which are in wav format can either be spoken text (recorded voice or text to speech
generation), sound effects (such as a ringing tone or the sound of footsteps) or even a background music,
all of which used singly or in combination appropriately, can add richness to the production. If an audio file
is imported as character spoken dialog, CodeBaby will prompt the create lip sync for character dialog. If
the user specifies that the audio file is dialog, a lip sync (.ltf) file will automatically be created and imported
into Production Studio. A lip sync file tells Production Studio how the lips of a model should move when
an associated audio file is playing. In addition, users can play a background, ambient or sound effect
audio files, while the spoken dialog file is playing. Production Studio allows for multiple audio files to be
played by layering each on separate audio channels in the timeline options.

Production Studio comes with camera effect. The camera cue in the timeline can be moved back and
forth between a mid-shot (waist up), a medium close up (bust and head) and a close up (head only) shot
to make the production more enjoyable and effective. The Lighting for the stage can be adjusted to give
proper shading across the characters. This will also enhance the overall production of the video. One of
the most valuable aspects of Production Studio is the fact that the models are viewed in 3D spaces. This
is a simulated environment that has horizontal, vertical and depth axes. The characters and cameras that
are used in Production Studio can be moved in this 3D space to more closely emulate our own world and
interactions. The Preview Panel in Production Studio is a 3D rendering engine that has been specially
created by CodeBaby to display this unique environment.

CodeBaby productions can be exported as AVI, Adobe Flash ® SWF or video file formats supported by
the Apple Quick Time architecture. Each scene will be exported as an individual video. Production
Studio recognises existing codecs (compressor and decompressor) on the machine and export with
personalise compression. When creating SWF video files, Production Studio will first create AVI videos
from the CodeBaby Preview Panel and then convert them to flash SWF format. When exporting, users
need to specify the type of configuration i.e., either AVI, Flash or QuickTime and choose the default
presets (Web, TV, Local Kiosk).

Users can download the trial version of Production Studio 2.6. from http://www3.codebaby.com/
productionstudio/prod/trial/2.6.2.5p4/cb_setup.exe. When users download the trial version of Production
Studio, the user is automatically granted a limited time software evaluation (trial) license. The trial
license is limited for 45 days, a watermark is placed on exported virtual agent videos and the publishing
feature is not enabled. After installing Production Studio, users can go through the Quick Start Online
Tutorial. The tutorial at: http://www3.codebaby.com/customersupport/2.6/overview.php will provide a step
by step overview of how to get started using Production Studio. The license for CodeBaby can be
obtained by one time purchase which cost USD 10,000 (negotiable). However user can also buy the

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license for one year with a price of USD 5,000. In need to extend the license further, the user pays
balance USD 5,000 and obtain the license fully for unlimited period of time. The CodeBaby development
team are available for queries as well as assistance.

Animation track Preview panel

Lip sync track Property Inspector Assets Panel

Figure 1.8 Work Area in CodeBaby Production Studio

1.4 Vox Proxy

Vox Proxy is powerful scripting tool that adds 3D talking animated characters to PowerPoint slide shows.
Developed by Right Seat Software Inc, and accessible via http://www.voxproxy.com/, Vox Proxy adds
talking characters that works in the background of PowerPoint to provide engaging and interesting slide
presentation. Vox Proxy runs as an automatic add-in to PowerPoint 2000 and newer version. The Vox
Proxy Player which is available freely can run Vox Proxy enhanced presentations under any version of
PowerPoint from 97 onwards as well as Microsoft PowerPoint 2003 Viewer. The use of Vox Proxy does
not require complicated programming as animations and commands can be scripted at the click of a
button from drop-down lists.

Vox Proxy employs interactive characters that can speak scripted text, perform more than 100 different
animations, move to any locations on the screen and respond to voice commands. The Vox Proxy comes
with twenty seven characters from several different designers. Four of the characters are from Microsoft®:
Genie, Merlin, Peedy, and Robby. Some of the characters are were specially customised for Vox Proxy
and not available anywhere else on the web. Users can also request for custom designed characters. The
characters can be scripted to talk to other characters in the slide show, the audience or to the presenter.
Vox Proxy allows users to add realistic human sounding voices via built in Text-To-Speech engines which
is compatible with Microsoft Agent, or use own recorded voices for characters speech. Vox Proxy
supports .wav audio files and .avi and .mp3 video files. Users can add speech balloons which can be
turned on and off and modify the font and size of the text in the balloons. Diagram below shows some of
the animated characters available through Vox Proxy.

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Figure 1.9 Vox Proxy virtual characters

Vox Proxy works through an add-in program for Microsoft PowerPoint (2000 or newer) that allows users
to use Microsoft Agent Technology to provide talking, animated characters within slide shows. Hence,
Vox Proxy installs as a PowerPoint add-in and appears in PowerPoint 2000’s main menu (see diagram
below). Vox Proxy allows the user to run slide shows directly from PowerPoint, with Vox Proxy running at
the background.

Figure 1.10 Vox Proxy add-in in PowerPoint main menu

Vox Proxy uses a simplified, yet powerful script editor to control agent characters and other features on
each slide. The commands in the script editor falls into three categories: Agent character commands;
PowerPoint control commands and other commands which includes playing audio, video, displaying
bitmaps, displaying colored or bitmap backgrounds (for scripts played outside PowerPoint). The script
editor appears on PowerPoint’s Normal View and allows users to edit scripts and slides at the same time.
Vox Proxy’s script editor has a powerful Wizard that allows users to develop the entire script from drop-
down lists and click-simple selections without typing a single word. In addition, users can test the scripts
by clicking the test script button without running the slide show.

Vox Proxy is useful for training tutorials, product demonstration or education programs. It can work as a
self-narrated presentation and can be distributed via a CD created with CD Prep Option (a utility program
for Vox Proxy that allows the preparation of self-starting CD). The CD created with CD Prep has the Vox
Proxy Player embedded in it, so the recipient who plays the CD does not need to have the Player pre-
installed. CD Prep can be configured to bundle the 2003 viewer files on the CDs that it creates. Moreover,
users can specify that the CD created with CD Prep should always play on the 2003 viewer, even if the
recipient has PowerPoint. This provides a consistent presentation that does not depend on the version of
PowerPoint that the recipient may have. Presentation with Vox Proxy enhanced animated characters can
also be viewed by recipients if they have a free Vox Proxy Player installed in their machine. The free Vox
Proxy Player which can be downloaded or available on CD (copied and distributed) lets users view
animated presentations without buying Vox Proxy. The free Vox Proxy player installed in the machine
allows Vox Proxy enhanced presentation to be delivered from the web. The presentation file must be
downloaded before playing with some limitations. Users can also use video screen capture software (for
example: Camtasia Studio) to capture presentation as a movie, which can be played from the web.

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Figure 1.11 Vox Proxy animation drop-down list and scripting environment

Vox Proxy Evaluation Software (CD or download) is a 30-day trial of a fully operational version of Vox
Proxy and can be downloaded from http://www.voxproxy.com/ downloads/vpevdl.exe. The download
version contains six animated characters, and the English language speech engine. The listed price is
USD 249.00 and the online price is USD 199.00. Educational pricing and educational site license is
available for qualified educational institutions. Vox Proxy in Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei is exclusively
represented by Alan S.L Wong who can be contacted at 02-6224-2348 or 9010-8151 for more information
on Vox Proxy products and pricing.

1.5 NOAH
NOAH is animated speaking avatars designed to enhance interactivity in web-based and flash-based
environment. Developed by TelSim Software, NOAH can be accessed via
http://www.Noahx.com/index.asp. NOAH speaking avatars are designed to liven up a web page, assisting
users to navigate pages and forms. Noah can be used with websites hosted on own server, e-commerce
on websites and more. As web page assistants, NOAH is able to provide visitor with engagement, focus,
interest and understanding. With gaze and gestures, NOAH is able to highlight important elements in web
pages, like text, graphics, links and instructions thus encourage users with navigation without losing
interest. NOAH is embedded with emotions, hence able to create a bond with users.

NOAH can also be used to increase learners’ content engagement and retention in e-learning
environment. As virtual instructors, NOAH can focus attention, point out and explain critical information,
thus enriching the e-learning environment. NOAH virtual instructors can be used with HTML-based
projects, Flash-based projects, Lectora and PowerPoint applications. For PowerPoint application, users
need plug-in.

Figure 1.12 Samples of NOAH characters

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NOAH is a safe program and can work on servers behind Firewalls. No ActiveX controls and server-side
executables are needed as NOAH operates entirely at client-side. As NOAH engine is 30K and the
avatars are 25K on average, a low bandwidth is substantial for fast-loading of web-based application. If
users are hosting NOAH on their servers, they just have to install NOAHFILES system files (provided by
TelSim) once on their server, then put the finished Voice-Action File from the editor (e-mailed by TelSim)
in a NOAHFILES folder. If TelSim is hosting NOAH for client, then all the client have to do is use the
NOAH editor. Everything else runs from TelSim servers. With a non-hosted account (Professional or
Developer), the NOAH engine sits on own servers where users can access it internally. With a developer
account, NOAH can be used as stand-alone for CD-based applications and free distribution. No
downloads or server-side installations needed as NOAH is flash-based and plays on 98% of computers.
NOAH is also compatible with almost all major Browsers.

Noah is easy to implement and use. With NOAH editor creating a NOAH instance for web-based, flash-
based and PowerPoint application becomes easy. When user sign up for a Professional or Developer
account, Telsim sends an email with a zip file. Users need to create a folder under the web site’s root
folder and unzip the files into it. Following this, users have to add one line of code for HTML (Put this
code above the </body>). For flash-based, as NOAH is a flash component, one simple function call starts
NOAH. To add NOAH speaking avatars, open a web page, open the NOAH editor in a new window and
login. Users can upload own voice files (recorded as wav or mp3) or use built-in Text-To-Speech
generator. This creates a new Voice-Action file which is the script that tells NOAH what to do while
playing the voice file. The built-in lip-sync technology, allows automatic lip-syncing for the avatars. Then
users can add emotion, move, look or custom commands to the timeline. NOAH has to be in a flash
movie or Java script enabled webpage for movement. With this simple steps, users can create an
interactive environment with NOAH speaking avatar. The WYSIWYG interface allows users to preview
NOAH on your webpage while designing. NOAH also comes with Multiple User Play options where by
users can choose to have NOAH play every time a page is loaded or play the first time a page is loaded
then not for x number of days or play on demand (on click).

NOAH pricing comes in two different packages; hosted accounts package and non-hosted account
package. The hosted account package comes with standard features at USD 9.95 per month as base
charge. This includes 2500 streams per month and 60 seconds as maximum length of audio files.
Additional features are subject to additional charges. The non-hosted account comes in professional and
developer package. The professional package cost USD 89.95 per month with no streaming charges and
maximum length of audio files are 90 seconds. Additional features are subject to additional charges. The
developer package is a one-time charge with a cost of USD 2995.95. Maximum length of audio files are
120 seconds. Additional features are subject to additional charges. Refer to http://noahx.com/pricing/
pricing.asp for more details on pricing.

Conclusion
Generally, users won’t care how virtual characters are cognitively modeled; they just want to be engaged
by the experience, to be enriched and entertained. Hence, in order to create engaging and interactive
experience supported by technology rich environment, there are a few factors that need consideration.
The most important factor would be the type of character and the content that will be presented. In
addition, these two factors must be suited to different class of audience/user. The second factor would be
the animation and behaviors that are embedded to the characters. Designers must ensure that the
character is able to maintain believability through it’s animations and behaviors. User interface has been
regarded as the largest impediment for creating more advanced virtual characters. Constraining user
control with only mouse and keyboard will actually impede the interactivity. As such, agent technology
software should add more intuitive interface channels such as voice recognition. By allowing the user to
speak to the characters and the characters immediately being responsive, reactive and able to generate
a variety of expressions will enhance the interactivity of the environment. Picard (1997) suggested that
interface devices such as video cameras on computer monitors that will allow for facial and gesture
recognition will enhance interactivity. These too need consideration. Finally, the affordability of the agent
technology software place emphasis on the user preference.

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