Installing the viewer
The TeCoLa Virtual World is located on a server somewhere in Europe and a special viewer needs to be installed on your computer in order connect to this 'virtual world' server. It is the only software that needs to be installed on the computer(s).
Request an Account
To visit the TeCoLa Virtual World you need an account. All accounts need to be approved, we only allow teachers and pupils in this world that are connected to the project. We want to keep this virtual world a safe place.
Note: If you were part of the TILA project, you can use your TILA OpenSim account to enter the TeCoLa Virtual World.
After the request, the VW manager has to approve the account. Unknown names will not be approved. This may take up to one day. You should also send an email to our VW manager nick@3dles.com
If you need more accounts, for a group of pupils, please contact nick@3dles.com
Installing the Viewer
The best way to check if a computer can run the viewer is to install the software and see if it runs. It might show an error about the video card but still work fine.
We created a dedicated Windows Firestorm viewer for the TeCoLa virtual world. Mac users still have to install the normal Firestorm viewer.
- Download the TeCoLa Firestorm viewer for Windows 64-bit
- Download the TeCoLa Firestorm viewer for Windows 32-bit
- Installation manual for Windows
- Download the Firestorm MAC viewer
- Installation manual for MAC computers (Firestorm viewer)
- Installation manual for MAC school computers (Firestorm viewer)
Note: Firestorm is compatible with Windows 10. However, if you are running Windows 10 on a system with an older Intel graphics card which does not support Windows 10 - Intel HD 2000, Intel HD 3000 or anything marked as “No” for Windows 10 on this list, you will only be able to run the 32bit versions of Firestorm even if you have a 64bit version of Windows 10. Please see this page for detailed instructions if you are running Windows 10 on an older unsupported Intel card and have problems running Firestorm.
Forgot your TeCoLa Virtual World password?
Use this link to recieve an email to enter a new password for your avatar. Fill in the field with your emailaddress and press the SET button. It should respond with: Check your email. You must reset your password within 60 minutes
See the video about setting the viewer to the TeCola Virtual World
NOTE: The first time you log in your avatar might look like a cloud. That is a bug in the system that we hope to solve in the near future. In the video below we explain how to change your cloud avatar into a proper dressed avatar.
What to do when your avatar looks like a cloud?
Additional downloads to enhance user experience
- Flash - for the 3D viewer
- Download and install the Flash player for Opera & Chromium to play YouTube video and Flash inside the virtual environment. Do not use Internet Explorer when using that link. If Internet Explorer is the only browser you use, please ensure you select 'Flash Player for Opera and Chromium' because the Internet Explorer version of Flashplayer is not compatible with any 3D viewer.
- Quicktime - for Windows and Mac
- Download and install Quicktime to play streaming videos. (iTunes is not needed)
- GStreamer - for Linux only
- Download and install GStreamer to play streaming videos. (Please read page for info on installing GStreamer for your particular distribution.)