From: timm@yoyodyne.ncsa.uiuc.edu (Tim McClarren)
Subject: VR Machine at EOH/UI (Illinois)
Date: 1 Mar 91 20:47:32 GMT
Organization: National Center for Supercomputing Applications at Urbana



This is a summary of my impressions of the VR machine demonstrated at
Engineering Open House at UI (March 1-2).  The machine itself is self-
contained (looks to be a molded plastic case, about 8" x 10" x 2", maybe
a little bigger), with 256k-1M of memory (wasn't specific), a joystick
port, and an RS-232 port.  This was their version 1 machine.  The display
wasn't head mounted, and utilized monochromatic LCD's for stereo-optic
imaging...the joystick is a drawback as well, but other input devices
are much more expensive.  The display was red-on-black, and 200,000 pixels
(per their specs), which is about 500 x 400.  It certainly wasn't believable
as an artificial landscape, but I like the futuristic feel it gave (but,
I also prefer monochrome monitors to color :o) ).  The device would
have to be miniaturized a bit more and priced around $200 for it to
be worthwhile (I could see getting off on a CD-ROM world that I could
travel around in WITH other people...solitaire it would be a bit dull).
The CD-ROM interface is definitely a must (I didn't see this there), and
head-mounted gear would be a must as well (the device on display wasn't
head mounted although I did notice a pair of goggles sitting on the table
so maybe this in the works).  I could live with a joystick interface.
It's a far cry from what I would consider VR.  Someone said it sounded
like a glorified video game, and that's probably how I would describe it,
although if it was priced right, it might be a damned fun substitute for
video games.  It's a stretch to call something like this a VR engine, 
especially if you've seen VPL or something similar.

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Tim McClarren
NCSA/UI