From: Jerry Isdale Subject: Re: MISC: VR Thoughts Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 02:33:42 -0500 Message-ID: <199801260234_MC2-30A7-2F19@compuserve.com> Well, at least my note sparked some discussion Nice to hear from Mark Pflaging after a few years too. I think his comment about tracking is pretty good. Tracking is one of the big problems with HMDs and other full immersion systems. Push/Boom devices use mechanical tracking but most of the other forms have had problems. I know the magnetic trackers have gotten much better, but still, you have to get into these strange suits, etc. Video based tracking is much more unobtrusive. The Jan 98 issue of IEEE Computer (V31#1) has an article on Microsoft Research (MSR) using camera to track head motion parallax. The article mentions Matthew Turk's tic-tac-toe that tracks eye point to mark plays. A sidebar on MSR Graphics, it mentions the Lumigraph "an imaging system that can capture the complete 3d appearance of an object or scene, ... represent that information and use it to render the object from new camera positions." There is no mention of a connection between digitizing shape and tracking. I dont know more about the Lumigraph, but seems to me there should be some connection. Since MSR is working closely with the product folks, we might see some video tracker out of them soon (like before 2005?). Tony Havelka mentions a number of HMD applications that I had discounted. Like the HMD theatres. An interesting new entertainment use of HMDs shown at IAAPA this past fall was a tele-robtics system that let you drive RC race cars with cameras mounted inside. That sounds like fun. Not sure if they have any installations, yet. I would like to use a decent HMD for some info. visualization tasks. I havent tried some of the most recent generation, but the last ones were rather uncomfortable unless you use a hand to keep them in place & support the extra weight. But I dont really call those high volume and I think the statement "keyboards and mice also don't cut it in volume applications" misses a big fact: there are mice and keyboards sold with every PC, and more sold as aftermarket. I wouldnt mind 1% of the income from that volume. If all the HMDs sold last year combine to make 1% of the keyboard/mouse sales (quantity, not price!!) I would be suprised. (suprise me!) I think Mark and Bob are right that most "VR" is being sold as something else. VR got over hyped (still is). And the marketing folks are still out there calling anything remotely linked as VR or Simulation or some such. It doesnt take much connection for them to latch onto a lable. AI has done the same thing (agents, expert systems, etc.) I think it means we can get away from the hype and become another of the tools in the toolbox we use to solve problems and give the rest of the world solutions they can use. ok, time to shut down for the night - new job starts in the AM. Jerry Isdale