Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 16:38:24 -0400 From: DYSART@delphi.com (by way of diderot@hitl.washington.edu (Toni Emerson)) The Essential VR Library Toni Emerson's Top Ten VR enthusiasts looking to jumpstart a collection of essential VR booksneed go no further than Toni Emerson. The widely acknowledged first and last word when it comes to the skinny on the best in VR literature, Emerson has been tracking writings on the technology full time for the past four years as chief "cybrarian" at the University of Washington's Human Interface Technology Lab in Seattle. Emerson's "Information Resources in Virtual Reality," an extended bibliography of VR publications, email lists, Web sites, and the like available at HITL's web site has become Source One for a quick, comprehensive look at the literature. And her "On The Net," a hypertext-linked document that regularly spirits Net surfers to every major nook and cranny where VR lurks, has become a similar godsend. As if that where not enough (does this woman sleep?), Emerson also regularly receives accolades as moderator for sci.virtual-worlds, an Internet Usenet Newsgroup that serves as an electronic meeting place for anyone and everyone interested in VR. Given the wide variety of literature available, it was tough for Emersonto keep her list to only ten. But after some cajoling, she finally came across with her picks. Here they are: * "Virtual Reality: Through The New Looking Glass," by Ken Pimentel and Kevin Teixeira (New York, NY: Intel/Windcrest/McGraw Hill, 1993). "This is one of my favorite, all round virtual reality books," Emerson say. "It's been stolen from my library a number of times, so I know its quite popular." *"Scientific and Technological Challenges of VR," National Research Council, (Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1994). "This book is a study done by the NRC to guide federal funding in the area of VR. I think I'd say, this is a good place to start for people looking for an analysis of "where VR is now." You'll find descriptive chapters on "state-of-the-art-of-VR-technology" with hints of where the NRC thinks VR researchers should direct their efforts, this is it. Also has extensive references cited in back." *"Interacting with Virtual Environments," Lindsay MacDonald and John Vince (New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1993) Another solid offering for those looking to make a serious study of the technology, Emerson says. "This book is one of many that takes a look at the applications of VR as well as the problems in interacting with VR. It's medium weight. - not solid. It's a good place to start if you're writing a paper, beginning to look into an area etc. For example, someone came to me looking for info on Virtual Humans. I gave him this book (it has a chapter on Virtual Actors) and also gave him Badler's Book on Simulating Humans. There are about three in this "genre." *"Virtual Reality Technology," Grigore Burdea and Philippe Coiffet (New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1994) "An excellent book as far as walking you through," Emerson says. "But it's not the basic, easy read. This is a good textbook for VR with a decent bibliography in the back. I say decent, because I have written my own and am, of course, prejudiced." *"Cyberspace: First Steps," Michael Benedikt (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1991)) The perfect book for VR enthusiasts who want to focus on the theory and philosophy behind VR, Emerson says. *"Virtual Reality," Howard Rheingold (New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Trade, 1991). "One of the classics of VR," Emerson says. "Rheingold tracks the beginnings of VR with the ease of a storyteller. He interviews the pioneers of the technology and fills you in with great background information." "Artificial Reality II," Myron W. Krueger (Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1991.) Another classic by an author who many acknowledge as the godfather of augmented VR, Emerson says. "The Virtual Reality Casebook," Carl Eugene Loeffler and Tim Anderson. (New York, NY: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1994)). "Beautiful, thumbnail sketches of university research in VR," Emerson says. "It's not comprehensive, but it is a great read." "Garage Virtual Reality," Linda Jacobson (Indianapolis, IN: Sams Publishing, 1993). "For a general introduction to "Homebrew VR," this is the best starter." "3D Sound For Virtual Reality and Multimedia," Durand R. Begault (San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 1994)). An often overlooked area of VR, 3D sound is crucial to creating the complete, VR experience. "Highly recommended," Emerson says. (Moderator's note: P.S. A great VR sci fi sampler is: Jacobson, K. (Ed.). (1993). Simulations: Fifteen Tales of Virtual Reality. Carol Pub. Group ("Virtual Reality Monthly" is edited by Joe Dysart, a high technology journalist with 15 years experience whose work has appeared in more than 40 publications, including "The New York Times." Currently, Dysart's work in VR appears primarily in "VRWorld," where he serves as Business/Entertainment Editor, and at "VR Metropolis," (http://www.mecklerweb.com), Mecklermedia's new VR cybersite on the World Wide Web., where he serves as Site Coordinator. Dysart will also be appearing as a seminar speaker and moderator at the upcoming "VRWorld 95" show in San Jose, May 22-25 For a free sample copy of "Virtual Reality Monthly," kindly send your email address, phone, and fax number to dysart@delphi.com.)