Monday, March 16, 2015

VIRTUAL REALITY IS "IN"

"Big Daddy" Microsoft -- the fatherly parent who got a lot of us into PC's --  is now selling us virtual reality -- VR.

Yes, iPhones, iPads, Android devices all have VR apps, and Apple, iTunes, and Google Play Store are selling it. But what Microsoft's is offering  has more features, and more power.

Boo! Wow! Eek! (That's is my refrain for what's life-changingly new.) Soon, just about everything in life will be run on the super-smart gleaming gizmo that you bought for making phone calls.

Time Magazine reporter, Dan Kedmey, shared his experience with Microsoft's new "HoloLens," saying: "I looked at an ordinary coffee through the visor of this virtual-reality headset -- suddenly a translucent castle surrounded by fields with grazing sheep materialized  -- I could prod the animals around the pasture, nudging one of them to the edge of the table, where it jumped down to safety."

This kind of  thrill is what we'll be getting more of in our 3D future.

Big Daddy M says HoloLens is the next wave. Facebook, after paying $2 billion for Oculus Vr, is on the verge of releasing an affordable head set.  Sony's working on a VR device to go with its PlayStation 4. Samsung sells Gear VR, which works with its Galaxy line of phones. Prices -- $199 for the Sony, $350 for the Oculus; other manufacturers offer gear from $199 to $499."

Another Time article tells how a teacher can now take students on field trips to a rain forest, or the Battle of Waterloo. Gaming on a Sony, players can actually command a vessel screaming through space. At the Sun Dance Festival this year, though VR films have never before been included, 11 virtual reality films were shown.

Wow, holy cow -- I'm impressed. Are John Cullum and wife Em going to go with the flow?

Take a look, like we did, at Wearable headgear. It was intimidating, until we saw the Google Cardboard VR. You can buy and assemble it. It comes with a pair of lenses, magnet, velcro, rubber bands and a link that launches it. You cut and mold the cardboard into the right size; arrange the velcro; with double-sided tape and sticky rings, you slot the lenses and the magnet into place; fold it all together. You click the NFC link ("Near Field Communication) and -- wow.

For $24.95 you can test what you feel about VR.


Hmm. I might buy this and try VR once, or twice at most.  I am not thrilled or interested in having Virtual Reality adventures.

Why not? Because I'm so deeply involved, everyday, with REAL Realty.

6 comments:

Carola said...

I think I would get "seasick." They say virtual reality disorients people.

Unknown said...

Maybe, there will come a day when you remove yourself from virtual reality, look briefly at reality and decide to return to cruising through the galaxy with a flock of android sheep. (Sorry Mr Phillip K Dick. )

Stan said...

Great article Em. I am currently living in virtual reality and can't escape...Help!

Dustspeck said...

People might buy into that and then again, they might not Emily? I just bought a copy of, (The Winter's Tale), by that guy from England who nobody seems to know all that much about. That might be what I like best about that dude from Stratford, come to think of it? Sometimes it's better to not know than to go with the flow, I guess is what I trying to say in agreement with your eloquent point? Enough have my eyes already seen through the Devil's eye; those electronic things. Just Sane

simwave.ca said...

Virtual reality can be defined as an upcoming technology that makes users feel in a Virtual Environment (VE) by using computer hardware and software.

Virtual reality simulation

Unknown said...

In today's technology age, virtual reality is constantly evolving. Recently, I heard about these glasses for visual disability that is powered with artificial vision. It's a tiny camera attachment that helps to people who are blind or visually impaired "read". This blind assistive technology converts what is in front of it to audio and speaks the message to the wearer in real time without relying on internet or a smartphone. It's very promising to see companies developing gadgets like that to improve the quality of our lives.