#Do you have a VR headset? Interested in organizing a virtual meetup as an experiment?
verbal urchin
I do 👋 I love the AR world really but do some stuff in VR! 😀
I have the Samsung VR set
oblique oracle
So what I wonder is how we could do something fun here on Discord that goes beyond "just" chat but is inclusive to everyone. An idea would be to do a but of crossover between a "gaming-like" environment that people could see and interact with as an activity here but also allow for owners of a headset to go "all in".
For illustration - I created a virtual photography gallery once and it can be navigated from phone, computer and VR headset and also be used as a meeting area... maybe that kind of environment would serve: https://hubs.mozilla.com/Z2RU79V
gusty dirge
I have an original Quest. I was super into it for a while, especially because i have a 360 camera (one of the old cheap samsung ones) and it was super cool to view the images that way. also beat saber is awesome. I really haven't used it in aggeessss though. I did dig out the headset a little while ago but couldn't use it because I didn't have batteries for the handsets.
I always want to get back into playing with it though!
Would totally be up for something
ionic zenith
I've got a very bulky PSVR - I played a lot of this game called Rec Room, its like VR chat but... actually i dont know 😂 its fun, doesnt demand lots of resources, and can be played on all devices (as long as its not a linux desktop, apparently...) but focused on VR
charred cliff
Used to have a cardboard thingy
But that's pretty much it 😂
Oh and I have a few POV Drone headsets that can be used as VR headsets
weak hornet
I still have a Daydream, but I don't think I have a compatible phone (without a broken screen) to put in it 😅
oblique oracle
Building on this - here's a video where the university of Nottingham did create lectures in VR using hubs. (However, most people were joining via browser or phone) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puktO2g-Wpc
So if I have a bit of time I'll create us a little meeting space in the next days and then we coul have a meetup there, wdyt? Just to play around with it and also explore it as one potential fun platform for the occasional future meetup... wdyt?
charred cliff
That would be fun :D
I'm in two servers where they actually do stuff like that, but mostly in games
(like Minecraft for instance,they create a meeting room and invite others in this world)
It's fun 😂
oblique oracle
I always wondered if it would be possible to create a meaningful developer community centric event in minecraft. One downside I see to that is the requirement to install minecraft
charred cliff
Yup
The advantage is that it's the game that sold the most copies worldwide, so many have it already
Unfortunately, it's not as cheap as it used to be...
So for those who don't it's not really worth spending that much, especially just for a meeting...
But at least, one thing you can do, is also stream it
So for those who don't have it it's just a normal voice meeting
But still, in my opinion it's not perfect as those who aren't in the game can feel a bit left out from others
oblique oracle
yeah, also - can you present things? e.g. showing slides and videos inside the virtual environment? In other words: Would it be possible to build a conference environment with stages and breakouts?
charred cliff
Yup!
Requires a bit of a setup at first but it's something that is possible
At least for basic slides it's relatively easy
If it's a video it may look choppy and lag so not recommended
This video here is meant as a joke, but that's pretty much how it would work 😂
oblique oracle
Background of all this btw: I keep wondering how hybrid events that do not suck would look like. Of course it is always possible to set up various video streams but maybe it would also be interesting to create a virtual mirror of the physical event and then in a next step find ways to combine audiences .
That would allow people to join and "walk" around, use spatial audio, maybe use some interaction elements etc.
For this to work a few things need to come together:
- easy to set up
- easy for presenters and users
- interaction built in
- works even if relatively large numbers of people show up
- can be used via phone, browser (and maybe even VR?)
verbal urchin
And helps people with social anxiety or other mental health conditions that prevent them from attending in person
charred cliff
Yeah that's usually the good thing about it
Also helps people that don't often speak at an event feel included
Because they're still with others somewhere (even if it's virtual)
verbal urchin
Definitely! Events like devFest in person are not very inviting for people like myself so events online like this and VR make it so much more better for us
oblique oracle
I imagine. The barriers to overcome though are that most "hybrid events" are just glorified live streams and then of course we will need to make this in a way that ideally becomes seemless to set up for attendees and speakers alike...
So let's play a bit, I'm tired of having to choose between physical or virtual presence. There should be better ways that are still practical