Virtual Reality

[JackMysticWolf]

Virtual reality is an artificial environment that is created with software and presented to the user in such a way that the user suspends belief and accepts it as a real environment. On a computer, virtual reality is primarily experienced through two of the five senses: sight and sound.


The simplest form of virtual reality is a 3-D image that can be explored interactively at a personal computer, usually by manipulating keys or the mouse so that the content of the image moves in some direction or zooms in or out. More sophisticated efforts involve such approaches as wrap-around display screens, actual rooms augmented with wearable computers, and haptics devices that let you feel the display images.


Virtual reality can be divided into:

• The simulation of a real environment for training and education.
  
• The development of an imagined environment for a game or interactive story.
  

The Virtual Reality Modelling Language (VRML) allows the creator to specify images and the rules for their display and interaction using textual language statements.

 

[TeaMMatE11]

I think I'm going to be on the conservative end on this (even though politically I am a solid liberal), but I have a strange feeling as VR develops we will forget our own lives and enter VR to escape life. Now is this a good or bad thing?


I'm going to argue that it's bad, only because I don't want to end up in a universe where we get to control our individual AI's through VR for efficiency purposes. It's like stepping into another person's shoes, and I feel like the more we rely on it, the less we will rely on ourselves.


I can see how it can be a good thing: exploring ancient civilizations in full 3D models, studying history, etc., and a good story to make you feel like you are the actual character of the game. I just feel the bad outweighs the good in this scenario as VR tech develops.

 

[Barca]

Honestly, at this point I don't think it'll do very well. While I personally think its pretty cool as an idea, its not nearly as spectacular as people are making it out to be... At least at the moment. I think its a neat idea that would need to be worked on abit more before putting it out there en mass. In other words, its cool and all, but its just not the Holodeck... Which I'm still waiting for.