Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!rutgers!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!dali.cs.montana.edu!milton!cygnus@udel.edu
From: cygnus@udel.edu (marc cygnus)
Newsgroups: sci.virtual-worlds
Subject: Re: Yo! people!
Keywords: VR what else :-)
Message-ID: <28971@nigel.ee.udel.edu>
Date: 30 Aug 90 15:19:54 GMT
References: <31304@unix.cis.pitt.edu>
Sender: hlab@milton.u.washington.edu
Reply-To: marc cygnus <cygnus@udel.edu>
Organization: the Lab Rats
Lines: 61
Approved: hitl@hardy.u.washington.edu


In article <31304@unix.cis.pitt.edu>, fmgst@unix.cis.pitt.edu (Filip
Gieszczykiewicz) writes:
|> 	<etc. deleted...>
|> 
|> 	Now, you say, "VR is great, I've seen all these
|> 	neat programs (well, heard of...) and what they
|> 	will (or might...) accomplish."
|> 
|> 	I'm no PhD. I don't think too many reading this
|> 	group are. You have a program, _post it_.
|> 	Just a small portion will be fine. Show us what
|> 	a VR program LOOKS like. I learn by examples, give me one.
|> 
|> 	You have a system that you do your stuff on, give us the setup!...
|> 


I think I understand your frustrations about this group, but out of all the
VR systems I've seen and with which I've worked, you'll not find one that's
suitable to post, in either its present condition, or hacked down to be
`simple' (assuming the researchers actually working on the project would
commit time to doing that).

Personally, I don't understand what you want. For instance, I don't know
what you mean when you say "Show us what a VR program LOOKS like." If you
want to see an operational system, I'm afraid you'll have to attend a trade
conference, or go visit a site yourself (like VPL).

Also, what do you mean by "really simple" (fourth paragraph quoted above)?
I have a suspicion that you really have no idea of the size and complexity
of a VR system, especially one meant to combine realtime or near-realtime
3D visualisation of an environment with physical data input (dataglove,
perhaps).

One of the problems in that realm stems from the magnitude of the rendering
tasks required to produce a visually satisfactory display. The work I've
seen relies on hardware to off-load the graphics tasks, say for example by
using an IRIS 4DVGX.

Actually, most of the VR work with which I'm familiar is little more
than high speed, 3D computer graphics with high-tech twists such as
head-mounted stereoscopic displays, `dataglove' type data input, etc.

What is it that you want to see, and moreover, what is it that you intend to
*run* (or would like to see running) on that 386 of yours? Before you answer
that, you might do well to first quantify what `virtual reality' means to
*you*, so that people responding to you have a reference from which to answer
your questions.

I suggest also that, to help you loosen up a bit, you subscribe to a
magazine by the name of `Mondo 2000'... check your local progressive (or
well-stocked) newsstand.

					-marcus-

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