Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!uwm.edu!ogicse!milton!hlab
From: rlm@Hudson.Stanford.EDU (Robert L. Miller)
Newsgroups: sci.virtual-worlds
Subject: Re: VR Videotapes (From Producer of VR '90 Conf. Tapes)
Message-ID: <1991Mar29.205711.23764@milton.u.washington.edu>
Date: 28 Mar 91 20:20:58 GMT
Sender: hlab@milton.u.washington.edu (Human Int. Technology Lab)
Organization: Computer Science Department, Stanford University
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I filmed and produced the Virtual Reality '90 tape set for Meckler
Publishing.  I offer the readers of this group a different point of
view from Mike Gigante's posting.

I will first list the tapes--the object of this discussion--then
respond to Gigante's message. At the end, I have included a general
listing of VR tapes available on the market.


                     Virtual Reality '90
                    December 10, 11, 1990
                      San Francisco, CA

     There are 3 tapes.  Each 2 hours in length.

     THEORY     Keynote Address: "Shaping Cultural
                Consciousness with Artificial Reality"
                Myron Krueger, Ph.D.
                Artificial Reality Corp.        30 min.
                (audio is sub-optimal for this talk,
                but coherent.)

                "The Role of Drama in the Evolution
                of Virtual Reality"
                Brenda Laurel, Ph.D.
                Telepresence Research           30 min.

                "Being There, or Models for
                Virtual Reality"
                Michael Spring, Ph.D.
                University of Pittsburgh        30 min.

                "The Metaphysics of Virtual
                Reality"
                Michael Heim, Ph.D.
                University of California, Long Beach
                                               30 min.


     THEORY     "Bringing Affordable Virtual Reality
                Systems to Market"
                (features 10 minutes of video from GE's
                state-of-the-art simulators and Sense8's
                WorldTool)
                Eric Gullichsen
                Sense8 Corporation              30 min.

                "The Virtual Body, along with Research
                and Projects at the Human Interface
                Technology Lab, Univ. of Washington"
                Suzanne Weghorst
                Human Interface Technology Lab.
                University of Washington
                (Edited to 15 min. at speaker's request)

                Roundtable and Demonstrations   15 min.
                (Demos from the Exhibit Hall, which
                feature Sense8's WorldTool system and
                the Virtex (Jim Kramer) glove.)


    PROMISE    "Educational Implications for Virtual
                Reality"
                David Traub, Ph.D.
                Center Point Communications     30 min.

                "Cyberspace: A Vision of the Year 2000"
                John Thomas, Ph.D.
                NYNEX                           30 min.

                "Cyberspace, VR and the Principle of
                Commonality" (Cyberspace Design)
                Michael Benedikt, Ph.D.
                Univ. of Texas, Austin          30 min.

                "Cooperative Work Environments--The
                Virtual Heartland"
                Tom Barrett
                Electronic Data Systems         30 min.


In article 1192, Mike Gigante writes of the conference:

>There were a couple of interesting talks but they were in the
>minority.  There was a lot of flakey stuff...

Perhaps Mike Gigante should state which of the above
are 'flakey,' as he puts it.

In these talks: Michael Benedikt suggests architectural and spatial
guidelines for a cyberspace world (in addition to issues of
visualizing data).  David Traub speaks of the potential of
experiential education with VR.  Walser, Gullichsen and Weghorst
present an overview of current VR technologies.  Barrett talks about a
Corporate Virtual Workspace.  Krueger, Laurel, Spring, Heim and
others, bring out fundamental issues of VR and society--which I hope
is a subject of interest to those of you who are creating virtual
reality technology, regardless of whether or not you buy VR
videotapes.

>The speakers were fairly diverse, but as I indicated, many important
>groups were not even represented.

Perhaps Gigante should inform us as to who the important groups are
in VR and who are not.

Prices of VR tapes in general:

       Price    Tape(s)   Content               Length

         500    5       HITL Symposium          ?

         295    1       SIGGRAPH, HDTV & the
                        Quest for Virtual
                        Reality
                        (1 hr for VR I believe) 2 hr.

         225    1       VR Theory, VR '90 Conf. 2 hr.

         225    1       VR Practice, VR '90..   2 hr.

         225    1       VR Promise, VR '90..    2 hr.

         525    3       VR'90 Tapeset           6 hr.

          30    1       "Virtual Reality"       ?
                        (I am not familiar with
                        this tape.  Can anyone
                        tell us if it is just
                        promotional cuts from
                        VPL, UNC, NASA, etc?)

Prices for the VR '90 tapes were set by Meckler Publishing, however,
forty percent of all revenue from the tapes go to support the Virtual
Reality Film Documentary (the rest is to Meckler and distributing
costs).

For further information on the VR '90 tapes contact:

    Meckler Publishing,
    11 Ferry Lane West
    Westport, CT  06880
    203 226-6967
    203 454-5840 (fax)

or send me a message.

Robert Miller
Producer
THE VIRTUAL REALITY FILM DOCUMENTARY
VIRTUAL REALITY '90, THEORY, PRACTICE, PROMISE