VR Headset

[Drezha]

I ended up giving in, and have decided to try VR.

I ordered myself an Oculus Quest 2 (selling the Switch I had, which had sat around for a year not being used) and it’ll arrive in time for the weekend.

I’ve had to reactivate my Facebook account for it (I hadn’t deleted it, as I still used Messenger) but I’m pretty excited how it goes. I went for the 64GB version, as the research I’d done had shown that with reasonable internet, it’s not bad to download games when needed and that a fairly large number should fit on 64GB. I’ve also ordered a USB cable so I can connect to the PC – I’m looking forward to trying Star Wars Squadrons with it.

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[keith with the teef]

Keep us posted. looking forward to your feed back. 🙂

 

[Ed P]

Make sure you give sufficient time and attention to your spouse. She is going to hate the time you are buried away in your own little world oblivious to all around. :scratch:

[Drezha]

First impressions are good. I tried the Oculus getting started app that’s built in and that was pretty amazing – I managed to drop a controller (thankfully had the lanyards on!) trying to put it down on a table!

The bought Pirate trainer and that was good fun – battery stopped me from carrying on.

My first experience with VR and I’m blown away in fairness!

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[keith with the teef]

Excellent.

There seem to be a few games on PC that are VR ready. But at what level they support it I do not know.

Just looking through my steam collection and I find: Skyrim vr.

Anyway. Whats star-wars like then.

[Drezha]

At the minute, only played the Oculus specific games that you download on to the headset, I’ll be trialling PC linked VR tomorrow after my cable arrived today (it needs a good quality USB cable – it’s recommended to use a 5m Anker cable, rather than pay the £80 Oculus want for the branded one, so that arrived today so I can try tomorrow or later tonight).

I’m also aware of motion sickness from VR, so I’m trying not to got to OTT to start with!

I’ve a couple of VR ready games on Steam, Star Wars squadrons is one of them. I think the others are mainly space and flying based as well. I fancy Fallout 4 VR, but it’s full price, so I’ll wait for a sale on that one. :good:

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[Drezha]

I can see how the motion sickness can come in to it. I played some Warhammer 40K: Battle Sister last night (as I enjoy Grim Dark!) and that was the first game I’d played where you move (without moving yourself) and that caused a slight degree of motion sickness after 15 minutes or so. I’d read that it was best not to push through it, so I stopped that one.

However, I’d hooked it up to the PC at the weekend and play some Star Wars Squadrons – was blown away at how good that was (though shows that I need a better card than a 1060GTX if I want to get the most from the PC for it!) Only issue there is I’ll have to play it more to make sure I remember the buttons on the joystick, as you obviously can’t see it with the headset on!

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[keith with the teef]

Cool. I wonder if the motion sickness has some thing to do with the fps?

I’m surprised you need a better card than the 1060.

Bummer on the joy stick. Ah,  I never thought of that one. 🙂

Looks like it could be time for me to try virtual.

I remember a MM forumite: spedly? He had the original Oculus rift and the motion sickness was a little to much back on the earlier modles.

[Drezha]

My understanding of it is that it’s because you’re moving in game, and it’s tricking the brain, as you might not physically be moving (i.e. I was moving by using the joystick on the device and turning by turning myself).

The 1060 works, but the refresh rate of the Quest 2 is 90Hz, and I don’t think in some latest games I can hit 90fps at the screen res of the Quest. I’ve read that it does effect the experience more on VR than on a standard game screen.

It’s dropped now to the reasonable price of entry I think – considering you don’t need a PC for this one, £300 is reasonable.

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

Ah yes, VR headsets.

I have had the Samsung Gear VR by Oculus for nearly 2 years now, I use it with a Galaxy S9 phone and the results are pretty impressive. Only thing is a lack of new software, once you have gone through all the demos.

Looks like Samsung have stopped supporting it and handed my account over to Oculus so I don’t expect much new stuff now.

 

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

Epic Roller coasters had some new free rides recently though, have a look at that if you havent  already.

[keith with the teef]

I’ve got a (don’t miss this) link for use guys to look at. Gabe Newel has some serious silly slobber.

https://www.techspot.com/news/88401-gabe-newell-believes-brain-computer-interfaces-us-edit.html

 

[Ed P]

I’m not into having a chip stuck in my head, but a couple of years ago I did play with a so-called brain interface. That one worked by sensing the small electrical signals produced by things like jaw muscles, frowning etc. It only worked after a fashion for me as I produced too much electronic static. I believe that such interfaces have moved on a lot since then and work rather like an EEG sensing all the different wave signals produced by your brain. Unfortunately that sophistication comes at a price Emotiv site link, though if I was ever unfortunate to suffer a disabling stroke it would be something that I would rapidly investigate and sod the price.

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

The methods that read brain activity are still only remote controls at best, they can only sense if there IS activity in areas of the brain, not WHAT it is.

As for implanting images directly into your brain, Pah😁

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

I suppose if you connected into the optic nerve directly you could do something, but if we could do that now we would already have bionic eyes.

[Ed P]

Wheels-Of-Fire wrote:

The methods that read brain activity are still only remote controls at best, they can only sense if there IS activity in areas of the brain, not WHAT it is.

I do not disagree with the thrust of what you said, however if you get feedback on something then it becomes possible to control it. This holds promise for controlling the otherwise autonomic activities of your body. For example, heart rate, blood pressure and even blood sugar levels. It also offers a bypass if some of your own neural pathways have been damaged e.g. a way of offsetting a Parkinson tremor.

I agree that what I linked is a one way system, but I’m not sure that I want an interface that could directly affect the way I think or see. That sounds pretty dangerous to me.

The Musk version has its possible values but sounds too intrusive to me.

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

I remember watching a Tomorrows World program in the early 80’s that promised we would soon be able to fix a severed spinal cord, it said a tiny microchip had been developed that, when attached to a nerve, could read and interpret nerve impulses and retransmit them as light. Two chips linked by fiber optic cable could bridge a break in a nerve, apparently it had worked with frogs legs in a lab.

Still no sign of that one yet 🤥

[JayCeeDee]

Wheels-Of-Fire wrote:

……apparently it had worked with frogs legs in a lab. Still no sign of that one yet

 

Was it a French lab????

[Ed P]

Funny you should say that — not the French, but close. The Swiss have done it. Iirc the Poles took this a couple of stages further.

[JayCeeDee]

Actually it was meant as a chuckle – thought there was no sign of the frog’s legs as they had  been eaten.😂 Should have added the emoji first time round.👍😉

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