{"id":4384,"date":"2014-11-11T20:50:46","date_gmt":"2014-11-11T20:50:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sl.governormarley.com\/?p=4384"},"modified":"2014-11-12T01:07:30","modified_gmt":"2014-11-12T01:07:30","slug":"ebbe-altbert-at-endgadget-expand-ny-virtual-reality-beyond-video-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sl.governormarley.com\/?p=4384","title":{"rendered":"Ebbe Altberg At Endgadget Expand NY – Virtual Reality Beyond Video Games"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Endgadget Expand NY event<\/a> this weekend saw Ebbe Altberg going coast to coast as he participated in a panel discussion : Back To Reality VR Beyond Gaming. This panel discussion saw Ebbe joined by\u00a0Matterport’s<\/a> Matt Bell and\u00a0BeAnotherLab’s<\/a> Marte Roel and has been summarised on Endgadet itself in an article entitled :\u00a0Virtual reality has a future beyond video games, and it’s already started<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The discussion has also been discussed, eloquently, in detail and with great analysis by Inara Pey in an article entitled :\u00a0Beyond gaming: looking at VR with Ebbe Altberg and others<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The panel was hosted by Ben Gilbert of Endgadget who introduced Ebbe Altberg as “The CEO Of Linden Lab, who you might have heard of from Second Life and other fun products.<\/em>” This sort of introduction is exactly why I thought Rod Humble was on the right track in terms of expanding Linden Lab’s portfolio. Second Life should really be a tag line of Linden Lab, not the other way round. However it does emphasise yet again the sway that Second Life has in terms of its name.<\/p>\n

Host Ben Gilbert then earns cheers from the virtual world fanbase when he says that the people on the panel are not making video games. You see, some people do understand the difference between virtual worlds and games! Ben also earns some bonus points for realising it’s Linden Lab, not Linden Labs. However he only found that out on the same day of the discussion.<\/p>\n

Ebbe indicates that beta testing of Linden Lab’s new virtual world may start around the middle of next year, so watch that space. Ebbe also talks up Second Life well discussing use cases such as education, art and entertainment as well as talking of the economic model and how Linden Lab allow users to create the content.<\/p>\n

Ebbe makes a good point about lines between the virtual and real worlds when host Ben Gilbert brings up the issue of the lack of the sense of smell in virtual reality. Ebbe feels there are pro’s and cons and that it’s not about reaching equality between the two spaces. That’s a very important point because I feel some people feel virtual reality will lead to some people being lost in the machine but I really can’t see the feared level of immersion some have being an issue for eons, certainly not in this generation of VR.<\/p>\n

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Ebbe also talks briefly about an issue I’ve raised more than once, the problems of using the keyboard and mouse when you’re using a device such as the Oculus Rift. Ebbe believes technology is coming that will address this issue and that things are now moving quite fast in terms of development. I’m not convinced of that myself as I still fear people are going to find the use of headsets uncomfortable and host Ben Gilbert raises this issue himself when he says that even an ordinary headset makes him aware he’s wearing one.<\/p>\n

Ebbe responds by saying that “For mass market appeal, ease of use and comfort is going to be critical to get right.<\/em>” This really is critical because whereas some hardcore users will be able to fully immerse themselves in peripherals, many others simply won’t. I’m thinking here of parents in particular who simply won’t be able to shut themselves away in that manner on a regular basis.<\/p>\n

However the panel is about Virtual Reality beyond video games, just what use cases are there for this technology? Lots is the answer from Ebbe :<\/p>\n

When people ask what’s the killer app,well, there’s going to be lots of killer apps. I think of VR as a horizontal thing that you’ll be able to apply to almost anything.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So the next question is how soon will it be here? Ebbe feels a couple of years but he qualifies this by saying that more comfortable hardware and content may be a bit further away than that. I agree with Ebbe there, whereas there will be a lot of discussion and examples appearing in the near future, I feel will be a little while longer before people start feeling comfortable enough with the technology to adopt it in large numbers.<\/p>\n

The discussion is an interesting one, coming it at around thirty four minutes it’s not too time consuming and if you have the time it’s worth watching, especially as the video gives more insight into the work of the other two participants on the panel.<\/p>\n

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