GOAL
Post 6-10 photos of Shanghai were there is no evidence of human intervention.
Reflect on the Oculus Keynote Speech.
NATURAL SHANGHAI
The way I approached this assignment was to find elements of nature within the city and capture the photo on a narrow frame. This way most of the elements that were “human interference” were already eliminated from the image. Images such as the small lake and tree tops during winter required some editing due to human elements that were still present.
OCULUS REFLECTION
The introduction of hand tracking offers an interesting future for Facebook’s Quest. This essentially cuts out the need for hand controllers. It follows in line with the cut down in hardware in response to the consumer reality which is that consumers are more likely to buy when the hardware is minimal and relatively cheap. Additionally, hand tracking increases the immerse nature of VR’s environment as it closely mimics reality. Users will no longer have to learn how to use controllers and instead should instinctively understand hand controls.
Two other features that struck me were Facebook’s Passthrough+ and the introduction of new social elements using Facebook accounts to login. First, Passthrough+ provides a “stereo correct view of your surroundings”. This narrows the gap between reality and VR allowing users to transition relatively comfortably between the two. Then there is the “social platform powered by Facebook” were users will be able to connect with each other within Oculus. This achieves a similar goal as Passthrough+ were users are able to bridge the gap between reality and VR in a digital space.
While the expansions of Facebook’s Quest seem promising in its long-term usability, I question how it will fit into the Facebook ecosystem once their AR glasses are introduced. However, this question is far off in the future. Facebook’s Live Maps progress over the next couple years will determine the future of their promised AR glasses.