[sldev] Re: Commercial CAVEs / stereoscopic displays

[Mark Dubin]

Hi Folks,

Dale Mahalko wrote on Jan 5, 2008 a note about stereo display of SL:

> (clip)
> Has anyone tried using SL with CAVEs like this yet? (I expect a person
> would need to either be insanely rich or have access to a well-funded
> university to do it.)
> (clip)


When my University had a CAVE a few years ago (now closed) we  
successfully viewed many scenes basically similar to parts of SL  
SIMs. I am now retired, and managing partner is a small startup (3D  
Embodiment, LLC, http://3demb.com) that provides immersive 3D  
displays in real life, and that is developing content in SL on our  
Embodiment Island. In part, we are investing in SL because we were  
aware that viewing it in stereo was coming.

The references Dale gave to BARCO reflect what is available from a  
number of commercial firms, at relatively high cost. For example, a  
vender of interest is Fakespace (http://www.fakespace.com).

However, one does not need a full-fledged, multi-walled CAVE to get  
the benefit of human-scale immersive visualization type, virtual  
reality. A more affordable solution is the GeoWall (http:// 
geowall.geo.lsa.umich.edu/intro.html) type system. I like to think   
of this as essentially a one-wall cave (bordering on being an  
oxymoron). It is a single screen that reproduces the front wall of a  
CAVE at whatever size one chooses to use. Installation can be  
permanent (I still do research at our lab using ceiling mounted  
projectors and an 8' X 11' front-projection screen) or portable, such  
as the setup my company uses for demonstrations on a 5' X 8' portable  
screen. I can report that stereo SL looks very good on this portable  
setup.

A Geowall system is "relatively" low cost. You need: two DLP  
projectors, a polarization retaining screen, polarizing filters and  
glasses, and a normal PC with a good two-headed graphics card (we use  
Nvidia Quadro cards, FX-3450 or better). Starting from scratch, a  
very good system can be build for about $7,000 (or less). The GeoWall  
website has lots of details, and I will be happy to provide more info  
to anyone who wants it. With advances in projector technology and  
decreasing prices, I think a system could be built even more cheaply  
in the coming year.

"Threedee Shepherd"/Mark Dubin