What is the best virtual workspace?

October 10, 2020 4:21 PM

I want to set up a virtual headset so I can have multiple virtual monitors. It should connect to my work Windows 10 PC. Does anyone have experience with this is recommendations?

I am skeptical of the Oculus products because they require a FB login and might not work indefinitely. Is there something that is open source and functions as a virtual environment for work?

posted by metamonday to Computers & Internet (3 answers total)

Best answer: Have you worn a VR headset for any length of time? None of the current offerings have the resolution to replace a monitor for day-to-day computing, and current VR games/software have art / interactions designed to work with the limits. I use a Vive Pro for flight simulation and it is barely adequate for that task — instruments are legible but it’s nowhere near as clear as reality.

Most current headsets are a bit better than 1080p resolution per eye. That sounds good, but remember that’s the same resolution as any other 1080p monitor, but stretched over 90+ degrees field of view. The individual pixels are larger than you’d want for clear text rendering.

There’s also a vergence/accommodation conflict with every current consumer display: the screens are focused at some fixed distance, but stereo cues suggest objects are further or closer than that. Your brain isn’t used to that and it can be uncomfortable, especially if the conflict is large and you use it for a long time.

I am a VR believer, I use and develop VR software and have worked on VR hardware in the past, and we’re not ready for this use case yet. Sorry!
posted by Alterscape at 5:03 PM on October 10, 2020 [6 favorites]

Best answer: Going to second Alterscape here. VR tech isn't yet at the resolution for readable and workable text for most users. It's neat and magical, and great for gaming and watching movies, but not yet there for productivity.

I've found that text and fine detail also gets blurry towards the edge of the field of view too, so the "usable" resolution is even less than you might calculate if you need to see that detail.
posted by Wulfhere at 7:25 PM on October 10, 2020

Response by poster: Thank you so much for this valuable information!
posted by metamonday at 11:33 AM on October 11, 2020