[HN Gopher] How to make buttons in VR (2017)
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       How to make buttons in VR (2017)
        
       Author : jasonnchann
       Score  : 34 points
       Date   : 2023-05-02 05:12 UTC (17 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (bvisness.me)
 (TXT) w3m dump (bvisness.me)
        
       | anilakar wrote:
       | Flight simmers like using physical button boxes instead. It takes
       | around two weeks to get used to the button locations even when
       | they don't match the virtual cockpit.
       | 
       | A good old mouse works just as well and its microswitches give a
       | nice tactile response.
        
         | mrguyorama wrote:
         | Even with VTOL VR, which is a flying/weapons simulator designed
         | explicitly to be used only with VR controllers could really be
         | better allowing you to map an actual stick and/or throttle.
         | Keeping your hand "still" or aligned with no guide, ie just
         | free floating in the air, is an awful experience. It's worse
         | than that fad of using the motion controls of the Wiimote to
         | drive a car, or that time kinect made you mime a steering wheel
         | to control a car.
         | 
         | Microsoft Flight Sim seems explicitly intended for you to sit
         | in front of your normal computer screen with flight stick and
         | keyboard and mouse and just plop the headset on. It requires
         | you to press spacebar before you can do anything if you start
         | the game in VR. It's so stupid.
        
           | ranger207 wrote:
           | In VTOL VR you can reposition the stick and even swap it to
           | center stick. I usually keep it sidestick and rest it on my
           | leg. The throttle is still a problem but you don't usually
           | have to hold onto it all the time. And the collective in the
           | AH-94 is no worse than a real helicopter
           | 
           | I was hoping someone would bring up VTOL VR though because it
           | has the best buttons I've used in any VR game so far. Just
           | touching a button is too imprecise; laser pointers can be
           | awkward. Holding your hand over the button, getting a slight
           | vibration to let you know you're in the connect interaction
           | zone, the clicking the trigger is the best option in most
           | circumstances
        
       | vrglvrglvrgl wrote:
       | [dead]
        
       | Steltek wrote:
       | If you want a UI for pizza peel hands, the clear choice is flag
       | semaphore!
       | 
       | I don't have VR goggles but I feel like someone will eventually
       | come up with a successful Minority Report imitation. We'll all
       | have very tired arms but that seems a fait accompli of VR stuff
       | anyway?
        
         | foxyv wrote:
         | One thing I noticed from VR is that it is exhausting. Something
         | about it just drains me. Even just sitting and using a
         | joystick. This is aside from even the weight of the headset.
         | Just having my brain process the vision part of it isn't super
         | sustainable. I've found, flipping up the headset every 10-20
         | minutes helps a lot though.
         | 
         | I mostly play flight sims so I don't use the motion controllers
         | or anything, but I can't imagine having to work all day in VR.
        
           | ozten wrote:
           | I am a VR enthusiast.
           | 
           | I totally agree! I feel like I am scuba diving or snorkeling.
           | The discomfort drains you.
           | 
           | Just thinking about the extra work your brain is doing to
           | process VR visuals
           | 
           | Universal issues: * flat, everything in focus rendering
           | instead of "light field" style, per-eye adjusted display
           | focal depth
           | 
           | Per-individual issues: * Mis-aligned pupils (IPD) * User not
           | having glasses or corrective lenses inside the headset *
           | Wrong prescription (Everything is 4 - 6 feet from the user's
           | perspective for a prescription), so bifocals or the wrong
           | pair of prescription glasses create fatigue * Motion sickness
           | sensitivity
           | 
           | Doing a little VR can consistently build up tolerance, but
           | there is always some amount of overhead for me that is
           | fatigue inducing.
        
           | mrguyorama wrote:
           | I don't find this. 4 hour VR sessions were the norm for me
           | for quite some time. The big limiter for me is my feet and
           | lower back getting tired from standing in one place for
           | several hours. Presumably I need to wear shoes or something.
        
       | nightowl_games wrote:
       | Good article. Not sure why the box cast would fix the "paddle
       | goes through the box" thing though, unless they are doing the box
       | cast at the rendering Hz and the physics Hz is significantly
       | slower - which makes sense.
       | 
       | I made physics buttons in Unity and they worked well. Key is the
       | colliders on the hands need some special sauce to make them be
       | real proper physics objects that don't collide into things. The
       | SteamVR demo for unity is a great starting point for this.
        
       | shultays wrote:
       | Or don't try to make buttons tangible/physical objects. If your
       | hand (or pizza paddle hand) is inside a button, highlight the
       | button and then use trigger to "press" button. It is hard to
       | press buttons you can't really touch
        
         | prettyStandard wrote:
         | While I agree, yes, you should opt to use physical buttons
         | _when possible_ , I'm not going to disparage solutions to any
         | issues.
         | 
         | But also, to your suggested solution, having a button need to
         | be interacted with in VR and a physical button is error prone
         | and annoying. I know I use a button like that daily. I would
         | rather just reach over and stab most of these buttons.
        
         | scheeseman486 wrote:
         | That doesn't work when you have no physical button available,
         | like with hand tracking. It also creates problems if there's
         | other functions mapped to the trigger, like if you're holding a
         | gun; does pulling the trigger still fire it?
        
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       (page generated 2023-05-02 23:03 UTC)