Hay Folks,
This post is not in response to any person's post in particular, it is
just using a comment in Brian's last note as a jumping off point for
one of my "standard speeches". Having been off list for the last few
years I thought it was time to put it out there again (I am sure if
you check the archives you will find it in one form or another back
there in the late 90's).
...now if the prices of HMDs would drop significantly...
If you are waiting to build or wear until the display technology
catches up with your needs then let me offer the following advice
based on my own experience of several decades of wearing.
If you think about all the things you could be doing with/on your
wearable and then eliminate the tasks that require visual display for
output, what do you have left?
I am suggesting that you start out without an HMD. Nothing says you
have to have full time visual output at your eye. Yes, it is nice to
have, but is it essential to why you want to wear? For some the answer
will be that it is a must have. For many, I suspect if they think
about it, an audio output system would do much if not all of what they
want at significantly lower price, power requirements and weight. For
others an audio primary system with a non HMD visual display in your
pocket could fit the bill for now.
In 1997 I was told by several commercial suppliers that by the end of
the next quarter they would be coming out with their $100 HMD.
Resolutions were going up, color depth was going up while size, weight
and price were coming down. Here we are, 10 years down the road and
while there have been some improvements, the HMD is still the biggest
single expense in a wearable and it seems the most common excuse for
not wearing yet. Just eliminate it and start wearing. You can always
add your HMD "the end of next quarter". In the meantime, you'll be
getting many of the benefits of wearing, not to mention the experience
that you can only get by doing it.
What do you do instead of using an HMD? It depends on what you need
to do with your rig. But here are a few things to think about and
try:
Check out blinux, oralux and emacspeak for some ideas of what you can
do for a full linux system based on audio output.
Think of the video display as something you use when docked. At those
times hook your rig up to a conventional display. When walking,
driving, etc, go audio display only.
Alternatively add a palm device or small dvd player for those
occasions when you must see a screen. Use it when you need to see it,
otherwise keep it off and out of the way. The variety of small
inexpensive consumer display devices right now is astounding and many
boards offer ntsc or pal out as an options. Base your rig on a
handheld using the display when needed or alternatively,
borrow(hijack?) a nearby TV set or monitor if you need a screen for a
few minutes (a great way to start a conversation about your wearable...).
In the meantime, install an audio output system on your desktop/laptop
and put some time into learning it. Then you can make an informed
choice about how it works for you.
If as I suspect is the case for many, you decide that you could get
some real use out of a primarily audio output wearable even if it
would not do everything you would want your wearable to ultimately do,
then build it and start wearing.
Your alternative is sitting on the sidelines.
-Greg
--
Greg Priest-Dorman
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