The panel for this episode of Adventures in Angular is Alyssa Nicoll, Joe Eames, Lukas Ruebbelke, and Charles Max Wood. Special guest Aysegul Yonet is here to discuss WebVR and visualizations. Tune in to learn more!

Yes. VR is a different kind of API.

Web VR is currently an experimental API. It creates 3D experiences that interact using the gamepad API. Angular and Web VR work together by writing more declarative experiences.

Things are changing quickly. Not all browsers are implemented. It has to be enabled in Chrome, it can be enabled in Firefox, but not all other browsers implement it. A 2.0 Web VR version is being created, which will be similar to the version that is out now.

Not enabled in some of the browsers but can check it and leave a message. Once you have an available browser, there is a consistent interaction.

VR is now very accessible to everyone because of Web VR. Google Cardboard is one of the cheapest ways. It is around $20. Samsung VR headset is free. Also can purchase cheap hand controls. Developers do not have to go through app stores to release a product, which makes it cheap for them as well.

One case is in the education field. Google Expedition is creating an app for teachers to create experiences for students to see different places such as museums. A second case is in the medical world. Web VR can be an amazing pain killer. It has been used in Leukemia patients. For example, kids don’t want to take medication but using VR they can fight the disease itself. A third case is the Smithsonian Museum in DC. Artwork was scanned through VR and 3D experiences created through that.

A-Frame is the easiest to use for beginners. You don’t need to know how to use 3D. It has Angular components. There is also Play, where you can take any experience you want and work off of that. Sketchfab is an app where you can use 3D models. There is also a Google app that takes 360-degree 3D pictures and turns them into experiences.

Yes, it does have sound as well.

It is just like any kind of Angular component. It seems foreign to web developers because you are creating a scene. But A-Frame makes it easy for you: just have to add the objects itself. You have components for a scene.

Interactions are not the easiest to program. Trying to solve the problem itself. You can take data through the Gamepad API. You can also use Itracking where you look at an object and select it.

Not long - she was “dying to work with WebVR.” She had a chance to work with Play and had fun.

Yes.

Not sure. But it can be loaded unto a website and downloaded onto your phone.

MergeVR has a Goggle and Cube. It can create VR experiences for kids. The product is affordable: only $60 for Goggles and the Cube is $20.

Hard to test because it is visual based. There is a Chrome plug-in that helps. The mapping is very mathematical, which is an easy part to test.             

A-Frame team has done a great job. The 3JS creator Mr.Doob has been developing for a long time, before the community there is now. Companies have been using his stuff for years. Brandon Jones, who is implementing WebVR on the Chrome team.

Other than the interaction, writing the code isn’t all that different. The tool used was created for websites with 3D capabilities. Usability is different. There is an adjustment curve with VR: people navigate VR with a mouse better than with a headset.

Lukas:

Charles:

Special Guest: Aysegul Yonet.