Re: Fallback for VR Mode

In general I would prefer that any user prompts are kept to a minimum, and
in my experience they're not likely to be necessary. In a great many cases
the choice of device is clear: Either there is no device, a single device,
or the context of the request makes it very clear what device is preferred.
For example: If I'm on a Samsung device that supports both GearVR and
Daydream, but I'm in the Oculus browser launched via Oculus Home while
wearing a GearVR it's pretty clear the user doesn't want to have a popup
display every time they click a VR experience that says "Do you want to use
GearVR or Daydream to view this?" Similarly on a desktop you will almost
certainly have a single headset plugged in for
practicality/financial/limited number of ports/bandwidth reasons. The only
common exception is if you're a developer, but even then it's vanishingly
rare.

Still, in that scenario I would prefer a solution that provides a settings
page somewhere that allows users to set the hardware priority rather than
have them make that choice each time you click an "Enter VR" button. (And
again, if you're already browsing in a Vive you basically never want to be
asked to put on the Rift sitting on your desk.) This is already effectively
available with Daydream, where a setting in the 2D Daydream app allows
users to manually select if they want to use a Daydream or Cardboard
viewer. I use that all the time for debugging!

--Brandon

On Wed, Jan 3, 2018 at 1:41 PM Leonard Daly <web3d@realism.com> wrote:

> I originated this question in the Declarative WebVR group, but wanted to
> get input from people here too.
>
> Some devices cannot go into WebVR mode (think Chromebook). There are just
> no VR devices.
>
> Some devices have VR added (e.g., desktop with Vive).
>
> Many devices can go into VR (e.g., Pixel phones), but the user does not
> have the appropriate device (Daydream for Pixel) to complete the
> transition. The user may have cardboard and wish to use that instead of a
> fancier headset.
>
> The WebVR JS code that THREE uses bases its decision on the existence of
> 'navigator.getVRDisplays' having length > 0.
>
> What do people here think the expected/default fallback should be when the
> device
>
> 1) Is not VR capable but can do stereographic display on 3D content
>   OR
> 2) The user wishes to use a non-VR headset (e.g., cardboard) instead of
> the associated VR device
>
> I can see several answers here including required user-prompt,
> auto-fallback, do exactly what's requested. What are peoples thoughts or
> comments as to what they would expect?
>
> Thanks.
> --
> *Leonard Daly*
> 3D Systems Architect & Cloud Consultant
> President, Daly Realism - *Creating the Future*
>