All Aboard The WebVR Train
This week was a huge week for advancements in WebVR. Here is the roundup:
1) Google introduces WebVR API to latest Chrome beta on Android
The WebVR API provides access to the input and output capabilities of virtual reality devices such as Daydream View. It also provides access to the user’s position and orientation, so that web apps can render a stereoscopic 3D scene to the headset's display. The Gamepad API extensions provide access to input from motion controllers, such as the Daydream controller, and enables natural interactions in VR.
2) Oculus Launches Developer Preview Of Its WebVR Browser, ‘Carmel’, On Gear VR
Carmel is now available as a Developer Preview in the Gallery Apps section for Gear VR. As the name suggests, the current release is designed for those looking to create VR experiences that are viewed through the browser using the WebVR API, and won’t have much to offer other users. It contains an extensive set of samples to showcase what can be done with VR on the web, along with documentation to help developers get started making their own content.
It is in a very early state; you can’t even access the address bar right now.
Eventually, Carmel will allow you to access both traditional 2D content and VR experiences through the web, but for now it’s focusing on the latter.
3) Oculus Announces the React VR Pre-Release
The React VR pre-release includes documentation within the package making it easy to get started to developing webVR with ReactVR. Even if you don’t have a VR headset or an experimental WebVR browser, you can begin writing your first VR web application today.
Let’s dive in by creating your first React VR project. Before building it, you’ll need to make sure you have Node.js installed. Node powers our development tools and will let you compile your code and run a local development server.
