From: Niklas Elmqvist [d97elm@dtek.chalmers.se]
Sent: Friday, October 08, 1999 9:13 AM
To: '3d-ui@hitl.washington.edu'
Subject: Re: Task Gallery 3D Window Manager

On Thu, 7 Oct 1999, Maarten van Dantzich wrote:

> Here is some info on our first 3D Window Manager prototype, called the Task
> Gallery:
> 
> http://www.research.microsoft.com/ui/TaskGallery/default.htm

Very interesting. A few questions and comments:

 - Why did you choose to constrain the viewing of applications to the
	walls (as well as floor and ceiling) of the gallery? Why not have
	applications floating in midair in arbitrary positions? I realize
	this a prototype and far from finished, but it almost looks like
	six different desktops projected on walls, floor, and ceiling.

 - How do you use a mouse and keyboard in the gallery? If this is
	displayed in a CAVE, I can understand it, but not if it's running
	in a HMD. (Btw, using a normal 2D-mouse and keyboard is awkward at
	best in a CAVE, unless you put in a chair and a desk there.) And
	if it's running on a desktop system, you lose much of the idea
	behind a 3D-UI, don't you? Doesn't 3D-UI equal 3D-environment for
	the best effect?

 - I seriously like the notion of aligning an application with the user's
	viewpoint when it receives focus to make interaction easier. (Does
	this allow for some special optimizations, sort of like blitting
	to a flat 2D surface using DirectDraw instead of drawing a
	textured quad? Other obvious optimizations, like increasing the
	resolution of the focused application, springs to mind.)

> This is by no means the final word...

...but interesting nonetheless! It's obvious we'll have to start producing
some pretty screenshots for 3Dwm/Immersion as well. ;)

> >> Maarten.

/Nick

(P.S. I hope that our sort-of narrow-minded discussion of 3D window
managers haven't put off other people from posting to the list. D.S.)

-- Niklas Elmqvist (d97elm@dtek.chalmers.se) ----------------------
  "One of the universal rules of happiness is: always be wary of any
   helpful item that weighs less than its operating manual."
           -- Terry Pratchett, Jingo