Why this experiment?

I have been working as an IT professional for the last decade — more specifically as a system engineer in a DevOps environment. This requires the ability to work on source code and connect to remote systems on a daily basis. For this job you normally use more than one screen, to keep everything in view. Unfortunately I do all these tasks as a consultant (which I really like!). This requires many face-to-face discussions but it also has a downside, in that if you have to get your hands dirty, you have to do it wherever you are. This could be on site at a customer, on the train or anywhere else. For this I learned to use just my notebook screen, even if an additional display happens to be available.

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To address this dilemma, I had been dreaming of having a genuinely virtual working environment for quite a while. Under this scenario I would have several screens available and the “scene” itself would stay the same.

To date, most headsets have been much too complex and fiddly to be set up quickly (correct wiring, powerful computer etc.). So I was absolutely delighted when I discovered Oculus Go. This headset is something in between Google’s Cardboard and the current Oculus Rift/HTC Vive. So it’s really easy to set up and doesn’t require an additional local computer.

I took the opportunity to see how close we could come to setting up such a mobile working environment.

Let’s go

Bigscreen

I started with a “vanilla” Oculus Go, so that I could see how everything works. I soon found out that there is just one app (Bigscreen) in the store of 1000+ solutions for this purpose.

With the regular Rift/Vive Bigscreen I had exactly the environment I had been hoping for. Unfortunately, the Beta on Go works completely differently. The only option you have for connecting your PC is in the form of a “room.” To achieve this, you must first launch the app on your PC itself, open a room, and then enter the room ID on your Go. After this, you can see your screen within Oculus Go. So far, so good.

Unfortunately, you can’t control the screen yet. For example, you can’t move the mouse or resize or move the screen itself. Because of this limitation I moved Bigscreen aside.

General observations:

“Hard” setup each time

Strong PC and connection needed

Bad performance

PC cannot be controlled