|
Why Geowall Is Different Sorry ladies and gentlemen. As novel as Geowall may be, stereoscopic projection is not a new concept. Using polarization to achieve left-right eye separation is not new either. In fact, there's really almost nothing conceptually new about the technology that Geowall uses. It's all been done before. But it hasn't been done for under $15,000. Our system cost us a grand total of about $12,000, and most of the parts we bought could be picked up at any Fry's, Good Guys or Best Buy. The only custom-made part was the fitting for the Hoya Polarizing Filter. The rest was store-bought. Before Geowall, you could build a Cave or use other very specialized equipment, but you'd spend between $150,000 and $1.5 million to do it; it is the price that makes Geowall different. Academic institutions can afford to put a Geowall in every class-room. High schools can afford them. Heck, really wealthy video game enthusiasts will undoubtedly be knocking on the door soon. The Geowall Consortium managed to put this system for the price it pulled by adhering to the mantra: it's good enough. While more expensive systems can be, and often are tweaked to the pixel, Geowall accepts minor imperfections. And when you see the final product, it's amazing how little difference those imperfections actually make. The projected screens on our system have slightly different aspect ratios, meaning that they'll never line up perfectly. When it's running, however, this imperfection is imperceptible. Three cheers for the human brain. Another unique quality of the Geowall system is its portability. Since it's really just a couple of projectors, a screen and a computer, it can be easily dragged all over the country. Driving? No problem, stick it in the trunk? Flying? You can check it. And since you're not packing million-dollar hardware, go ahead and sleep soundly on your cross-country flight. |