XR for Learning Weekly – February 18, 2020

Photo by: Daryl Knee

Augmented, Virtual, and other mixed reality technologies are rapidly emerging and advancing, creating new and exciting opportunities for training and education. XR for Learning Weekly collects some of the week’s best XR content that learning professionals can learn from.

XR for Learning is curated by the team that brings you Realities360, the premier AR/VR event for education and training professionals.

Here’s this week’s recommended content.

Understanding Anchors in Augmented Reality Experiences by Jeff Batt
One of the key differences between AR and VR is that AR experiences need to connect themselves to the real world. In this post Jeff Bat explores anchors, which enable AR software to recognize the real world and identify the location to place a digital asset. 

2019 Was a Major Inflection Point for VR—Here’s the Proof by Road to VR
Virtual reality continues to grow in adoption and usage in both the consumer and enterprise markets. This post examines data that shows 2019 as a major milestone in VR emerging as a mainstream technology.

Facebook Just Bought An AR Startup That’s Building A 3D Map Of The Entire World by Bobby Carlton
While augmented reality has yet to shift the mainstream way we live our digital lives, the framework for how that shift could happen is starting to be built. This post by Babby Carlton looks at an acquisition recently made by facebook. While the post focuses primarily on the company, I share it here because of what the company does and the commentary around how facebook might look to leverage it as it provides clues into what an increasingly AR-supported digital world may look like.

How Virtual Reality Promotes Road Safety by Gergana Mileva
Virtual reality, as a term, isn’t an experience; it’s a platform through which experiences can happen. That’s an important differentiator because there’s a wide spectrum of different experieinces that can be supported by VR, and simply calling them all “virtual reality” paints with too broad a brush. This post by Gergana Mileva looks at a number of different types of VR experiences that collectively contribute to promoting road safety.

The Immersive Development Pipeline for VR, AR, and More by Rajat Arora
As more orgainzations become interested in leveraging AR and VR for learning and performance support, a desire for proven practices for design and development begins to emerge. This post by Rajat Arora looks at a framework for developing immersive learning programs that could be useful in shaping your own AR and VR development plans.

Three Great Reasons to Attend Realities360

The Realities360 Conference and Expo is the premier event exploring how augmented and virtual reality can transform education and training. The conference brings together early adopters from all over the world for a singular purpose: to share and expand proven practices and harness the potential of AR & VR for learning.

There are a host of reasons to attend the conference, but let’s focus on three specific ones that are unique when compared against other industry events.

A Conference with a Purpose: Supporting XR Adoption

When our team curates a conference, we usually have a guiding principle in mind that spaces every decision we make about the program. For Realities360, that principle is to support augmented and virtual reality adoption in our industry. In the case of emerging technologies like AR & VR, what is needed evolves each year. When we first held the conference we focused on understanding, and from there we shifted to add more skill-based sessions that explored how to design and develop these solutions. This year we’re excited to lean into use cases that give early adopters the opportunity to share their projects, and for attendees to learn from the lessons they will share.

A Focus on Solutions You Can Apply Today

While AR and VR are still emerging, they are technologies that have matured enough to solve problems and increase productivity for your organization TODAY. The Realities360 program is built with application in mind. You will find sessions that explore strategic decisions, tactical design and development tutorials, and case studies sharing proven practices that will provide you with knowledge and skills that will support you in your AR and VR projects today, and tomorrow.

Free Access to a Second Conference: Learning Solutions

New for 2020 is the collocation of Realities360 with the Learning Solutions Conference and Expo. While the focus of Realities360 is narrow, exploring the emerging landscape of augmented and virtual reality technology and how it can be used in education and training, Learning Solutions enables you to explore what works across the full spectrum of technology-enabled learning and development. Your Realities360 Conference registration provides you with complete access to the Learning Solutions program, giving you the ability to put what you learn about AR & VR into the broader context of your complete L&D strategy.

These are just a few of the reasons to consider attending Realities360 this year. Be sure to visit the event website to check out all the great experiences we’ll be hosting in Orlando this Spring.

Click here to learn more!