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<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p>\nI’m late getting this post out. This accompanies a video<\/a>. The initial hubbub about virtual offices from Meta Connect 2022 is over. <\/p>\n However, I like to live out the phrase: The early bird gets the worm but the second mouse gets cheese.<\/p>\n I like to stand back and watch the first wave, like a Twitter trending word, pass over. It’s really often people rejecting something without having tried it. \n It’s like watching a Gartner Hype cycle wash over.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \n Source: https:\/\/www.wolfsheadonline.com\/gartner-hype-cycle-virtual-worlds-in-the-trough-of-disillusionment\/<\/a> <\/p>\n I think that we are now going up the Slope of Enlightenment. It is not easy going and the Gartner Hype cycle has many problems.<\/p>\n This video is not about working in an XR office in game design or evaluation<\/a><\/p>\n or spending inordinate amounts of time in VR<\/a>,<\/p>\n and it is not about working in a VR headset for a week<\/a>. <\/p>\n It is about working remotely and having an XR office component to your life. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n (Video credits to Meta Connect 2020, Shapes XR<\/a>, and Immersed<\/a>, Ben Fern at Variant<\/a> )Professor Sylvia Pan<\/a> crediting Brad Lynch)<\/p>\n In other words, adding XR to your life like you’ve added Zoom.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Yeah, I can hear you. You’ve added Zoom but you don’t like it. Join the crowd. I didn’t say work was something you liked either. Buckle up buttercup, I’m going to dwell on “remote” for a moment because I like to draw analogies and I think the remote work phenomenon<\/a> Before 2020, remote work had a poor reputation.<\/p>\n COVID changed that. Suddenly everyone had to work remote, if they could. And a new element was discovered: remote work does produce results<\/a>. It’s not a cheat. It’s not worth less<\/i>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This stymied those so in love with working in the office. What? I can’t actually WATCH my workers work?<\/p>\n You Many \n <\/p>\n I <\/p>\n 60% of workers now want remote options.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n THIS scene showing a mix of avatars and Zoom caused quite a stir.<\/p>\n So Meta Connect 2022 raised the specter again of working in an XR-enabled office. <\/p>\n It isn’t just Meta talking about virtual offices in 2022<\/a> and new interfaces<\/a>. <\/p>\n Apple’s forray is yet to come. <\/p>\n (I To get ready for a business conference where I was speaking People try to make This AR Post article<\/a> is has very I For real, as in, working every day in XR.<\/p>\n So I realized the time has come to share how I worked in XR. I bet it is NOT like what you are imagining<\/p>\n Here we go!<\/p>\n<\/p>\n For 8 months last year, I was the Chief Operating Officer of an international research organization. <\/p>\n We hosted and rented XR real estate to educational organizations.<\/p>\n My job was to keep the organization moving forward and to put dreams into action.<\/p>\n “I’m a dreamer, I build worlds”- James Halliday, Ready Player One<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I had a small office that could seat 6 avatars.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n I had 3 Internet boards where I could display any image or web page.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n I averaged 4 hours a day in-world.<\/p>\n For 2 hours I worked in my office and held 1:1 meetings.<\/p>\n The other 2 hours would be in larger meetings,<\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n giving tours,<\/p>\n<\/p>\n or checking on designs & creations.<\/p>\n It was all 2D XR so eye strain was less of a problem. <\/p>\n There Typing in world If you’d like to moan about it not being immersive enough, you belong in the finite game mindset. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n You do not have to be seen on camera.<\/p>\n Work part of your day in XR and part out of XR. <\/p>\n Attend meetings in cool spaces. Need focus time away from others? Easy.<\/p>\n I regularly hosted global meetings. <\/p>\n Because you can move through spaces in XR, there is space to move closer to those you do want to talk about and further from the topics that you don’t care for. <\/p>\n How and what we work on is about the people we work with. <\/p>\n It is not about the technology; it is about the people.<\/p>\n I beg you, if you think the metaverse is even only 1% cool, you should be bringing in other people to discover it, yes! But that\u2019s the point. It says that after all, how<\/i> and what<\/i> we work on is about the people we <\/p>\n It’s about the people, not about the technology.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n You should be fighting to bring everyone in. That’s fighting for accessibility<\/a>. <\/p>\n The metaverse IS coming. You either will join or you won’t. <\/p>\n The metaverse is not just for the privileged if I have anything to say about it. <\/p>\n It will be part of all of our lives and the lives of our children. We have WAY more fun that you think. I would always end tours of our Virbela island with boat rides starting
\nThen I watch for the next, slower wave of reactions. Those people that
\nreally gave something a try and then<\/i> have something to say about it. <\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n <\/a><\/p>\n
\nthis post is not about what you will like. It’s about what you will normalize<\/u>. If the Queen could get into Zoom<\/a>, you can get into XR.<\/p>\nRemote Work<\/h2>\n
\n is in such recent human memory that I can use it as a good example (and
\n indeed, just like XR, I’ve worked remotely for YEARS before others
\nwarmed to it so I have a good view of the good and bad points of
\nadopting remote work.)<\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n know, I’ll just sit over here and eat popcorn while you–in the
\noffice–shot the shit for what adds up to HOURS EACH WEEK and you
\nclaimed that was not only work, you claimed that got you ahead at work<\/b><\/i>.
\nYeah, that “if you talk with the boss at the water cooler, you get
\nahead” thing. I’ve got news for you. If your boss promoted based on
\nthat, your boss understands zero about diversity.<\/p>\n
\n feel so differently about remote work that it is no longer a negative
\nstigma attached to WANTING to work remote full time. That’s a huge,
\nhuge change from even 2 years ago.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n noted at a conference just 2 weeks ago that we don’t even use the word
\n“Skyping” anymore. It’s “Zooming”. Did you notice that? I’m going to
\nbring up Zoom again later. Pin that.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p>\nMeta Connect 2022 Grabs Attention<\/a> <\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p>\n
\n am struggling to find the right keywords to describe ‘working in an XR
\noffice’. Society please help and come up with something quippy.) <\/p>\n
\n as an expert in the metaverse, I decided to study the enemy- those on
\nsocial that have disdain the coming metaverse.<\/p>\n
\n it all or nothing. They are eager to throw out the baby with the
\nbathwater. They say things like can’t wear the headset all day,
\nexpensive, wrong bets from a company with a bad rep, etc. Only a few are
\n saying “maybe”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\ncool data. Spoiler alert: Boomers are not against XR. <\/p>\n
\n predict that they will come around and come around to XR meetings SO
\nMUCH that they will be embarrassed someday to think that they didn’t want
\n it. <\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n were times that I locked my VR office door and went heads down on
\nprojects and could see other avatars outside my door. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
\n is, right now, frustrating and I wouldn’t seriously attempt it (I’d go
\nfor speech to text instead<\/a>.) But my
\n stronger point is why would you improve on an interface that is already
\n working pretty well right now, which is a keyboard? <\/i> <\/span>
<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\nBenefits of Working in an XR Office<\/h2>\n
1. No Zoom Fatigue.<\/b> <\/h3>\n
2. Choice of How To Work <\/b><\/h3>\n
3. The impossible experience becomes possible. <\/b><\/h3>\n
4. Embrace inclusive workers <\/b><\/h3>\n
\nwork with. It’s not about the technology. Think about that for a
\nmoment:<\/p>\n\n
\nat the beach (and to make it really fun, I would have my guest take the
\ndriver’s seat and then I would not tell them how to drive.) Mind you,
\nI’d usually just spent 1 hour literally directing them verbally on every
\n action in VR so they knew they could trust me and that I wasn’t trying
\nto embarrass them with not giving them instructions.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n