Windows Mixed Reality Updates -- Devlog 2/7/19

As I've mentioned before, I am using the Dell Visor WMR Headset,  running on Microsofts "Mixed Reality" software, but developing for SteamVR.  This has worked great and hasn't caused any issue before.  (Except when Steam tells me my boundaries aren't set when they are, just through the WMR home.)

Because of all of the issues plaguing the Windows October Update, my computer didn't get it until yesterday.  The update includes a few new cool features for the WMR platform, and I figured I'd break them down and discuss what they mean for SteamVR Developers!

You can see the full list of updates at the link at the bottom of this post, but with that being said, let's see what's included!

First we have one of the coolest features, the "Mixed Reality Flashlight."  This allows users to "Open a portal into the real world to find your keyboard, see someone nearby, or take a look at your surroundings without removing your headset!"  This is super useful if you need to quickly make changes to something on your computer screen... but for that, it does make more sense to just flip up the headset.  For people walking into the room, however, this is actually perfect.  The question is, can we turn it on while in a SteamVR App?

...Well yes you can, because one of the other new features is that you can 1) launch SteamVR apps from the WMR home!  While this isn't a huge benefit to developers, it is extremely useful to VR game players because launching SteamVR just to play a game is a little annoying. And 2)  The Windows button on the controllers now changes function depending on what you're doing!  This means that it can launch the SteamVR menu, turn on the flashlight, or go back to the home!  

But, more technical stuff, developers can now use QR codes in their apps to scan outside objects.  Additionally, there is now hardware DRM support for WMR immersive apps.   Devs can also have the Mixed Reality Capture UI directly in their apps, so users don't have to start it in the home.

As cool as these features are, the problem is that they only work for WMR apps, and won't have any affect in normal SteamVR apps.  In any case, we'll have to see what cool stuff people come up with!

You can see the full changelog here:
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/mixed-reality/release-notes-october-2018​

Thanks for reading!
​- Judah