From: jew5001@venus.tamu.edu (WILLIAMSON, JOHN EDWARD)
Subject: HARDWARE: SEGA in Popular Science and Wild Palms
Date: 11 May 1993 23:41 CDT
Organization: Texas A&M University, Academic Computing Services



As previously mentioned, the new SEGA HMD is on the cover of the June
_Popular Science_.  Given the fate of the majority of the technologies
that appear on the cover of this magazine, our industry is now cursed
(a VR cover on _Sports Illustrated_ would the only way to get any
additional bad luck).

The article really doesn't cover any new ground, and even the info on
the SEGA HMD has been printed before.  Still, here is the relevant
SEGA info taken without permission:

"By this Xmas, ARPA's corner on VR tank battles could be gone.  One of
the first cartridges for a new VR system for home use will be a tank
battle game.  To play the game, you'll need an HMD, tentatively called
SEGA VR (no exspensive was apparently save in the marketing department
- john), that plugs into a SEGA geneis vidwo game console.  The
company clains that SEGA VR will deleliver a 'feeling of total
immersion in a completely realistic 360 degree game world by using
three-dimensional, stereo-optic vision and depth perception.'

The lightweight color display will fit over you eyes and ears...  A
built in head tracker - a device that tells the computer what
direction you're looking-will let you turn your head so that you can
see if anything is behind you.  Thus, if you're flying norht in a
flight simulator and you look south, you'll be albe to see if an enemy
fighter is creeping up on you.

SEGA VR will sell for $200-considerably less than the thousands of
dollas charged for professional HMDs, which are manufactured in
limited quantities.  At least four games, focused on shooting, flying
driving, and fantasy action will be released with Sega VR this fall.
Pressing the buttons on a standard Genisis controller pad will move
you forward, left, right, backward, change your elevation or fire a
missile in the virtual world."

No mention was made of the "Activator", an infrared motion detector
also scheduled for a Fall release and built by SEGA.  Other reports I
have read, have indicated that in addition to the base SEGA system,
you will be reuired to purchase the CDROM player to make use of teh
HMD (apparently the CDROM has an additional graphics processor)00.

Now on to _Newsweek's_ review of "Wild Palms," the latest ABC/Oliver
Stone miniseries.  Bob already posted most a good deal on "Palms" so
I'll keep this brief.  The _Newsweek_ critics hedge their bets, and
waffle between the typical banality of TV and the failure of anything
that is critically aclaimed.  They almost complain about the the
complexity of the plot, but praise it for its visual appeal and risk
taking.

The series is apparently based on a comic strip from _Details_
magazine, has a 60's soudn track (the Olvier Stone effect), will run
for 4 nights, and already has a book published on it entitled _The
Wild Palms Reader_, a collection of elaborations on the theme by
famous sci-fi writers.  One of whom, William Gibson, makes a cameo
apperance in the series.

Back to the _Popular Science_ curse, from the noise in my neighbors
apartment, it appears that tonights episode of _Hard Copy_ or _Current
Affair_ is featuring a segment on virtual/cyber sex.  Excuse me while
I go and investigate this late breaking story...

John Williamson
Hyper3D group leader
jew5001@zeus.tamu.edu