Teaching Social Virtual Reality With Ubiq

Area of Science:

• Computer Science
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Virtual Reality

Background:

• Social virtual reality (VR) is increasingly relevant for online and hybrid teaching.
• Existing commercial VR systems are often unsuitable for research and education.
• There is a growing demand for accessible VR platforms for academic purposes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce Ubiq, an open-source social VR system designed for research and teaching.
• To share practical experiences of using Ubiq in a virtual environments module.
• To highlight the potential of custom-built VR systems in education.

Main Methods:

• Development of Ubiq, an open-source social VR system.
• Implementation of Ubiq in a university virtual environments module.
• Two years of practical application and evaluation of the system in an academic setting.

Main Results:

• Ubiq provides a flexible platform for social VR applications tailored to research and teaching needs.
• The system has been successfully used in a virtual environments module for two years.
• Teaching experiences indicate Ubiq's suitability for exploring various aspects of VR.

Conclusions:

• Ubiq is a viable open-source solution for social VR in research and education.
• The system facilitates the exploration of virtual reality concepts, including perception and human-computer interaction.
• Further development and adoption of Ubiq can enhance VR education and research.