Dev update #5

This week we've been working on some of the new VR SDKs because we really want to bring the most recent VR products (like Virtual Desktop) to VRidge. We have nothing to announce yet but things are going pretty good.

This update is focused on bugfixing and diagnostic tools.

Nexus 5X and 6P no longer get stuck in reconnecting loop

What a long strange trip it's been. Eventually it turned out that it was very simple but odds of it happening were like 1 to 65 thousand so we did not bother checking it at first.

We chose UDP port that was actively in use on these devices and VRidge could not bind to it. All bug reports were useful but we'd like to especially thank to following people who were patient enough to test countless APKs: Tailslol, Brad Barnes, WACOMalt. 

Nexus 5X joins testing family.

Fixed head tracking not starting properly

Some people reported head tracking not working. Screen was slightly shaking when you rotated your phone but view did not actually rotate. It should be fixed now.

Screen is no longer skewed when rolling your head

In update #3 we changed our viewport calculation to maximize available screen space. In update #4 we added extra Scale/IPD options because viewport was too big (pixels were outside visible space, reducing effective FOV). At some point we broke our aspect ratio calculation resuliting in jello effect when you rolled your head in Z axis. We're fixing it now as seen on picture below.

@kill_dano - thanks for reporting this.

You can see that the left rectangle does not fit black void in the distance.

Ctrl + Alt + Shift + R resets your head orientation

Some games already allow you to reset head tracking to original position but we are also adding our own hotkey for games that don't have this built-in. Look straight ahead and press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R. 

Using both game-implemented tracking reset key and VRidge tracking reset key can result in undefined behaviour. Use only one, don't mix them.

We'll add some UI tooltip about this hotkey when we're sure it works correctly. 

The ongoing battle with artifacts

Some people still experience artifacts. It's not easy to fix because there are so many variables that can affect stream quality - encoder, antennas, cables, wifi interference, usb controller, decoder, etc. Even single component not performing good enough can break the whole chain and cause artifacts. 

We are lowering preset bitrates from (Low/Medium/High) 6/12/16 Mbps to 6/10/13 Mbps (you can still manually set whatever you want). We're also adding a note in UI what bitrate actually means. 

We are also adding optional diagnostics screen. If you experience constant artifacting with USB please tap the top-left part of the streaming screen and report back wether it's decoder or network dropping your frames.

I love numbers and stats. Maybe we'll add graphs someday too.

Simplified connection again

It will be less likely to get stuck in "restoring connection" loop. We probably broke something else with that because changing one thing can cause a chain reaction with some other stuff so please report if anything new breaks for you.

Added storage permission prompt for Android 6.0

Scanning Cardboard QR code with Android 6.0 had no effect because Cardboard settings are stored on device storage. Android 6.0 was denying access to device storage by default. We're adding storage permission prompt so VRidge can access and modify Cardboard settings.

More news on post-release VR SDKs soon

We're not gonna promise anything until we are absolutely sure we can deliver. More news in 2nd half of April.