Project 1 Class Activity

Setup (Pre-class Homework):

Download Sidequest Desktop App (create an account if necessary)
Download this apk file
If you've sideloaded from SideQuest before, remove any APK files you have already sideloaded (in the headset itself -- under Unknown Sources)
From this page, follow all the "First Time Setup" Steps, and the "Sideloading" Steps (IF STEP 3 DOES NOT WORK, SEE BELOW).
- - Instead of step 3, on SideQuest, navigate to the button on the top menu that looks like a box with a downward arrow on it (hovering over the button should say "Install APK file from folder on computer"). Click the button and select the APK file you downloaded.
  - Continue with steps 4 and 5. An application with the name "Water URP Project" should be listed under "Unknown Sources" (the last icon on the menu when you go to Library). The app should be ready to open on Quest. (You should see a block of water in front of you somewhere when you open the application).

2D Data Activity (5 minutes):

Navigate to: https://databank.worldbank.org/metadataglossary/millennium-development-goals/series/ER.H2O.INTR.PC
Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the "Go to Data" blue button

Step 1:

On the "Variables" panel on the left, select the "Time" dropdown.
Click the X icon to de-select all selected years. Then manually select the following years: 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2014

Step 2:

On the "Variables" panel on the left, select the "Country" dropdown.
Click the X icon to de-select all selected countries.
Manually search and select 3-5 countries (or more) for which you want to see data. Ideally, choose from this list of 136 compatible countries.

Step 3:

Click "Apply Changes"
Briefly overview the data and notice what you see, then select the "Chart" view option on the top menu. Notice the differences between each country/region you have selected, and the trend over time.

AR Visualization Activity (10-15 mins):

Complete the setup steps on the homework page, if you haven't already. There are demos at the bottom if you need help.

Step 1 — (2 mins):

From this list of compatible countries and regions, select at least one country/region you chose for the 2D visualization portion, and one country you did NOT choose. I have some suggested examples below, but feel free to choose your own.

Suggested examples: if you want to see...

- - Large amount of water: World or United States
  - Medium amount of water: India or Burkina Faso
  - Low amount of water: Singapore or Bahrain

If you want to see trends...

- - Large decreases in water levels: Afghanistan
  - Large increases in water levels: Latvia
  - Least changes in water levels: Germany

Step 2 — (2-3 mins):

Launch the "Water URP Project" app on your headset by navigating to "Apps", then selecting "Unknown Sources" on the left panel (the app should be listed there)
Upon launching the app, accept any pop-up alerts (i.e. "this app is asking for your spatial data") — the visualization may not work otherwise.
You will need to have chosen a roomscale boundary for the app to work properly. To reset your boundary, walk outside the boundary and select the option to manually reset it, or choose a boundary from the main menu.

CAUTION: The system keyboard should appear in front of you on launch. Try not to press any buttons or triggers outside of the keyboard on launch. You can move the keyboard itself (like you would move any other panel on the Meta Quest UI), but if you click somewhere else into space or press a button, the keyboard might disappear. If this happens, you may need to relaunch the app (or you won't be able to interact with the visualization).

DO NOT PRESS ENTER ON THE KEYBOARD -- changes to the visualization will occur automatically when you type in a country name (clicking enter does not cause it to stop, it's just that the keyboard will disappear).

You can re-center the visualization by pressing and holding the Meta button till the circle completes. (DONT JUST PRESS IT - PRESS + HOLD) If this doesn't work, you may have to quit and relaunch the app.
It might be easier to just use your hands the entire time, but if you feel comfortable with not pressing buttons accidentally feel free to use your controllers

Step 3 — (10 mins):

Once you're happy with the placement of the visualization, move to a place within your boundary where you can see it properly, including the white text and slider (you may have to get up to do this).
Type a country name into the keyboard. As you type, the changes will reflect on the input text box automatically. Make sure the country name is spelled correctly (case sensitive - starts with capital letter). The water visualization should automatically load and show changes in volume over time (from 1992 to 2014). You can confirm that it is working by checking if the slider is moving and the volume numbers are changing.
After typing in a country name, pause for a while to see the visualization a couple of cycles and notice the trends, slider, numbers, and years.
See data for as many different countries as you like (at least 1 you didn't see in 2D, and 1 you did see in 2D).

Demos:

Finding the app and opening it.

demo2.mov

Recentering and typing in country names.

demo.mov

Google Form:

After you finish both parts, please fill out this form

As a reminder, the data you saw in the AR visualization was renewable internal freshwater resources per capita PER DAY in the given year. The data you saw in 2D on the World Bank was NOT per day. The proportionality is the same, however.

If you have more time / are interested ...

There are some countries that are technically compatible with my app, but the data for them is so big that everything around you would be submerged by the water cube data visualization, adn you would need a very big room to see it. You can see what this would look like by navigating to the "Incompatible Countries List" at the bottom of this Google Sheet, and typing one of these countries in the AR app.

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