The Mozilla developers introduced a new version of Firefox Reality, a specialized browser for virtual reality systems.
The Navigator uses a Quantum web engine, But offers a three-dimensional user interface fundamentally different that allows you to navigate through sites within the virtual world or as part of augmented reality systems.
About Firefox Reality
Firefox Reality is designed as an application for the Android platform and it is compatible with the use of Samsung Gear VR, Oculus Go, Qualcomm & ODG, VIVE Focus and Google Daydream 3D helmets.
For testing without a 3D helmet, the navigator can be started on an Android-based smartphone.
Firefox Reality builds are located in the Oculus, Daydream, and Viveport application directories.
In addition to the interface that is designed to be controlled through a 3D helmet, which allows you to view traditional two-dimensional pages, the browser offers web developers the VR Web API with VR extensions for WebGL and CSS.
Web VR enables you to create specialized web-based three-dimensional applications for interaction in virtual space and implement new 3D navigation methods, information entry mechanisms and interfaces for information search.
Including it is possible to place DOM elements within the virtual reality scene, for example, you can arrange the display of flat 2D content in the form of a cylinder that surrounds the user.
Of the improved user interaction mechanisms that the browser supports, the voice input system also stands out, allowing you to fill out forms and submit search queries using the voice recognition engine developed in Mozilla.
As the home page, the browser provides an interface to access selected content and navigate through a collection of games, web applications, 3D models, and space videos adapted for 3D helmets.
Top Innovations in Firefox Reality 1.1
Firefox Realit version 1.1and includes support for 360-degree video content from various sources, including YouTube.
This feature is supposed to provide a more immersive viewing experience along with a new theater mode that works to dim the playback window environment.
In addition to it added a separate cinema mode to view video on the screen without the address bar and navigation controls.
With which support was provided for automatic search and display recommendations when entering data in the address bar.
Of the other features that can be highlighted in this new release we find:
- Built-in bookmarks system implemented (bookmark syncing with other devices is not yet supported)
- The voice search system is adapted to use languages other than English (Russian is not supported yet).
- Performing refinement on the details of the user interface.
- It significantly improved the performance of a two-dimensional interface.
- MSAA (Multiple Sample Anti-Aliasing) support is included to improve image quality when scaling.
- Mozilla developers have put a lot of effort into the WebVR standard that many VR application developers have become familiar with.
- Although the web still requires quite a few adjustments for virtual reality.
It is understandable, but unfortunately a large part of the content available in virtual reality is distributed in different stores of each platform that requires, which also requires logging in, downloading and starting from your library.
While this model certainly has many advantages for stakeholders and developers, users might have a better option if some of the simpler content for today's virtual reality headsets were created for WebVR.
It is clear that many things must be rethought for the web within virtual reality.
Meanwhile, Mozilla is working on adding new capabilities for sharing and syncing content, such as bookmarks, in browsers.
In addition, it plans to introduce support for multiple windows and tabs, among other features. The latest updates for Firefox Reality can now be downloaded from the Viveport and Oculus stores.