Working in the Metaverse

Ok, hear me out. I know the metaverse gets a lot of flak, but let me take you through my journey into working virtual reality and maybe you'll see it through my lens (pun intended. I’m awful, I know). This rabbit hole started when I came across an article detailing someone’s experience working in VR - or as they put it,

Working from Orbit⁠

. What I read left me speechless.

⁠

Real footage of me reading Ptom’s article for the first time - yes, I moonlight as a chef

This engineer (who goes by ptom) had been working 40 to 50 hour weeks entirely within virtual reality for years, and was loving it. I read about the benefits (more on that later) and I decided this kind of thing was exactly up my alley. So I decided to try it out.

First, I needed to pick my hardware. I ended up going with the Meta Quest Pro. At the time, it was the best of the best for resolution and comfort — two non-negotiables when your day-to-day involves reading and writing code. I initially thought the Quest Pro might have been overkill, but I quickly realized it wasn’t. When you're floating in a sea of brackets and semicolons, every pixel counts.

Then, I needed to pick the software that would connect me to my laptop and create my screens out of thin air. After doing some research I chose

Immersed⁠

, the same app ptom used. And just like that, with a headset strapped on, I was no longer tethered to the physical limitations of my desk. Instead, I found myself with not one, but three IMAX-sized screens suspended in the void of space. It was awesome.

I discovered plenty of advantages to this type of setup. First off, the sheer scale of your workspace is mind-blowing. Imagine having the luxury of three gigantic screens without surrendering a single inch of your physical desk. It's a wonderful perk.

But it's not just about the space. Working in VR means my environment can be whatever I want it to be. One minute, I'm coding in the Milky Way, and the next I’m floating with the clouds. It's easy to focus in those environments.

Then there's the community aspect. While the metaverse can be an escape, you can also find lots of like-minded people on it. When I’m feeling up for it, I visit virtual coffee shops for a change of scenery and some conversation with other VR workers. I've even made friends who I meet up with for a round of VR mini-golf. Some might read this and think we’re careening towards a dystopian nightmare. To that, I say - dystopia’s not so bad! We have mini-golf!

⁠

Jamiroquai is not amused by any this 😔

(My voice of reason would like to add that VR is not meant to be a replacement to real-life meetups. It’s more so a fun twist to networking and socializing.)

Feeling like you're living in the future might sound cliché, but it's genuinely how working in VR feels. It's a constant reminder that we're on the cusp of what's possible, pushing the boundaries of how we interact with technology and each other. Plus, staying abreast of new technologies, like the latest in VR and the apps being developed for it, keeps me hooked. It's an ever-evolving landscape, and I'm here for the ride.

To sum it up, diving into the metaverse with my Meta Quest Pro has revolutionized the way I work. I still work outside the metaverse of course, but it’s a awesome way to switch it up. It's not just about the novelty; it's about the focus, the expansive digital workspace, the community, and the sheer excitement of being part of something that feels like the next big leap. So, while the metaverse might get its share of criticism, from where I'm standing (or rather, floating), it's a fascinating place to be.

This link can't be embedded.

Want to print your doc?
This is not the way.

Try clicking the ⋯ next to your doc name or using a keyboard shortcut (

CtrlP

) instead.