Inspiration
We as software developers usually work on multiple screens but it is always not the case that we have a monitor with us. So we came up with an idea to solve this problem with all the desktops and workspaces being projected in 3D on your phone using the fantastic Google Cardboard.
What it does
It basically runs on your local machine and local network and captures all the active spaces on your computer and transmits them to our Android application where you use it with the help of Google Cardboard to project every workspace in virtual reality. These spaces keep on refreshing so that you can get a real time view of your desktop.
How we built it
For the front end of the application we have used Unity along with Google Cardboard SDK for Unity 3D. For this Unity project we have used certain GameObjects which run on C# scripts to query the back end and get the latest update of the desktop screens and workspace. Whereas on the back end we run a node.js server which streams the images which are captured from X11 using FFMpeg.
Challenges we ran into
The basic idea was to use Android Studio but then we switched to Unity after a great talk by David. But none of our team members had experience in Unity so we had to learn everything from the basics, learn C# etc. Another challenge was to refresh the stream constantly so that we don't miss out on anything going on. On the back end it was tough streaming the images correctly and efficiently.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
First accomplishment would be not sleeping for almost 24 hours. Second would be to pick up a new programming language in a day and make something useful with it. Learning new software and SDK from scratch.
What we learned
We learned C#, Unity and core features of Linux to capture the image. Maybe some experience in Karaoke singing as well. Also we worked with graphics a little bit so it was good. Above all we learned how to use Google Cardboard.
What's next for Desky
Using live video feeds instead of image feeds. Better rendering in 3D and mayb full HD resolution.
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