The aim of virtual reality is to merge seamlessly into the users real life. It's efforts to be as undetectable as possible, "means that it is a medium whose purpose is to disappear." (Bolter: 2000, 21) This immediacy can only truly be represented through total invisibility.
Bolter states that in Hollywood, the stuntman is increasingly being replaced by digital compositing, to fulfil the desire for immediacy. He even argues that eventually the actors will themselves be replaced too. Much of the time it is hard for the viewer to distinguish between what is CGI and what is not. The computer desktop is another everyday reflection of the integration between real life and virtual reality. Whilst several decades ago, a physical office would have contained files, folders and a waste-basket, Bolter points out that today, this has been replaced completely by virtual counterparts, yet they are used in the exact same way.
Transparent immediacy does not have to be found solely in high-tech, computer generated simulations. Contrary, it can be witnessed in more traditional mediums, demonstrating that we have been moving towards indistinguishable virtual reality for centuries. Classical paintings can demonstrate this. Theorist Alberti argues that he could draw a simple rectangle on a canvas, and still have the viewer transported beyond the image and into the subject that it is conveying. Bryson mentions how in the nineteenth century, artists would try to erase their brush stokes to attempt to 'hide' the fact that the picture was an artificial creation.
What designers continue to strive for is an "Interfaceless interface," (Bolter: 2000, 23) effectively ridding the display of any trace of the typical elements to be expected of a virtual interface. The user will interact with simulations as if they would their real life counterpart. This will create an immediate relationship with the simulation. Transparent immediacy will allow us to smoothly integrate out lives alongside the technology we use, regardless of the implications. Luxury lifestyle items like the Oculus Rift and Google Glasses are already making that a reality. In the future, we may be wholly unable to distinguish between what is real and what is not.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Bolter, J | 2000 | Remediation: Understanding of New Media | MIT Press
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This is a class blog for students enrolled on the History and Analysis of New Media Module at The University of Ulster. Please keep comments constructive to help students progress with the given text