My Digital Manifesto, 2021

 I'm just shy of 4 full years since I published my first manifesto. I think I was fairly spot on with my predictions. A few things have modified some, such as the abbreviations. But in all, I'm not going to change my path much. So allow me to introduce this year's manifesto.

Camera based XR

This area is still going strong. The nomenclature is now eXtended Reality, rather than Augmented Reality, as I anticipated. We have OpenXR, which superseded OpenAR. The big names are still in the game, but Facebook has upped their ante considerably. Their Oculus 2 has been selling like hotcakes. I still see them as the ones that will bring XR to the masses. Especially once their AR glasses hit the market. WebXR should also fall under this category now.

Blockchain

As I write this, the insanity of the ERC-20 token, also know as an NFT, has taken the internet by storm. I believe its safe to say that the world has discovered blockchain. Now it's a matter of time for world governments to step in and tame the beast.

Assignment servers

This is an area that is struggling. If I thought anything would skyrocket, it would be this. But much of the concept was hinged on VR goggles being ubiquitous by now. So we'll see what happens.

Speaking of skyrocketing, SpaceX has suddenly become the darling of the public space sector. Only Elon Musk. Anything is possible from that insane man.

Haptics

Wearable haptics was not something I had considered seriously until just last year. Start watching for affordable haptics VERY soon. Vests and gloves are still in the realm of enterprise. But things like haptic straps from companies like Woojer are making people sit up and take notice. It's a simple device that pairs up to your device with Bluetooth. I own one. Very cool! And watches. Trust me on this. A wrist controller from Facebook that uses EMG is going to make some companies think twice.

Microsoft Mixed Reality

I'm including it again in this list because they finally upped their game, so to speak.  Their mixed reality finally IS mixed reality. They introduced something called Microsoft Mesh in Q1 of this year. it brings them closer to the concept of default and digital on any device. Other than that, MS has kept focus on enterprise as well.

Creation Engines

Unity and Unreal have held the world rapt attention. But on the edge there are other engines. Godot is muscling it way in from the open source arena. Blender as always is a great tool for creating individual in game items. There are so many flavors of tools, I'm sure you have your own favorites. Keep an eye on the at home 3D printer market. Facebook might be leading the VR charge, but at a price of personal privacy. And not everyone wants to pay it.

So there you have it for the next few years.