Augmented Reality
From Shadowrun: Awakened
Augmented Reality is a user-interface into the wireless Matrix that allows for user-friendly access without "jacking in".
Game Rules Description
Nowadays, when you're walking down the street, you can see people entranced with their iPhones and Blackberries, earbuds in listening to music and surfing the internet. They are carrying a portable, digital device that wirelessly integrates into the internet, streaming content to them and allowing them to interact with computers around the world. Augmented Reality, or AR, takes this concept and expands upon it, wrapping up physical proximity into the idea of accessing a computer.
By using a computer called a 'commlink', video glasses that overlay visuals, and headphones that allow for sound, AR presents an embellished view of the world. By broadcasting a user's physical position and visual orientation, AR allows outside servers to stream content to the user that seems to exist in a single place in the world and interact. For instance, AR might allow for a store to advertise using a virtual billboard that appears to stay in one place as the user moves because the AR rig is able to interpolate positions. The introduction of gloves or physial cursors that the user can wield physical means not only can users touch these icons, but they can also intuitively activate them by reaching out and touching them. With force feedback materials offering sensations to match the user's interaction, AR taps into a full three senses, bringing the Matrix parallel to reality.
In the world of Shadowrun, most technological objects offer an AR interface and some objects only offer AR interfaces. For instance, instead of buttons on the front, a video recorder may present only buttons while active in AR, allowing a gloved hand to activate them. Instead of placing a control panel on an industrial robot, an AR representation may be present that accepts input only from coded commlinks. And cars, instead of having dashboards may place a small heads-up-display in a user's visual overlay instead of arcane dials. The many faceted possibilities will be represented in SRA.
Anything that exists in AR can also be hacked in AR. This fast and dirty form of hacking works on most technology due to the wide acceptance, and often dependnce, on AR interfaces. Once any initial encryption in its communication is broken, commands can be sent that force the object to behave as the hacker wishes. This can often be done without negotiating with the matrix network the device may be attached to, allowing the hacker to attack a single weak device instead of a hardened system. That said, any device attached to a network being hacked may have means of detecting and intervening based on the hacker's disturbance. This means AR becomes a tool for finding and exploiting technological security during Shadowruns.
Technical Implementation
The concept of displaying Augmented Reality is based. There will be certain models that are only visible if the user is in AR. These models will be drawn with a consistent style, such as a partial alpha-blend, giving them the appearance of only partial existence. The objects will never collide with the user, but it will be possible for them to be activated by the user when appropriate.
