The Big Idea

My husband, Ben, literally cannot stop the flow of ideas that pour into his head. One thing I can count on him saying at least every other day is, "So I had another idea! What do you think of this?" Some of them elicit nothing more than a blank stare from me. Then there are others that get me all excited and convince me to sell our house.

This idea, the big one, started forming almost a year ago. We were halfway through a ten-hour long drive home from Disneyland. (Ben is obsessed with Disneyland, but that's a topic for another day). He was bouncing his usual stream of ideas off of me, while the kids cried for more snacks in the backseat.

Suddenly his eyes lit up and he went quiet for a minute. I could almost see the wheels turning in his head. "AR video cards!"

"Hmm?"

Guys, do you even know what AR is? Do you know what VR is? I'm the only one of my friends that follows HTC Vive on Facebook. I'm the only one that's climbed Mt. Everest and sat on the bottom of the ocean floor, watching jellyfish float past. I'm the only one that can give you a "pros and cons list" comparing Occulus and Vive. Should we talk about field of view and tracking accuracy? No?

Okay, for those who aren't familiar with these technologies, Augmented Reality superimposes computer-generated images into your real-world view of something. (Think Snapchat filters or Pokemon Go, only so much cooler).  Virtual Reality is completely computer-generated and immersive.

These technologies are amazing and they're exploding. If you haven't already, you're going to start seeing them everywhere. And no, they are not just for hardcore gamers. I cannot emphasize that enough. They have the potential to bring some really incredible and positive changes to so many aspects of society.

Ben has been a software engineer in the VR industry for a couple of years now. He is passionate about the good ways it can change the world, and I guess I am too now.

Anyway, back to the idea. AR video cards.

We're talking physical paper cards that you send in the mail, hold your phone over them, and watch them come to life. Users will be able to upload video and customize awesome 3D content. These cards can be used for regular greeting card purposes, announcements, invitations, or just to share a big moment with someone you love.

Ben and I have both gotten a lot of "whys?" and "hows?" when we've attempted to share this idea with others. We have the answers to most of those questions, and I will gladly get into them in another post.

Right now though, I'm a little concerned that Thing 1 and Thing 2 have been napping too long and will, therefore, refuse to go to sleep tonight! We can't have that. We just can't.

Until next time! ✌