Way back in 2021, I wrote about how you could start using Meta Quest (”Oculus Quest” at the time) to multitask with multiple side-by-side 2D applications. This turned out to be the most popular article on this blog, and after 3 years, it’s become woefully out of date. So I thought I’d write an updated post on how to use Meta Quest as your spatial computer.
Why would I want to use Quest as my computer?
The first question you might be asking yourself is, why would I want to do this? When we already have laptops, tablets, and phones, what role is left for spatial computing to play aside from immersive entertainment?
Well it turns out that spatial computing offers some interesting advantages of other computing platforms that are worth considering.
First, I find mixed reality to give me a great way to focus on my work. By bringing my screens front and center and making them as large as I want, I can direct my attention to what I’m working on and block out other distractions around me. And if I want to go even more distraction-free, I can switch to a virtual environment to completely block out the physical world. It’s like headphones for my eyes.
Second, mixed reality lets me augment my physical world with several virtual screens. Whereas my laptop screen or even multi-monitor setup can fit a couple windows on-screen, mixed reality lets me put screens wherever I need to, switching between as easily as shifting my eyes or slightly turning my head.
Finally, mixed reality is a more portable way to get things done compared to my desk setup at home. No other device would let me be able to see several apps at once without lugging around a giant physical monitor, which would be unrealistic. Now don’t get me wrong, if I’m going somewhere, I’m probably taking my phone, laptop, and sometimes my tablet with me. But if I’m going somewhere with my headset anyway, it makes for a great secondary productivity device.
How do I get started multitasking on Quest?
There are a few things I recommend doing when setting up for productivity on Quest.
First, I highly recommend pairing a physical keyboard and mouse to your headset. While natural inputs like hands are becoming the default way to navigate the system, nothing beats the power of a keyboard and mouse for high-throughput text entry and high-precision pointing. Meta Quest supports the ability to pair devices over Bluetooth through its system settings. I recommend using multi-device supporting hardware like Logitech’s MX Keys S and Master 3S. This way, you can pair them to your laptop / desktop / tablet as well and easily switch between them and Quest.
Next, get your environment setup for productivity. This depends on what’s going on around you and your particular needs. Most of the time, I prefer to maintain awareness of my surroundings, so I go to Quest’s passthrough home environment. This way, I can keep up with people around me and easily see my keyboard and mouse (this is particularly handy when working on a plane so you don’t miss the drink cart coming by). Other times, I really want to tune out the distractions and focus on what I’m doing, so I double-tap my headset to switch to my immersive home environment.
Finally, it’s time to get started. You can open up to three windows side-by-side by launching them from the App Library. Also, you can grab windows by their control bar to move them into space around you, allowing you open up to six windows in total. Some windows like Browser can be resized by dragging the handle in their corner.
What do I use multitasking for?
Once you’re set up, here are some of the top things I use multitasking for most.
- Remote Desktop: I use Quest to set up a triple-monitor set of virtual displays for my laptop. This way, I can have a primary app that I’m focusing on while having two additional apps like my calendar for keeping track of my schedule and chat for communicating with my colleagues.
- Browser: It’s easy to look up information on the web with Browser. Here’s where having a keyboard and mouse really come in handy for providing a desktop-tier web browsing experience in mixed reality.
- YouTube: I tend to have some music playing in the background, which YouTube gives me access to. If I need to reference a video, I can watch it while continuing to do work in my other windows.
It’s not usual for me to find hours passing by with this setup. When I really need to get into flow, this setup lets me dive into my work and get things done in a really productive way.
Wrapping Up
Even 3 years on from when we launched the ability to multitask on Quest, we’re still in very early days for spatial computing. I remain incredibly excited for where this technology is going in the future, and I’ll be sure to share the ways it’s transforming the way I work going forward.