How To: Google Earth Seamlessly Across Three Monitors Using One PC?

[The Surround Gamer]

Hello, friends.  I'm running Google Earth across three monitors on one PC via Nvidia Surround on three GTX 670s.  The performance is just fine, however the image is not seamless and does not compensate for bezel correction.  My desktop's resolution is set at 6030 x 1200 (I am using three 1920 x 1200 monitors) for bezel correction.  For those that do not know, bezel correction allows for the image to move 'behind' the bezels so that it does not look like there are any gaps in the image.  Google Earth, however, only runs at 5760 x 1200, and thus, creating noticeable gaps in the image, which makes for a rather immersion-breaking experience.

Here is a video showing what I'm trying to explain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLtDtlwCVvY

Notice how the image stops at the end of one screen and begins at another?  Is there a way to fix this?  Thank you.

[Stuart S. Engelhardt]

Several options, but let me preface.

The Liquid Galaxy is a collection (cluster) of different computers running 1 Google Earth on each, with the slaves following the master's position.  Using offsets for yaw mainly, you can create a "bezel correction" environment just fine.  With this, you can literally look around you 360 degrees.  You don't have a "fisheye" projection of a flat surface around you, you actually have opposing views out the windows to the sides.

In your case, either run multiple computers, or see if you can run multiple instances of Google Earth, either through VMs or other mechanisms. The project information for Liquid Galaxy has a guide for how to set this up, generally, your main configuration will be your drivers.ini file to set your field of view and offsets.

Sincerely,

Stuart S. Engelhardt

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[Andrew Leahy]

Hi,

NOTE: Whenever you are running a single instance of Google Earth you are getting a wide field-of-view but it IS NOT wrap-around immersive.

Unless you are doing yawOffset (so the side screen views are rotated slightly to the left or right), those three screens should be arranged in a straight line NOT curved!

It may look "good enough", but it's not immersion and the view is actually incorrect. What it does is make a really wide and short view window into the world. But anyone can do that on that on a single-screen by simply resizing the window and then sit really close to the screen :)

You will have this problem with any simplistic "wide screen" game that does not allow for view rotation/offset for the screens on the left and right. Most sim software has config for this, but a lot of game engines don't (yet).

Anyhow, the options for Google Earth from simple to harder...

1. are you absolutely sure there's NO native support via the Nvidia control panel for bezel compensation with that configuration (3x GTX670) ?

2. try Xavier's multi-screen friendly Earth API application http://www.fluidnebula.com/

3. Use Linux and set display offsets in Xorg config to do the bezel correction.

4. Run multiple instances of Google Earth Client each configured with ViewSync like a Liquid Galaxy config, as Stuart mentioned. One a single host I've only seen this done successfully with Linux.

5. Get two more PC's and do a classic Liquid Galaxy (3 PC's, 3 screen's, 3 Earth's). Could be Windows or Linux. Search "Liquid Galaxy QuickStart".

note: options 1 and 3 do not offer true immersion, as per discussion above.

I've used single-card AMD Eyefinity and Nvidia Quadro's, both vendors have native bezel compensation for single desktops. I haven't tried multi-card systems.

Let us know what you find!

Cheers, Andrew | eResearch | University of Western Sydney

[The Surround Gamer]

Thank you, gentlemen, for the feedback.  One does not simply have three monitors to line them up in a straight line (to steal a famous quote from Lord Of The Rings).  They are to be wrapped around the user's peripheral vision in an attempt at immersion.  It looks like there's much work to be done to achieve the proper wrap-around method.  For now, I would like to focus on getting bezel compensation up and running correctly.

I have tried FluidNebula to no avail, it acts exactly the same as Google Earth across three monitors, only in a browser  (no bezel compensation).  I have explored the Nvidia Control panel settings for Google Earth, and there is no option for resolution customization.  My goal is to get this running properly one one PC running one operating system, in this case Windows.  I know that this is possible, isn't there a simple .ini file that I can edit to force the resolution to match my desktop's resolution?  The solution to this situation doesn't seem like it's going to be that complex and involved.  That being said, any further help is appreciated.

[Andrew Leahy]

Hi TheSurroundGamer,

I suspect what you are seeing in Fluid Nebula is because the yawOffset in the app isn't precisely matching the bezel width of your monitors. But the rotated views will be correct, I believe it defaults to a 60degreee offset.

Xavier - is there a way a user can tweak the rotation amount in FluidNebula to account for different width bezels?

Cheers, Andrew

On 15 July 2013 07:54, The Surround Gamer <thesurro...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thank you, gentlemen, for the feedback.  One does not simply have three monitors to line them up in a straight line (to steal a famous quote from Lord Of The Rings).  They are to be wrapped around the user's peripheral vision in an attempt at immersion.  It looks like there's much work to be done to achieve the proper wrap-around method.  For now, I would like to focus on getting bezel compensation up and running correctly.

I have tried FluidNebula to no avail, it acts exactly the same as Google Earth across three monitors, only in a browser  (no bezel compensation).  I have explored the Nvidia Control panel settings for Google Earth, and there is no option for resolution customization.  My goal is to get this running properly one one PC running one operating system, in this case Windows.  I know that this is possible, isn't there a simple .ini file that I can edit to force the resolution to match my desktop's resolution?  The solution to this situation doesn't seem like it's going to be that complex and involved.  That being said, any further help is appreciated.

[The Surround Gamer]

(Google) Earth to Xavier!!  (Google) Earth to Xavier!!