Skip to content

Initial Setup

After you download and unzip "SightLab VR 2.0" follow these instructions. Note that after installation it should open up the SightLab projects folder at Documents\SightLab VR Projects 2.0. If this doesn't happen, you can manually unpack the SightLab folder by unzipping the sightlab_projects.zip folder to a location of your choosing (located in the "installers" folder). Additionally, if there are issues with the installer you can use the "Manual Installation" method (see below). 

If you get a "Windows protected your PC" message, click on "More info" and then "Run anyway"

Confirm to run as administrator and follow the prompts. If the administrator prompt doesn't pop up then you might need to right click and choose to run as administrator. Some of the steps may take up to a minute, but this is what a completed installation should look like (NOTE: If you don't have a SightLab VR 2.0 Projects" folder open up after installation, you may need to manually extract the sightlab_projects zip, located in the "installers" folder):

Run "SightLab 2" as Administrator

1. Click y if you don't have Vizard installed

2. Click y to install the sightlab_utils python files to Vizard

3. Click y to install the deepdiff library

4. Click y to install the sightlab_resources to Vizard

5. Click y to Install the Project Folder and Examples. This will create a folder in your Documents called "SightLab VR 2.0 Projects"

From there you can either work directly from the included Sample Project by launching SightLabVR.py or make a copy of the Sample Project or Blank Project and start making your own project. 

If SightLab.VR opens in another python editor (such as Visual Studio Code), it will not work. It is highly recommended that you associate .py files with Vizard (can right click on SightLab_VR.py in SightLab VR Projects 2.0\Projects\SampleProject and choose "Open With" - Vizard 7 or Vizard 8- and select "Always"). 

You may also need to turn on permissions to write in this folder, as SightLab needs to write a config file. (Right click- choose "security" and then "edit" to add permissions). 

Wait until it says "Installation Complete. Press Any Key to Continue". It may take up to a minute between stages of the installation. 

Note: It is also recommended to download the K-Lite Codec Pack for the videos (may also need to update this if just recently upgraded from Windows 10 to 11), as well as to install the following Python libraries (by going to Tools-Package Manager in Vizard): moviepy, numpy, matplotlib, PyQt5, plotly and tkinter (tkinter comes with Vizard if checked on installation). These libraries are not required but will allow for the additional visualizations and compressing the video files. Note: for PyQt5 you may also need to install Visual Studio from this link (if using the latest version of Python)

You can also run the script "python_additional_packages.py" from the "installers" folder to install the optional packages (or the "additional_python_packages.bat" file as administrator). 

Windows Defender or other antivirus software may falsely trigger a detection and delete the exe file, if this happens you can run SightLab2 backup as Administrator (right click and choose "Run as Administrator"). 

When the installation completes, it should open up the SightLab VR Projects 2.0 Folder. If it doesn't you can manually find this in your Documents folder. Double click "SightLab VR" to open up a Sample Project (this should be opened up by the Vizard software). 

ExampleScripts - This is where you'll find the large library of SightLab examples

Projects - A convenient location to keep your projects and also to find the default "SampleProject" folder that can be used as a template to get started

Util_Files - EULA, Documentation, shortcuts to core sightlab python files  and some other installation files

Data_Cleanup_Tool - This will delete all stored data in the ExampleScripts. Only use if you wish to delete the data from ExampleScript sessions

Documentation - Shortcut to the documentation

Inspector - 3D World Builder, launch to edit or build your scene

SightLab Assistant GPT - Shortcut to the online GPT SightLab Assistant for help with coding and experiment setup

SightLabVR Shortcut -  Shortcut to run the SightLab VR script located in the sample project

SightLabVR Replay Shortcut - Shortcut to run the Session Replay  script located in the sample project

If you purchased the Multi User Version you will also have the following shortcuts

SightLab_VR_Server Shortcut  - Shortcut to run the server script

SightLab_VR_Client Shortcut-  Shorcut to run the client(s)

Manual Installation

If there are any issues with the installer here are the instructions for manually installing the SightLab application:

1. If you don't already have Vizard installer, run the Vizard Installer

2. Double click to run "python_packages.py" (this will install the necessary deep_diff library), or from Vizard use Tools- Package Manager - CMD- install deep_diff

3. Extract "sightlab_utils" to C:\Program Files\WorldViz\Vizard7\bin\lib\site-packages (will need elevated permission rights)- Replace "Vizard7" with "Vizard8" if using Vizard 8

4. Extract "sightlab_resources" to C:\Program Files\WorldViz\Vizard7\resources (will need elevated permission rights) -      Replace "Vizard7" with "Vizard8" if using Vizard 8

5. Extract and copy "Sightlab Projects" to a location of your choosing (suggested in "Documents")