Over the next two chapters, we are going to help set up your computer for augmented reality development. This chapter will focus on getting your Windows or macOS system ready for Unity development and installing various AR tool kits. The next chapter will focus on how to build and deploy project builds to specific AR devices. Also, we will use this opportunity to introduce you to the Unity development platform, including a little tour of the editor user interface and other key features of Unity.

If you are an experienced developer and are already using Unity, then you may be able to just skim through sections of this chapter, or even skip them altogether. Choose the topics that are relevant to you and your environment.

In this chapter we will cover the following topics:

• Installing and using Unity
• Using cameras in AR
• Installing and using Vuforia
• Installing and using ARToolkit

The installation of the Microsoft MixedRealityToolkit (aka HoloToolkit) for HoloLens development, Google ARCore, and the Apple ARKit for iOS development are covered in Chapter 3, Building Your App.

If you are only interested in developing for Microsoft HoloLens, we still recommend you install the Vuforia library because some of the projects in this book use Vuforia's support for HoloLens, rather than the Microsoft MixedRealityToolkit.

Likewise, if you are only interested in developing for Apple iOS devices, we still recommend you install the Vuforia library as some of the projects in this book use Vuforia's support for iOS, rather than the Apple ARKit.

Okay, let's go!