The future of screens…
February 10th, 2006Bill Joy has said there are a number of different types of internets that can be thought of. Included is the distance web (what we think of as TV), the near web (what we think of as notebook, tablets, and desktop pcs) and the here web (what we think of as cell phones and handheld computers).
In the near web and here web, a powerful interface may be a touch screen. Particularly for smaller devices, a touch screen lets you make the entire device a display, maximizing visual output and maximizing tactile input. Historically touch screens have operated much like a mouse, but is that really the best way to use such devices?
Here is a video showing research that has been done breaking that paradigm, allowing control by the entire hand, and a new language of hand gestures: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVI6xw9Zph8
February 10th, 2006 at 12:31 pm
I loved this video! Especially the part where he arranges the photos and just effortlessly blows them up and shrinks them. Gestures have been a long underused method of interaction with computers. I suppose Graffiti is a trivial example of gestures, but it was mainly for writing text and wasn’t very useful for accomplishing tasks. I remember using Pen OS/2 many years ago and I got really hooked on it. You could stroke down for a page down, etc. And there were user-defined actions, too.
February 14th, 2006 at 4:17 am
what about do the same things but without even touch the screen ? I wonder how mature tech is this kind of motion detection.
February 23rd, 2006 at 9:49 am
Take a look at some of the motion tracking applications by Grant Skinner, it’s quiet impressive, and you only need some good ActionScript programming and a Webcam. Similar results can be obtained with software like Max/MSP/Jitter , with less programming. I have to admit that I’m really impressed by all the projects that Jeff Han is working on.
March 4th, 2006 at 10:16 am
Another related item… Larry Page’s keynote at CES this year (see http://www.podtech.net) talks about dedicated screens. He believes there should be a standard for all screens so that you can plug them into any device, so if you bought a fancy screen you could have a nice interface on just about anything. Worth a listen.