If you were waiting for a Microsoft Surface display to show up in stores, like I have, prepare to stop waiting for that and start waiting for something even more jiggy.
The coolest part of the sphere is that it appears to use off the shelf technology (except for the sphere itself, which is probably a clear plastic), making it somewhat inexpensive, and therefore more readily available to me the public.
Johnny Chung Lee, the do-it-yourself-er’s do-it-yourself-er, started it with his Projects > Wii page in which he shows some pretty amazing things you can do with the Wii game controllers. Chung Lee got rid of the Wii entirely and inspired game developers, enthusiasts, and even middle school students to try their hand and making some fun and innovative software.
Now some guys from Israel (go Israel!) are getting rid of the Wii entirely with their CamSpace pure software solution that can really be explained best with a video.
I think this is gonna change some things.
Using just a PC and a webcam, CamTrax Technologies, have figured out how to make a wii-like controller out of just about anything, so long as it’s at least 5mm in size.
Imagine standing in front of your wide screen tv and drawing on the screen using your XBox, PS3, Blu-Ray player, or whatever. Virtual exercise with a partner is entirely possible. TechCrunch has some other ideas.
I might have to get a Wii… just to, you know, be ready.
The browser should be invisible.
Browser software, as the centerpiece of the Internet experience, must be constantly updated with the latest bug fixes and security patches. So updating the browser is a central part of the Internet experience.
The makers of Firefox get this.
I have been using several of the major browsers lately to test unreleased web apps. Most of the concern in the websphere is over web standards, CSS support, and the like. But there’s a bigger problem: how much “attention” I have to give to upgrading browsers.
Attention is absolutely precious. So every time an application interrupts me with a question it could have figured out on its own, I run the risk of losing focus and productivity. Like web popups, this is a huge annoyance.
Again, the folks who make Firefox understand this. Rather than annoy you with inane questions and endless ”Next…” buttons, it just asks a single question at runtime: “There’s a new version of Firefox. Do you want to upgrade now or later?”. You choose and it basically says, “You got it!” and goes away. Next thing you know, you’re browser is upgraded. No fuss.
This philosophy has gone into every area of Firefox: “The browser should be invisible.”
And this philosophy is why Firefox wins.
Firefox should be on iPhone. Firefox should have been on Palm before it died. Firefox should be on Windows Mobile.
I’m kindof a trends buff. It’s cool to look at tons of information for long enough to discern a pattern. The Internet has tons of information, as well all know, however, it doesn’t have "all the info in the universe" as some think. It’s really an aggregate of the interests of people who have figured out how to produce and consume using the Internet (which is not even close to representing the human population—not even close). In other words, there is ALOT more information out there that ISN’T on the Internet than information that IS. I digress.
Being a computer programmer (an industry WELL represented on the Internet), I find computer language trends pretty interesting. Alexa, the Internet usage tracking company, has a new blog post showing a graph of the usage of computer languages in use now. They did a quick analysis of the graph and noticed the following:
What they didn’t say is: .Net development is the new Y2K problem. Not the disaster that Y2K was, but what the disaster produced: a slew of new, well-paid (and not very competent) computer programmers. OK, so that statement is not in the same vein as the others, but it does point to the same trend: embracing higher-productivity languages.
Recent Comments