much ado about microsoft’s surface computer - westinghouse interactive touchscreen whiteboard display

This is the weirdest call I have received from Microsoft.
"We have a new product to show you," said Ms PR . " (
I explained it).
But we can't tell you what it is or even what category it is.
But it is revolutionary.
This will change the way people work with computers. âx80x9dWow.
The hype needle is already in the red area.
What is it, a ten-button mouse? Nope.
As the world discovered yesterday, this is a new feeling --Computer screen. The 30-
The inch screen is 21 inch from the ground as if it were the top of the premium coffee table.
You operate objects on the screen with your fingers.
Drag virtual photos to sort, open-
The screen globe rotates it and so on.
This new Surface computer, which Microsoft calls "Surface computer", has many functions. touch screen.
You can use two fingers or even more.
For example, you can drag two corners of the photo outward to enlarge the photo.
This is an article about The Times yesterday.
If it all sounds very familiar, it may be because so far, it's exactly what Jeff Han, a researcher at New York University, has been showing for a year and a half.
I have written about it several times on my blog. This multi-
The touch screen is also a key feature of Apple's iPhone.
You can do the same.
All of the finger stretching business-
Enlarge the glass screen of a picture or web page.
Microsoft's news materials and websites ignore the existence of these early pioneers;
After pressing, it insisted that its surface computer was well developed before Jeff Han or Apple appeared.
Microsoft says 120 people have been secretly developing its version.
Five years of campus construction.
Microsoft's surface computer made a spectacular demo movie.
This is a good piece of work compiled by a popular mechanic.
Many versions of Microsoft-
The touch computer adds a really cool, albeit impractical twist: interaction with other electronic devices.
For example, you can take some photos in Microsoft's demo.
When you put the camera on the desktop, fresh photos pour into virtual puddles on the screen from above --
A clever way of seeing that you just downloaded them.
Next, you can put your phone on the table.
And copy the photo to it by dragging it to the phone area.
You can then purchase songs from the virtual music store and drag them directly into the Zune music player you put on the glass.
How cool is all this? Very.
Unfortunately, at this point, it is the Microsoft version of the concept car;
You can see it, but you can't.
These stunts require the installation of concept cameras, concept phones, and concept music players that interact with the surface computer.
The surface computer is a very complex setup behind the scenes.
While you can't see any trace, Windows Vista is under the hood.
There is a projector under the desktop that projects the image onto it.
Five cameras observe the movements of your hands and pass the information to the computer.
You won't see surface computers on sale at Walmart.
Anytime soon.
Microsoft will be at 1,200 T this fall-
Mobile phone stores;
Starwood hotel;
Harras casino; and IGT video-game stores.
In other words, Microsoft currently only sells surface computers to other companies (
According to the size of the order, $5,000 to $10,000 per unit).
However, even without the involvement of other gadgets, Microsoft offers some delicious demo modules to showcase the possibilities. Restaurant. You pull up on-
Screen, virtual menu for all four edges of the table-
Because the four of you went out to dinner together.
Order by clicking on what you want.
While you're waiting for food, you can play your own video games individually or open up four different web browsers.
Then, after dinner, you can call your bill and pay it in four ways, all of which are electronic payments.
Virtual concierge service
You walk into a hotel.
You see, for example, a virtual model of New York City;
Find a restaurant;
See what it looks like;
Then drag the address and phone number of the restaurant onto your phone, which will be displayed as a text message. Paint Canvas. Finger-
Painting in the new millennium.
It's worth $10,000 right there. Video Puzzle.
Transparent glass bricks in this game demo (real ones)
Is placed on a video played on the surface.
Now you can scatter them over the glass and even flip them over --down;
The challenge is to regroup the video by moving and flipping the tiles as if it were a new one
Age puzzle. T-Mobile Stores. In this phone-
Store demo, you can take the next phone model from the shelfor several —
And put them on the desktop for details like features, call plans, etc.
You can build a sideby-
Side compare, taste some ringtones, or simply slide the ringtone to the appropriate name to assign a ringtone to someone in the contact list. (
Again, this demo does not work for any current phone. )
There's a lot of imagination here, of course, but more hype.
I was especially discouraged by those online headlines that were panting about the computing revolution --
Including, alas, popular machinery. com.
The title says "forget the keyboard and mouse ".
The next generation of computer interfaces will be manual. on.
Make one thing clear: more
Touch calculation does not mean the end of the keyboard and mouse.
As a new world of diversitytouch-
At the dawn of screen computing, you will see a lot of demos involving photo stretching and Web surfing presentations.
But you will never see a word processor.
Mail program, spreadsheet, database or accounting program.
That's because touch
Screen computers are terrible for these mainstream computing tasks.
In fact, typing is a nightmare when you can't feel the key.
This is inaccurate, slow and unsatisfactory.
Microsoft says it has big plans for surface.
Calculation plan: more sizes and shapes are coming and one day the price will be lower and maybe the home version.
Great.
It's about time, we, the people, get real-
We saw a variety of interesting demos in Jeff han's video.
But if this is really the future of computing, Microsoft must first defeat the mother of all chickens --and-egg conundrums.
Surface computers won't be mainstream until we all have phones, cameras and music players working with them
No one will make these gadgets until the surface computer reaches the critical mass.
During this time, give you a suggestion: Don't throw away your keyboard.
Comments are no longer accepted.
David, is typing with a virtual keyboard really as scary as you sound?
I don't remember you bashing the iPhone that way when you commented on it.
Steve Jobs said yesterday in an interview with Walter Mosberg in Washington that their virtual keyboard took some time to adapt, but after using it for about a week and learning to trust it, it's better and more efficient.
You have used the phone yourself. can you confirm this statement?
See you at the iPhone conference next month (i wish)
Forget the Surface computer
How does the phone, camera and music player work wirelessly with my desktop.
Although it looks cool, the last thing I want is a picture of my vacation in a random puddle somewhere (be it a table-
Desktop or floor).
This is all demo-
The best tableware.
1 wrote: "Is typing with a virtual keyboard really as scary as it sounds?
I don't remember you bashing the iPhone that way when you commented on it.
"Yes, it's really slow, it's terrible.
I haven't really seen the iPhone yet-no one has seen it (
I only have one hour.
-But in fact, I did write a few times about the fact that it was really bad for email and other things.
Maybe the work is right, but I think we will find out once I have a few weeks of work!
-Thanks for sharing David. A good in-
In-depth articles on all the hype lately.
Have you considered the blog about Gates/jobs talk yesterday?
Sharing with your readers can be a good thing.
I wonder if this is another origami from Microsoft?
Or a tablet? Or Zune even?
They are as good as vaporizers, but very impractical and transient in practice.
The devil is in execution.
There is no doubt that the concept is good.
I just saw an HP touch screen computer for sale at the local office warehouse. NOW. Very Cool.
Play solitaire with your hands again.
I may start doing more sports.
The old one is new.
As far as I'm concerned, the real revolution is to convert audio and video into numbers.
So far, nothing I have seen is more important than using this fact.
I just can't see how this is done with anything.
The picture of who wants $10,000 shows a 90 degree angle with your head.
Moving something with hands/fingers can sometimes be cool, just like the rest of the demo --ware.
However, I am not sure if there is room for a "coffee table" in my office or if I want to put one at home.
All these goodies on the screen on the wall would be more useful and would take up less space in my office/home.
I think it would be more ergonomic.
People sprinkle coffee on it.
Of course, this will be an updated interactive whiteboard that won't be hyped up in such a good place!
The wireless features of the Surface computer are impressive, but I don't understand why this technology depends on the touch screen.
Why does a normal desktop or laptop work like this?
This is a picture (
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David Warner with Id = 2159 *, villain in Troon (
Walt Disney 1982)
Sit at his interactive touch computer desk.
Microsoft's usual model of innovation is stealing from people who invented it 25 years ago.
Also, the iPhone will have a multi-touch screen that can be held in one hand and doesn't cost $10,000.
Sorry, it sounds more like the Batmobile of the concept car.
It's so cool.
It might be great to drive once or twice.
But limited practicality
I know I don't want to play a bunch of 8 on some surfaces-year-
The old child with a cold has just finished playing.
It's also interesting that Microsoft launched a touch screen device on the same day as Palm launched a touch screen-free device, and Google started offering its web app offline!
Technology began to repeat itself.
Didn't we play on the desktop bar version of "pong" in the late 1970s?
Maybe Bill Gates.
Is it derivative?
It looks very similar to the Han video and the iPhone demo.
But it has always been Ms. Mo's credit.
Practical?
Of course not yet, it may never have anything but commercial applications.
However, I am willing to say that this is the first MS product I have seen in a long time, maybe ever, it makes me feel very cooldesigned.
As usual, Microsoft is copying the ideas of others.
Check out Sun's surface computing concepts in their Starfire video. asktog.
Com/starfire/index. Html, starting in 1992.
Microsoft's contribution seems to be a prototype. Good for them.
Make it less expensive than a regular table and I will get one.
I think this is a platform that will be as powerful as any application above.
Although it's expensive, it's definitely expensive if you can find a cool app to save them money.
For example, take car dealers as an example, if they have this, then they can sit down with potential customers and sales people and browse through all the cars, their models, options and pricing.
This will be an effort to be more transparent and collaborative, which will certainly allow car dealers to sell at least one extra car per month.
Then they may not think it is an expensive platform.
Again, in the doctor's office, in the optical store, it makes it easy for customers or patients to browse through various options.
It will make it easy for people who do not fully understand the computer to benefit from it.
In this way, if it can eliminate even a job in small and medium-sized enterprises, it is worth it. I am (
(Last 30 years)
There's a left amputee below.
The elbow "hook" prosthesis, the right hand and the "lump" of the attached thumb "(
Used to be my big right toe)
After a severe upper body burn
I type "Hunter and Pike" with the left hook tip and right thumb ".
Any touch screen device that requires more than two (fairly spaced)
Unfortunately, my contact point will not be available.
Bob KrausI always wanted something like this, just a bit "stupid ".
I printed a lot of documents to review (i’m a lawyer)
Because I always miss what I try to read carefully
But 90% of the paper that came out of my printer never went through the recycle bin.
What I want is a table.
Lay flat on my desk and simulate the size screen of the paper: Let me mark the document by hand (
I can go back to the keyboard and enter the change "formally)
, Flip back and forth, side comparison page-by-side, etc.
No big deal, right? ; -)Wow!
This sounds the most exciting.
But I want to have the feeling that the test is really important.
Why is it so long?
Do enterprises do it?
This opens up several exciting possibilities.
As a stock trading station, I think such an interface would be great.
Music production will also benefit a lot.
How about video editing?
No doubt is needed.
While you can make an argument that MS borrow Jeff Han, I don't think you can say that the MS is tearing off the iPhone's multi-touch.
Mainly because they use completely different technologies.
It's also a bit hard to say, MS * has to * borrow from Jeff Han because the technology used in both processes comes very clearly from the MIT Media sands and the SenseTable project.
In addition, as a technical expert, you should already know that technological advances occur in vacuum and that the borrowing of technology is given (
If not, can you imagine how things will go backwards?
We re-invent the wheel every time)
Independent parallel development is much more common than people think.
David, this thing will be settled in six months.
This is typical of Microsoft's many "innovations --
Cool but useless.
This is a solution to the problem.
"If you build it, the press conference will come --
But no one else.
"The big thing today is something you haven't reported: Google Gears Beta.
The gear is a complete, free, ready-madeto-
Rock technology that lets websites work offline.
What does this have to do?
It turns each website into an app.
This means that you don't have to be as big as Google and can buy Microsoft's cash cow just like its office suite.
All you need to do is start a website.
Google Gears has just turned thousands of small web developers into competitors, and now they have access to Microsoft's infrastructure.
Like termite, they don't need to be big, they just need to pick a 2 × 4 to start a big meal.
It's a big story, not this stupid table.
It's not surprising considering the prototype
The type presented by Bill Gates in his keynote speech at 2006 CES conference.
It's on the IPhone and many "more-
Similar touch "ideas and other interactive concepts to the IPhone have been implemented.
There is some reason why Microsoft claims that they have pioneered the technology.
Tell me, really, do you want to have one like this in your house? No class. No style.
There is no choice on the selection.
Microsoft in the furniture industry?
I don't think so.
This is a company known for its taste (
Vista interface! )or style (
Anyone-I don't think).
I might be interested if Apple expanded the iPhone to the computer surface.
But this thing is)
Not very useful, B)
The furniture is ugly.
Sorry, it looks lonely.
Not to mention the puddles with photos, where the pooch did the piddle-oops, where there was the Sondheim moment)
There is no reason.
Forget the desktop. I'm waiting for an invisible computer screen.
In the air, you can "touch" the icon, manipulate and sort objects and documents, and then wipe the screen with a wave of your hand.
I want this science fiction now!
Who wants a greasy old touch-screen?
I don't understand why people want to put their fingers on the screen.
Have you seen those at the airport carefully?
What are these new screens made up?
If not glass, how long would you like them to last?
Many new concepts like Vista seem vague.
Oh, you can drop the camera and the picture will appear on the screen! So cool!
But . . . . . . What's the point?
Since 2000, David Boger's technical column has appeared on The Times four times a week.
He wrote The Times every week.
The email column "from David Boger's desk" produced a short, fun Web video for The New York Times.
Com, and post the entry to his time blog.
In his other life, David was an Emmy winner.
CBS News's winning reporter, NPR's regular contributor to The Morning Edition, creator of the missing Handbook series of computer books, and father of three children. //'); while(x=eval(x)); }
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After writing personal technology for the times for 13 years, David Boger will open a consumer technology website at Yahoo.
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