Update! The Post-WIMP Conversation: Some Thoughts About Conceptualizing NUI, Part I

The content of this post has been moved. For the most recent update of this post, please see:


The Post-WIMP Explorers Club:  Update of the Updates, Morning of 12/31/09

"The Known Universe Scientifically Rendered for All to See" (Americal Museum of Natural History via O'Reilly Radar)

-Astronomy Picture of the Day 


THIS IS BEAUTIFUL:


The Known Universe Scientifically Rendered for All to See
This six and 1/2 minute trailer is from a 60 minute experience, "The Known Universe: A Grand Tour with Brian Abbott", based on information from the Digital Universe Atlas, a four-dimensional map of the universe  maintained by the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History. (The video was uploaded to YouTube on December 15th,2009 and has had 1,473,213 views in less than two weeks.)

"The Known Universe takes viewers from the Himalayas through our atmosphere and the inky black of space to the afterglow of the Big Bang. Every star, planet, and quasar seen in the film is possible because of the world's most complete four-dimensional map of the universe, the Digital Universe Atlas that is maintained and updated by astrophysicists at the American Museum of Natural History. The new film, created by the Museum, is part of an exhibition, Visions of the Cosmos: From the Milky Ocean to an Evolving Universe, at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan through May 2010. "


RELATED
Digital Universe Atlas 
You can download the Digital Universe Atlas, from the American Museum of Natural History website.  It will run on Windows, Mac, Linux, and IREX.  I'd recommend downloading the "Digital Universe Uncut" if you are a parent, teacher, or student.


Astrophyics Visualization Archive
"Explore astrophysics through scientific visualization and animation."


American Museum of Natural History (AMNH)
AMNH's Space Show:  Journey to the Stars
"Journey to the Stars is an engrossing, immersive theater experience created by the Museum's astrophysicists, scientific visualization, and media production experts with the cooperation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and more than 40 leading scientists from the United States and abroad."


The Science of "Journey to the Stars"


Directing Journey to the Stars (Includes an interview of Carter Emmart, Director of Astrovisualization at the American Museum of Natural History)

HDMI Version 1.4, 3D HDTV, and Wireless HD

My husband surprised me with a new HD TV to replace the old non-HD "clunker" that was taking up space in an armoire in our bedroom.  I went to attach my HD video camera to the new TV, and realized that three-foot HDMI cable was much too small.   Knowing how fast everything changes with technology, I decided I should research HDMI before setting out to purchase a longer cable.  

There is more to know about HDMI than I thought!   Here's what I found so far:

There is an organization dedicated to HDMI standards, HDMI Licensing, LLC that provides a wealth of information about HDMI.  It's worth taking the time to review the information contained on HDMI website, specifically, the following two links:

• FAQ for HDMI 1.4

• HDMI 1.4 Specification Features (pdf)   (Steve Venuti, HDMI LLC 2009)

Key points about HDMI 1.4 from the HDMI website and the Specification Features overview:

• Consolidation of HD Video, audio, and data in a single cable.
• Enables high-speed bidirectional communication.
• Enables IP-based applications over HDMI. (Ethernet)
• Transfer speeds up to 100Mbps.
• Supports audio return channel.
• Can support up to 10.2 gigabits per second of bandwidth transmission
• HDMI 1.4 is the latest standard. It includes definitions for common 3D formats and resolutions, up to 1080p.
• HDMI 1.4 supports 4K x 2K resolution, which is the resolution of state-of-the art digital theaters and up to 4 times the resolution of 1080p.
• Allows for the optimization of picture settings based on type of content.
• Supports digital still camera-specific colors.
• Allows for smaller HDMI connectors, ideal for portable devices.
• Provides "High Definition Everywhere" support, with an automotive connection system designed to work effectively in vehicles.

About HDMI Version Numbers (from the HDMI website)

"HDMI version numbers are used by manufacturers to identify a set of features. To help you shop for the features you want in a cable, the HDMI licensing authority has created standardized names for certain key features. Here are a few:

• Deep Color refers to monitors that can display a greater number of colors than traditional TVs, billions or trillions of colors rather than millions.
• x.v.Color refers to an expanded, "wider" color gamut that includes colors not traditionally available in TVs. The x.v.Color space incorporates a much larger portion of the visible color spectrum than the older RGB color model.
• Standard and High Speed refer to two grades of HDMI cable, tested to different performance metrics. A Standard cable can transmit a 1080i signal for 15 meters (49 feet) or more, while a High Speed HDMI cable can transmit a 1080p signal for at least 7.5 meters (25 feet)."

Podcasts about HDMI

The podcasts focus on HDMI 1.3, but also provides information about HDMI for the future

• An Insider's Guide to HDMI, Part 1
• An Insider's Guide to HDMI, Part 2

The podcasts feature interviews with Jeff Park and Steve Venuti from HDMI Licensing, via  Dolby Labs "Dolby cast".  Topics covered include HD devices, HDMI feature sets, capabilities, and HDMI versions.  The podcast also touches upon previous problems with firmware deployment, as well as wireless HD, which is not part of the HDMI specifications.

ENGADGET

HDMI 1.4 spec getting freshened up in preparation for broadcast 3D

Richard Lawler, 12/23/09

According to Lawler,  the various companies are working towards standards, but we're not there yet. More information about HDMI 1.4 will be available at 2010 CES, held January 7-10 in Las Vegas.

-Photo of 3D video camera courtesy of Engadget.

SOMEWHAT RELATED

Wireless HD

The following is a direct quote from the Wireless HD website:

"Broadcom Corporation, Intel Corporation, LG Electronics Inc., NEC Corporation,Panasonic Corporation, Philips Electronics, SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD, SiBEAM, Inc., Sony Corporation and Toshiba Corporation, have joined together to form the WirelessHD Consortium, an industry-led effort to define a worldwide standard specification for the next generation wireless digital network interface specification for consumer electronics and personal computing products. The WirelessHD specification has been available since January 2008 and includes the following attributes:

• High interoperability supported by major CE device and technology manufacturers
• Highest quality HD video, audio and data transmission, scalable to future high-definition A/V formats
• High-speed wireless, multi-gigabit technology in the unlicensed 60 GHz band
• Smart antenna technology for reliable non-line-of-sight operation
• Secure communications with DTCP and HDCP over WirelessHD technology
• Device control for simple operation of consumer electronics products using the basic remote control that ships with the TV
• Error protection, framing and timing control techniques for a quality consumer experience
• Low power options for mobile devices"

Dolby Labs Podcasts

Dolby 3D

Cross-posted on The World Is My Interface blog.

Touch, Multi-Touch & Gesture Responsive Web & Related Applications (helpful if you have a touch screen or IWB!)

I regularly share information about applications that work well on touch, multi-touch, and/or gesture-based screens.  Over the past few months, there have been updates and new developments that I'm still exploring. (Some of this information might be "old" news, but for many, it will be "new".)

Here's what I have to share today!

Be sure to explore the activities from the Kids section of the National Gallery of Art website, located at the end of this post.

MULTI-TOUCH FIREFOX

Sneak Peek on Multi-touch Events   Felipe Gomes, Felipe's Blog

Multi-touch on Firefox from Felipe on Vimeo.

Code Snippets from Felipe's Demo (Includes tracking divs, drawing canvas, image resizing, image crop, & pong) Mozilla Wiki
Bringing Multi-touch to Firefox and the Web
Christopher Blizzard, Mozilla Hacks

COOL IRIS
I have a hunch that someone out there is working on a multi-touch version of Cool Iris. Until I can find out the details, take a look at the videos below:


Cool Iris Overview on Google Chrome


 Here is a short video of what Cool Iris looks like on an iPhone:



Cool Iris Links
Cool Iris and iPhone
Cool Iris and Developers
Cool Iris Blog
Cool Iris Media/Press


About Cool Iris:   "Cooliris, Inc. was founded in January 2006 with a simple mantra: "Think beyond the browser". We focus on creating products that make discovering and enjoying the Web more exciting, efficient, and personal.Our core products include Cooliris (formerly PicLens), which transforms your browser into an interactive, full-screen "cinematic" experience for web media, and CoolPreviews, which lets you preview links instantly. Headquartered in Palo Alto, CA, our team consists of seasoned developers, entrepreneurs, and Stanford computer engineers. Each of us is passionate about serving our users without compromise and seeing that our products deliver the best experience."


BUMPTOP
Bumptop Gets Multi-touch Support on Windows 7


Bumptop Website
You can download Bumptop from the Bumptop website.  Here's the description:
"BumpTop is a fun, intuitive 3D desktop that keeps you organized and makes you more productive.  Like a real desk, but better.  Now with awesome mouse and multi-touch gestures!"
Anand Agarawala's Ted Talk

"Anand Agarawala presents BumpTop, a user interface that takes the usual desktop metaphor to a glorious, 3-D extreme, transforming file navigation into a freewheeling playground of crumpled documents and clipping-covered "walls.""

Discussion about Bumptop on the TED website

NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART KIDS
I've been compiling a list of websites that offer good touch-interaction.  One site that is good for children- and children at heart- is the National Gallery of Art's Kids pages.  There are a few entries that I had fun playing with students on the new SMARTboards at one of my schools:

FACES AND PLACES - LANDSCAPE




"FACES & PLACES encourages children of all ages to create portraits and landscape paintings in the style of American naive artists. By combining visual elements borrowed from more than 100 works in the National Gallery's permanent collection, this two-part interactive activity offers an overview of American folk art of the 18th and 19th centuries.(Shockwave, 6 MB)."


This one is so fun!  You can select different characters and make them dance, run, jump, or even fall.  You can design the landscape and add buildings, trees, and animals, and even change the sky pattern.  Press "go", and your character will travel around the panorama you've created.


DUTCH DOLL HOUSE


Dutch Dollhouse  (Shockwave, 4.6 MB)
"Mix and match colorful characters, create decorative objects, and explore the kitchen, living quarters, artist's studio, and courtyard of this interactive 17th-century Dutch House."


NGA KIDS JUNGLE



"Create a tropical jungle filled with tigers, monkeys, and other exotic creatures. Inspired by the art of Henri Rousseau, NGAkids Jungle is an interactive art activity for kids of all ages. (Shockwave, 930k)"


What I liked about the Jungle application is that each item can be easily customized.  On the SMARTBoard, as well as on my HP TouchSmart PC, it is very easy for a student who has limited fine-motor control to create beautiful pictures.


FLOW

"Flow is a motion painting machine for children of all ages. Enjoy watching the changing patterns and colors as you mix pictures on two overlapping layers. Choose  designs from four sets of menu icons, or add to the flow by clicking the pencil tool to create your own designs."


This application is a favorite of some of the students I work with who enjoy watching things spin. (You don't have to have an autism spectrum disorder to enjoy playing with Flow!)

National Gallery of Art Student and Teacher Online Resources

DYI multi-touch...

If you follow this blog, you know I like to share what people are doing with multi-touch and related natural user interfaces/interaction. In this post, I'd like to share an article about two students who decided to build and market a multi-touch table- the article below explains the story in-depth, and video shows the nuts and bolts.


Enterprising roomates build multi-touch LCD, market their business to West Coast*
Walter Valencia, Collegiate Times 12/1/09

According to the above article, Aaron Bitler and Brady Simpson they were inspired by CNN's Magic Wall during the 2008 election.  Bitler and Simpson learned more about natural user interface/interaction during a presentation in a business class that featured a video about the Microsoft Surface table and natural user interface technologies.  They formed a company, 3M8,  to build and market mutli-touch display/tables.

Vision x32 from Aaron Bitler on Vimeo.

From what I can tell, it looks like Bitler and Simpson relied on the DYI information and support from the NUI-group website to carry out their ideas. Bitler and Simpson met with representatives of 22Miles, a company located in San Jose that provides interactive solutions, including multi-touch, for web, mobile, and touch screen implementations.

I'll post more about 22Miles in an upcoming post.

Until then, take a look at 22Miles' promo video, featuring a huge 3D interactive multi-touch heart:

A few things from LM3Labs

I just noticed an interactive section of Lm3labs' website that demonstrates a range of interesting pictures that provide a nice overview of the company's work within the retail sector.  Lm3labs has offices in France and Japan.

The company, run by Nicolas Loeillot, is also involved in non-retail projects, such as museum exhibits, focusing on "touch-less" interactivity.  I've included a few pictures and videos below.

Microsoft's Photosynth on Lm3lab's touch-less Ubiq'window:

Photosynth + Ubiq'window Interactive Screen
by ubiqwindow

Demo of video-guide on a Ubiq'window:

Ubiq'window Demo in the US from Nicolas Loeillot on Vimeo.

Pictures of Lm3Lab's installations at Toshiba:
 





Somewhat Related
Nicolas Loeillot's Photos