Friday, March 14, 2008
Nokia's Morph Prototype and Concept
I have a Nokia n800 internet tablet that I've grown to appreciate over the past few months. Although I really wanted an iPhone or an iPod Touch, I settled for the Nokia because it had quite a few features for the price.
It looks like there will be more options for me when I'm ready for my next hand-held device.
Darren Waters, the author of the dot.life blog, covers technology from BBC news. He recently had the opportunity to visit Nokia's lab in Palo Alto to learn more about the future of mobile technology. According to Darren, the people at Nokia call cell phones and hand-held devices multimedia computers.
To get a better picture of what is going on at Nokia, take a look at this video about Morph:
"...Morph is a concept looking at the potential applications of nanosciences in future handsets."
"From nanowires that can sense the chemical properties of compounds in the air to nanowire grass that can turn the sun's rays into electrical power, and nanoelectronics with greater computing power than today's fastest computers, Morph is a beguiling vision."
Is the world ready for this? I think so.
Friday, November 9, 2007
Musings about pervasive computing and health care, usability, rationale for "technology-supported human-world interaction"
"Imagine a world," said cardiologist Leslie Saxon, "where you turn on your computer and, along with surfing the Web and turning on YouTube, you can check your or your family members' health stats." Technology and health care are topics that interest me, since they directly affect my life and the lives of those who are close to me, if you've read previous posts on my blog(s): Usability Interaction Hall of Shame (user-unfriendly technology in a hospital setting)
This is the quote that grabbed my heart this morning from an article in a recent Technology Review announcing the "First Annual Body Computing Conference".
This is the stuff that gets me really excited.
World Usability Day 2007: Healthcare Focus
Skype in the Hospital: Grandpa, webcams, and grandkids over the miles
What is technology-supported human-world interaction?
First of all, it is a concept that I can wrap my head around, since I come from a background in psychology and education, and didn't take a computer programming class until I was in my 40's.
It is a concept that my non-techie circle of friends, school colleagues, and extended family members can also understand.
Technology-supported human-world interaction incorporates HCI concepts, but it takes into consideration the broad range of human interactions. It is an attempt to identify what specific systems, applications, networks, interaction designs, interfaces, and input/output modalities are best suited for the task, action, or interaction, and also looks closely at the panorama in which this is likely to occur.
Since human interactions are dynamic and change over time, the concept of panorama includes a temporal component. Of course, this necessitates that programmers, systems developers, designers, and everyone else involved in the process becomes cognizant of the the big picture, the wider view, before the first line of code is ever discussed.
Why do I think this is so important?
When I was a little girl, my family visited a communications technology exhibit, and I participated in a demonstration of a TV phone. I was so excited when I heard the scientist say,
"In the very near future, imagine a world where everyone will be able to call their friends and family, and see them talking on TV, right from their kitchens!"
That was nearly 40 years ago.
I've never lost hold of that feeling of excitement, even though as an adult, I've experienced much that could wear my excitement away....
A large percentage of my interactions with computers and technology over the years has been with poorly designed cell phones and cable TV remotes, crashing laptops, user-unfriendly database systems, problematic productivity applications, and lost Internet connections.
The people who worked for months, even years, creating these problem applications and devices aren't stupid. General users aren't stupid. So why do we still encounter so many frustrating problems?
Until recently, in the technology world, both in academia and in the workplace, the focus has been too narrow. My hunch is that things are changing, and somehow, I'd like to be a part of it.
