Saturday, August 30, 2008
Link to "Internet of Surfaces" Photo Examples
Here is a link to a wide assortment of photos that provide examples of what an "Internet of Surfaces" might look like:
INTERNET OF SURFACES: Photo Examples of Screens of All Sizes
Some of the photos are from my team projects. Other photos are from the Microsoft Surface website, NUI-Group members, and odds and ends from other sources.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Ubiquity: RXDXT's post about William Gibson's thoughts about ubiquitous computing...
I came across this post on rxdxt’s blog, I couldn't put it any better:
UBIQUITY
There's a great interview in Rolling Stone with one of my favourite authors of all time, William Gibson (Neuromancer, coiner of the term Cyberspace and his newest Spook Country (which I'm reading now). Here's a quote:
"Ubiquitous computing?
Totally ubiquitous computing. One of the things our grandchildren will find quaintest about us is that we distinguish the digital from the real, the virtual from the real. In the future, that will become literally impossible. The distinction between cyberspace and that which isn't cyberspace is going to be unimaginable. When I wrote Neuromancer in 1984, cyberspace already existed for some people, but they didn't spend all their time there. So cyberspace was there, and we were here. Now cyberspace is here for a lot of us, and there has become any state of relative nonconnectivity. There is where they don't have Wi-Fi.
In a world of superubiquitous computing, you're not gonna know when you're on or when you're off. You're always going to be on, in some sort of blended-reality state. You only think about it when something goes wrong and it goes off. And then it's a drag."
This made me think. When I become a grandmother, will I find myself among other grandparents, physically miles away, attending my grandchild's science fair, musical recital, or high school drama performance in SecondLife?
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.
