Comments on: The Augmented World http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world Advanced Technology Research Tue, 31 Jan 2012 07:20:57 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: avi http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1045 avi Mon, 17 Jul 2006 19:27:03 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1045 By the way, Ira, on the idea of everyone wearing RFIDs to identify themselves, there's a much better way. In the next few years, everyone's cell phones will have GPS. All we need is for the GPS phones to transmit their location to a server (opt in) which can identify people based on their position alone, given an accuracy of 1-2 feet and speed and heading, at least outside. By the way, Ira, on the idea of everyone wearing RFIDs to identify themselves, there’s a much better way. In the next few years, everyone’s cell phones will have GPS. All we need is for the GPS phones to transmit their location to a server (opt in) which can identify people based on their position alone, given an accuracy of 1-2 feet and speed and heading, at least outside.

]]> By: avi http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1044 avi Mon, 17 Jul 2006 04:31:12 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1044 It gets pretty messy. Aside from the social expectations, there's a bunch of liability concerns. I give it nine months before the first Nintento Wii lawsuits about injuries from using the controller (bumping into furniture, etc..). It's one of the things that has held HMDs back, and it's a similar issue for portable TVs on eyeglasses. Right now, you can kind of tell when someone is talking on a cell phone because they get that distant stare in their eyes. But once they're actually seeing the person they're talking to, and everyone else in the room isn't, how can we distinguish between that and schizophrenia? I mean, I remember walking in Seattle and some guy was having a lucid conversation on his cell phone, except the phone was a crushed plastic coke bottle. It only gets worse. I doubt I need to mention the incidence of strangulations of people using "Push to Talk" and speakerphone (well, none that I know of, but I've contemplated it myself). I expect more of a backlash coming. It gets pretty messy. Aside from the social expectations, there’s a bunch of liability concerns. I give it nine months before the first Nintento Wii lawsuits about injuries from using the controller (bumping into furniture, etc..). It’s one of the things that has held HMDs back, and it’s a similar issue for portable TVs on eyeglasses.

Right now, you can kind of tell when someone is talking on a cell phone because they get that distant stare in their eyes. But once they’re actually seeing the person they’re talking to, and everyone else in the room isn’t, how can we distinguish between that and schizophrenia? I mean, I remember walking in Seattle and some guy was having a lucid conversation on his cell phone, except the phone was a crushed plastic coke bottle. It only gets worse.

I doubt I need to mention the incidence of strangulations of people using “Push to Talk” and speakerphone (well, none that I know of, but I’ve contemplated it myself). I expect more of a backlash coming.

]]> By: Ted http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1043 Ted Mon, 17 Jul 2006 00:24:11 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1043 <i>Kind of like when people have bluetooth headsets on and they talk to you face-to-face and probably someone else on the phone.</i> And yet people are doing that more and more. Cellphones have created behavior that once would have been considered unforgiveably rude, but is now increasingly tolerated/accepted. The adoption of wearable heads-up displays will rely on a similar change -- or deterioration -- in social standards. Kind of like when people have bluetooth headsets on and they talk to you face-to-face and probably someone else on the phone.

And yet people are doing that more and more. Cellphones have created behavior that once would have been considered unforgiveably rude, but is now increasingly tolerated/accepted. The adoption of wearable heads-up displays will rely on a similar change — or deterioration — in social standards.

]]> By: Ira http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1042 Ira Sun, 16 Jul 2006 21:49:51 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1042 Ted's comment "Unless enough people wear RFIDs, there’s insufficient incentive to wear the goggles" triggered a thought on how we could achieve part of Avi's Hippo vision *without* RFID. This applies to the embarrasing situation of meeting one of the thousands of people you have met in the past but not being able to recall their name, occupation, etc. Imagine a future cellphone/camera/PDA light enough to carry in your shirt pocket. Whenever you meet someone, the device creates a voice to *text* record of their name and other information they voluntarily disclose to you. It also creates a voiceprint and a face geometry record. (It would *not* keep a recording of their voice or their photo - just the info text, voiceprint, and face geometry record.) If you meet one of these people in the future, your PDA would compare the new voiceprint and/or face geometry with all stored records and the system would display their name and other info in your VR goggles. Ted’s comment “Unless enough people wear RFIDs, there’s insufficient incentive to wear the goggles” triggered a thought on how we could achieve part of Avi’s Hippo vision *without* RFID. This applies to the embarrasing situation of meeting one of the thousands of people you have met in the past but not being able to recall their name, occupation, etc.

Imagine a future cellphone/camera/PDA light enough to carry in your shirt pocket. Whenever you meet someone, the device creates a voice to *text* record of their name and other information they voluntarily disclose to you. It also creates a voiceprint and a face geometry record. (It would *not* keep a recording of their voice or their photo – just the info text, voiceprint, and face geometry record.)

If you meet one of these people in the future, your PDA would compare the new voiceprint and/or face geometry with all stored records and the system would display their name and other info in your VR goggles.

]]> By: avi http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1041 avi Sun, 16 Jul 2006 13:53:19 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1041 I think even if the device was hidden, like in our VR contact lenses, it would be rude to pause in the middle of a conversation to assimilate some information. Kind of like when people have bluetooth headsets on and they talk to you face-to-face and probably someone else on the phone. I think even if the device was hidden, like in our VR contact lenses, it would be rude to pause in the middle of a conversation to assimilate some information. Kind of like when people have bluetooth headsets on and they talk to you face-to-face and probably someone else on the phone.

]]> By: Ted http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1040 Ted Sun, 16 Jul 2006 00:30:29 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1040 You mean, why don't we have goggles acting as heads-up displays? I'm guessing it's a hardware issue. Right now any hardware that could act as a decent display is too bulky to wear in public. For years people were willing to carry about cellphones even if they were bulky, providing a demand that drove miniaturization. But until technology and fashion intersect on the matter of wearing oversize goggles, there isn't a demand to drive further miniaturization. Plus, there's the need for a critical mass of content. Unless enough people wear RFIDs, there's insufficient incentive to wear the goggles. People might use goggles to view non-customized information (like ordinary web pages) during face-to-face interactions, but currently it'd probably be considered rude to do that. You mean, why don’t we have goggles acting as heads-up displays? I’m guessing it’s a hardware issue. Right now any hardware that could act as a decent display is too bulky to wear in public. For years people were willing to carry about cellphones even if they were bulky, providing a demand that drove miniaturization. But until technology and fashion intersect on the matter of wearing oversize goggles, there isn’t a demand to drive further miniaturization.

Plus, there’s the need for a critical mass of content. Unless enough people wear RFIDs, there’s insufficient incentive to wear the goggles. People might use goggles to view non-customized information (like ordinary web pages) during face-to-face interactions, but currently it’d probably be considered rude to do that.

]]> By: avi http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1039 avi Sat, 15 Jul 2006 19:36:42 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1039 Agreed, Ted. But that's the point, looking to the future and then coming back to what's practical. We can do most of the other stuff using visual media. The direct interface is ideal in many respects, but isn't required. So why hasn't anyone done this yet? Agreed, Ted. But that’s the point, looking to the future and then coming back to what’s practical. We can do most of the other stuff using visual media. The direct interface is ideal in many respects, but isn’t required. So why hasn’t anyone done this yet?

]]> By: Ted http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1038 Ted Sat, 15 Jul 2006 19:31:14 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1038 It seems to me that the biggest building block that's missing is the direct neural connection that your scenario relies on. It'd be relatively easy for a pair of goggles to display search results or a wikipedia entry on every person you meet, but having that information -- let alone the memories that others have of that person -- injected into your brain like your own memories is an altogether different matter. It seems to me that the biggest building block that’s missing is the direct neural connection that your scenario relies on. It’d be relatively easy for a pair of goggles to display search results or a wikipedia entry on every person you meet, but having that information — let alone the memories that others have of that person — injected into your brain like your own memories is an altogether different matter.

]]> By: avi http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1037 avi Fri, 14 Jul 2006 21:05:51 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1037 Ira, it's a hypothetical company. We don't have to solve the engineering problems in blog comments. As for policy, I'd hope people would be able to trust in strangers enough to publish their personal info so that when the stranger meets them, they receive access to enough layers to be meaningful. But yes, if someone chose not to opt-in to the system, they'd be a stranger still. If you want trustworthiness, build a system that encourages trust. No RFID system can enforce that from above. Ira, it’s a hypothetical company. We don’t have to solve the engineering problems in blog comments.

As for policy, I’d hope people would be able to trust in strangers enough to publish their personal info so that when the stranger meets them, they receive access to enough layers to be meaningful. But yes, if someone chose not to opt-in to the system, they’d be a stranger still. If you want trustworthiness, build a system that encourages trust. No RFID system can enforce that from above.

]]> By: Ira http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world/comment-page-1#comment-1036 Ira Fri, 14 Jul 2006 19:37:43 +0000 http://www.realityprime.com/articles/the-augmented-world#comment-1036 Avi, sorry for my long essay. However, in your reply, you neglected to tell us how you *would* achieve the part of your vision that said: "You meet a person on the street. You know them instantly, as if you’ve always known them." How do you expect that to work? From your reply, it seems the meet and greet would only work if that "person" (presumably someone you have never met before) had decided to opt-in and provide full access to all his or her information by *anyone* (or at least by some class that happened to include you). I guess I just don't understand what you meant and how "Hippo" would work. Do you think most people would opt-in at the maximum level? If not, paraphrasing your original statement: You meet a person on the street. They remain a total stranger, as if you've never met them. Avi, sorry for my long essay. However, in your reply, you neglected to tell us how you *would* achieve the part of your vision that said: “You meet a person on the street. You know them instantly, as if you’ve always known them.” How do you expect that to work?

From your reply, it seems the meet and greet would only work if that “person” (presumably someone you have never met before) had decided to opt-in and provide full access to all his or her information by *anyone* (or at least by some class that happened to include you). I guess I just don’t understand what you meant and how “Hippo” would work. Do you think most people would opt-in at the maximum level? If not, paraphrasing your original statement: You meet a person on the street. They remain a total stranger, as if you’ve never met them.

]]>