Google Glasses – The Rise of Wearable Computers
A few weeks ago Google announced Project Glass, or Google Glasses.
A number of people I’ve spoken to are quick to mock these as another bluetooth headset. While I agree that walking around with a bluetooth headset hanging on your ear and no one on the phone is a generally stupid idea, I think that computerized glasses are something much bigger and far more important.
Humans Conforming to Machines
The typewriter was invented in 1868, and we have been conforming to its shape ever since. Our technology does incredible thing, but it still breaks our bodies. Our devices inflict all manner of pain on our backs’, necks’ and wrists’. Tablets and mobiles aren’t an improvement in this regard. They still make us crane our necks’, and strain our wrists’. This is because we must contort our bodies to work with the shape of our technology. It’s a massive design flaw and the only people who benefit are orthopedists, physical therapists, and ergonomics professionals (who make a staggering amount of money for assembling chairs and installing wrist wrests for large corporations).
Computers as Glasses
If Google Glasses are light enough, they will represent the first powerful consumer computer that conforms to human physiology, and this excites me as both a technologist and as a vertebrate.
The combination of a camera, microphone, accelerometer, GPS and small heads up display in an always-on computer could do unbelievable things (which may one day be another post).
Making These Things Magical
The trick will be giving users a ton of control over what notifications will be sent to the user’s glasses. If your eyes are pinging every time you receive an email, tweet, Facebook update, or text message you might go insane. Limiting the active functionality is how you make computerized glasses empower users instead of distracting them. Having geographically activated modes could be cool. What I mean is that the device automatically shifts it’s configuration based on where you are, and possibly who is around you.
They work differently if you’re:
- At work
- At home (and alone)
- At home (with people around)
- Walking in a place you’ve been before
- Walking in a place you’ve never been
- At a museum
- In a store
The opportunities are endless, especially if the devies can recognize who you’re with.
Prescription Glasses
On a personal note, I will be quite peeved if Google neglects us prescription glasses-wearers.
These can’t come fast enough for me. Bring on the future!
Are Tablet/ Laptop Hybrids Bad?
Who’s Making Hybrids?
Microsoft’s Windows 8 will serve as both a tablet and laptop operating system. This will allow PC makers the opportunity to produce laptop/ tablet hybrids.
Apple CEO Tim Cook likened it to merging a refrigerator and a toaster. Cook stated, “Anything can be forced to converge but the problem is the products are about tradeoffs,” and “You begin to make trade-offs to the point where what you have left at the end of the day doesn’t please anyone.” He then claimed that Apple will not produce an iPad/ MacBook hybrid.
It’s worth noting that Steve Jobs claimed that Apple would not produce a video playing iPod, a year-and-a-half before video enabled iPods hit the market.
Are Hybrids Inherently Bad?
I don’t think that hybrids are an inherently bad idea. If Windows 8 doesn’t suck, and Microsoft and their manufacturing partners produce products that are both lightweight and comfortable to use, then it could work.
What does worry me is an iOS/ OS X convergence. Should Apple dumb OS X down to the lowest common denominator and force users to acquire all software via the Mac App Store, that would be catastrophic. Apple gets away with exercising a lot more control over their users than Microsoft does. That’s ok (I guess) for phones and tablets. However it’s horrible for general purpose computing.
Should Apple do this, they will lose me as a customer.
(Via GeekWire)
Why Can’t Facebook Build A Good Mobile App?
I’m genuinely confused.
Mark Zuckerberg dropped a billion dollars on Instagram, and has a small army of top development talent at his disposal. Why the hell can’t Facebook put out a good mobile application on any platform? Their apps are clunky and painfully slow.
I thought that maybe their database wasn’t playing well with mobile, but then I downloaded the Fast Facebook Beta, and it’s quick, does what I want it to, and it even looks nice. Zuckerberg should buy up Team2Soft.
What really gets me is that Facebook has had years to build these apps and they still suck.
Can anyone explain why? I can’t.
The iPad 3 Arrived! Initial Reaction
It wasn’t supposed to show up at my doorstep for another few days, however my new iPad 3 arrived this morning. A few minutes after I got off a conference call there was a knock on the door, and poof… There went my day of productivity. Now I have to stay up late and work because of my lack of discipline.
Initial Reaction
- The screen is magnificent. No joke. No exaggeration. This screen is insane. Especially for its size.
- The heat isn’t a big deal. I spent some time playing Infinity Blade 2… for research… And the device warmed-up, but it never approached untouchable. It runs a lot cooler than my Gen 1 MacBook Air, but that thing could boil water.
- The last time I had an iPad I only used it for reading, and giving sales pitches. I’m curious to see if I can find more use-cases for myself (other than playing Infinity Blade 2). Any suggestions?
TEDxKoeln – Adriana Lukas: How to avoid Hierarchies
I’m very excited to share this TED video featuring Adriana Lukas. Adriana’s presentation is regarding her research on hierarchies, and alternatives to them.
Adriana’s a dear friend, and I’ve been fortunate enough to discuss hierarchy, heterarchy, and a great many other interesting things with her over the years.
If you’re feeling threatened by the idea of heterarchy, please remember that it is an alternative to hierarchy in situations of abundance. Heterarchy is not an outright replacement of traditional organizational structures.








