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More 3D Displays to Come

Anonymous Writer writes "The first laptop using an autostereo display to show images in 3D without special glasses was the Sharp Mebius PC-RD3D in Japan, later released in the US as the Sharp Actius RD3D. NEC has a line of computers with autostereo displays as well. They are the NEC Valuestar T VT900/8D desktop, the LaVie S LS900/9E laptop, and LaVie RX LR700/8E laptop. The line uses NEC's SoundVu technology that uses the display as a speaker! Autostereo displays are becoming more popular according to Martyn Williams and Tom Krazit from the IDG News Service. In their article in PC World, they claim laptops are just the start of it. A new satellite service by Mobile Broadcasting will be broadcasting 3D content to handheld devices in Japan some time soon. Another player in this market is Dynamic Digital Depth (mentioned in a previous post of mine), whose content services convert 2D video to 3D for display in this medium. Sanyo may be releasing 50-inch Plasma Displays that can display 3D. MIT's Media Laboratory is developing a more advanced 3D display, calling it a full resolution autostereoscopic display, that would allow a viewer to walk around and not lose the 3D effect, which current autostereo displays can't do."

122 comments

  1. Some insight into this issue. by The_Mystic_For_Real · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    GNAA / Google confirms: Linux is dying.
    By GNAA Staff

    Here you have it: it's official; Google confirms: Desktop Linux is dying.

    Now, you might be thinking this is just another cut & paste troll based on the typical *BSD is dying bullshit.
    It isn't.
    As you might have know, your favorite search engine, Google, has been running a little statistics service, called "Zeitgeist".
    Since about a year ago, they started providing statistics of the operating systems used to access their search engine worldwide.
    I will let the numbers speak for themselves:

    Operating Systems Accessing Google in January 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in March 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in April 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in May 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in June 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in July 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in August 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in September 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in November 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in December 2002
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in January 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in February 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in April 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in May 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in June 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in July 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in August 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in September 2003
    Operating Systems Accessing Google in November 2003

    If you've looked at even a few of these links, you don't need to be a Kreskin to predict Desktop Linux's future. The hand writing is on the wall: Desktop Linux faces a bleak future. In fact there won't be any future at all for Linux on Desktop because Linux is dying. Things are looking very bad for Linux on Desktop. As many of us are already aware, Linux on Desktop continues to lose market share. Red ink flows like a river of blood.

    According to Google Zeitgeist, there are about 80% of Internet Explorer 6 users. The only platform supporting Internet Explorer 6 is, of course, Microsoft Windows. These statistics are consistent with the earlier presented graphs of the operating systems used to access Google, with the Windows family consistently taking the top 3 ranks. Out of remaining 20%, the split is even between MSIE 5.5, MSIE 5.0, both Windows-only browsers. Netscape 5.x

    --

    _____

    Thank you.

    1. Re:Some insight into this issue. by AnomalyConcept · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      Ahh, thank you, whomever modded this offtopic. I don't have any mod points at the moment. Let's bring the topic of discussion back to 3D Stereo displays, shall we? (Yes, I know this is offtopic too. Oops.)

    2. Re:Some insight into this issue. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

      Off topic????

      this should be marked TROLL +Offensive

  2. I'm so excited! by beatnitup · · Score: 1, Funny

    This will revolutionize the way pr0n is viewed!

    1. Re:I'm so excited! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      If only the images could be made solid and warm to the touch!

    2. Re:I'm so excited! by Cylix · · Score: 3, Funny

      Well, I guess you could take the thermal elements from a heating pad and stick them in a real doll.

      Best I can do for a 100 quid.

      --
      "You should always go to other people's funerals; otherwise, they won't come to yours." -- Yogi Berra
    3. Re:I'm so excited! by cgenman · · Score: 3, Funny

      You could use one of those 3D pin-cushion displays as a projection screen with a heating element behind it. That way it A: meets all of your requirements and B: stops you from doing with it what you were planning on doing with it.

      Filthy, filthy, filthy.

    4. Re:I'm so excited! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      I know that 3D pr0n is on the way using dual dv cams and dual webcams.

      Realtime-3d.com makes the driver for the stereo multiplexing. They are even building 3d models in realtime so you could shift your viewing angle without moving the cameras.

      In terms of autostereo displays, I've used a couple and they are very restrictive. DTI makes one for about $1300. You can't move much though.

      For my money, I'm waiting for OLED displays. They'll have faster refresh rates than CRTs (supposedly) so they'll be able to handle shutter glasses. I've heard through the grapevine that the company that makes X3D shutter glasses is on the verge of shutter glasses for LCD monitors, but the refresh rate should really suck.

      Finally, there is one other interesing technology. Micropolarizers overlay your LCD screen. You wear polarized glasses and the monitor is stereo. The overlays are $600-ish for a 15 inch screen though.

    5. Re:I'm so excited! by AnomalyConcept · · Score: 1

      _metal_ pin-cushion + heating elements... hmmm. Not quite fuzzy, but it'll certainly be warm! =D

    6. Re:I'm so excited! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You've obviously never met my wife :(

  3. 3d displays by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I bet the first thing that they displayed was 3d dinosaurs

    1. Re:3d displays by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I bet the first thing that they displayed was 3d dinosaurs

      They have dinosaur porn now?

    2. Re:3d displays by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I bet the first thing they display is 3D porn. Porn always gets the best out of every technology.. just look at the internet, it's swared with it.

    3. Re:3d displays by ikkonoishi · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Traditionally the 3D demo object of choice is a teapot.

    4. Re:3D Displays by atrus · · Score: 1

      The rendering is probably not at all different from your current '3d goggles' type rendering which basicly any video card on the market can do. It renders two frames, one intended for each, and somehow informs the goggles which one to show to which eye. The problem often is the reduced refresh rate, since you're now drawing 2 distinct pictures (one for each eye) on a single display device.

    5. Re:3d displays by OlaL · · Score: 2, Funny

      My personal favourite (a few clicks away from the above link): "Teapotahedron".

    6. Re:3D Displays by NanoGator · · Score: 4, Interesting

      "This would be extremely useful, especially in the CAD community. While I only know a little about the area of CAD and manufacturing, this combined with the inkjet plastics printing (I forget the term for it) or rapid prototyping machines would be really neat. Imagine designing something, and being able to view it in 3D from all angles (instead of a render), and then sending it to be printed off."

      Figured since I'm a 3D artist, you wouldn't mind if I chimed in. Would a stereoscopic display help me? If the display is convincing enough, yes! Right now, while I'm modelling, I'm constantly rotating the model around, sometimes just slightly, just to get a sense of the parallax. This gives me a clue as to what vertices are where. A stereo display could potentially relieve me from needing to rotate it as much. If that's true, I could get more detail on the screen without worrying about the vid card not being powerful enough for what I'm doing.

      I wish I could tell you for a fact that it would or wouldn't work, but I've yet to experience stereoscopic work-flow. I am rather curious, though.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    7. Re:3D Displays by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 1
      Check out these items for CAD...
    8. Re:3D Displays by chrispl · · Score: 1

      I have seen one of these displays (the Sharp laptop) at a tech show a while ago. Its the same old technology that is on the 3d stickers/posters and all kinds of stuff. A transparent surface with narrow vertical grooves covers the image, splitting the image into two slightly different directions. Here are the problems:

      1. Your head has to be in EXACTLY the right place for it to work. If you move your head at all the image goes from true 3D to blurry to reverse 3D. There is a very small "sweet spot" where the 3D effect works best.

      2. Two images mean half the horizontal resolution in each image. This works fine for games and pictures but for text or fine details it makes a big difference.

      3. After watching for two minutes my eyes were strained. After a half hour I suspect I would have had one of those famous "virtual-boy-headaches".

      4. ALL the demo would show in 3D was static images. I have a feeling that motion probably worsens one or more of the problems I have described above.

      --
      What post? The one you're carrying inside your rusty innards!
    9. Re:3D Displays by merlin_jim · · Score: 1

      I'm a programmer interested in 3D. I've been trying to get the time to build a 3D design program; basically, if you use Direct3D to do all your rednering (and you're a full screen app), then the nVidia drivers will do stereo for you; all you need is a $30 pair of shutterglasses (and an nVidia card, of course) and you're good to go...

      --
      I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
    10. Re:3d displays by merlin_jim · · Score: 1

      Traditionally the 3D demo object of choice is a teapot.

      I would like to submit that a teapot was a great choice for a render before the advent of texture mapping, when gourad shading was just coming into vogue, and the idea of properly shading a curved surface represented as a polygon was an idea lots of people were having a hard time connecting to.

      Now that we have things like texture and bump mapping, maybe we can come up with a slightly more visually interesting demo object?

      I've used displays similar to the one in this article; teapots are VERY uninteresting. Bumpmaps are VERY interesting.

      --
      I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
    11. Re:3D Displays by merlin_jim · · Score: 1

      How much processing power is needed to create such a display, especially from a 3D model?

      Well, nVidia has a plug in to their drivers allowing you to do stereo rendering in the card...

      I use it with my shutter glasses all the time. Every 3D game is compatible. It's good stuff.

      --
      I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
  4. Tux would like to know... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    if the 3d display makes him look fat

  5. 3D RasMol? by clustercrasher · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Anyone planning to hook this into RasMol or PyMol? I would love to be able to look at my protein structures in 3D.

    http://pymol.sourceforge.net/

    1. Re:3D RasMol? by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 4, Informative

      Check this out if you want a 3D display for protein structures.

    2. Re:3D RasMol? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      The drivers for nVidia cards have built-in stereo 3d support for anaglyph (red/blue) and page flip modes. I've herd if you turn the drivers onto page flip mode they work with these fancy new 3d monitors, basically flipping from left to right eye images with every other frame. This is why alot of the laptops coming with these fancy monitors include an nvidia card, as ATI has absolutely no stereographic 3d support.

      The nvidia 3d drivers work fine with most all 3d (opengl or directx) games and applications. I've personally played some games with the nerdy 3d glasses and the nvidia drivers, and they work great. It's kind of a hidden feature most people don't know about.

    3. Re:3D RasMol? by ashot · · Score: 2, Informative

      ICM has built in support for a 3d solution using special glasses and special software to interlace the image, its pretty cool. Beyond that though, ICM has to be the least appreciated and most full featured molecular biology software package out there, and the viewer (ICM-Lite) is free to download.

      --
      -ashot
    4. Re:3D RasMol? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I am not sure about RasMol or PyMol, but the CAChe Software, which displays proteins quite nicely, runs on the new RD3D laptop. In fact, I think a low-end version of the software comes bundled on the laptop if purchased from DDD or CAChe directly.

  6. Are there any brick and mortar stores by Throtex · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ... that carry these 3D display laptops? I'd like to actually see the damned things before I buy one, you know!

    And wow, 1.3 hours of battery life. Looks like I'd need to get a really long extension cord to retain portability. :)

    1. Re:Are there any brick and mortar stores by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And for those of us that only have vision in one eye they are worthless. Yes people with vison in only one eye soes see in 3d

    2. Re:Are there any brick and mortar stores by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You see 3d objects, but you have no depth perception, which only comes from having two simultaneous images from slighly different locations, in this case your left and right eyes. In your case you would not get any benefit from using ones of thiese laptops, as the result would be indistinguisable from a normal display for all intents and purposes.

    3. Re:Are there any brick and mortar stores by maja33 · · Score: 2, Informative

      This friendly AC claims that the new autostereoscopic displays will allow us, poor one eyed people, to experience 3D.

      --
      "It wasn't me, I didn't do it, I don't post, the bite marks still haven't healed from last time." Ryan/jrc
    4. Re:Are there any brick and mortar stores by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ... And in other news, stereo headphones are "worthless" for people who only have hearing in one ear.

    5. Re:Are there any brick and mortar stores by NeGz · · Score: 1

      As opposed to the hours and hours of battery life that most current (non centrino/apple/ultraportable) high end laptops have? :)

    6. Re:Are there any brick and mortar stores by merlin_jim · · Score: 1

      The 3D display technology has no bearing on the battery life; basically the display technology is a special lens laid over the screen with software to format the image appropriately.

      --
      I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
  7. 3D Displays by AnomalyConcept · · Score: 5, Interesting

    This would be extremely useful, especially in the CAD community. While I only know a little about the area of CAD and manufacturing, this combined with the inkjet plastics printing (I forget the term for it) or rapid prototyping machines would be really neat. Imagine designing something, and being able to view it in 3D from all angles (instead of a render), and then sending it to be printed off. I've never seen one of these 3D displays before; how are the objects rendered? How much processing power is needed to create such a display, especially from a 3D model? I'm sure it needs to be rendered first, but what about a flat-shading 3D program like Autodesk Inventor? 3D displays would be neat for new GUIs. Instead of having a flat 3D desktop, you could have a true 3D desktop. That would be interesting to see...

  8. p0rn! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    OMFG. 3D P0RN ON THE GO!

    my prayers have been answered. and I'm sure yours too ;)

  9. NXT, not NEC by Boneburner · · Score: 5, Informative

    I don't want to be an smartass... but the SoundVu technology is not property of NEC, it was developed by NXT... just a word...

    1. Re:NXT, not NEC by Haydn+Fenton · · Score: 5, Funny

      "I don't want to be an smartass..."

      Don't worry, you failed being a smartass within the first six words ;)

  10. are you thinking what I'm thinking by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    you mean edible? like pie? oh wait, now i get it ;)

  11. First thing I noticed... by James+A.+S.+Joyce · · Score: 0, Troll

    ...was that in that hefty 30 line writeup, nowhere is the cost of all of this stuff mentioned. I bet it's still all out of my price range. :-(

    --
    GNAA

    1. Re:First thing I noticed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

      Don't worry. The price will be brought down fast thanks to the pron industry!

    2. Re:First thing I noticed... by NanoGator · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "..was that in that hefty 30 line writeup, nowhere is the cost of all of this stuff mentioned. I bet it's still all out of my price range. :-("

      This is typical of new technology. Comes out expensive, gets popular, then gets relatively cheap. Early adopters that pay lots of $$$ for the new stuff help pay for the R&D that goes into it. Don't be discouraged, rather just expect to wait another year or two.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    3. Re:First thing I noticed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      They accept Visa, Mastercard, arms and legs, and kidneys.

  12. 3D autostereoscopic displays from MIT by cgenman · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I'm trying to wrap my mind around what exactly that convoluted mess of an MIT press release is trying to say. If I understand correctly, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong, the system tracks the heads of the people surrounding the display, then projects left-eye right-eye information through an adjustable polarized filter and lense system so that the viewable angle only includes the intended eye. The reason they need such a high refresh-rate is because they want a system that would work with 4 people... 4 people = 8 eyes = 8 times the updates.

    In essence, that's very cool. Why couldn't they just say that?

    1. Re:3D autostereoscopic displays from MIT by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      because they are MIT, duh.

      they want you to think that they are a bunch of genius academics (when they are really a bunch of crazy hardware hackers)

      (add salt to taste ;)

  13. And I'm assuming... by TheMadPenguin · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This doesn't work with Linux? From what I read, they are assuming I run Windows ;)

    --
    Linux with kernel panic...
    MadPenguin.org
    1. Re:And I'm assuming... by RLiegh · · Score: 1

      Is running windows on vmware or bochs an option for you?

    2. Re:And I'm assuming... by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "This doesn't work with Linux? From what I read, they are assuming I run Windows ;)"

      That's the great thing about Linux! You can write all the software to make the stereo display work yourself!!! Make sure to release it so we can all have it too. :)

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    3. Re:And I'm assuming... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They're not assuming anything about you. They've decided that most laptop users run Windows and accordingly wrote their software for that. Only the most self-centered SOB would think a major manufacturer would make products specifically for (or not for) them.

    4. Re:And I'm assuming... by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 1

      You can get a Sharp Actius RD3D with Linux installed. The 3D effect works under Linux.

  14. Off-topic but it had to be announced by foidulus · · Score: 1, Funny

    I am in the market for a monitor(well, actually a TV/Monitor combo) so I headed on over to Sanyo's site. any company that makes a Hello Kitty toaster has to be an awesome company. I would order one cept I don't have $40 to burn :(

    1. Re:Off-topic but it had to be announced by Lispy · · Score: 1

      Hey, I got one. Sad part is I live in germany. And now I will have to completely rebuild the toaster to make it work with germanies 220V grid. But at least a friend of mine had an idea. We'll just stick a diode inside the beast and put a schuko connector on it. That's as dirty a hack as it gets but in theory it should work. I just HAD to have it... ;-)

    2. Re:Off-topic but it had to be announced by Xaroth · · Score: 1

      I dunno... it doesn't really look big enough to toast a whole cat...

      Oh, wait. That's not quite what you meant.

  15. More info here: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Rob "CmdrTaco" Malda stepped off the bus and was led into the yard of the Main
    State Correctional Institute. He had been given ten years for participating in
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    never make it through ten years in the general population with his virginity
    intact. He had to get into solitary.

    As soon as the burly guard unshackled him he made his move. Exhaling a feminine
    "hmmph" he weakly slapped the guard. He was quickly taken to the ground,
    receiving a swift kick to the ribs before being restrained. As he was dragged
    to the solitary confinement cell he felt nothing but relief. "At least in
    solitary," he thought "I'll be safe." Unfortunately for Rob he had picked the
    wrong guard to mess with.

    The next few days were uneventful. The time in his cell he spent evenly between
    sleeping, reading a "Perl for Dummies" book he had gotten from the book cart,
    and masturbating furiously. His self-flagellation was interrupted on the fourth
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    were a short black dress, black stilleto heels, and a curly blonde wig. "Strip
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    The guard left the shower stall, only to return minutes later. He opened the
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    him he couldn't walk and his mouth was filled with dingleberries and ass hairs.
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    all have AIDS." It was going to be a long ten years for Rob.

  16. Small viewing angle by Saeger · · Score: 3, Interesting
    I imagine that the effective viewing angle on these planar 3D displays is very restrictive; move a couple inches to either side and all you'll end up seeing is the half-resolution image meant for one eye.

    The "3D displays to come" that hold the most promise, however, will require that you wear (non-dorky) viewing glasses. These normal looking glasses will use a safe Retinal Scanning laser to directly overlay 3D imagery onto your field of view. Of course, we won't see this tech in BestBuy until the Law of Accelerating Returns has run the course of a few more years.

    It's not too hard to think of several killer apps for augmented vision that make all other conventional displays pale in comparison. Even a wall-sized OLED display would take 2nd.

    --

    --
    Power to the Peaceful
    1. Re:Small viewing angle by cgenman · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Actually, the LCD versions have several viewing angles... move an inch to the side and you're out of phase, move another inch and you're back in phase. It's not perfect, but it works.

      Still, the reason that 3D displays are not currently popular is simply that people won't wear glasses. The SEGA Mastersystem had an excellent 3D effect from a simple pair of shuttered glasses. These are cheap and affordable, the type Kasperov used in his last (completely gimmocky) match against a computer. The 3D effect they produce is also darned good, with the only complaint being that you have to put on glasses. Now, if the only problem for the past 20 years is that you have to put on a pair of glasses, yet 3D has never taken off, why do you think there are so many people working so intently on glasses-free 3D?

      If you look at the MIT site, they're working on what is essentially an eye-specific projection system from a centralized viewing pannel that uses head tracking and approximation instead of glasses. Now this technology has promise.

  17. Does anything actaully use this? by bcmm · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Does/will any software actaully use this?

    It would be very cool for CAD, but this is going to take up to much processor for real-time gaming rendering, isn't it?

    --
    # cat /dev/mem | strings | grep -i llama
    Damn, my RAM is full of llamas.
    1. Re:Does anything actaully use this? by aka-ed · · Score: 1
      Didn't you see the "Sun Java Desktop" demos? Imagine, not only can you flip windows so you can see their blank grey undersides, you will be able to see this blank grayness in 3 dimensions!

      More seriously, Sun does seem to think that a 3D desktop will be useful. I doubt it but then, one would need some hands-on with the implementation to judge.

      --
      I survived the Dick Cheney Presidency 7 to 9 AM 7-21-07
    2. Re:Does anything actaully use this? by jackbird · · Score: 3, Interesting
      CAD usually end up hitting system resources much harder than games, since games are designed to only render datasets that will provide acceptable performance on the target hardware, while CAD programs, by their very nature, can attempt to render models of arbitrary complexity. Furthermore, with an arbitrary CAD model, you can't get performance boosts from precalculated optimizations like BSP trees.

      Also, speaking as someone who spends much of the workday turning 2D CAD files into 3D models, I don't think a 3D display would really be that useful in CAD, except maybe for client presentations. For starters, leveraging a 3D display to full usefulness would require a good 3D input device, and those just haven't arrived.

      Furthermore, given the limited number of scanlines, It would seem you'd be restricted to a fairly low number of pixels (depth-xels?) of Z resolution, which could quickly become a problem with fine detail.

    3. Re:Does anything actaully use this? by evenmoreconfused · · Score: 1

      The Stereoscopic Player (at http://mitglied.lycos.de/stereo3d/) and the StereoMovie Player (at http://www3.zero.ad.jp/esuto/stvply/indexe.htm) both support lots of 3D output formats, including most (if not all of the autostereoscopic ones this article is about).

      Now interesting content is another question altogether...

      --
      No. Well...maybe. Actually, yes. It really just depends.
    4. Re:Does anything actaully use this? by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 2

      The Sharp Actius RD3D can be used with games. It comes bundled with James Bond 007: Nightfire, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2003, and Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2.

      As for other uses, Dynamic Digital Depth has photo viewer, movie player, molecular viewer, and PowerPoint plugin that are bundled with the Actius RD3D as well. They can also be used with other autostereo displays.

    5. Re:Does anything actaully use this? by merlin_jim · · Score: 1

      The only way I've found to get a true color 3D image is to put both images side by side, then look at their center cross eyed. Is there a better way?

      Well, most stereo display technologies seperate the image into left-eye and right-eye views. These displays use vertical lines for each view, so your y resolution is cut in half. Shutter Glasses use page flipping for each view, so your refresh rate is cut in half.

      The z dimension is assembled by the brain itself, and doesn't have a resolution per se. My experience has been that a good anti-aliasing renderer can achieve an image that appears to be as deep as it is wide, with sub-pixel depth accuracy. (that is, if you assume that each pixel is a cube and not a square, a good renderer can position images with sub-pixel accuracy in the z dimension)

      I have yet to see someone do good transparent wireframes; this is something I'd be interested in trying, however :)

      --
      I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
  18. Another idea ! by zymano · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    How about develop a hdtv plasma display for under a $1000 dollars.

    Put some research into that.

  19. Reminds me of Looking Glass by XyborX · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Wow.. Imagine this combined with Suns Project Looking Glass..

    1. Perfect the technology
    2. Lower the cost so consumers can afford it
    3. "My laptop is more awesome than yours!"
    4. Profit!
    --
    // Just my few cents
  20. actually, since the first 3-d laptop was announced by way2trivial · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I've been wondering, how long until we have digital cameras that have dual element ccd's

    digital sterescopic imagery... for said laptops...

    I'd love to take some 3-d pictures of my son for example.. esp if I could rotate the shots a few degrees....

    --
    every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
  21. Without autostereo? by mikael · · Score: 2, Funny

    The first laptop using an autostereo display to show images in 3D without special glasses was the Sharp Mebius PC-RD3D in Japan, later released in the US as the Sharp Actius RD3D

    Is the version without this feature, the Sharp Actius R2D2?

    --
    Vintage computer adverts: http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/computers-and-software-ads
    1. Re:Without autostereo? by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "Is the version without this feature, the Sharp Actius R2D2?"

      Troll? That wasn't the funniest post ever, but it wasn't malicious either.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
  22. Sharp Actius by Throtex · · Score: 5, Informative

    If you click on the Sharp Actius RD3D link and then click "Where to Buy", they show you the direct-from-the-manufacturer cost and allow you to purchase it.

    If it's worth it, I'd buy it. It's running at $2,999.00 at this moment. Can't really tell if it's worth it by looking at a picture of it over the Internet, though.

    1. Re:Sharp Actius by sparcnut · · Score: 1
      Can't really tell if it's worth it by looking at a picture of it over the Internet, though.
      It's kinda ironic to post pictures of 3d displays on the Internet as 2d images, isn't it?
      --
      perl -e 'print $i=pack(c5, (41*2), sqrt(7056), (unpack(c,H)-2), oct(115), 10);'
  23. Anyone ever seen these? by Titchener · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I would really love to hear a first-hand account from slashdotters who have actually seen these in person, at trade shows or whatnot. Popular media/press releases rob me of my soul.

    1. Re:Anyone ever seen these? by Harry+Coin · · Score: 1

      I saw one at a government trade show last year. Everything else in the place was dull as dishwater, but when I saw that display I was frozen in my tracks. I can't remember the model, but I can vouch for the effect. No glasses, surprisingly wide viewing angle, and a real feeling of 3d. Very slick.

      --
      That's pre 7-11 thinking....
  24. Build your own rig by MacFury · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Two of my friends have Canon Digital Rebels. We built a small rig using wood and machine screws that allows us to position the cameras side by side, lenses pointing slightly inward.

    It gives us some pretty cool stereo graphic images. The only way I've found to get a true color 3D image is to put both images side by side, then look at their center cross eyed. Is there a better way?

    1. Re:Build your own rig by ejaw5 · · Score: 1

      You could put both pictures in an animated gif like shown here:
      http://www.well.com/user/jimg/stereo/stereo _hearth .html

      I believe there are some stereoscopic glasses you can use to view the two images as one 3D picture.

      --

      $cat /dev/random > Sig
    2. Re:Build your own rig by hugesmile · · Score: 2, Informative
      You can build or buy a stereoscope. See this link for some sample antique stereoscopes. The concept is that you have a card that is about 10 inches from your eyes. On the card is the two pictures, one for each eye. Then the stereoscope separates your vision so that each eye sees a different image. This is the 19th century version of the Viewmaster.

      The antiques might work well if you print your images side-by-side.

    3. Re:Build your own rig by cristofer8 · · Score: 1

      Or, do what the old-school stereoscopes (i think) did. basically, place a thin piece of cardboard perpendicular to the photos, and let it rest between your eyes, touching your nose. Now, since each eye only sees the intended image, it'll look somewhat 3-d, though you'll have to play with the distance to get it right.

    4. Re:Build your own rig by jensen404 · · Score: 1

      Here is a good setup to view stereo pairs: http://www.crystalcanyons.net/Pages/TechNotes/Dual MonitorDigitalViewing.shtm It works with two monitors with a mirror placed between them. The mirror is placed in front of one of your eyes to redirect the image from the second monitor into that eye. It allows natural viewing of the 3d image without eyestrain. It seems that you are only looking at one monitor

    5. Re:Build your own rig by cgenman · · Score: 1

      Link. Slashdot adds spaces to long words, to keep people from creating tremendously wide pages, but this breaks a lot of links.

    6. Re:Build your own rig by merlin_jim · · Score: 1

      The only way I've found to get a true color 3D image is to put both images side by side, then look at their center cross eyed. Is there a better way?

      Yeah, get an nvidia graphics card and a $30 pair of LCD shutterglasses.

      Format the image as a .jps and it'll show up. I have software to do the conversion, as well as repair slight imaging defects, if you want it. (James dot McCracken At Stratapult dot Com)

      Oh, and pointing the lenses inward is called "toe-in" and is not suggested for good stereo imagery.

      The best way to get good stereo imagery is to point both cameras dead forward and parallel. Seperate the lenses by 1/30th the distance to the nearest in-frame object.

      Oh, and if you want to do it without two cameras, I bought a stainless steel drawer slide, drilled and tapped holes for tripod bolts (4-20 is the thread size), and mount my camera to that. Then I take a picture, slide the camera, take another picture. It's nice because it lets me be flexible; I'm publishing a book of 3D images that will include portraits, macro photography, and landscapes... a fixed mount just won't meet my needs...

      --
      I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
  25. Of course! by DrMrLordX · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    "Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi! You're my only hope!"

  26. Re:actually, since the first 3-d laptop was announ by DrMrLordX · · Score: 1

    Would someone explain to me how this is a troll? Are you assuming that the poster in question wants to take pornographic pictures of his son? That is not even implied in his post. What if he wants to take pictures of his son in a little-league baseball game? What if he wants to examine his batting stance from multiple angles?

    Silly moderators. This is a perfectly innocent post. Please do not punish the fellow for being curious about 3-d photography. Not everyone who takes pictures of their own children is a pervert or molester.

    Given the poster's recent moderation history, I'm guessing that this guy's post is not filled with nefarious intent(in jest or otherwise).

  27. Who is moderating the posts here? by The+MESMERIC · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I've never seen such a set of unbelievable foul modding down of genuine posts!

    I mean the arsehole is not being unfair (for that you need inteligence) - he is just thick, a simpleton, on auto-mode: barely reading the posts and clicking-in the radio-buttons.

    This modding system would work if we had slick/cool/wise people doing it - but not by idiots like these.

    NB: I am *NOT* saying this for myself - but seeing interesting remarks modded down stupidly (from people that have way more to offer than our moron in question) - does somewhat piss me off!

    1. Re:Who is moderating the posts here? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'd have to guess that some 12 year-old has behaved himself until he got mod priveleges and then went to town with stupid moderations.

      That, or someone has actually managed to do something clever simply in order to do something as retarded as this...

    2. Re:Who is moderating the posts here? by The+MESMERIC · · Score: 0

      yeah it sounds like a kid
      or the guy was drunk/drugged.

    3. Re:Who is moderating the posts here? by SlipJig · · Score: 1

      Hmmm... I have mod points and thought it would be funny to mod your complaint down as Offtopic, but I figured the point would be lost. Hence this reply instead :)

      I agree on your point though.

      --
      Read my keyboard review.
  28. As a professional 3D Photographer... by callipygian-showsyst · · Score: 2, Interesting
    ...I am very encouraged with the new LCD autostereo displays.

    3D photo imaging never seems to become mainstream, and not having to wear viewing glasses may help its acceptance, at least in some areas (visualization, gaming).

    And there's nothing like the natural appearance of a good 3D Photo.

    1. Re:As a professional 3D Photographer... by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 2, Informative

      Have you heard of Big3D.com? They can produce large lenticular prints. However they use Photoshop layers to produce the 3D effect, so although there will be parallax between the layers, each layer will appear flat.

  29. pr0n? by akeyes · · Score: 0

    Wow, no "viewing pr0n in 3d" comment yet.

    1. Re:pr0n? by OlaL · · Score: 1

      I guess it was sooo self-explanatory that nobody bothered to send it in :D

    2. Re:pr0n? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So you want 3D porn, do you? It's already out there!

  30. no: diy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
  31. no meobius by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They call it "Mebius" (in reference to Moebius) and their logo is a twisted loop. However, if you look carefully, the strip has two twists in it, and therefore is NOT a moebius strip.
    Ok maybe I'm being too geeky here.

  32. Re:actually, since the first 3-d laptop was announ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There are 3 root level posts modded troll that should not be, so hopefully the person responsible will be metamoderated appropriately.

  33. Re:actually, since the first 3-d laptop was announ by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 2, Informative

    Canon was going to produce a 3D lens for their XL1 DV cam, but they canned the idea.

  34. SeeReal and other stereo monitor companies by maddugan · · Score: 3, Informative

    SeeReal and other stereo monitor manufactures use a similar technique as the Sharp laptop, but the go one step further and track the viewers position and shift the internal LCD to face the viewer. This improves the small view angle, but make the monitor thicker and wider to accommodate the clearance required for the shifting.

    1. Re:SeeReal and other stereo monitor companies by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 1

      Here is a list of autostereo displays, that includes SeeReal. A few of them have head tracking.

  35. I wonder about people without stereoscopic vision by kaladorn · · Score: 2, Interesting

    There are a number of us out there (yes me...), I think around 1-3%, who have effectively no 3D (stereoscopic) vision. In my case, I can detect a profound shift from eye to eye. When I tested on the fancy opthomalogical(sp?) machine where you try to line up 4 lines into a + sign (roughly), I could only ever see two at a time, which two depending on which eye I 'looked' through. In university geology courses, I could never use a stereoscope to examine stereoscopic pictures (trying to estimate a slide-mass was really fun....).

    So, I wonder which, if any, of these 3D technologies will work for people with these kinds of problems? Or, will we just become another group of 'informationally handicapped' people? (Which would suck, since I'm a programmer!)

    --
    -- Mal: "Well they tell you: never hit a man with a closed fist. But it is, on occasion, hilarious."
  36. Big deal... by payndz · · Score: 1
    Wake me up when they invent the holodeck!

    (Of course, by then there'll be some new *AA trying to crack down on 'illegal 3-D celebrity body scans' to take all the fun out of it...)

    --
    You must think in Russian.
    1. Re:Big deal... by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 1
  37. Who will make the write a new linux standard? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    x.org or xfree86?

  38. Here now? by jez9999 · · Score: 1

    Well it's cool that AutoStereoScopic displays are here now. When can I bury my head in an ASS?

    1. Re:Here now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Anytime. Look in the Yellow Pages or the classified section of a newspaper, under escorts.

  39. The poster fails to mention that the MIT... by Assmasher · · Score: 1

    ...solution currently requires head trackers. You don't want to go there, trust me.

    --
    Loading...
  40. autostereoscopic is where its at, by drfrog · · Score: 1

    nuff said?

    --
    back in the day we didnt have no old school
  41. Re people without stereoscopic vision by duffel · · Score: 1

    Well, I'm not an expert, but I believe you would see the images on the display like you see the rest of the world. That is ultimately the goal of 3d technology.

    In the cases mentioned, the display sends slightly different perspective views to both eyes. You should still be able to see one or the other, even if you can't see both at once.

    In the case of the "walkaround" 3d display mentioned in one of the links, the display should still track your position correctly and send you the right perspective, so that again you would perceive the object imaged as you would an object in the real world.

    1. Re:Re people without stereoscopic vision by craznar · · Score: 3, Informative

      I'm sort of an expert, in that I have had dual mono-scopic vision for almost 40 years now.

      People without stereoscopic vision who are that way because of large deviations in the angle at which their eyes point will get no 3-D from any form of 3D technology.

      Why, well I have 6 degree vertical separation between my eyes, so when both my eyes are open simultaneously my brain has to ignore one of the images to cope.

      So it will continue to ignore one of the stereo images even if produced artificially.

      --
      EMail: 0110001101100010010000000110001101110010 0110000101111010011011100110000101110010 0010111001100011011011110110
    2. Re:Re people without stereoscopic vision by blueskies · · Score: 1

      That's amazing. I would have thought the brain pliable enough to adjust to the vertical separation when calculating disparity between the right and left images. Kind of like that experiment where they made someone wear glasses the flipped their vision upside down. After a couple of days, they could see normally b/c the brain adjusted and re-righted the images.

    3. Re:Re people without stereoscopic vision by craznar · · Score: 1

      I would have thought the brain pliable enough to adjust to the vertical separation when calculating disparity between the right and left images.
      It is to a point.... 6 degrees is too far vertical. After a couple of days, If the 3D image was vertically corrected by 6 degrees AND I looked at it for 3 days then I'd be in for a treat.

      --
      EMail: 0110001101100010010000000110001101110010 0110000101111010011011100110000101110010 0010111001100011011011110110
  42. He's not fat... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    he's just big-boned.

  43. Re:I wonder about people without stereoscopic visi by jensen404 · · Score: 1

    Actually, a good 3d viewer for you may be simpler. Use an eye tracking system, and have an ordinary monitor display an oblect at a different position depending on your eye position.

    This will only work for dynamically created 3d content, like 3d games. No way to do this with photos or videos.

  44. RD3D? by ozbird · · Score: 3, Funny

    I'm not sure about that model, but here's a picture of the R3D3 display in action.

  45. That's pretty sad. by blair1q · · Score: 2, Insightful

    When the MIT Media Lab puts up a webpage about a display, and it's all text, you know there's some suck built right in.

  46. i don't care... by ylikone · · Score: 1

    I just want LCD monitors to come down in price already! I don't want to pay $600 for a 17" LCD monitor when I can pick up a 21" regular monitor for around $250.

    --
    Meh.
  47. stereo + haptics by rexguo · · Score: 2, Interesting

    That is great and all, but I believe the problem with all that, is that you -still- can't intereact with the 3D object you're seeing, at the place where it -appears-. That is, you're seeing the object in front of you, but your hand is like 30cm away on the mouse (or whatever 3D input device) trying to manipulate it. That's one thing we solved at ReachIn (a company where I used to work for) by projecting the stereo image onto a mirror, and have a 3-DOF force-feedback device installed under the mirror, so that the hand can be -at the same place as the object-!

    --
    www.rexguo.com - Technologist + Designer
    1. Re:stereo + haptics by Anonymous+Writer · · Score: 2, Informative

      That is great and all, but I believe the problem with all that, is that you -still- can't intereact with the 3D object you're seeing, at the place where it -appears-.

      Yes you can. There are 3D input devices such as mice, joysticks, gloves, and haptic devices.

  48. Barking Up The Wrong Tree by jaghatarjankare · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I think they're all barking up the wrong tree.

    This 3D thing is not about making something in 2D 'appear' to be 3D, but about really making it 3D.

    I mean holograms and stuff, but far beyond.

    I mean when you want to save a file, you literally reach out and grab it in your fist and drop it in a folder and whoosh there it goes in the folder and its saved.

    When you want to open a file, you literally pry a folder open with your fingers and then select from the contents within.

    You could also use the 'office cabinet' algorithm. Someone will figure it out.

    But we won't need keyboards and mice much longer. We'll talk to the danged things. And we'll have a manual override so you can 'reach out and touch it' and do it yourself.

    And yes, for the fringe groups, this will mean porn comes to an all-new hi-tech level.

    1. Re:Barking Up The Wrong Tree by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And you could use a dynamically generated 3d pen to write on the folders, and...

      I already have folders I can pry open. Natural interfaces are all well and good, but technology that enables people to do things they've been able to do for thousands of years isn't exactly going to excite most people.

      One of the main things pushing technology forward all these years is that it has offered better, faster ways to accomplish things. For many of the tasks people use their computers to accomplish, such displays could be seen as a massive step backwards. Sure, you could reach out and crumple up that email you're writing, but what would you actually gain from doing so beyond a sense of novelty? Why not just delete it, seeing as how that would take significantly less effort?

      I do think that more natural interfaces are the way to go, but at the same time they have to offer some sort of added functionality compared to current technology. To ignore the new possibilities for interaction these things would give us and instead functionally cripple them by forcing them to emulate pre-existing things is ludicrous.

  49. Worst headache ive ever had was from retinal scan by rufusdufus · · Score: 1

    I doubt that retinal scanners will ever be a popular technology. First off you have to wear some sort of doohicky which blocks normal vision and is uncomfortable and jsut plain dorky.
    Next, you have a laser drawing on your eye.

    The one I used was mono-chrome, and the experience was a lot like looking through a keyhole at a crappy LED display. I used it for about a minute tops, and immediately after taking it off, I experienced a terrible headache and massive disorientation. I was disoriented for about half and hour and had the headache for longer.

  50. 3D by TimeElf1 · · Score: 0

    Hey sounds like the movie Paycheck.

    --
    Cannot find REALITY.SYS. Universe halted.
  51. Re:I wonder about people without stereoscopic visi by jbaach · · Score: 1

    Its a bit late, but a short reply:

    My world is 2D as well, and I tried several 3D displays a couple of year ago, nothing worked still 2D.

    In Sydney I had the first 3D experience in my life: in the powerhousemuseum.com they have a 3D display where you look into the corner of a room, two walls are projections and you have shutter glasses. Really cool, nearly missed my flight back home.

    Second time was on the cebit back home. The Frauenhofer Institute have a display which is autostereoscopic, using a single large lens to projecting two beams. Great experience as well, and the headache lasted only for half an hour.

    So there seem to be some displays that work. Now I only need some special glasses for augmentation, to make my normal view 3D.....

    Joerg

  52. half the speed by peter303 · · Score: 1

    Most systems render twice - at a viewing angle for each eye. Many 3D software (SGI-GL, OpenGL) has had this capability for 20 years.

  53. Three on Mars by peter303 · · Score: 1

    The two American rovers plus the ESA Orbitor have dual CCD systems for 3D. JPL periodicall released stereo panoramas. The ESA results are spectacular compared to the older altimeter-based 3D renderings.