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MS Seeks Patent On Virtual Fuzzy Dice
theodp writes "Microsoft just published a patent application for an adaptive heads-up user interface for automobiles. It covers, among other things, virtual fuzzy dice that appear to move with automobile movements."
Did they patent a virtual air freshener too? Because I really need one.
I have some fuzzy dangling things that they can try and patent.
I can't wait till the virtual dancing hula girl arrives.... She could probably even dance to show you the direction to turn when plugged into your GPS.
Karma Whoring for Fun and Profit.
First Clippy, now Dicey?
Does this patent cover anything that sways when hung from a virtual car and virtually sways?
I'm really concerned about the virtual nutsack I have hanging from my virtual trailer hitch on my virtual truck.
Will there be a GPS-based clippy that gives directions to places you don't want to go?
Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
I have had fuzzy dice that move with the car movements for as long as I can remember. And it's a mechanical device too, not your fancy digital dice. Now excuse me, I gotta go put holes in some punchcards.
I hadn't known there were so many idiots in the world until I started using the Internet -Stanislaw Lem
I cant wait to get one so I can have...
My own....
Virtual......
Jesus
A huge finger on the other hand...
Deleted
... as long as I got my digital Jesus, riding on the dashboard of my car.
Gives a new meaning to "Where do you want to go today?"
I hadn't known there were so many idiots in the world until I started using the Internet -Stanislaw Lem
Virtual displays? Who needs 'em? Why, when I was young, you were lucky to have a windscreen at all, let alone a roof over your head. And these fancy 'automatic' transmissions. Who needs 'em? And now they have six, seven, even eight speeds! Why, we only had three, four of you counted reverse, and you had to select them yourself using a stick that came up through the floor boards. Why, the clutch was so heavy, my left leg was near twice the size of my right. And power hydraulic brakes, we had good steel links running to our drum brakes and they worked fine! Sure they would fade out on a long hill and leave you hanging on the horn hoping nobody pulled out in front of you while you zipped through town, but we liked 'em just fine! Intermittent wipers? We had 'em! Those old vacuum motors were about as intermittent as you could get! Stomp on the gas going up a big hill and the manifold would drop to zero and wipers would just freeze, leaving you charging up the hill with water streaming across the windscreen, if you were lucky enough to have one, the whole world a blurry mess. Of course, if you didn't have a windscreen, you could just wipe your glass goggles with the chamois back of your driving gloves, if you were lucky enough to have them.
"You appear to be in an accident, air bags are about to deploy. Cancel or Allow?"
A patent on Virtual Flying Chairs?!
The problem with socialism is that they always run out of other people's money. - Margaret Thatcher
Heh.
"You appear to be crying out in pain, do you wish help writing a complaint to the manufacturer?"
"You appear not a DMV certified driver, HUD functions will be limited to wanted stars and health levels"
which is totally what she said
Hopefully this will fail the new obviousness criteria
I, on the other hand, hope that all of microsoft's other patents fail, and this is the only one they're left with in their entire portfolio. Fluffy dice.
I wrote my first program at the age of six, and I still can't work out how this website works.
Don't forget Virtual Middle Finger! (tm)
Redundancy is good And also good.
Better combustion technology, efficiency etc. blah blah, that would be far too sensible! How about a fast, small footprint, reliable, secure operating system with a clean, responsive interface? Instead we have Vista!!
There'll be DRM, so it should really be "Where will we allow you to go today?"
Oolite: Elite-like game. For Mac, Linux and Windows
The other issue is that we finally get to experience the punch line to that old joke, stopping the car every 100 miles to reboot it.
And just think of all the accidents when the blue screen of death obscures the entire windshield...
...display virtual loose bits of paper, assorted junk and fast food wrappers that slide back and forth on my dashboard as I go around corners?
Have gnu, will travel.
Didn't you know that they had promoted the designer of Microsoft BOB to the auto research department?
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
You are attempting to brake at a stop sign. Cancel or Allow?
I know I saw it in Crazy Taxi (on the Dreamcast)...
Ug... This patent crap has gotten out of hand.
We should just scrap the whole pile of fuzzy dice & start over with a shorter available protection period & an easier means of shooting down invalid patent apps to begin with.
Oh! And this one time, at band camp...