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LeVar Burton On Google Glass
An anonymous reader writes "While he acknowledged that technology needs to keep going forward, LeVar Burton didn't seem comfortable with the idea of using Google Glass. '"It disturbed me. I was skeptical... [and] I'm a person that's very open to technology." That's the reaction LeVar Burton, the man best known from Reading Rainbow and Star Trek: The Next Generation, first had when encountering Google Glass backstage at Engadget Expand. Burton, a self-described edutainment pioneer, acknowledges the disruptive power new technologies can have on media and culture — after all, he did help transform television into a worthy educational tool/babysitter with his PBS program. But even with that storied success, and his company's current inroads into digital with an iPad Reading Rainbow application, Burton still had a "knee-jerk" response when confronted with Glass. Although his celebrity status and the resulting paranoia could have something to do with it.'"
Google Glass is marketed in the wrong way. Just like Segway they're trying to hype it for use by everybody all the time and justifiably it's backfiring on them. They should market it quietly to niche applications, e.g. HUD-like instructions and videos for DIY jobs, easy-to-use trail maps / plant identification for hikers, or self-service tours for tourists. These are useful applications that don't impact society on a grand scale, and later on the public can decide if they want to adapt it to more widespread use, at their own pace.
One can be opposed to the "Google" part without being against the "Glass" concept - although I do somewhat lean in the direction you mention anyway (I've got a smartphone and don't really see the added value here).
I would not be opposed, in theory, to something like Google Glass that was completely under my control. But I've come to realize that using free services from companies like Google and Facebook means I also have to give away something I'd prefer they not have - more or less unfettered access to much of my personal data. And, perhaps more importantly, I've learned that even if I choose not to use those services, they're slurping up my information without my consent (via shadow profiles) if any of my acquaintances are using their services.
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