well i'm in the beta, and so far at least there are no mcdonalds anything. i suppose they're working on it, but since they're getting paid extra for it i would think they'd have put it in by now. the high end computers are intel pentiums, though.
quoting from the "begind the scenes" section of the star wars databank on the jedi archives:
The stately architecture and vaulted ceilings of the Jedi Archives Room were inspired by a variety of real-world libraries, including the Vatican and those found in old English estates. A bare minimum of the set was constructed -- only Kenobi's immediate work area and several busts were constructed. The majority of the scenery -- the rows and rows of holobooks and high ceilings -- were realized as miniatures.
so if any inspiration came from dublin, it wasn't in full...
problem is, it says here that the erica system gets only "approximately 0.5 to 1 centimeter accuracy on a computer monitor when sitting at a normal viewing distance", versus the trackir, which gets a sensor accuracy "greater than 1 mm in translational reporting RMS, accuracy is about.5mm" at 18" from the unit, as reported by an employee on their dev boards here.
as i recall, i saw the "sends other unix boxes to/dev/null" ad for the powerbook inside the front cover in scientific american last month, so i wouldn't say they're that "new". so perhaps it was in anticipation of the end of the contract then, but not of the anti-unix campaign then.
i should think that human computer interaction research by definition applies to real-world applications. by making real live humans central, obviously any research must be geared towards things humans will use, thus being applicable to the "real world". while a lot it may not all be useful today and now (e.g., his reference to "unworkable, esoteric 3-d browsers") it still has applications (military, etc) and most will probably eventually filter down to the mainstream, not to mention the ton of more "real world" hci research going on, especially in corporations whose focus is on the usability of their products (e.g. nokia hardware/software, microsoft, etc).
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well i'm in the beta, and so far at least there are no mcdonalds anything. i suppose they're working on it, but since they're getting paid extra for it i would think they'd have put it in by now. the high end computers are intel pentiums, though.
quoting from the "begind the scenes" section of the star wars databank on the jedi archives:
The stately architecture and vaulted ceilings of the Jedi Archives Room were inspired by a variety of real-world libraries, including the Vatican and those found in old English estates. A bare minimum of the set was constructed -- only Kenobi's immediate work area and several busts were constructed. The majority of the scenery -- the rows and rows of holobooks and high ceilings -- were realized as miniatures.
so if any inspiration came from dublin, it wasn't in full...
problem is, it says here that the erica system gets only "approximately 0.5 to 1 centimeter accuracy on a computer monitor when sitting at a normal viewing distance", versus the trackir, which gets a sensor accuracy "greater than 1 mm in translational reporting RMS, accuracy is about .5mm" at 18" from the unit, as reported by an employee on their dev boards here.
btw, trackir also has mostly working linux drivers, and a freeware non-commercial activex component.
as i recall, i saw the "sends other unix boxes to /dev/null" ad for the powerbook inside the front cover in scientific american last month, so i wouldn't say they're that "new". so perhaps it was in anticipation of the end of the contract then, but not of the anti-unix campaign then.
i should think that human computer interaction research by definition applies to real-world applications. by making real live humans central, obviously any research must be geared towards things humans will use, thus being applicable to the "real world". while a lot it may not all be useful today and now (e.g., his reference to "unworkable, esoteric 3-d browsers") it still has applications (military, etc) and most will probably eventually filter down to the mainstream, not to mention the ton of more "real world" hci research going on, especially in corporations whose focus is on the usability of their products (e.g. nokia hardware/software, microsoft, etc).
in terms of the best labs, i'm biased coming from cmu, but i can say we have quite a repertoire of "real world" research projects like computer based tutoring, safer cars (with gm), the use of the internet in american homes, and making programming accessible to all in addition to the more far off stuff like command post of the future, visual copresence, and everybody's favorite, wearable computing
Wow Web Designs, maybe, but if they're gonna get slashdotted showcasing such great web sites, you think their ISP would be Wow Web Bandwidth
I've used a Japanese controller in a US XBox. Admittedly it came from a development house, but it's supposedly the same as the final release.