6 ms·

Microsoft's Kinect: The New Mouse?

13 points by mjfern 16y ago

smoody 16y ago
I'm I the only one concerned about concentrated pin-point beams of UV light being shined into my eyes for hours-on-end when using Kinect? I know we can't see the UV light, but that doesn't mean it can't hurt our optical wetware, right? If it were in our visible spectrum, how bright would it be? As bright as a flashlight shining in our eyes? Brighter than that? Less bright? Obviously I know not what I talk about and this is all FUD, but I haven't seen it addressed anywhere.
- georgieporgie 16y ago
  I was looking into this the other week for an entirely unrelated project. There do seem to be well-established standards for UV exposure over time, though nailing it down in a layman-digestible (i.e. me) way was tough. IR-emitting security cameras, for example, will provide a diagram showing how long you can safely face the camera in various zones (it was usually measured in hours, so don't panic if you pass a camera on the way out of the office).
- piaskal 16y ago
  I think they are using IR, not UV.
  - brg 16y ago
    Indeed it is IR, http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/11/tonights-release-xbox-kinect-how-does-it-work/ http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/11/tonights-release-xbox....
zacharyz 16y ago
So how long until they are integrated into displays then?
MortenK 16y ago
I believe the "new mouse" is not gesture-based control like the Kinect, but rather eye tracking such as tobii.com. Gesture-based control is great for certain things like controlling a TV or similar, but simple fatigue will be the problem in using it for more "typical" computing scenarios. Just try and stretch your arms in front of you for two minutes, you'll see what I mean. Eye-tracking on the other hand, can very well be used for standard computer use, and it's an amazing (dare I say magical) way of interacting with a computer. This is given the right software naturally, as a standard eye-tracked mouse cursor is not really that great. In any case, the next 5-10 years will be interesting in terms of UI and peripheral development.
rkwz 16y ago
Microsoft views Xbox-Kinect as a potentially big, new technology platform that others build on, extending its reach and reinforcing its value — a rerun of the Windows-Office story.
JonnieCache 16y ago
Not this kinect, because it reduces the human hand to a stumpy block. No recognition or awareness of fingers. Pretty understandable. However, this means that I can't yet point at my projector and snap my fingers to send a mouse click or other signal. I have to wave my other arm or shout. When they crack this, then we will see some really amazing UIs.
tomdeal 16y ago
The Kinect is a very interesting piece of technology. Because it is REAL. You can buy it, you can use it. Of course, it is not the end of the mouse and keyboard as we know today, because it is just the first step, but it is here, not just a prototype in some lab. That said, I don't think it will replace mouse and keyboard, because the way we interact with our computer is based on the periphery, the mouse and keyboard. Without mouse buttons, we can't click on something that good (there are possibilities for clicking with a gesture, but it sucks, at least at the moment). We can't type text with gestures, perhaps we have to dance letters? :) So in order to use motion based computer interaction on a daily basis, we need to invent some new interface link between the computer and our body. The Kinect is a very first but also a very good step in the right direction, because it is here, it is open, and it is not too expensive to use it. And it is a lot of fun to play with :)
aroberge 16y ago
I don't understand all the hype. The playstation eyetoy had similar functionality (as far as I can tell - not having tried the kinect) at least two years ago. Is it really that much better?
- bradleyland 16y ago
  There are significant technological differences. EyeToy is primarily a camera. Kinect is a camera coupled with two IR emitters that project a dot pattern on the room. The presence of the dot pattern and Kinect's ability to interpret the dot pattern projection on to 3-dimensional surfaces drastically improves the Kinect's "perception" of a 3D environment when compared with EyeToy. EyeToy relies primarily on motion detection algorithms that interpret a composite, 2D image.
forgotAgain 16y ago
So Microsoft finds itself with a surprise hit on its hands and the marketing machine goes into overdrive. I guess it's fortunate that our schools are broke. It's the only thing that would prevent them from wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on Kinects. It's obvious they would revolutionize how teachers teach students cursive writing skills. Just think, gym teachers could insure that every student has a fluid jump shot.

13 points by mjfern 16y ago

I'm I the only one concerned about concentrated pin-point beams of UV light being shined into my eyes for hours-on-end when using Kinect? I know we can't see the UV light, but that doesn't mean it can't hurt our optical wetware, right? If it were in our visible spectrum, how bright would it be? As bright as a flashlight shining in our eyes? Brighter than that? Less bright? Obviously I know not what I talk about and this is all FUD, but I haven't seen it addressed anywhere.

georgieporgie 16y ago
I was looking into this the other week for an entirely unrelated project. There do seem to be well-established standards for UV exposure over time, though nailing it down in a layman-digestible (i.e. me) way was tough. IR-emitting security cameras, for example, will provide a diagram showing how long you can safely face the camera in various zones (it was usually measured in hours, so don't panic if you pass a camera on the way out of the office).
piaskal 16y ago
I think they are using IR, not UV.
- brg 16y ago
  Indeed it is IR, http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/11/tonights-release-xbox-kinect-how-does-it-work/ http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/11/tonights-release-xbox....

zacharyz 16y ago

So how long until they are integrated into displays then?

MortenK 16y ago

I believe the "new mouse" is not gesture-based control like the Kinect, but rather eye tracking such as tobii.com. Gesture-based control is great for certain things like controlling a TV or similar, but simple fatigue will be the problem in using it for more "typical" computing scenarios. Just try and stretch your arms in front of you for two minutes, you'll see what I mean. Eye-tracking on the other hand, can very well be used for standard computer use, and it's an amazing (dare I say magical) way of interacting with a computer. This is given the right software naturally, as a standard eye-tracked mouse cursor is not really that great. In any case, the next 5-10 years will be interesting in terms of UI and peripheral development.

rkwz 16y ago

Microsoft views Xbox-Kinect as a potentially big, new technology platform that others build on, extending its reach and reinforcing its value — a rerun of the Windows-Office story.

JonnieCache 16y ago

Not this kinect, because it reduces the human hand to a stumpy block. No recognition or awareness of fingers. Pretty understandable. However, this means that I can't yet point at my projector and snap my fingers to send a mouse click or other signal. I have to wave my other arm or shout. When they crack this, then we will see some really amazing UIs.

tomdeal 16y ago

The Kinect is a very interesting piece of technology. Because it is REAL. You can buy it, you can use it. Of course, it is not the end of the mouse and keyboard as we know today, because it is just the first step, but it is here, not just a prototype in some lab. That said, I don't think it will replace mouse and keyboard, because the way we interact with our computer is based on the periphery, the mouse and keyboard. Without mouse buttons, we can't click on something that good (there are possibilities for clicking with a gesture, but it sucks, at least at the moment). We can't type text with gestures, perhaps we have to dance letters? :) So in order to use motion based computer interaction on a daily basis, we need to invent some new interface link between the computer and our body. The Kinect is a very first but also a very good step in the right direction, because it is here, it is open, and it is not too expensive to use it. And it is a lot of fun to play with :)

aroberge 16y ago

I don't understand all the hype. The playstation eyetoy had similar functionality (as far as I can tell - not having tried the kinect) at least two years ago. Is it really that much better?

bradleyland 16y ago
There are significant technological differences. EyeToy is primarily a camera. Kinect is a camera coupled with two IR emitters that project a dot pattern on the room. The presence of the dot pattern and Kinect's ability to interpret the dot pattern projection on to 3-dimensional surfaces drastically improves the Kinect's "perception" of a 3D environment when compared with EyeToy. EyeToy relies primarily on motion detection algorithms that interpret a composite, 2D image.

forgotAgain 16y ago

So Microsoft finds itself with a surprise hit on its hands and the marketing machine goes into overdrive. I guess it's fortunate that our schools are broke. It's the only thing that would prevent them from wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on Kinects. It's obvious they would revolutionize how teachers teach students cursive writing skills. Just think, gym teachers could insure that every student has a fluid jump shot.