Wii's upcoming competition--Natal

When one new shiny piece of technology comes around, then there is always someone or some creators around the corner that are getting ready to pounce on it and create a newer and shinier piece, right. It's just the way it is.
I promised I would write about this but it's taken me awhile, longer than I hoped, to sit down and write it.
We all know about Wii and the remote sensor controllers they created. The best example is when playing Wii sports. The controller is not attached to the console and you're moving and working with the buttons on the controller at the same time.
Well, Xbox 360 (Microsoft), is definitely giving the Wii a run for it's technology.
Natal basically takes away the controller. So who is the controller? You are. Your body is the controller. Players will have the ability to manipulate on-screen characters via natural body movements. Think of the computer scientists and others that studied the actions of the body in order to create the sensors that this new game-playing technology uses.
Natal consists of a depth sensor that uses infrared signals to create a digital 3-D model of a player's body as it moves, a video camera that can pick fine details such as facial expressions and a microphone that can identify and locate individual voices.
Natal will be released towards the very end of 2010. Gee... I wonder how much it will cost.
I found this information in an article I read in this magazine called "the Scientific American".
If you want to see a short video clip of how Natal was designed and how it is intended to work, go to the following website http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=microsoft-project-natal
The name of the article: "Binary Body Double: Microsoft reveals the science behind project Natal for Xbox 360"

P.S. Don't ever get lazy with technology. You will be sorry. Just a heads up.

-a highly wired lady

Presenting, Interface, User-friendly

I've been thinking about this topic for awhile but just haven't sat down and wrote about it. And right now, I'm having a hard time explaining this... it's just one of those afternoons.

So... here we go. Computers. We all use them, hopefully. I'm not going to talk about the processing or the hard drives or how fast or slow or this or that... I'm going to talk a little about design.

Wether we realize it or not, computers drive our society. They are in every facet of our lives. I think something that bugs me is when someone says... "I don't like or use computers." Okay, so they don't like them but they can't ever say that they don't use them or they don't affect their lives.
I'll give you one example: a cell-phone. Cell phones today are micro-computers. So if you can use a cell phone somewhat, than you can use a computer. If you can drive a car, you can use a computer. If you can use a calculator, you can use a computer. I know this sounds weird but even today's sewing machines that make your awesome clothes that you want so badly, are programmed by a computer.
Back to the cell-phone. The interface of your phone. This means the face of your phone, the screen of your phone. The design is based on touch. This design has exploded. It's fun, it's easy to use, it's visual.
Notice that before they existed with cell phones, they were at check-in kiosks at the airport, and many restaurants had their staff enter your orders into a touch-screen based interface.
I'm not positive about this, but I think this really grew in popularity with the iphone.
If you check out books at the library, I'm sure you have noticed the self-check machines. These have a touch-based interface. You use the machine by touching a screen, not a keyboard.

What does this have to do with libraries, and whatever?
Think about it. Wouldn't it be nice if someone came along and redid our computer catalogs. Making them more user friendly by adding a touch-based screen with more icons and less jargon and words to get mixed up with. To me, this makes sense. Especially for younger audiences who really have a hard time typing out or correctly spelling the title of a book. And really, nowadays, I think the computer catalog would be less offensive if it were familiar to people of the public, not just academics.

I'm not going to lie. I think the computer catalog needs to be improved in a creative manner. Otherwise, it's just confusing. They are confusing to me and I'm a librarian.
And, with every library, the catalog changes (they way it looks from the outside), it's interface, changes. Making a trip to the library more like a learning session of how to use the computer catalog to find a book or the information you need.

Why hasn't it happened? Has it? Where does it exist? What do you think? Or, do you even think about it?

When I read about the sensitivity of these touch-based screens, there is a lot to be said about improvement. Improving the sensors. But don't ask me. I'm just reading about something.

-a highly wired lady

My next post, if you pay attention, has to do with the XBox and how it's going to dominate by the end of this year with a design called natal.

clouds in the sky competition

I made sort of a dorky competition here at the library.

It's called "Clouds in the Sky"

This is how it works.

At the library, in the young adult area, there is a box with cloudy things written on it. Below the box are entry forms. On top of the box are the instructions.

They are as follows:

Name all the different types of clouds that can be found in the sky.

Rule (of course there has to be one, even though I don't like rules): In order for you answers to be valid you have to cite where you found your answers/information. Basically, you tell me what sources you used to find the answers.

There is a Bonus Point: Which clouds indicate rain or snow?

Prize? Yes, there is a prize involved. It's a surprise prize. I'm not telling you what it is. That's because I'm waiting to see what kind of answers you give and where you found your resources.

So, you really are competing for your prize. And, the prize is worth the answer.

Why do I do this? Someday you will know why. Don't ask those questions now because you wouldn't be able to live the answers.

-A Highly Wired Lady