Gates Demonstrates Touch Wall

[Roberticus]

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates demonstrates Touch Wall, a new hardware technology from Microsoft that creates a touch-based “white board” interface that lets users interact more naturally with data and applications on their computer.

(4 min 39 sec)
http://msstudios.vo.llnwd.net/o21/presspass/zune/Touch_Wall_Zune.wmv

or Mpg format
http://msstudios.vo.llnwd.net/o21/presspass/mpeg2/Touch_Wall.mpg

I find it kind of cool. I would want to try that Touch Wall. :) Minority Report anyone? :)

[Raffo]

I don't like it. I found surface interesting, but this one seems to be a little hard to use. I think it's easier to switch between windows with a key or even touching a screen, but always zooming in and out is really stupid.

[Roberticus]

Hmm, I have to admit about that zooming, it seemed weird. But I'm thinking about the possibilities and what one could do with that kind of screen. :)
Made me think, are there keyboards that use the same technology/use as touchpads? The keyboards would be almost soundless :) (Hmm, that went offtopic..)

[billgoldberg]

It looks a bit like surface but with some different plugins :p

I like this kind of stuff.

I like to think that in 10-20 years computers as we know them will be replaced by just screens.

I'd still hook up a keyboard to it, to tweak the linux version :):):)

[aimran]

I like to think that in 10-20 years computers as we know them will be replaced by just screens.


We won't have carpal tunnel sundrome any more. But we'll have massive arm muscles as the result of having to suspend our arms mid air just to move windows/chat/play games.

It's going to get tiring. I'd rather let my arms rest on the table.

To demonstrate my point further, Tom Cruise in Minority Report. It looks cool and stuff but imagine keeping your hands up for hours :/

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j309/vmcburney/minority-report.jpg

[Joeb454]

It's going to get tiring. I'd rather let my arms rest on the table.

I'm with you on that one!

[aaaantoine]

It's going to get tiring. I'd rather let my arms rest on the table.

Bah! My lifestyle is sedentary enough as it is. I need movement!

Edit: Watched the video. This might be good to have in an office environment, but I don't like a few things about it.
1. Viewing a Word Document or Powerpoint Presentation, as demonstrated in the video, seems unnatural.
2. Said documents should be visible full-screen instead of in the angled paginated form.
3. It's way too big.

[mech7]

lol ummm leave it up to ms to ruin all the fun of multi touch interfaces with a boring presentation or office documents.

Anywho it is nothing new i think most have seen the multi touch at TED some time ago allready.

[whynotchevron]

I like the other touch screen MS had installed on the Enterprise
http://www.movie-moron.com/?p=246&page=25

[tanderson]

My 2 cents.

I like the idea of a huge desktop and zooming in and out to widgets. I think it is more natural for your brain and eyes to be presented images in this fashion. I believe instantaneously presented images are confusing and distracting. I compare this with reading on the computer and having the scroll view jump 3,5 lines, 1 page at a time and reading printed paper. Seems every movement of the text is slightly confusing.

A spaceball would be excellent "right now" solution for the zooming and panning. I think for the future the touch screen will be scrapped and a glove will be worn. Everyone in the room will have a glove and control of the screen can be passed around.

[Icehuck]

lol ummm leave it up to ms to ruin all the fun of multi touch interfaces with a boring presentation or office documents.

Showing businesses, people who would buy this, how it interacts with office activities is a bad thing.

[fatality_uk]

It's going to get tiring. I'd rather let my arms rest on the table.

Yes but we will have the WII-Virtuall_FitWall by then ;) as well as that silly little step thing :D

[Dr. C]

The part that I found interesting was the Bill Gates was mostly looking at the white board and not at the audience.
You actually want to control the white board while facing the audience to make an effective presentation.