Category: culture and technology.

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Ok some intense things are happening in the virtual world. As if controlling a level 70 character was not enough trouble, these guys (and girls) control *five* 70 characters at the same time in 5 boxing setups on their own. An example:

I am speechless, all that stuff said about my little virtual identity expressed through physical means is a piece of coconut compared to the mental strength required to visually maintain and control 5 avatars running quests and killing bosses at the same time.

So if someone is up for running a 25 men dungeon on his own, there is still this possibility:

This raises interesting questions for the future of human computer interaction, because Blizzard allows you to run multiple copies of WoW on the same computer, we need special joysticks, probably new interfaces for elbows to control 2nd class characters, the feet to control the mages (they are our DPS after all they need sone action), and of course I would leave the hands for the tank warriors. Some speech recognition would be also of great help to switch stances.

A new class of displays and controllers is on the way.

More online discussion about WoW and more discussion about multiboxing!

Posted by Cati Vaucelle
Architectradure
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Dialup Radio is a tool that distributes human rights and independent media via telephone. Brief radio-style audio files are uploaded and managed via the Dialup Radio website. These files are immediately available to callers who phone the project phone number. The software automatically generates interactive voice response (IVR) menus that enable callers to navigate audio content using their telephone keypads. Dialup radio works with any telephone, and can be adopted for a variety of activist campaigns.

Dialup Radio has been designed specifically to meet the needs of human rights activists in the developing world. The system can be installed locally or may be operated across national borders. Particular attention has been paid to system security and to minimizing costs of operation.

You can play with the demo ->here<-

Posted by Cati Vaucelle @ Architectradure

consumer, interaction design, MediaLab, MIT, technology

Technorati Tags: consumer, interaction design, MediaLab, MIT, technology

The iRing, designed by Victor Soto, is the concept of a Ring that controls the Playback functionality of your iPod/iPhone device and this … wirelessly!

Posted by Cati Vaucelle @ Architectradure

consumer, HCI, interaction design, ring, technology

Technorati Tags: consumer, HCI, interaction design, ring, technology

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I attended the talk by the Talking Lights company at the MIT Media Lab. They work on light based communication networks associating information with specific locations in a building and then use that information to guide, monitor and get information to people as they move from place to place. I was fascinated by their inexpensive way to enable context aware computing and the idea of associating information in a building directly through the components already existing in the building, in this case a common light source.

So for instance, a person wears a box-link (basically a photodyode with Bluetooth) so that the system knows precisely where this person is located. The communication between the box-link and the building is created by modulating the light from an ordinary light fixture to encode information. Where GPS technology does not operate accurately and Wifi triangulation does not “detect” walls, the signal in Talking Light is constrained by walls, offering a more precise indoor localization. As the user moves in the building there is a discrimination between light sources in the area. It takes the maximum amplitude, e.g. last light, last amplitude. The light can also transmit radio quality audio, even thought this is can be done through power lines.

Also the company offers researchers the possibility to outfit lights with the communication capability or to create multi-light network for application -> here <-

Posted by Cati Vaucelle @ Architectradure

Technorati Tags: light, communication, technology, medialab, culture, MIT

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The blogosphere is certainly the best place to find gadgets. Personal blogs care to mention their favorite new tech gadgets, and more corporate blogs like Gizmodo, Engadget add a humorous flavor to the catalog! Everyday I discover new gadget blogs. A most recent one, Gadget Advisor, is kind of cool because it presents product releases and news items that are the most significant, useful, or particularly cool, instead of just a list that ends up resembling a catalog The items are hand-picked as a “best of the best” resource for computer hardware, software, gadgets, and tech news, from universal remote control, network media player, to online backup services! In my research I am interested in the difference between the accumulation of information and its discrimination. By specializing and discriminating, the blogger collects information and curates media. A blogger represents a new generation of curators!

Obama and Biden tax calculator discovered on Annoying Design.

Yes I cannot vote because I’m French, BUT I must admit this tax calculator designed by Obama and Biden is pretty straightforward. Very much so for families under the 250,000 bracket …

A tax calculator is better than 1000 words 🙂

-> Link