GeekSugar

Geek Shot: 3M's Giant Touch Screen Display

Kristy Korcz — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 04:59:39 PST

Similar to Microsoft Surface and designed to be used in retail locations and educational situations, 3M's giant touch screen display was a big hit at CES Unveiled on Sunday night. The demonstration showed multiple sections of the screen running at the same time - apps, videos, Twitter, and more. Check out the quick video of it in action on our Facebook page!

Apple Wins More Multitouch Gesture Patents

GeekSugar — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 01:47:22 PDT

I often joke about Apple's touch-screen gestures on the iPhone and iPad . . . it seems like each new function comes with a new gesture; one finger, two fingers, even three-finger tapping produces a specific result. How many more hand gestures can there be, anyhow?

Turns out, there are plenty more, and now Apple has patented 12 new gestures for use on its multitouch devices. Two notable inclusions: gestures that control the tempo of music playing on an iPod (presumably for use while working out), and a patent that includes a larger virtual keyboard or larger surface computers.

Would You Use A 'CityWall'?

GeekSugar — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 13:00:34 PDT

Folks in Helsinki have put up a large multi-touch display in downtown that acts as a collaborative and playful interface for the community and city's planning. Called "CityWall," the display is periodically organized into themes or events that are taking place in the city such as festivals, carnivals or sports events. Much like the much-talked about Microsoft Surface table, the CityWall was designed to support the navigation of media, specifically annotated photos and videos which are continuously gathered in realtime from public sources such as Flickr and YouTube. I think multi-touch screens offer some exciting possibilities for the workplace and public centers, but I'm not sure if ordinary citizens would use them or not.

Microsoft's 'Surface' Table Explored

GeekSugar — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 08:00:39 PDT

While hanging out in Hollywood for the TCA press tour my gal BuzzSugar got a chance to get up close and personal with Microsoft's newly-announced 'Surface' table, which is a multi-touch table that aims to change the way we interact with digital content. Buzz reports that the device is going to be on display in Starwood Hotels, T-Mobile stores and some other places soon, but it's still several years from home use. Oh course, it has a hefty price tag of $10,000, so you better start saving up.

The table looks like a regular coffee table at first glance, but it has cameras and touch sensitivity (iPhone style, but bigger) and you can do everything from organize photos to watch videos to drag and drop music into your Zune (of course it’s the Zune ...Thanks, Microsoft).

For additional photos and some of the coolest applications Buzz witnessed,

In one application, called Video Puzzle, the guy played a video on the table, but all we saw was a blank, black screen. He then dropped several square pieces of clear lucite on the table, and the picture popped up playing through those pieces. You could arrange them however you wanted, with the idea that you would put them together like puzzle pieces to see the full picture.
In another, the guy demonstrated how you could use it to order drinks at a restaurant (when you put your drink down on the table, it drew a ring around it like a virtual coaster). He then pulled up a bill of food and drinks that had been ordered by two people. He then dragged the listing for each item toward one drink on the table or to the other, splitting the bill and showing each person their own total. One that they are using for Starwood Hotels is a music application that would let you find out what music was playing in the lobby. If you wanted to download that song, you could put your Zune down on the table, and it instantly recognizes it and its files, so you can drag and drop songs into it. If you put two Zunes on the table, you can share music between them by dragging and dropping. This is something they think can eventually be expanded to anything with an RFID tag.
Maybe the most immediately useful application is the one for T-Mobile. The scenario he set up was that you’re shopping for cell phones and want to be able to compare and contrast their features. You put phones on the Surface and it immediately recognizes them, creating side-by-side comparison cards of the phones. If you’ve chosen one and you want to buy a plan, you can scroll through a list of plans and pull up descriptive cards on each, which you can rotate so multiple people can see them (that’s a bad description, but he said, “So then you say, what do you think about this one, honey?” and mimicked turning the card at an angle to show someone who was looking over his shoulder.) If you choose your plan, you just draw and drop it into the phone, and the salesperson knows to come ring you up.

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World’s Largest Multi-Touch Screen

GeekSugar — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 09:00:11 PDT

I should have guessed that the unveiling of Microsoft's interactive Surface table would launch a techie showdown of all the touch-screens out there. Particularly considering the iPhone, which comes out June 29, is also a touch screen and has been the talk of geek town since before it was even announced. According to Technabob, HP wowed crowds with their multi-touch display wall at the recent Wall Street Journal D5 Conference. The screen is 16 by 8-feet and allows multiple visitors to simultaneously control audio, video, photos and other multimedia content using their hands to navigate. Just for reference, the Microsoft Surface table has a 30 inch table top. Not that it's a fair competition.

To check out the video of the giant screen,

Jeff Han Demonstrates The Power Of Touch Screens

GeekSugar — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 00:53:40 PST

One of the amazing new features of the iPhone is it's revolutionary multi-touch display that lets you control everything by without buttons. You can glide through albums with Cover Flow, flip through photos and email them with a touch, or zoom in and out on a section of a web page. Check out this video of Jeff Han as he demonstrates how touch driven computer screens will change the way we work and play. By the way, the background tunes are pretty cool so turn up that volume!

Check out Jeff Han Multi-Touch Interaction Research for more info and videos.

Video: Charlize Theron on Shocking SWATH and Wanting More Time With Kristen Stewart

Molly Goodson — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:54:14 PDT

We sat down with Snow White and the Huntsman's Evil Queen, Charlize Theron, at a press day in England last weekend. The star opened up about her dark role and shared that she was "shocked" when she finally saw the film on the big screen. Charlize also chatted about working with costar Kristen Stewart and touched on what it's like to age in Hollywood. Watch our interview with Charlize now and make sure to check out our chat with Kristen as well before the movie hits theaters on June 1.

Does CHI's Touch Screen Hair Dryer Really Dry Better? We Found Out

Kirbie Johnson — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:16:26 PDT

CHI recently released a new hair dryer that requires no buttons to function. Instead, it has a touch screen that allows you to regulate the power, heat, and ions based on your hair type. Is it too good to be true? We put the CHI to the test against a dryer of similar strength to see if it delivers better results - and if it's truly worth the beauty investment. Disclosure: a sample of the CHI Touch Screen Dryer was provided by Pierce Mattie Public Relations.

The Secret to Getting the Fastest Smoky Eye Ever

Jaime Richards — Thu, 03 May 2012 15:11:00 PDT

For Lea Michele's makeup look at the recent Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' screening of Glee, celebrity makeup artist Melanie Inglessis was able to create a beautiful palette in minutes. "We had very little time to do this look, so I worked fast and with my favorite product to do a smoky eye: the fat kohl pencils," she explained. See the exact brand and shade used, along with tips for getting the rest of the quick and easy style, when you keep reading.

5 Ways to Live Stream a Wedding

Anna Monette Roberts — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 05:34:02 PDT

When a loved one can't attend your wedding, consider live streaming any part of the ceremony or festivities so far away guests can still celebrate practically in person. From video calling to live video channels, these five services enable you to live stream a wedding:

Skype: One of the most well-known video-calling services, Skype is a great free option if you are just trying to include one person. To include more people, sign up for Skype Premium ($9.99 per month), which allows group chats with up to 10 people.
Ustream: The video website enables you to broadcast live video content. It even developed a UStream Broadcaster app, so you can easily stream live HD video from your mobile phone.
iPhone FaceTime: Via FaceTime, you can quickly call a friend who has an iPhone, iPad 2, iPod touch, or even a Mac computer. Since the iPhone 4S is equipped with a front and back camera, simply tap the camera swap button on the bottom right hand side of the screen to share the ceremony.
YouTube Live Stream: With an on-site webcam and WiFi, you can schedule and stream the event live on YouTube. Google offers simple and clear instructions on how to set up, test, and manage your live stream so everything runs smoothly.
I Do Stream: The company provides all the equipment you need (camcorder, tripod, etc.) to seamlessly broadcast your wedding ceremony online. You can even rent a laptop with built-in broadband wireless in case the ceremony grounds don't have an Internet connection.