Anything & Everything: Surface Computing And Microsoft Surface

Imagine the table you have coffee, the surface of which can actually display photos, play videos, sync between your mobile phone your wireless cameras without any kind of explicit connection. In total your table is being your computer ???

Seems like since fiction just a few years ago !!!! Well this is reality now & the first commercial Surface Computers should be available sometime in November 2007.

So let’s get to the basics of understanding the Concept of Surface Computing.

What is a Surface Computer ?
It is the form of computing where a specialized GUI is used, where the traditional GUI elements are replaced by objects of everyday use, for ex your fingers, your mobile, your glass etc.

So how do I interact with the Surface Computer?
Simple, we use our hands :-) No more mouse’s & keyboards and all the other everyday Input devices. Your hand does the trick and of course a lot other everyday objects.

So how does the Surface Computer work?
It lets you access multiple points on the screen unlike a traditional mouse where only on point can be accessed. It has a set of Infrared cameras that literally allows the computer to see objects placed on it. This is how it interacts with the object placed on it.

Who are the people involved in Surface Computing?
Apple and Microsoft are the two giants who seem to take a liking in promoting this Technology. Microsoft seems like the one who is all set to finish production soon.

So lets see what can we do with this Technology ?
Imagine a traditional Photograph that you have, it’s a piece of paper on which the a image is printed, and a Photo on your Computer is a image on the Screen. So what could I do to brew a combination of both the traditional & electronic approach ?

I have to have a table on which I can keep my photograph (traditional), and then also be able to resize the image at real time, edit attributes of the image too (Electronic). So get your imagination running…. Imagine a photo on the table, which is actually your screen, you can move around the photo to any part of the table by just pushing it around (Like it’s a paper) and then you can hold your finger on the edges on the photo and stretch it & it actually stretches, to the actual size of the table. Then you keep your wireless mobile phone on the table and then you decide to move the photo in to it. You just push the photo towards the place where the mobile is lying on the table & viola it just disappears into your phone. I can presume it’s a little hard to imagine it, So I’ve got a link which actually shows you how the Surface Computer works

The link is THIS, it’s a video, a superb one, you would definitely love it. (Courtesy Popular Mechanics )

From Microsoft’s point of view, Microsoft Surface is essentially a Windows Vista PC tucked inside a black table base, topped with a 30-inch touch screen in a clear acrylic frame. Five cameras that can sense nearby objects are mounted beneath the screen. Users can interact with the machine by touching or dragging their fingertips and objects such as paintbrushes across the screen, or by setting real-world items tagged with special barcode labels on top of it. (Courtesy Wikipedia)

This Microsoft surface is designed to respond to 52 touches at a time. It is initially expected to be used in Hotels, reservation counters etc. The pricing a whooping 3000$ to 5000$ ( I could buy a small car with money in India)

So when will it be available to us folks ?? Maybe in 3 to 5 years for it to find a reduction in cost and a widespread use. Till then keep the imaginations running :-)