Wired Science

Sound's a lot like Microsoft's Surface.

I saw something even before Microsoft's version presented by Jeff Han at NYU (http://cs.nyu.edu/~jhan/ftirtouch/). I wonder if Microsoft bought it from him.

I think it is sad that the military has implemented this before the audience for whom it was originally intended, geography students. I hope someday students are more of a financial priority than oil.

wowmr

Neat screen - though the bit on the show was mostly about showing off the database and not the big touch screen.

Anyone else notice the not-so-subtle plug for the upcoming war with Iran? Where did that come from?

Hey, Science Wired, get off your duffs and start THINKING! If that site in Iran really concealed large centrifuges, it should raise further questions. Your correspondent just says, "Wow." Your audience has no information to verify or follow up on the allegations made during the report.
I think Science Wired was duped into disseminating misinformation. You have become a shill for war.
Beyond that specific demonstration of the Touch Table, the report told us very little about how it works. I expect Science Wired to provide more than Gee Whiz journalism.

This technology has been around and utilized by geographic information systems since '05 long before Microsoft tried to stamp its brand on the tech.

This guy flat out annoyed me and everyone seems to be missing the point! He manufactures a LCD/Plasma touch surface.
What the hell does any of his 'impressive' Iranian 'ooh! hidden nucular' stuff have to do with the fact that his product is an alternative to a mouse ?
Hello ?
$59k for photodiodes, infra red LED's and a USB or PS2 interface ???
What's this guy's game unless he is actually making software which could actually be used with a mouse.
Not impressed!

Lane: Geography students will get this when someone else realises you can make this up with photodiodes, infrared LED's, and a PIC chip. The technology to make a touch sensitive CRT has been around a while now, it's just being applied to larger scale devices - a vertically mounted LCD/plasma display. The two finger touch magnify thing may be as simple as a driver that converts dual X-Y coordinates into 'if X-A and Y-A ABS delta minus X-B and Y-B ABS delta then scale to...' formula. I wrote a dual mouse driver for DOS in 1993 :P and played pong with two mice. This not rocket science and certainly not a reason to attack Iran ;-)

Oh, and I watched it from a torrent, cos we don't get PBS in the UK :-)

YTUORHKFBVCOROT

Russell, I agree, there's not much new in this technology. I suspect his game is spreading misinformation and the Touch Table is a front. Sounds bizarre, but then we are still in Iraq aren't we?

Russell-
Can you help me to implement this technology and make it better for students? I would really like to make education better than a lecture. In other words, I am talking about a revolution in education - let the kids be in control of their learning experience through interactive lessons and multi-player interactivity. Can you handle this? Above and beyond a Smart Board?
Are you there?

How much would the touch table cost?

On the show they said it was $59,000

I met Rocky yestersday as our company is considering using his technology. He was a very genuine and sincere man, and his Touch Table technology was quite impressive. It is more than just the hardware interface. They have developed the software that drives the table and provide integration support with external systems and data stores. The interface goes beyond the possibilities of a mouse - even the souped-up 3D mice. It is something to experience to fully appreciate.

I would recommend catching up with him at a tradeshow to see it first hand. His team was very professional and pleasant to meet with, as well.

Rocky conveyed no "hidden agenda" to promote war with Iran. The funding for the platforms original development was for a large part military contracts. Therefore, the best real-world, demonstration cases of the new technology are derived from declassified military uses. The case of Natanz, Iran's nuclear facilities is not new, nor an idea created by Rocky. There is a wealth of information available out there at fingers reach. The declassified stuff available to most of us is just the tip of the iceberg.

Anyway, that's not the point of the presentation. I would highly recommend checking out their platform firsthand.

looked like ms surface - dont know how much that is and now hp has a smaller version of a touch screen - wonder how u keep it clean - how about wearing plastic gloves