Ok, i need this OS...

Open discussion about any topic, as long as you abide by the rules of course!
o'dium
Posts: 11712
Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2001 8:00 am

Ok, i need this OS...

Post by o'dium »

May be old, but hey, who cares :P

http://www.lookatentertainment.com/v/v-1062.htm

I think it looks amazing, something new and fresh.
diego
Posts: 1379
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2005 12:25 pm

Post by diego »

*avoids bumpmapping-joke*

I think it looks incredible, but: Will it ever be useful? I mean, I dont wanna be a party pooper here, but what is the real advantage of using 3D-objects on your desktop/in applications?
o'dium
Posts: 11712
Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2001 8:00 am

Post by o'dium »

Well, you have 3d space, so you can move anything, to anywhere.

All of you on one monitor still, think of your desktop. How much can you REALLY fit onto it? Think about how it would be like if you could scroll "around" and slide your desktop to the side revealing move space? Think about what you could have open?
diego
Posts: 1379
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2005 12:25 pm

Post by diego »

That's true.
Still, I very rarely open more than 7 to 10 applications and I am not yet convinced that it's more than a beauty-trick.
User avatar
Foo
Posts: 13840
Joined: Thu Aug 03, 2000 7:00 am
Location: New Zealand

Post by Foo »

There's nothing demoed there that's too interesting, IMO.

More interesting is a 3d persistant world which you move about in, is linked into others around the globe, and allows for private areas, your own 'virtual house' which can form a desktop environment.

The big problem with a true 3d virtualisation of this nature is that everything would need to be recoded. Everything up until now is essentially in 2 dimensions and bringing it into 3 would require a whole new way of thinking.

What's in that vid is just pseudo 3d. Taking 2d windows with a few cute effects (roll them off to the side and clone them). Is that anything really special that helps you work more efficiently, focus clearly on what you're doing, or give you more salient information at one time? Not really. What's the benefit of folding windows off to the side instead of minimising them? Negligable.

The big sticking point of this issue is that to experiment with desktop systems in any way, you have to ensure you improve or at the very least make equal all aspects of the desktop. If your swanky new desktop can do a lot of cool tricks but doesn't let your user do that one time-saving step he/she has learned over the years in windows, you're fucked.
"Maybe you have some bird ideas. Maybe that’s the best you can do."
― Terry A. Davis
rep
Posts: 2910
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:00 am

Post by rep »

I remember laughing when I saw this last year because the Grand Canyon is obviously just a stupid rotoscoping effect with two or three planes.

Without a 3D display, there is no gain in functionality over traditional computing.

I don't know how Sun is still in business. It must be from all those Java royalties. I haven't a clue why so many mobile devices need Java.
[img]http://members.cox.net/anticsensue/rep_june.gif[/img]
rep
Posts: 2910
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:00 am

Post by rep »

Foo wrote:The big problem with a true 3d virtualisation of this nature is that everything would need to be recoded. Everything up until now is essentially in 2 dimensions and bringing it into 3 would require a whole new way of thinking.
Yeah, I don't think I could handle owning one more dimension of Q3W. I can barely contain my laughter as it is.
[img]http://members.cox.net/anticsensue/rep_june.gif[/img]
Pext
Posts: 4257
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 7:00 am

Post by Pext »

the real use for 3d environments will come with 3d data analysation and data organisation methods - and communication.

if you look 5 to 10 years into the future, you will have allmost every person running around with cell phones that have wlan or something similiar and are able to store about at least 100GB of data; and they are connected to the internet 24/7.
So basicly this means that people, especially in the buisiness world, will want to exchange or just show their data that is on their device.
so, as foo said, some form of virtual 3d conference room might be usefull. as well as you could invite others into your data lair. you could have several rooms like libraries, a music room, buisiness room, etc.
then again you'd need virtual instances of devices like mp3 players, etc to manipulate and view the data presented. i think this will develop into some form of 3d drag and drop system.
Pauly
Posts: 3460
Joined: Sun Sep 09, 2001 7:00 am

Post by Pauly »

Wow that is amazing. And by amazing I really mean utterly pointless.
zeeko
Posts: 865
Joined: Sat Jul 08, 2000 7:00 am

Post by zeeko »

maybe get a mac

check out my desktop :)

http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/19609160416.png&s=x2
^misantropia^
Posts: 4022
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2005 6:24 pm

Post by ^misantropia^ »

rep wrote:I don't know how Sun is still in business.
Solaris.
rep
Posts: 2910
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:00 am

Post by rep »

Pext wrote:the real use for 3d environments will come with 3d data analysation and data organisation methods - and communication.
The next computer age, which should begin around H2 2007 when most will have migrated to new Longhorn systems that no doubt will have far too much power for even us to handle (AMD socket M2 CPU with 4 cores on DDR3) will be about two things: Computing everywhere, and visualization.

The data has been here. The interfaces are starting to catch up. We still work in a system that isn't very user friendly. The next generation operating system, Longhorn, is so visually active that it almost begs people to use it. Of course, the change cannot be made in one step. Longhorn has a lot of visual feedback, but they can't ditch the old user interface without also leaving a lot of users in the dark.

Anyway, everything is going to start getting visual and more like it is in real life. Instead of a text file, you'll just have a letter. They're already moving in that direction with the thumbnailed previews of documents that have been around for years, but it's just getting better. The current generation of OS display a small thumbnail of the file. Longhorn shows the file exactly how it should look in a very large format. Why do we need a million icons on screen at once?

If you think about it, if you were going through a gallery which is more productive: Memorizing "Renoir_2031121aX_large.jpg" and looking for that file in a sea of small icons, or having 300x500 large thumbnails displayed on screen at once and shuffling through those on a high resolution display? I think that although you're viewing less information on screen, you perhaps could find that file quicker, or at least understand what the fuck your files are. With today's system, in that folder you would have to press R to get to the Rs and then look through each file to find the one you wanted. With upcoming technology such as virtual folders in Longhorn, you'd click on, "Pierre Auguste Renoir," and shuffle through the images.

That's a poor example, and a lot of text just to describe something that I could have told you in four seconds.

Bottom line: Things hopefully are moving away from FILE FORMATS and becoming what they are in real life. Just because the computer needs a file name and extension doesn't mean we need them as well.

When someone figures out how to completely blur that line and still retain common functionality between users, it'll seem like magic. How would you get to a website without a directory or address? Don't ask me. I'd be swimming in coins if I knew.
[img]http://members.cox.net/anticsensue/rep_june.gif[/img]
User avatar
Foo
Posts: 13840
Joined: Thu Aug 03, 2000 7:00 am
Location: New Zealand

Post by Foo »

google voice recognition + I'm Feeling lucky?
"Maybe you have some bird ideas. Maybe that’s the best you can do."
― Terry A. Davis
Pext
Posts: 4257
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 7:00 am

Post by Pext »

rep wrote:If you think about it, if you were going through a gallery which is more productive: Memorizing "Renoir_2031121aX_large.jpg" and looking for that file in a sea of small icons, or having 300x500 large thumbnails displayed on screen at once and shuffling through those on a high resolution display?
i think a search tree, with an underlying graph, using metadata and some association keywords to group items will solve problems like these.
you should be able to reach every item in about 4 to 6 steps down the tree.

Vioce command: "paintings, renoir, Monsieur & Madame Bernheim de Villers" and then you get a link/avatar of the item to some sort of item table or clipboard

and if you don't remember the artist or title or both you could do something like:

"paintings, impressionism, two persons sitting around"
CrinklyArse
Posts: 5493
Joined: Sat Feb 19, 2005 12:57 am

Post by CrinklyArse »

thats cool
[url=http://www.last.fm/user/Resplended/?chartstyle=Awesome35][img]http://imagegen.last.fm/Awesome35/recenttracks/3/Resplended.gif[/img][/url]
SoM
Posts: 8489
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 1999 8:00 am

Post by SoM »

that looks sexy
[color=red][WYD][/color]S[color=red]o[/color]M
bork[e]
Posts: 4357
Joined: Tue Mar 23, 2004 8:00 am

Post by bork[e] »

zeeko wrote:maybe get a mac

check out my desktop :)

http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/19609160416.png&s=x2
:dork:
rep
Posts: 2910
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:00 am

Post by rep »

People won't use voice commands until three things happen:

1. The software is perfected.
2. It uses subvocal recognition.
3. It works without commands, such as having to say, "Period," to end a sentence.

Edit: By the time home computers have smart subvocal recognition, they all will probably track where your eyes are looking.

The goal here is having a computing environment where you can sit down in a recliner and look at a display of some sort (2D or 3D) and do work without using a hand. Shut up, I already know what you're thinking.
Last edited by rep on Sat Jul 16, 2005 3:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
[img]http://members.cox.net/anticsensue/rep_june.gif[/img]
Pext
Posts: 4257
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 7:00 am

Post by Pext »

then you do the search querry using strings...
SoM
Posts: 8489
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 1999 8:00 am

Post by SoM »

zeeko wrote:maybe get a mac

check out my desktop :)

http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/19609160416.png&s=x2
you have red mexican worms on your hard drive
[color=red][WYD][/color]S[color=red]o[/color]M
rep
Posts: 2910
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 7:00 am

Post by rep »

Image
[img]http://members.cox.net/anticsensue/rep_june.gif[/img]
Geebs
Posts: 3849
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2005 4:56 pm

Post by Geebs »

Everyon who designs an interface should be forced to test it out on their mum first. For example, the reason they didn't include multiple desktop spaces out of the box for OS X is that less technically savvy people kept on getting stuck in one of the other desktops and didn't know what they'd done.
Pext
Posts: 4257
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 7:00 am

Post by Pext »

plus i think, multiple desktops are not really usefull. it's just some thing that linux nerd can list as an advantage over windows...
Dr_Watson
Posts: 5237
Joined: Wed Feb 23, 2000 8:00 am

Post by Dr_Watson »

i dont see anything terribly usefull in that video at all... its just eye candy IMO.
The old amiga "virtual desktop" environment is still my favorite of all time.
Dave
Posts: 6986
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2000 8:00 am

Post by Dave »

Oh boy.. project looking glass, what a waste of time. I don't want a 3D desktop environment. I want all my information uncluttered but simultaneously available. I want zero time application switching.

So far the only OS I've see that comes closest to fulfilling that is OS X with Exposé. This isn't a mac-windows argument, it's just the best implementation available.

The best MS could do to reduce clutter is make apps cluster on the taskbar when they reach a certain threshold... Sure it reduces clutter, but it buries the information in stacks of categorized task bar buttons. I dont want to go diving, i want to see it all at once.
Post Reply