Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

engadget.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

21–30 of 31 posts

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#21

Post by kabdib »

jrockway wrote: post #19
kabdib wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Netflix, today: "Xbox, pause." (handle phone call). "Xbox, play." For simple commands, it's pretty neat. "Xbox, order pizza and find a movie that doesn't suck" is probably a few years off :-)

If only there was a small keyboard with a limited set of buttons that could be pressed to command consumer electronics devices. I would call it ... a "remote control".

On a random remote I just picked up, I see buttons labeled: Menu, Top Menu, Configure, Category, Setup, Option, two Enter buttons, two Mute buttons, several banks of numeric entry 0-9, two channel changers, two volume changers, three different power buttons, two mutes, and four ways to change inputs.

I would much rather do this:

"Computer, show me some God damned teevee."

"Yes, boss."

I think it's likely we'll get decent voice-and-intent recognition before the remote control makers are brought, well, under control. Right now your average remote is like flying a fapping 747.

[I'm aware of the Apple remote. It seems cool, but I haven't used one.]

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#22

Post by kgermino »

jrockway wrote: post #20
lukifer wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would bet any amount of money that there are iPad prototypes in R&D that use 2 or 4 front-facing cameras.

I would bet $10 that there aren't.

I would bet $100 neither of you have any way to know. :)

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#23

Post by unsigner »

lukifer wrote: post #14
daimyoyo wrote: post #4

Has anyone combined the Kinect with iOS yet? That plus the HDMI out from the new iPad to a big screen tv would equal epicness on an unprecedented scale. In fact, I'd actually pay more for that than I did for the iPad itself. Get to work, Apple.

I would bet any amount of money that there are iPad prototypes in R&D that use 2 or 4 front-facing cameras.

Kinect doesn't work using 2 or 4 front-facing camera and analysing the differences; it projects a IR pattern of dots and analyses its distortion. They say it's more robust and requires much less CPU power.

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#24

Post by Kliment »

defrost wrote: post #11

Real time hand sign recognition had a published solution in 2005 ( http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1107692 "an automatic Australian sign language (Auslan) recognition system, which tracks multiple target objects (the face and hands) throughout an image sequence and extracts features for the recognition of sign phrases. ") after about 10 to 15 years of prior work (eg: Hand movement classification using an adapti…

All the tools needed to build this are now built into OpenCV (and likely other similar libs, but OpenCV is what I know) so it's really a matter of a day or two to implement this now. I personally find this amazing. The major difference, I think, between today and 2005 is that today this is doable on your average netbook as someone's weekend project.

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#25

Post by hunterp »

I remember how xenophobic and arrogant the Google organization was in the early days when it was a hot company. Well they are definitely still arrogant, wasting time on a video like this when the technology to actually do it is not really that difficult.

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#26

Post by nitrogen »

kabdib wrote: post #15
rimantas wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I cannot imagine why would I choose to use voice recognition even if I am alone with computer.

In Netflix, today: "Xbox, pause." (handle phone call). "Xbox, play." For simple commands, it's pretty neat. "Xbox, order pizza and find a movie that doesn't suck" is probably a few years off :-)

Better yet, you use a home automation system, and when the phone rings, the Xbox pauses automatically. If phones had more flexibility in their Bluetooth stacks, and/or app developers for consoles added network APIs, an app on your cellphone could simply send a packet to the Xbox to tell it that a phone call has arrived and it should pause, mute, etc. appropriately. Heck, why not just take the phone call through the Kinect's echo-cancelled microphones via Bluetooth?

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#27

Post by nitrogen »

kabdib wrote: post #21
jrockway wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If only there was a small keyboard with a limited set of buttons that could be pressed to command consumer electronics devices. I would call it ... a "remote control".

On a random remote I just picked up, I see buttons labeled: Menu, Top Menu, Configure, Category, Setup, Option, two Enter buttons, two Mute buttons, several banks of numeric entry 0-9, two channel changers, two volume changers, three different power buttons, two mutes, and four ways to change inputs. I would much rather do this: "Computer, show me some God damned teevee." "Yes, boss." I think it's likely we'll get de…

Remote controls and home automation are a space that many a geek has tried to conquer with good code and proper UI design principles. Give it some time; it'll happen. Voice control will have its place, but I'm mostly convinced that, for people with one good hand, well-designed physical interfaces will always be better for most things.

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#28

Post by nitrogen »

Kliment wrote: post #24
defrost wrote: post #11

Real time hand sign recognition had a published solution in 2005 ( http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1107692 "an automatic Australian sign language (Auslan) recognition system, which tracks multiple target objects (the face and hands) throughout an image sequence and extracts features for the recognition of sign phrases. ") after about 10 to 15 years of prior work (eg: Hand movement classification using an adapti…

All the tools needed to build this are now built into OpenCV (and likely other similar libs, but OpenCV is what I know) so it's really a matter of a day or two to implement this now. I personally find this amazing. The major difference, I think, between today and 2005 is that today this is doable on your average netbook as someone's weekend project.

Is there a recommended OpenCV book or website for the experienced hacker whose career focus has not been computer vision who wants to assemble some of those tools into a larger product?

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#29

Post by PakG1 »

kabdib wrote: post #15
rimantas wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I cannot imagine why would I choose to use voice recognition even if I am alone with computer.

In Netflix, today: "Xbox, pause." (handle phone call). "Xbox, play." For simple commands, it's pretty neat. "Xbox, order pizza and find a movie that doesn't suck" is probably a few years off :-)

I don't know how common my thoughts are on this compared to other people, but if I were to voice-interact with my technology, I'd prefer that it was like interacting with Hal or Jeeves. Memorizing a list of commands and syntax to say out loud would be simple enough, but the thought of such strict syntax turns me off. Spoken language has always been fluid, fun, and spontaneous in my experience, and I hate the thought of it becoming like concrete.

I realize others think differently, but I wonder whether I'm truly alone or not on this.

Re: Gmail Motion April Fools' gag inevitably turned into reality using Kinect

#30

Post by shasta »

nitrogen wrote: post #26
kabdib wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Netflix, today: "Xbox, pause." (handle phone call). "Xbox, play." For simple commands, it's pretty neat. "Xbox, order pizza and find a movie that doesn't suck" is probably a few years off :-)

Better yet, you use a home automation system, and when the phone rings, the Xbox pauses automatically. If phones had more flexibility in their Bluetooth stacks, and/or app developers for consoles added network APIs, an app on your cellphone could simply send a packet to the Xbox to tell it that a phone call has arrived and it should pause, mute, etc. appropriately. Heck, why not just take the phone call through the K…

"and when the phone rings, the Xbox pauses automatically."

That sounds terrible.

Post reply on HN