I love Microsoft and I'd love them much more if they start making a bunch cool products like Google.Any insight on the product? Mar 3 looks far for me :)
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Lakshmi: I can't give hints, sorry. They swore me to secrecy.
Dave Winer
· 1 year ago
Sorry but I had the image of William Hurt in Broadcast News when I read about the tear running down your cheek. :-)
Frédéric Sidler
· 1 year ago
Th goal of your post is achieved. I'm happy to see that the big MS can let people work on cool stuff. It would be interesant to know if is an exception or if there are many projects like this one at Microsoft. Small teams is the best way to go ;-)
Victor Agreda jr
· 1 year ago
Can't wait to see/hear/read about this... whatever it is :) Hey, that'll get awfully close to Apple's iPhone SDK deadline too... hm.
I love to hear about small teams or even an evangelist within one large co. making amazing things. I love it more when those things are productized without the sould being ripped away from them (ala Golden Compass).
Gregory
· 1 year ago
Now I'm very curious. Been lots of tech toys lately making things fun and interesting.
poetslife
· 1 year ago
Robert...
...congrats on the tech peak experience...
I experienced it once...I was a "temp" for the "thinker" at Lockheed Martin corporate headquarters in Bethesda, MD. A new beta test product called "Netscape" arrived and they wanted us to look at it. As the thinker invested corporate money 5 years out, he was too busy so he tossed it to me.
I installed it and sat transfixed for 3 days as the world opened in living color on the screen.
At the time, I was typing 3 lines of difficult code into "Sailor" the Maryland library online network for online access in dreary, black and white letters.
Then I found out Brown & Co. was the IPO agent. I called to invest in Netscape. The broker laughed and me and asked if I was a "serious" investor. I said, "Serious as a heart attack." He replied, "No...I mean can you raise $400,000 cash in 15 minutes if I need you to."
Needless to say, I was not able to invest in the Netscape IPO...but I did have the thrill of seeing the wonder of it months before it launched.
Not often those centers in the brain blaze...writing poetry, picking up a newborn, finding love...but they're grand when they happen. Glad to hear you found such a moment.
Hedley Lamarr
· 1 year ago
Funny you should say that Robert, Microsoft products tend to make me cry........with rage - generally about 3 or 4 times a day.
Windows XP - takes ages to start up and shut down Outlook - takes years to start up and stabilise, tends to crash about twice a day Word - annoys me generally
I don't use IE as it's a total piece of junk but I guess I get along with Windows Live Messenger and Excel OK, but it doesn't make me emotional.
Andre
· 1 year ago
I'm guessing it's something to do with healthcare or children.
Patrick Fitzgerald
· 1 year ago
Let's call it "IT". Maybe it will be "as big a deal as the PC" and cities will be built around it. I just hope it ends up being better than a scooter.
solnyshok
· 1 year ago
hitting google we get this description of the research group that these guys belong to: "Microsoft Next Media Research group focuses on exploring what new consumer media experiences are possible with the growth in computing power, connectivity and storage in a compelling, elegant and transparent way in the 3 to 10 year timeframe. The group envisions consumer information and entertainment experiences not available today and builds or combines technologies from other Microsoft Research groups and crafts intuitive user interfaces and compelling scenarios to deliver that experience. Rather than focus on old media or new media, the group attempts to develop working prototypes of the Next forms of media possible from new convergent technologies, hence the name."
Josh
· 1 year ago
Reminds me of the lead up to Origami. That flamed out. Hopefully, this will be better.
Gaspar
· 1 year ago
You talking about the 1993 World Wide Telescope Project? Jonathan Fay is an expert in astronomical imaging.
The WorldWide Telescope project will open up astronomy education and exploration like never before. Jonathan Fay, a Principal Research Software Engineer on the project, will discuss how you can use the WorldWide telescope to explore, create and share educational narratives and even register your own astronomical images so they can be viewed in the context of the virtual sky. An interactive demo of the WWT Virtual Sky and authoring tools will be presented. There will also be a discussion of the technical challenges involved in bringing together the data necessary to open up the universe over the Internet.
Are we talking about astro-browser? I hope not.
ka9dgx
· 1 year ago
I wonder if it has anything to do with Computational Photography, such as my latest effort here in Chicago...
It's supposed to be a jaw dropping photo showing the Chicago Cultural Center in perfect clarity, with the trees that obscure it blurred away... but... the focus is wrong... oops. Those 100meter frames of virtual film are so touchy about focus ;-)
After your interview with Mark Levoy in PodTech, I got very interested in experimenting with my camera as a sensor, and learning more about lightfields.
I hope some day to be able to automatically generate a 3d model of things, like the folks at Microsofts have been doing, but with open source tools.
Paul J Manoogian
· 1 year ago
Robert, Given that the researchers are part of the "Next Media" group at Microsoft, it wouldn't surprise me if they've come up with something earth-shattering that's related to way people commune with their media. They work with concepts for broadcast and museums, so their work could offer endless educational possibilities; which is what I hope it is. I also agree with "Andre" in that statement.
I look forward to what they're doing. They have many impressive projects coming out of there and beat many competitors to the punch - they just don't market them all! Sadly, sometimes...
Mike Woodhouse
· 1 year ago
Googling the two names seems to offer some support to Gaspar's comment. If so, I look forward to seeing what they've done. I reserve the right not to shed tears though. You bally Yanks are far too emotional anyway...
Steve
· 1 year ago
A master of link bait you are. When you are a business and spending your shareholders money, YES everything has to have a business model. Given your track record of predicting the next big thing few of us will be holding our breath
Hopefully we are wrong and it is something a bit more exciting.
...the truth is out there...
Michael
· 1 year ago
Ah, the magic that takes place in Building 99.. ;)
SeattleBuzzKill
· 1 year ago
Yawn.
Change the world. Yea right.
Remember the hype around Segue - Jobs and Bezos said it would revolutionize urban humanity.
Whatever.
C'mon robert, you have been out of the Redmond reality distortion field long enough not to fall for this stuff. It might be cool, but I can go to Ford's 'research' department and see 1000hp sports car probably...doubt I will ever be able to buy one from them though.
We shall see if: 1) This really is that cool 2) It can be either its own standalone product or incorporated into an existing product in a meaningful way 3) That it can be released/incorporated within say 5 years.
Otherwise, while it may be cool, it may not matter.
Jason Alexander
· 1 year ago
The things you saw were probably independent of Windows or any of their other poorly-managed products that have sent many of us to Open Source, Apple and Google for relief.
Recently, Apple's recent products and Amazon Web Services made me cry with happiness.
Jim Goldstein
· 1 year ago
I can't say I'm fond of posts like this. I can appreciate your sense of awe and eagerness to share it, but it provides zero value to me as a reader. You might as well have posted this in a foreign language and I'd have gotten the same value out of this post. Keep me posted when the news breaks and you can actually talk to the source of your excitement.
joe shmo
· 1 year ago
Robert, have you not given away the secret by saying "on another cool surface computing technology"
its not their table PC thing by any chance is it?
Candace
· 1 year ago
It's a program that collects all the YouTube videos of John Edwards campaign speeches and automatically edits them to old Journey ballads.
Scoble would eat that right up.
Rahul Dave
· 1 year ago
I've seen it and Scoble is not even being hyperbolic in how good this application is. Gaspar is onto something, is all I will say. Jonathan Fay is genius.
BTW I've seen Googlers faces drop seeing this. You do have to be a geek to appreciate it, and it will have immense educational AND research value.
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Joe: no, this isn't hardware I'm talking about.
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Rahul: I can tell you've seen it. That's the reaction everyone who has seen it has had so far.
redfish
· 1 year ago
I don't know if this has anything to do with what Robert is talking about, but its interesting to note Wong and Fay worked on this:
The WorldWide Telescope (WWT) project is designed to be an extensible learning and exploration environment which integrates hyperlinked rich media narrative with a seamless multiple survey virtual sky to enable guided and unguided exploration of the universe. http://www.tmspa.com/Speakers_Talks.html
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Jim: no value? Maybe that's true but now you'll pay attention to Microsoft on February 27th. It's worth doing so.
tom
· 1 year ago
Ok is it me or does: "When I walked into his lab he was working on another cool surface computing technology " have duel meaning?
Either a) Wong and Fay is working on cool surface technology or b) Andy Wilsonor is just another group doing surface computing tech in parallel with the Surface main group.
Curtis Wong is manager of the Microsoft Next Media Research Group, whose focus “spans the linear and interactive media spectrum from television, broadband, ..
Adobe's bringing out AIR by the end of the month. Mozilla's Prism is beating out there too. Microsoft will need to counter, and this might be it, some Silverlight related info. If it ain't a phone, then TV and media related. That's both of their areas. Surely the Olympics involvement isn't just a generous offer - it's a play to get beyond the XBox medica centre, and get people onto a Microsoft (Vista enhanced perhaps) entertainment package.
Or it could be something completely different... (or tangential to the MediaBrowser papers/photo=-triage for all media) I think some of what was in the keynote might roll out soon- they're going to push it. I'd imagine the video clip eye candy is nearly ready. That or Gates' "last keynote" really was that lame (bindings on the board upside down, and a silly recycled demo of Surface tech anyone?)
Maybe it's to push collections and search to replace heirarchy.
Of note - why is it that on the Microsoft site, Wong, the primary contact doesn't have a link through on details like the rest of his team? (Jonathan (no h) Fay is also absent of details) http://research.microsoft.com/nextmedia/ ?
Eric
· 1 year ago
My bet is IE8 :-)).
rick ross
· 1 year ago
i remember the last time Microsoft made me cry. it was when it drove my hard drive into the ground. If they were planning on doing 10 or so of these "great" things every year, they'd be out of ideas by the first one. How many of you reading this wants to set up a betting pool on how much this brand new shite necrosoft's got is going suck harder than an open door on a space shuttle?
dontmarry
· 1 year ago
XBAPs that run on Mac & Linux as well? One can only hope & dream, I suppose.
Long John
· 1 year ago
I think it's a new handheld device called the "Man Bag." That would bring tears to anyone's eyes....
Davey D
· 1 year ago
It's gotta be MS-DOS 20, right? Do I win a prize?
michael
· 1 year ago
i was going to go with something called the "spreadsheet," which would kick ass, but i am deferring to my other idea -- a virtual universe / solar system map (think: skies not streets).
baby, you're a star.
George Radominski
· 1 year ago
I think it's a new Zune... with a limited edition Halo/Vista color scheme... CAN'T WAIT FOR 2/27!!!
The problem isn't that Microsoft employees don't innovate...the problem is that the suits don't see the value. Hence the huge flood of former Microsofties to other companies and startups.
can't wait to see what it is
Mike
· 1 year ago
Microsoft makes me cry everyday. I too think this is world wide telescope related. The WWT is educational, useful in research, and does not have a business model.
Bill Pytlovany
· 1 year ago
One of my best times I had was working at Microsoft on a skunk works project with a rag-tag team of 6-7. Turned out our IHPC was the future while a huge team worked on what the business people thought was the future. (Codename Iceberg or something like that)
No tears but definately stars in my eyes looking forward to this announcement.
Bill
Jim
· 1 year ago
Would it be Vista Service Pack 1a?
Scott
· 1 year ago
It's Microsoft Universe. And through it you can see the face of God. Funny, though, He looks more like Steve Jobs than Bill Gates.
Prokofy Neva
· 1 year ago
I worry about you, Robert, when you're at your new job, what a week? And here you are, sending a Valentine to your old job. I feel like you should focus on your new job.
BTW, I just got an offer to get the magazine for only $5. Is that from your Facebook scrape? I don't mind, it's cool, just wondering.
Jim Philips
· 1 year ago
It was two researchers (actually classical musicians) working in a closet who created the first color slide film. It turned out they were leagues ahead of the work being done by the corporate giant, Kodak. So Kodak did the logical thing and hired them. The result was Kodachrome. It ruled the world of color film for decades. Maybe your guys have pulled off something similar.
Francis Burdett
· 1 year ago
With a quick look at Mr Scoble, My guess is that it was a Reuben sandwich.
Jeff Barr
· 1 year ago
Yikes, so now I am supposed to make Robert cry? That's a pretty tall order but I'll see what I can do. Perhaps I can get some raw onions from our cafeteria ;-).
zomgpwn
· 1 year ago
Twinkie replicator add-on for Vista? Big guy... food remark... see what I did there? *squints at you while walking away*
Wreck
· 1 year ago
OK, Robert, I'll bite...
I have two questions that you may or may not be able to answer at this point in time:
1) Is it going to be a free offering? 2) Is it going to be available to the general public?
Lyndsay Williams
· 1 year ago
Hi Robert,
Just seen Microsoft is trying to Trademark the word "SenseCam". This was a wearable memory capture camera I worked on before I left Microsoft Research to set up my new company. Customers want to buy SenseCam. Lyndsay Williams www.girtonlabs.com
Philip Ferris
· 1 year ago
I get the warm tingly feeling from Ken Hinckley's InkSeine - another gift from Microsoft Research.
Jonas
· 1 year ago
Uh, I'm not particularly excited... :-/ Microsoft has never impressed me with pretty much any software. When Windows 95 was released, Mac OS was already pretty mature for the time, and so on. Sure, it'll be interesting if they've actually achieved something cool for once, but I can assure you tears won't run down my face as they have never done so far hw or sw before. Jeez. :-p
Jonas
· 1 year ago
And no, if it's about the WorldWide Telescope, I'm already damn impressed by the free tool Celestia, recently released in version 1.5. Our part of the galaxy at your fingertips already.
Alan Wilensky
· 1 year ago
That's a lot of words on nothing. It's getting harder for you to pour from the empty into the void, Scoble.
Joel
· 1 year ago
I sense that it is going to involve some sort of distributed computing. I recall reading something about this last year... it sounded pretty amazing, and is the only thing that I can think that would take 2008 technology to pull off properly.
macbeach
· 1 year ago
Dollars to donuts whatever it is will require that you be a user of some other Microsoft product, Windows, IE, Silverlight, that is, unless the product itself costs $400 or so.
kenekaplan
· 1 year ago
Great that you got this part of the story down first. This is the wonder and amazement that drives many people like me to work at innovative companies. Possibilities and seeing how innovations can really change how we live. Thanks for sharing. Bravo, Robert!
NoReturn
· 1 year ago
Point of no return.
Once you hate M$ you never use any of their products again.
As #52 said, I won't pay for that and I won't install silvershit to run M$ crap.
If they find the cure for cancer, I'll happily die smoking my lungs off till they're charcoal instead of giving my money to them.
So, fuck em!
Me
· 1 year ago
GroupShot V.2? Scoble is a huge photography fan!
Vivek
· 1 year ago
Robert,
Okay, you got us to pay attention. But if whatever M$ is doing is really going to change the world (that's a huge, huge thing), then I expect it to get plenty of attention anyway.
Having said that, let me add that things that change the world usually do not require eyeball-counts to do so.
Tony
· 1 year ago
What a tease...
Ronald Lewis
· 1 year ago
Damnit, Scoble, you're having wayyy too much fun! I can smell the excitement and passing leaping off of my LCD -- I'm getting chills just thinking about it all.
Your work is what gives my passion for people, knowledge, information and inspiration validation. Thanks, Rob.
Chuck LeDuc
· 1 year ago
Nothing would make me happier than for Microsoft to resume paying rent on their corner of the world. They've been a parasite for far, far too long. I'm dubiously hopeful.
CannonGod
· 1 year ago
I'm suprised no-one has mentioned Sea Dragon. Google/YouTube it. If that made our blogsmith shed a tear, I completely understand.
It all makes sense after you see the TED videos demonstrations of it's amazing capabilities. I have great hopes.
CannonGod
· 1 year ago
Two words: Sea Dragon
I know I shed a tear.
peteremcc
· 1 year ago
Sorry to steal your thunder Scoble, but I think it's pretty obviously Photosynth related.
Is it as cool as Bug Labs's BUG Gadget? Or is that so last month?
celery
· 1 year ago
Sounds like Robert is laying the ground work to come back to Microsoft after Fast Company tanks...
nemrut
· 1 year ago
Microsoft products always make me want to cry..especially when XP crashes.
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Peter: BugLabs will always be cool.
Jake
· 1 year ago
If it's anything like what they demo'd at Ted, then it will be awesome. Microsoft is starting to throw some heat. It'll be interesting to see how many innings they can go with this stuff. Maybe they have Clemens' trainer...
Scott Schablow
· 1 year ago
OK. I'm just guessing here, but I had a flash of inspiration where I saw Photosynth integrated with genealogy data. An app where you can search/find your ancestors and retrieve images from the past and/or an interactive, graphic timeline/family tree of your family. My vision was typing in my name and seeing a photo (and documents) of my Finnish grandfather standing in line at Ellis Island (which brought a tear to my eye when I saw it). If I'm not correct, I don't want to know what the app is. If I am correct, I'd love to join the team of Curtis Wong and Jonathan Fay.
Bruno
· 1 year ago
Christ. Tears running? This really turns my stomach, sorry. This is software, not the second coming. Feeling well?
Are we talking about Microsoft? You know, the software-maker that mostly makes mediocre software like Office Word (attempt any formatting and watch yourself FAIL)? Innovative? Come again? Wake up. The only piece of software I think is of high quality is SQL Server (solid piece of engineering that is).
Vista? Spectacular. Wow.
I look forward to this nonetheless just because anything new is worth considering. But please, get outside of your cubicle and watch the alternatives.
Best regards, SV
Allen Harkleroad
· 1 year ago
Robert, I love and hate this kind of stuff. I so want to know what could get you emotional over at Microsoft. It must be something extraordinary. I hope you get the scoop and post it before big media breaks it. - Allen
Diego
· 1 year ago
What's new about this? Microsoft has been making people cry for decades. And many more to come.
XV
· 1 year ago
And... How much will it cost? How many patents involves? Do you really think it will change the world? I doubt, whatever it is, unless it involves free access to the tecnology itself too.
Optimist
· 1 year ago
I guess it must be Windows Vista SP1 :) It would make me cry, or maybe laugh. Dunno yet.
I can almost guarantee that what ever "it" is it is the proverbial "let's move on people...there's nothing to see here".
If it was I'm sure something would have leaked earler and not 2 weeks before its unveiling.
Call me when it's over, I have to go watch my Oprah marathon that I TIVO'd.
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
JDA: really? Did anyone leak about the WWW before it was out? No. Did anyone leak about ICQ before it was out? No. Did anyone leak about the iPhone was out? A little, but they didn't get close to telling us just how cool it was.
Technology For The Masses
· 1 year ago
Quote "Note that it wasn’t a team of 100 people who did it. Two guys with a supporting cast of maybe a dozen. I’ve noticed a trend at Microsoft: that the coolest stuff is done by small teams without a ton of resources."
This reflects how startups often work, just a small team of talented guys/gals making something incredible happen that would otherwise have been managed to death by upper management / product management / sales / marketing, etc.
Rob Mathieson
· 1 year ago
I reckon it something similar to the holographic personality called Dr. Know in the film 'AI'. The fact it draws up so much emotion indicates that it is communicative on a human level. I reckon.
RealityBytes
· 1 year ago
I got it... Someone in MS collected all of your articles and made you read your own drivel. God... I would cry too.
neverness
· 1 year ago
And in the end it all boils down to execution....
BillyWarhol
· 1 year ago
WEB3D.0! BABY!!
I've put out a few Pleas + Cry's for Help to do this over the Past year but alas to no Avail*
If Anybody wants to do it - just give me Shout!
The Fact that MicroPOOP are already doing something similar but in typical MicroPOOP fashion will be totally lame* Unless Wong + Fay are Smoking Pot without the knowledge of their Evil Superiors!!
U can bet Google or Yahoo or NewsCorp will Pony Up HUGE $$$ for a competing platform*
+ Luckily for all of us i have it*
Crying with GLEE!!
;PPP
Ricardo Cabral
· 1 year ago
Slow down there! Smells like hype to me. By a look at Mr. Curtis recent research publications (http://www.informatik.uni-trier.de/~ley/db/indi...) one can have an idea of what kind of technology was demoed. Something along the lines of Microsoft Shoebox (some internal Avalon-based photo browsing interface).
Dovella
· 1 year ago
GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I Love My Microsoft \_(^:^)_/
rm42
· 1 year ago
Is it MS Office for Linux? ;)
CryBaby
· 1 year ago
Waaaaaaaaaaaa.
I want my netscape.
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!
NoBodyBelievesYou
· 1 year ago
Oh my God !!!!
They finally found a dildo that made the scoble'lies'r cry !!!
tim
· 1 year ago
"While watching the demo I realized the way I look at the world was about to change. While listening to Wong I noticed a tear running down my face. It’s been a long while since Microsoft did something that had an emotional impact on me like that."
I predict it's a web/file search interface but all visual and 3d and swooshy and zoomy and futuristic.
Bradly Mayweather
· 1 year ago
Am I maybe being too optimistic in thinking that it might actually be something useful?
Or were the mentions of Netscape and Photoshop just red herrings to imply practical usability, and it's really just a novelty prestige project like GoogleEarth, but with Space instead of Earth and Microsoft instead of Google?
Microsoft, Microsoft, Microsoft!!! Be Young Again!!! Daniel
GS
· 1 year ago
WOW, the stupidity of MS haters never ceases to surprise me. Sorry lotus-eaters MS is going to spank the crap out of johnny's-come-lately like Google. Google's days are numbered - Jeez, they are trying to shovel bastard office software down everyone's throat! Enough with Goo-suck-my-*-gle.
tarek
· 1 year ago
i love microsoft
i love research
and i love crying for microsoft like i am singing under the rain !!!
I cry every time I use MS Word, oh the horror, the horror....
Adonis
· 1 year ago
Sorry Robert (and M$ fans), but if you're going to write about something seriously, then you also have to give serious credits. And if this mystery project is indeed Photosynth, I'm sorry, but the real credits go to (taken from M$'s site, http://labs.live.com/photosynth/):
"Photosynth is a collaboration between Microsoft and the University of Washington based on the groundbreaking research of Noah Snavely (UW), Steve Seitz (UW), and Richard Szeliski (Microsoft Research)."
If you look at the actual technology used in this program and the research that went into making it possible, I think you'd also come up with Steve Seitz (and colleagues) and SeaDragon. I'm not so clear which part of the puzzle Microsoft played, other than the big ol' bank (which I'd do too, if I was a big ol' company).
Steve Seitz: you're awesome! Love the afro too! :-)
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Adonis: what I saw is NOT Photosynth. Thanks for trying.
chrisdenbow
· 1 year ago
The 27th. Can you spill the beans or is the embargo still in play?
lozeox
· 1 year ago
27th
Move along (*Cry* not allowed)
BillyWarhol
· 1 year ago
I was really PUMPED to SEE something/anything NEW + EXCITING!!???
I hope it's not just some LameAss announcement that MicroPOOP is embracing Open Source?
Hero Hack Pack of Free Trial Copies???
Just what i need more Useless Bloated FREE Crap Software from MicroPOOP clogging my Puter*
This is sounding more + more like the Vaunted World Changing SEGWAY Scooter + Cold Fusion combined*
it give shame me, by echo of a so cheap and false publicity as this. This program is not going to change nothing to nobody safe to which they like astronomy, I thought that he was something more important. Frankly you have disappointed to me. I erase of my list of contacts and the news to you. Your credibility has fallen by the grounds and I am not the unique one that think thus.
Robert Scoble
· 1 year ago
Alfonso: you have absolutely no clue about anything and I'm glad you no longer are a reader of mine. Go back to Digg. Thanks!
Sergio
· 1 year ago
This is not a great deal...... more usefull is Google Earth..... so much noise and poor reallity... you cry for this?...... well I understand.... you cray for everything from Microsoft.... it's suck
Dwayne Charrington
· 1 year ago
Hey Robert,
I was wondering if you could please tell me how much Microsoft paid you to write this blog entry, and if so can I have some contact details. I'll write up a good review for Windows Vista and watch my bank balance rise up with joy.
Did Microsoft researchers actually make anybody cry on February 27? I failed to find any announcement.
Egor Pasko
· 1 year ago
ah, found :)
Ahmet
· 1 year ago
World Wide Telescope :D
charlieanzman
· 1 year ago
Spring WWT Beta is 'launched'. My wife will be happy to see that didn't remove Pluto. She was really pissed about that :)
Kevin Supinger
· 1 year ago
Yep, Robert you were right. There is a lot of cool stuff at Microsoft. I'm up here in Redmond. Good to see your still strirring up things.
Mr. Sustainable
· 1 year ago
Platforms like this are part of the reason I own Microsoft stock. That point notwithstanding, I hope (all the way down to my core) that this impressive addition to the sum of human knowledge will enable us as a species to develop a greater reverence for our planet and the fact that if we render it uninhabitable through unsustainable behavior such as the burning of fossil fuels, we will have no observation station to ponder the night sky.
Voxlogue
· 1 year ago
Hello. I am so angry right now over something so tupid and I'm sorry I have to vent. Microsoft, are you stupid? I have played video games all of my life and can beat anyone in a fighting game, You pick. Microsoft has the console war in the palm of it's hand, however you can never, ever play a fighting game on any x box because of it's d-pad. THIS IS CRAZY. IF THEY OFFER A NEW CONTROLLER NOW THAT HAS A FUCKING PLUS SIGN FOR A D_PAD THEY WILL DOMINATE THE MARKET. I AM GOING TO KILL MYSELF NOW IN A RITUALISTIC WAY TO SHOW THAT THIS RETARDATION HAS HAD AN IMPACT ON SOCIETY. OR AT LEAST THIS NEARDY PROGRAMMER!!
IncomestopCom
· 11 months ago
I can't what to see what MS going to do next hopefully focus more on internet things..
Doc Johnson
· 3 months ago
This article tells me I'm well out of the tech loop since I haven't seen (at least I can't remember) what this announcement was in March of 2008. Maybe it's impact hasn't been felt yet.
All Comments
I'm happy to see that the big MS can let people work on cool stuff. It would be interesant to know if is an exception or if there are many projects like this one at Microsoft.
Small teams is the best way to go ;-)
I love to hear about small teams or even an evangelist within one large co. making amazing things. I love it more when those things are productized without the sould being ripped away from them (ala Golden Compass).
...congrats on the tech peak experience...
I experienced it once...I was a "temp" for the "thinker" at Lockheed Martin corporate headquarters in Bethesda, MD. A new beta test product called "Netscape" arrived and they wanted us to look at it. As the thinker invested corporate money 5 years out, he was too busy so he tossed it to me.
I installed it and sat transfixed for 3 days as the world opened in living color on the screen.
At the time, I was typing 3 lines of difficult code into "Sailor" the Maryland library online network for online access in dreary, black and white letters.
Then I found out Brown & Co. was the IPO agent. I called to invest in Netscape. The broker laughed and me and asked if I was a "serious" investor. I said, "Serious as a heart attack." He replied, "No...I mean can you raise $400,000 cash in 15 minutes if I need you to."
Needless to say, I was not able to invest in the Netscape IPO...but I did have the thrill of seeing the wonder of it months before it launched.
Not often those centers in the brain blaze...writing poetry, picking up a newborn, finding love...but they're grand when they happen. Glad to hear you found such a moment.
Windows XP - takes ages to start up and shut down
Outlook - takes years to start up and stabilise, tends to crash about twice a day
Word - annoys me generally
I don't use IE as it's a total piece of junk but I guess I get along with Windows Live Messenger and Excel OK, but it doesn't make me emotional.
"Microsoft Next Media Research group focuses on exploring what new consumer media experiences are possible with the growth in computing power, connectivity and storage in a compelling, elegant and transparent way in the 3 to 10 year timeframe. The group envisions consumer information and entertainment experiences not available today and builds or combines technologies from other Microsoft Research groups and crafts intuitive user interfaces and compelling scenarios to deliver that experience. Rather than focus on old media or new media, the group attempts to develop working prototypes of the Next forms of media possible from new convergent technologies, hence the name."
How you can use the WorldWide Telescope"
Jonathan Fay
The WorldWide Telescope project will open up astronomy education and exploration like never before. Jonathan Fay, a Principal Research Software Engineer on the project, will discuss how you can use the WorldWide telescope to explore, create and share educational narratives and even register your own astronomical images so they can be viewed in the context of the virtual sky. An interactive demo of the WWT Virtual Sky and authoring tools will be presented. There will also be a discussion of the technical challenges involved in bringing together the data necessary to open up the universe over the Internet.
Are we talking about astro-browser? I hope not.
http://flickr.com/photos/--mike--/2264482503/
It's supposed to be a jaw dropping photo showing the Chicago Cultural Center in perfect clarity, with the trees that obscure it blurred away... but... the focus is wrong... oops. Those 100meter frames of virtual film are so touchy about focus ;-)
After your interview with Mark Levoy in PodTech, I got very interested in experimenting with my camera as a sensor, and learning more about lightfields.
I hope some day to be able to automatically generate a 3d model of things, like the folks at Microsofts have been doing, but with open source tools.
Given that the researchers are part of the "Next Media" group at Microsoft, it wouldn't surprise me if they've come up with something earth-shattering that's related to way people commune with their media. They work with concepts for broadcast and museums, so their work could offer endless educational possibilities; which is what I hope it is. I also agree with "Andre" in that statement.
I look forward to what they're doing. They have many impressive projects coming out of there and beat many competitors to the punch - they just don't market them all! Sadly, sometimes...
Hopefully we are wrong and it is something a bit more exciting.
...the truth is out there...
;)
Change the world. Yea right.
Remember the hype around Segue - Jobs and Bezos said it would revolutionize urban humanity.
Whatever.
C'mon robert, you have been out of the Redmond reality distortion field long enough not to fall for this stuff. It might be cool, but I can go to Ford's 'research' department and see 1000hp sports car probably...doubt I will ever be able to buy one from them though.
We shall see if:
1) This really is that cool
2) It can be either its own standalone product or incorporated into an existing product in a meaningful way
3) That it can be released/incorporated within say 5 years.
Otherwise, while it may be cool, it may not matter.
Recently, Apple's recent products and Amazon Web Services made me cry with happiness.
its not their table PC thing by any chance is it?
Scoble would eat that right up.
BTW I've seen Googlers faces drop seeing this. You do have to be a geek to appreciate it, and it will have immense educational AND research value.
The WorldWide Telescope (WWT) project is designed to be an extensible learning and exploration environment which integrates hyperlinked rich media narrative with a seamless multiple survey virtual sky to enable guided and unguided exploration of the universe.
http://www.tmspa.com/Speakers_Talks.html
"When I walked into his lab he was working on another cool surface computing technology " have duel meaning?
Either a) Wong and Fay is working on cool surface technology
or b) Andy Wilsonor is just another group doing surface computing tech in parallel with the Surface main group.
Curtis Wong is manager of the Microsoft Next Media Research Group, whose focus “spans the linear and interactive media spectrum from television, broadband, ..
Adobe's bringing out AIR by the end of the month. Mozilla's Prism is beating out there too. Microsoft will need to counter, and this might be it, some Silverlight related info. If it ain't a phone, then TV and media related. That's both of their areas. Surely the Olympics involvement isn't just a generous offer - it's a play to get beyond the XBox medica centre, and get people onto a Microsoft (Vista enhanced perhaps) entertainment package.
Or it could be something completely different... (or tangential to the MediaBrowser papers/photo=-triage for all media)
I think some of what was in the keynote might roll out soon- they're going to push it. I'd imagine the video clip eye candy is nearly ready. That or Gates' "last keynote" really was that lame (bindings on the board upside down, and a silly recycled demo of Surface tech anyone?)
Maybe it's to push collections and search to replace heirarchy.
Of note - why is it that on the Microsoft site, Wong, the primary contact doesn't have a link through on details like the rest of his team? (Jonathan (no h) Fay is also absent of details) http://research.microsoft.com/nextmedia/ ?
One can only hope & dream, I suppose.
baby, you're a star.
http://channel9.msdn.com/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=1...
Scoble?
can't wait to see what it is
No tears but definately stars in my eyes looking forward to this announcement.
Bill
BTW, I just got an offer to get the magazine for only $5. Is that from your Facebook scrape? I don't mind, it's cool, just wondering.
I have two questions that you may or may not be able to answer at this point in time:
1) Is it going to be a free offering?
2) Is it going to be available to the general public?
Just seen Microsoft is trying to Trademark the word "SenseCam". This was a wearable memory capture camera I worked on before I left Microsoft Research to set up my new company. Customers want to buy SenseCam. Lyndsay Williams www.girtonlabs.com
Once you hate M$ you never use any of their products again.
As #52 said, I won't pay for that and I won't install silvershit to run M$ crap.
If they find the cure for cancer, I'll happily die smoking my lungs off till they're charcoal instead of giving my money to them.
So, fuck em!
Okay, you got us to pay attention. But if whatever M$ is doing is really going to change the world (that's a huge, huge thing), then I expect it to get plenty of attention anyway.
Having said that, let me add that things that change the world usually do not require eyeball-counts to do so.
Your work is what gives my passion for people, knowledge, information and inspiration validation. Thanks, Rob.
It all makes sense after you see the TED videos demonstrations of it's amazing capabilities. I have great hopes.
I know I shed a tear.
Proof here:
http://peteremcc.wordpress.com/2008/02/15/scobl...
Are we talking about Microsoft? You know, the software-maker that mostly makes mediocre software like Office Word (attempt any formatting and watch yourself FAIL)? Innovative? Come again? Wake up. The only piece of software I think is of high quality is SQL Server (solid piece of engineering that is).
Vista? Spectacular. Wow.
I look forward to this nonetheless just because anything new is worth considering. But please, get outside of your cubicle and watch the alternatives.
Best regards,
SV
I love and hate this kind of stuff. I so want to know what could get you emotional over at Microsoft. It must be something extraordinary. I hope you get the scoop and post it before big media breaks it. - Allen
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2007/m...
If it was I'm sure something would have leaked earler and not 2 weeks before its unveiling.
Call me when it's over, I have to go watch my Oprah marathon that I TIVO'd.
"Note that it wasn’t a team of 100 people who did it. Two guys with a supporting cast of maybe a dozen. I’ve noticed a trend at Microsoft: that the coolest stuff is done by small teams without a ton of resources."
This reflects how startups often work, just a small team of talented guys/gals making something incredible happen that would otherwise have been managed to death by upper management / product management / sales / marketing, etc.
I've put out a few Pleas + Cry's for Help to do this over the Past year but alas to no Avail*
If Anybody wants to do it - just give me Shout!
The Fact that MicroPOOP are already doing something similar but in typical MicroPOOP fashion will be totally lame* Unless Wong + Fay are Smoking Pot without the knowledge of their Evil Superiors!!
U can bet Google or Yahoo or NewsCorp will Pony Up HUGE $$$ for a competing platform*
+ Luckily for all of us i have it*
Crying with GLEE!!
;PPP
I Love My Microsoft \_(^:^)_/
I want my netscape.
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!
They finally found a dildo that made the scoble'lies'r cry !!!
They made you read http://forum.ebaumsworld.com/archive/index.php/... didn't they?
Or were the mentions of Netscape and Photoshop just red herrings to imply practical usability, and it's really just a novelty prestige project like GoogleEarth, but with Space instead of Earth and Microsoft instead of Google?
http://www.microsoft.com/virtualevents/sneakpeek/
27 feb.... 2008 family coming ... are you kidding ?
http://jason-schultz.com/blog/?p=4
Be Young Again!!!
Daniel
i love research
and i love crying for microsoft like i am singing under the rain !!!
Because it was worse that i thought!!
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/18/microsoft-...
"Photosynth is a collaboration between Microsoft and the University of Washington based on the groundbreaking research of Noah Snavely (UW), Steve Seitz (UW), and Richard Szeliski (Microsoft Research)."
If you look at the actual technology used in this program and the research that went into making it possible, I think you'd also come up with Steve Seitz (and colleagues) and SeaDragon. I'm not so clear which part of the puzzle Microsoft played, other than the big ol' bank (which I'd do too, if I was a big ol' company).
Steve Seitz: you're awesome! Love the afro too! :-)
Move along (*Cry* not allowed)
I hope it's not just some LameAss announcement that MicroPOOP is embracing Open Source?
Hero Hack Pack of Free Trial Copies???
Just what i need more Useless Bloated FREE Crap Software from MicroPOOP clogging my Puter*
This is sounding more + more like the Vaunted World Changing SEGWAY Scooter + Cold Fusion combined*
Please Tell Us what U saw!!!
I was wondering if you could please tell me how much Microsoft paid you to write this blog entry, and if so can I have some contact details. I'll write up a good review for Windows Vista and watch my bank balance rise up with joy.
- Dwayne Charrington.
http://www.dwaynecharrington.com
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