It was a game enthusiast who first conceived of the Ergodex DX1 Input System, a USB input device by Ergodex, designed for users to place programmable keys anywhere on its 11-inch x 9-inch “DX1 Pad.” The concept is simple: You begin with 25 DX1 keys, place as many of them on the DX1 Pad in any layout you wish, and use the included software to assign functions to each one. Link.
I like mashing buttons, but this looks interesting. A novel calculator interface makes solving tricky sums easy, as users can simply write them onto a screen and then watch the answer appear. The device could easily be incorporated into stylus-controlled handheld computer and its inventors say it reduces the number of errors that users make. Link.
The Animaris Rhinoceros Transport is a type of animal with a steel skeleton and a polyester skin. It looks as if there is a thick layer of sand coating the animal. It weighes 2. tons, but can be set into motion by one person. It stands 4.70 meters tall. Because of its height it catches enough wind to start moving. I hope they publish the plans one day. [via] Link.
Lineriders cars have been designed by Philip Worthington and William Denniss to follow lines that people draw on the surface with pens, speeding up and slowing down according to a visual annotation language. The toy car is equipped with sensors that allow it to follow the lines. the track can be annotated with symbols that are understood optically by the car, telling it to alter it’s driving pattern (eg. speeding up for a jump, slowing down or preparing for an oncoming obstacle or sharp turn). Link.
Could personal video recorder (PVR) software be the “killer app” that launches Linux into millions of living rooms? A growing number of Linux-based PVR products are giving couch potatoes new choices–and new freedom–even as proprietary PVR vendors continue to impose rules limiting where, when, and how viewers use their products. Link.
I really like this FlashPoint Sharedevice. If you have 2 of them, you can connect them up and share what’s on one with the other. This type of simple button and interface should be something all the USB drives makers should consider as they become more ubiquitous. I’d really like to see music players add that, but that’s a bizarro world dream. Link.
MAKE pal Hugh Macleod has interesting post about “prime tagging” Using multiple tags, about 20 tags would cover the 1.3 million single-use tags at Technorati. Using multiple tags, about 33 tags could give a unique identity to every person in the whole world. (Quite a few years since I studied statistics, believe I’m in the ballpark, but anybody out there who could corroborate?) And 20-30 tags are less cumbersome to navigate than 1.3 million, or 6 billion! Multiple tags can replace any single tag, however unique that is. Link.
