Sorry about the cryptic title, but I’ve just stumbled upon a very interesting video by Johnny Lee demonstrating how a Nintendo Wii Remote (Wiimote) can be used to perform ‘head tracking’. It allows one person to use a screen as a ‘window’ onto a much larger image. If you get close to the screen you can see more of the image, for example. Think of looking out of a normal window, and you’re not far off what this can do. You can also look at 3D content, and look ‘behind’ objects.
Enough explaining; watch the video below, as Johnny explains all.
After watching this video all kinds of ideas popped into my head. In a museum context this could prove to be quite a compelling way of interpreting the past. Look out of a window into Victorian London, look at a reconstruction of a room and see behind objects… My brain hurts at how this kind of technology could be used.
Best of all, Johnny is giving away the software and tips on how to actually do this. Any adventurous folks out there with a Nintendo Wii fancy giving it a go?
Share and Enjoy:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
At CAAUK last week there was some discussion of Adobe PDF files being used to archive and disseminate information, and the dangers of using what is still a proprietary format. It looks like that’s about to change.
Whilst going through my RSS feeds this morning, a story on TechCrunch stood out. Adobe are going to relinquish “control over the PDF format to AIIM, the Enterprise Content Management Association, for the purpose of publication by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)”.
Both government and private industry have come to rely on PDF for the volumes of electronic records that need to be more securely and reliably shared, managed, and in some cases preserved for generations.
This looks very promising for those of us concerned with the archiving of digital data. PDF is a good way of preserving the original layout of a report, and doesn’t require the end user to have a copy of Microsoft Office, or to download the behemoth that is OpenOffice.org (even though that is a good idea!).
Some museums provide replica objects that you can pick up and examine, rather than just peering at them through a glass case. There is a lot to be said at being able to feel an artefact, and look at the detail. It’s good for visually impaired people too.
Now, imagine being able to download a replica. Not just a 3D model that you can move about on screen, but a real, solid, object. Sounds like a fantasy? Nope. Z Corporation have built a 3D printer. The ZPrinter 310 Plus creates 3D models from pretty much any of the major 3D packages by using a powder printed using Hewlett-Packard’s inkjet technology. It builds the model up in fine layers, in full 24 bit colour inside a heated build chamber.
So, whilst a physical object isn’t beamed straight onto your desk, it nearly is! You could download a 3D model, send it straight to the 3D printer, and there’s your replica object.
As 3D scanners and printers become more affordable, this could change the way that museums present their collections online forever. Loan boxes could be sent digitally across the world. The possibilities are quite endless.
Currently, the ZPrinter starts at a cool $19,900, so get saving!
Share and Enjoy:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
