Remember that time last year when
Esquire embedded an E Ink display in its front cover and everyone you know rushed out to buy one, and how the scheme saved the once-doomed print magazine market? Well, it appears that the periodical (and the industry as a whole) are again in need of a dramatic technological sales boost -- this time in the form of augmented reality. When the mag hits the newsstand on November 7, readers (and their webcams) will be have a chance to scan some
QR codes fiduciary markers and partake in the technology that's been known to
teach children about architecture and help jaded club kids
party underwater -- except this time the unsuspecting public can look forward to seeing Robert Downey Jr. emerge from the front cover to spew what the AP calls "half-improvised shtick on
Esquire's latest high-tech experiment for keeping print magazines relevant amid the digital onslaught." With that kind of content -- alongside a computer-animated snowstorm and a dirty joke or two from Gillian Jacobs -- can anybody doubt that traditional media will soon be back on its feet?
posted Oct 29th 2009 6:33PM
In before wolf whistles.
I don't get "In Before" :/
for originality: +1
is this a first! post in disguise?
How does QR codes = augmented reality?
Because Engadget's wrong. That's not a QR code; it's a fiduciary tracker for an augmented reality application.
Will augmented reality make her shirt come off? Oh wait, never mind. Its Esquire.
Playboy should take not. Wait, they don't do naked chicks in the front cover. Nor have they been doing naked chicks lately.
Penthouse? Are they still around?
Bah. Just use the Internet.
Wait. Augmented reality still uses the Internet doesn't it?
Her shirt came off in the movie "Choke".
You have to be quicker than that if you wanna earn my downrank.
go ahead and punch yourself in the face.
Wuf!
She has the puppy-doggiest eyes in the history of eye sockets.
afaik nowadays boobs already trick people into reading a lot better and cheaper than any VR/AR trickery,
at least in Italy
I have a habit of reading between the two lines (wink)
TLDR
"will be have a chance..." ? hope you kids who reads dis sawd dats and just overlooked it ;) ...Yes, editors are still needed for blogs.
What's the fuss about QR codes? They just transfer a string of data. You might as well put a URL and ask people to type that in. How many cameras can read QR codes?
My phone (HTC Hero) can read them off my computer screen (because that's the only place I've seen QR codes so far). You're telling me it's not useful to have some download link/other long URL able to be entered in seconds to a web browsing phone?
BTW the ability to read QR codes is in an Android program called Barcode Scanner so I'm quite sure any Android phone can utilize QR codes.
My HTC Magic has Barcode Scanner, and I know you can render contacts as barcodes in Android, probably to easily transfer them between phones and maybe put them on namecards. My point is, how many phones can do this? I haven't seen any apps for Nokia, SE, Samsung or the rest. It puzzles me why Telstra (in Australia), for example, keeps putting these on their ads when I don't know anyone who has any way of reading them.
I sense sarcasm?
I still read magazines, anyone with me?
I have a subscription to Wired and Esquire. I enjoy them both. I think it's mainly just a trimming of fat that's happening in the magazine industry.
Conde Nast killed off two of their bridal mags. But then they changed their other bridal mag that they kept from bi-monthly to monthly. So Did they really need 3 bridal magazines? And wasn't some other magazine called "Cottage Living" killed? Who the really going to read that?
This is no worse than the illustrated Obama cover Esquire ran that had a restickable flap over his head that opened up into a small useless blurb and an advertisement.
me too
Reading magazines? In the 21st century? SERIOUSLY?!
I do as well. I love print media that still does it right. I think the only ones surviving though are the specialty ones.
Serious question.
I know augmented reality apps on iPhone with compass n all. N it's mainstream.
Do nokia palm bb htc sport that as well??
ill just report you. betcha a nook you'll be banned :)
Anyone else scroll past the photo real quick, and think "Wait... was that a swastika?"?
No?
/sadface
Will it work with my CueCat?
I still have mine, I'm waiting for the future to catch up to it!
Your article confused me as to what this is. Huffington Post's article clearly described it in the first sentence. Just something to think about.
....Sarah?
I read 'party underwater' as 'party underwear' for several confused seconds.
Old media is old ...
WTF? Is this just a rehash of the imminently successful CueCat from 10 years ago?
You don't need the magazine to use this. You just need the barcode, which is made with squares on an 8x8 grid. I just recreated it, printed it out and held it up to my webcam using their application. It worked just the same
:)