snowglobe
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Hacked Kinect duo teams up with HD projector to make 360 Snowglobe display (video)
Flatscreen displays? Decidedly old hat; students from Queens University have a better idea: snowglobes. Hacking together a 3D HD projector, two Kinect sensors, and a hemispherical mirror mounted inside of an acrylic sphere, "Project Snowglobe" has created a pseudo holographic display -- presenting a 360-degree view of a digital object. The all-angles display is compelling, but it's strictly a single-user affair; the object isn't actually projected in 3D -- it instead follows the movements of a lone Earthling, rotating and shifting position, in sync with the viewer. The display standard of the future? Maybe not, but pretty darn cool, all the same. Hit up the video after the break to check it out.
A red-letter day for Second Life, Second Life 2.0 viewer and more
Over about the last 60-90 minutes, Tom Hale's been delivering a keynote at the SL Pro! conference held in Second Life. There are multiple hefty announcements from Linden Lab involved, and some of that should be reaching the official Second Life blogs as you read this. Golly, what do we have among all of this? We've got the Second Life 2.0 viewer public beta, which should be available right now. We've got the new third-party viewer registry and third-party policies being announced today; We've got changes in the names of content-ratings. We've got the official release of open source viewer Snowglobe and the announcement of Snowglobe 2; and all capped off with a slew of supporting FAQs, guides, video tutorials, wiki pages and what-have-you!
TiVo fundraising with self-branded toasters / snowglobes
While just about everyone has experienced their fair share of ups and downs with TiVo, it's great to see the smiley TV box raising funds for two meaningful causes. The firm is offering up self-branded toasters and snowglobes (for $45 and $28, respectively) to its employees in order to raise money for the James Kim Memorial Fund and The Katrina Fund. Of course, it could be slightly difficult to get your hands on either of these adornments if you can't badge into TiVo HQ everyday, but perhaps a saintly reader could be a liaison for a group buy? Regardless, even if you're still using one of the eight toasters you got as a graduation gift or you've severed all ties with TiVo (and jumped ship), here's to lending a helping hand to those in need. Keep reading for a taste of TiVo toast...[Via PVRWire]
Thanko's hand-warming / snow globe holiday mice
If you just so happen to be in the market for a new mouse or off-the-wall hand-warming device, Japan's own Thanko has just the things. If you're down with a bit of holiday cheer, the admittedly unsightly snow globe mouse sports a bright, smiling face across the buttons, actual snow globe in the casing, and USB connectivity; additionally, Frosty can get his party on with the seven color-changing LEDs that light up the dome. If all that glitz just screams overkill, the hand-warmer mouse can keep your palm toasty as the snow trickles down outside your window, and the adjustable temperature knob can prevent unnecessary perspiration from accruing. Both mice sport 800dpi optical sensors and light-up when connected to a powered USB port, and the heater-equipped version can be had for ¥2,980 ($25), while the Santa-approved variety demands just ¥980 ($8.32).Read - Thanko's hand-warming mouse [Via The Raw Feed]Read - Thanko's snow globe mouse [Via The Raw Feed]
Where Brain Age stops being cool
This is exactly how you communicate fun -- slap a brain into a snow globe! Instant good times! Maybe, perhaps, if the Spanish Inquisition and organ removal are among your hobbies. How many different inflections of gross can we pack into one "ugh" here?Chris Kohler of GameLife got this one from Nintendo and we have to wonder if it wasn't some sort of booby prize. If this was a winner, we'll stay in the losing category. Oh, it does advertise the game, at least ... but it's like marketing from bizarro world.
Decorate your Mac: 3D Snowglobe
Today's Mac decoration is a cute freebie from Freeverse. Add a photo to the 3D Snowglobe with a drag-and-drop, give it a "shake" and watch the snow fall. The photo you add will stay after the application has quit, so you can email your customized globe to friends and family. Best of all, it won't break in the middle of Logan Airport in Boston while your bag is passing through the security conveyer, spilling water all over the place, causing the security guards to descend upon you. Not that this happened to me or anything.
