AGlimpseIntoTheFuture
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Microsoft's Laura will rule your Outlook calendar, nightmares
Back in Office 97, Microsoft wowed us with Clippy, the talking paperclip that made Word tasks far more annoying than necessary. By Office 2007 he was finally out of a job, but his spirit lives on in Laura, an oddly creepy virtual digital assistant shown off as part of Microsoft's vision for the future (video of an earlier demo is below). She's said to be able to schedule reservations, make appointments, and maybe even get you tickets for the first Watchmen showing tonight -- much the same as the company's EVA assistant, but not in a car and not as hot. She can judge you based on what type of clothing you're wearing and even tell if you're engaged in a conversation, perhaps keeping the doors on an elevator open while you chat with someone getting off, thus further annoying every other person on board. Can she write really stellar blog posts, though? We think not.
Microsoft shows a glimpse at the future of computing and the people who can afford it
Hey, want to know what the future looks like? Okay, how about what Microsoft thinks the future will look like? If you're still reading, Stephen Elop, Microsoft's Business Division President, recently presented that vision as part of this year's TechFest. In an embedded video below you can get a glimpse, which includes plenty of augmented reality, a personal identification device that could (finally) replace your wallet, and naturally lots and lots of Surface action -- extending from tables to walls and beyond. Some of these conceptual clips are old, but overall it looks like something of a computing utopia to us, and according to Elop these are all representative of currently active projects. But, with the company shedding employees and surely focusing on tangible revenue right now, we're wondering how long they'll stay that way.
