gestures
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How to play WoW with a joystick
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/How_to_play_WoW_with_a_joystick_WOW_Insider'; Reader Aaron Stacey wrote to tell us about a simple new script he's developed that allows him to play WoW more fluidly, despite having little fine dexterity control in his right hand. Since a spinal cord injury, he is only able to grasp and release his hand. Prior to developing this script, Aaron used to play only with his left hand using "an abundance of key binds and keyboard/mouse switching." He was restricted to caster classes because of the difficulty in moving and attacking at the same time.Inspired by our Wii remote post and our treadmill post, Aaron came up with an ingenious idea that he hopes will help others with similar disabilities. The key is GlovePie, a piece of Windows freeware (donations welcome) originally written for virtual reality gloves, which allows you to play any game using any type of controller you like. GlovePie's website lists controllers like joysticks, gamepads, mice, keyboards, and Wiimotes, among a host of other hardware.Find out how to do it yourself after the break.
Mac 101: Right-click on a laptop
Oh, the one-button mouse. You either love it or you hate it. Veteran Mac users adore the elegance and simplicity; switchers bemoan the loss of a second (or third) mouse button. Of course, the problem is easily fixed by either holding down the Control button or -- wait for it -- buying a two-button mouse.On a laptop, you've got another option. MacSupport points out this simple method of using a "two-finger tap" in place of a right click. To set things up, follow these steps. In the Keyboard & Mouse preference pane, select "Trackpad Gestures" under the Trackpad section. From there, select "Tap trackpad using two fingers for secondary click" and you're all set. Now, tapping the trackpad with two fingers will execute a right click.
Photoshop and trackpad gestures
I'm not a trackpad fan, but I will admit that gestures are cool. Ivan at Creative Bits has identified the gestures available in Photoshop, including Alt (Option) key + double finger track to zoom and out within a document Hold the Apple (Cmd) key to zoom the whole screen There's more, of course, and you can read the full list here. We recently wrote about some fun you can have using trackpad gestures to zoom and pan images in a Quick Look window.Ivan also wishes for user-defined gestures, something that only seems logical for Apple to implement.What's on your "Gestures Wish List?"
Express yourself, come on and do it...
Over the years, most of us have grown accustomed to the typical avatar gestures... /wave, /kiss, /kneel, and the like. Even some of the more outlandish emotes have their place, like /robot or /rude. Of course, this kind of thinking is not out of the box! Since most people labor under the assumption that the money is to be found out of the box, you can pretty well kiss the box goodbye! For Bob Moore of Terra Nova, the most unbox-like development in the MMO sphere is in what he calls "free gesticulation," a technology capable of reading the physical movements of a player and translating them on-screen to their avatar of choice.The gesture system that exists in games today, coupled with a competent VOIP solution, is adequate for most of your basic communication needs. Standalone gestures like waves, nods, and bows do just fine by their lonesome, and informative pointing gestures work particularly well with VOIP software. But what of expressive or descriptive gestures? Moore suggests that these previously untapped lines of communication could open up whole new avenues of gameplay possibilities, particularly for role players. And best of all, the technology is extremely close to mainstream. All we need is for somebody to implement it. You can practically /kiss the uncanny valley goodbye!
Gesture-controlled robot is at your service
Tokyo University engineer Tsuyoshi Horo has developed a novel system for controlling robots (or in this case, a moving stool) using a simple set of hand and body gestures. The researcher is utilizing a circular array of cameras to track and detect body movement within a controlled environment, and then translate those movements to actions for an automaton. The cameras are used to create a real-time, 3D, volumetric model of objects or people in the space, which is then converted into a psychedelic stack of virtual cubes which are read and processed as data. Viewed movement allows a user to control something like the direction of a bot simply by pointing which way they'd like it to go. Sure, that's all well and good, but we're more interested in getting ourselves Tron-ed into a highly complex Rubik's cube -- where do we sign up? Watch the videos after the break to see the system (and the blocks) in action.[Via technabob]
Researchers develop robot with non-verbal communications skills
While we swear our Roomba reacts to our moods, researchers at Japan's National Institute of Information and Communications Technology have developed a humanoid bot that can use communicate using gestures. The 187-pound robot stands about five feet tall and uses a 3D vision system to recognize gestures like pointing and bowing and determine their meaning -- and then use the same gestures when appropriate. The researchers say they envision the tech being used in caregiver robots for the elderly, but we're not trusting them until we see proof this thing recognizes the gesture for "Do Not Enslave."[Via The Inquirer]
Gus Mueller makes FlyGesture free
Gus Mueller of Flying Meat software, maker of popular apps like VoodooPad and FlySketch, has decided to reduce FlyGesture's price to free. For those who haven't seen it: FlyGesture enables your Mac with the power to open files, run Automator apps/AppleScripts, type text and more - all with the gesture of your mouse over FlyGesture's guide layer that you can toggle like Exposé and Dashboard. For anyone who made a FlyGesture purchase within the last 60 days, Mueller has issued a refund.
Gestures in the wild
Maybe the tech of CSI isn't so ridiculous after all. With the rumors of an Apple tablet and "gestures" in mind, check out this video. It's a demo of what appears to be a gesture and touch-based UI that is impressive to say the least. Don't miss the manipulation of photos (they appear to be spread out on a table, and the user easily enlarges the photo he's interested it) and the navigation of the map of Boston. This is really cool stuff. Incidentally, the software that is used to manipulate the flat rabbit and cactus characters can be found here.So, who wants an Apple tablet that does this? I do.Note: The server originally linked has been brought to its knees. Scroll down a bit in the comments of this Digg post and you'll find a mirror.
More Apple tablet rumors
Here's the rumor that won't go away. United States Patent Application #20060026536 (which features the signature of Jonathan Ive) concerns "...Methods and systems for processing touch inputs are disclosed. The invention in one respect includes reading data from a multipoint sensing device such as a multipoint touch screen..." Is an Apple tablet in the works (yes, I'm bringing that up again)? Hrmph! even has a very nice round-up of images related to using "gestures" with a touchscreen-based user interface. Note the iPod-like scroll wheel in Fig. 27D. Seriously, though, who would you trust to deliver a tablet PC that's both beautiful and useful? Mr. Ive and Apple, that's who. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for this one. [Via Engadget]
