I was contacted by Dan Bayer of Miron Construction. They inquired about new technology:
They have questions surrounding the use of multi-touch technology and how to position their organization's hardware technology for potential upcoming Autodesk technology. Their initial thoughts were looking at more of a 3D stereo immersive environment; however, they have re-thought their approach and are now focused on the tools they use to communicate and coordinate. At Autodesk University 2008, they tried out all of the tools that Autodesk Labs had available and were blown away by the interaction these tools afforded and immediately saw the value for internal as well as external presentation uses. Miron is interested in your thoughts or opinions on potential hardware based on the likelihood Autodesk products will interact with multitouch technology. They use nearly all of the Autodesk building solutions tools as part of their 3D and 2D communication tools for buildings.
I shared with them the prospect of Microsoft Windows 7. Windows 7 will be multitouch enabled. We at Autodesk Labs anticipate a variety of devices being available when this operating system is released. An example will be the HP TouchSmart that we featured a special Autodesk Labs version of Autodesk Mudbox on at Autodesk University. When considering multitouch, something to take note of is the number of simultaneous inputs a device allows. The Perceptive Pixel device allows virtually an infinite number of devices. As such at Autodesk University, we used 10 inputs (10 fingers at once) to reset a model in an Autodesk Labs version of Autodesk Design Review. Such a gesture would not be possible on a device like the iPhone which only allows 2 inputs.
I am curious as to what other Autodesk Labs visitors think about available devices. What are your thoughts? Please let us know at [email protected].
Inquiring minds wanting to know your thoughts are alive in the lab.