Computed·Blg

Monday, January 27. 2014

Lightbeam for Firefox

Lightbeam, a firefox plugin you may want to try... or not... in order to have an idea about what it means for you and your privacy to browse the Web. Nowadays, this is something obvious and well spread that the 'free' Web is now a very old chimera. Web drills you the same way one drills for oil.

Collusion is a similar plugin for the Chrome Web browser.

Enjoy!

Posted by Christian Babski in Software at 23:55

Defined tags for this entry: privacy, software, surveillance

4676 hits

SteelSeries, Tobii eye-tracking peripheral will let you control games with your gaze

Via PCWorld

-----

Gaming accessory maker SteelSeries has partnered with Tobii Technology to develop a device that will let gamers use their eyes to control game play.

SteelSeries expects to announce further details about the partnership and products over the next several months. But the Tobii EyeX Controller, which will be demonstrated at International CES, will show how eye-tracking peripherals can look and function.

SteelSeries is sure eye tracking will play a big part in the future of gaming, because it expands the number of ways players can interact with games, company CTO Tino Soelberg said in a video announcing the partnership.

Danish SteelSeries and Swedish Tobii have several ideas about how players will be able to use their eyes to control games. It makes accessing menus easier, and makes games with complex controls easier to learn, they said. Developers can also let gamers aim a flashlight or a weapon by looking at a target, and then use regular controls to shoot. Another idea is to let gamers select the player they want to pass the ball to by looking at them.

Developers who want to be part of the first wave of games with eye tracking can preorder the Tobii EyeX Developer Kit for $95 during the show, according to Tobii.

The kit includes hardware, middleware and a development framework, and will start shipping in March.

Posted by Christian Babski in Hardware at 08:45

Defined tags for this entry: hardware, tracking

2624 hits

Sunday, January 26. 2014

MakerBot Retail Stores

MarkerBot opened this store in Boston on November, 22 2013. There is now 3 such stores in USA (New York, Greenwich and Boston). You can of course buy MakerBot 3D printers, filaments, but there also some 3D printed gifts and some workshops seem to be regularly organized as well.

The shop is located in one of the most famous street for shopping in Boston (144 Newbury Street). Beyond the fact that the MakerBot outlet is contiguous to fashion boutiques (being the only computer hardware shop for miles around), the idea is mainly to democratize the ownership of a 3D printer, trying to morph 3D printer into the fridge of the 21st century.