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Project Natal Sets Its Creepy, Glowy Sights on the PC

Posted 07/16/09 at 12:25:12 AM  by Nathan Grayson

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Remember that oddly named motion doohickey Microsoft debuted at E3? Project Natal? Well, while ushering in the Future of Gaming may be its main objective (followed in close second by taking over the world via robot revolution led by conniving A.I. child Milo), Natal isn’t just the tech toy of tomorrow. It can be used to for bigger things, higher purposes. It can be used for office work.

“Both the Xbox guys and the Windows guys latched onto [Natal’s uses for media consumption as a whole] and now even since they latched onto it the idea of how it can be used in the office is getting much more concrete, and is pretty exciting,” Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said.

Your office isn’t the only place a series of subtle facial expressions could potentially organize, either. Home’s where the heart is, as they say, and the heart of the home of the Future will apparently be Natal.
 
"I think the value is as great for if you're in the home, as you want to manage your movies, music, home system type stuff, it's very cool there," Gates said. "And I think there's incredible value as we use that in the office connected to a Windows PC. So Microsoft research and the product groups have a lot going on there, because you can use the cost reduction that will take place over the years to say, why shouldn't that be in most office environments."

A flick of the wrist to schedule a meeting. A wave of the hand to organize some files. That’s the future as Microsoft sees it. So, uh, why do we make fun of Apple geeks for needless, overly showy flourishes again?

(…Or a finger motion that totally says, “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for” to sort your movie collection. Ok, never mind. This sounds awesome. Like “force-pushing” an automatic door. Come on, we can’t be the only ones who do that.)

COMMENTS:5
TAGS: gaming, microsoft, Software, news, Project Natal
COMMENTS
avatarI thought the whole point of

Submitted by Geeksquadmyss on Thu, 07/16/2009 - 12:02pm

I thought the whole point of video games was to be able to do things you couldnt in real life, while sitting back and having a nice beer yelling at the litle madden players running around not following your plays!  But pretty soon you'll have be active?  WTF!

Tony hawks game comes with a skateboard as a controller!! I wanted to make an ass out of myself trying to skateboard again i would go outside!  

 

I fucking hate this stupid "next gen" controllers.  I have a wii, it was cool for about a month then it was more of a paper weight than a video game console.

 

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avatarGreat... Now my mother--who

Submitted by Cache on Thu, 07/16/2009 - 6:30am

Great...

Now my mother--who can't talk if she can't move her hands and arms all over the place--has a whole NEW way she'll be able to screw up the computer.

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avatarWhat about PS3

Submitted by mattman059 on Thu, 07/16/2009 - 4:01am

I've heard a lot about Natal, however I've heard very little of the PS3's motion sensor thingy...How about an article for that?

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avatari definetly agree... could

Submitted by cicicicico1 on Wed, 07/15/2009 - 10:24pm

i definetly agree... could be used for big brother!

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avatarThe possibilities are endless!

Submitted by mesiah on Wed, 07/15/2009 - 9:51pm

The possibilities are endless! Just think of all the gestures going unused today. Whats that one called were you brush your fingertips along the bottom of your chin? I don't use that nearly enough. Now I can close documents with it! And when bary from 3 cubicles over melts down because I was giving him the finger, I can say "relax man, I was just hitting the UNDO button."

Although, the paranoid part of me is thinking about how the government is going to have a hayday with all this facial recognition data. Between that and cell phone gps there will be no escape from big brother! Ok, off to go make a new foil hat.

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