Posted 07/23/09 at 05:53:15 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Google had announced last week that it was going to overhaul the Google Docs interface over the next few weeks. Some of those changes have already taken place. One notable change is that the filter for “PDFs” has been supplanted by “Files” in the "items by type" slide-down menu.

This has further fueled speculation that Google Docs is on its way to becoming an online file storage service. There is a possibility that Google might allow people to upload other file formats besides PDF files. A person is also said to have stumbled upon an image of what appears to be a folder icon featuring the familiar Google Chrome logo. Perhaps Google may need such a folder icon for a web-based storage service to compliment Chrome OS.

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Posted 04/30/09 at 04:31:22 PM by Andy Salisbury

While most 3D controllers force you to either load yourself up with markers or hold a controller in order to use them, some students at Northeastern University have managed to create an interface that is based off of the theory of electrostatics.

The interface is made up completely of copper pads that sense an electrical field above them, allowing users to have a pretty sizeable workspace. So far, they’ve been able to create applications that allow you to draw, move 3D models around, and even scratch a digital record.

If you’d like to see it in action, be sure to check out a video of it here.

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Posted 07/15/08 at 12:38:10 AM by Pulkit Chandna

There are numerous companies that are currently working on technologies they hope would revolutionize the computer navigation landscape. Amongst the audacious researchers pioneering the touchless revolution is John Underkoffler, who owns a gesture tech start-up called Oblong Industries that recently raised $8.8 million in funding. Underkoffler has to his credit the honor of counseling the Minority Report crew regarding the depiction of futuristic technology in the movie.

Forbes reports that he is spearheading an utterly secretive project that deals with a touchless, gesture-based computer interface. All applications would be controlled merely by gestures.

But Oblong is not alone as alternative navigational interface industry leader Gesture Tek and gaming hardware manufacturers like OCZ Technologies, Neurosky, and Emotiv are also in the reckoning. Some of the researchers are really pushing the envelope with technologies that allow users to control applications and games using their gaze and even thought.

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