Texting Smartphone Assistants Works Better

Have you ever walked into a dark room and said "Computer: Lights" to yourself? One of the most iconic parts of Star Trek, as well as other sci-fi, is the characters verbally issuing commands to their computer/robot/android then listening to their response.  However, on the bridge of the Enterprise the viewer rarely saw the crew talking with the computer but rather busily typing commands into their stations.  This is easy to understand as it would be hard for the captain to command the ship or talk to someone through the view screen if he was surrounded by people talking to the computer, much like the experience one would have on a train if everyone around them was asking questions to their smartphones.

This was a problem that quickly developed with cell phones as people becoming annoyed when someone in earshot was talking on their phone.  It has become its own category of bad behavior and has caused cell phone use to be discouraged or banned in certain situations.  In addition, multiple people attempting to talk on the phone together is also disruptive, either to the other callers and to the conversation in general. To solve this people turning to a more private, silent form of communication that still involves words: text messaging.

In addition to the ability to conduct private conversations in public, communicating with written text allows for greater accuracy and a record of what was said.  If someone want to know an address it is much better to be able to repeatedly refer to the original text message then to hear it once or maybe refer to something that had to be transcribed from what the recipient thinks they heard.  This is especially true if there is background noise or they are in a crowd, something that is common when using a smartphone.

Despite the fact that the assistants are responding to commands that can be easily written, many insist or promote the user having to speak the command.  In a restaurant why does someone have to choose between speaking "Add an appointment tomorrow at two PM" and possibly disturbing the other customers or manually entering the appointment?  They should be able to text the assistant the same command, much like they would with a human assistant and have the task completed with any responses texted back.

While it may not be as iconic or fun as saying "Computer: What is my location?", the ability to text "What is my location" to a smartphone assistant is far more useful since it integrates much better into the user's daily life.

Ways Virtual Reality Could Help Make People Fit

While writing my entry on the future of eCommerce and thinking about how it could be implemented, one idea that came to mind was to use an omnidirectional treadmill so the user could literally walk around the virtual store. The result would be an online shopping trip  that would provide exercise instead of the user just sitting in their chair exhibiting limited muscle movement. This and the new HoloLens got me thinking about how virtual reality could be integrated with everyday computing tasks in a way that would help make people more fit.  

Fitness games are already common but they are only useful when a user is purposefully playing or exercising. What I am thinking of is situations where the current implementations do not involve much physical activity when done on a computer but could be modified so the user would not only get a fitness component added but also a new level of interaction.

Google Streets View

With Google Streets View people can already wander around a virtual representation of a city almost as if it is a 3D game.  I think Google should work to make the current version  exactly like a 3D game and allow the user to "walk" around freely with the same controls as a game.  As games are one of the main uses of virtual reality technology, its use with streets view would then be a natural evolution.

Files

This could be a full workout as the user could walk around their hard/cloud drive if not run around when they need to find something. When the file or folder is located and they want to move it, they would physically bring it to another location.  In addition, if something could simulate varying weights, the size of the file could be used as a weight and provide extra benefit to the user. For example, if the logarithm of the size is used then a 100 MB file would be equivalent to 2 kg while 10 GB would be equivalent to 4 kg.

News/Social Networking

Rather then scrolling through a list of posts imagine walking through an endless hallway/walkway of  stories, shared items, tweets, photos, etc. lining the walkway like signs.  The user could either stop to read one, pick it up to read a floating version or even start walking through the text itself.  This leads to the last idea...

Text and Books

One of the most time consuming things people do is simply reading and since the documents are linear by nature, a user reading a document as they walk it is a natural fit.  One way this could work is if the document was displayed as if it were painted along a wall the user are passing. Another option would be to put the text on the walkway, although if the user does not want to walk backward they would have to get comfortable reading bottom to top.

The Future of eCommerce

Today shopping on the Internet is essentially the same as shopping with a catalog in that you are simply seeing lists of items with descriptions.  As you shop you add items you want to a "shopping cart" that is essentially just a product list and when you are ready to place the order you fill in your contact and billing information on a form.  While doing this on a website is much more easier and accurate  than using older methods of ordering, such as the telephone, I think that new technologies have the potential to make this a much better experience. Specifically, virtual reality devices like the Microsoft HoloLens could radically change  the online shopping experience and perhaps even bring relief to failing "brick and mortar" stores.

Imagine this scenario: a person wants go shopping online at a technology store that also exists as a brick and mortar chain.  Rather then head to a web browser, they launch their favorite shopping application that works with their virtual reality headset.  They put on the headset and they are standing in front of a virtual simulation of the physical location where they normally go.  After walking through the door a cart is automatically provided and they start their shopping trip by walking around the store.

When they get to a product they are considering, they reach for it and a virtual version of the box appears floating in front of the its peers on the shelf.  After grabbing the floating product, they start examining it, flipping it over to reading the back. They decide to buy this item so they place the product in their cart.  They repeat this with another product but after deciding not to buy it they place the box near the shelf where it was floating and let go.

As they finish their shopping trip and are ready to complete the purchase of their items, they head for the checkout counter.  When they arrive the cart disappears, its contents tallied, and the customer is    prompted for their billing information. After providing it, as well as a shipping address, they receive a receipt and shipping information so they know when their order will be delivered.  They then walk through the exit door and back to the virtual street or virtual mall.

On another visit, as the inventory on the virtual shelves is the same as that stores physical shelves, they remember they really need ink and it looks like the store going to run out again as they were out of luck last time they needed ink.  They are also enthusiastic to look at the new monitors more closely so they decide to take the time to head down to the physical location.  While they have only visited it a handful of times, their hundreds of visits online mean they know the location of every product with their eyes closed.

Is this possible today? There are already technologies available to do the sensing and virtual reality display in addition to screen based first person virtual reality that is as old as first person games.  Moreover, there could be different ways of presenting the virtual store that is familiar to the layout but more efficient then a full simulation, such as an interactive map.  Technology is causing the physical world and the virtual world to move closer and stores will need to respond to ensure customers have the best shopping experience.

Usability: Red/Green Elevator Up/Down Lights Do Not Make Sense

The traffic light is so common is our society that when red and green are paired it is usually so red means stop and green means go or start.  For example, the new SkyTrain cars use green for the stops that the train will stop at to let passengers get on and off before it continues and it uses red to denote the terminus stop where everyone should leave the train.

I noticed that elevators, another transportation device, also uses the red/green scheme but has confusedly redefined the meaning to a point that it might be better if they were both the same colour.  They denote up with a green arrow and down with a red one despite neither direction having to do with starting or stopping.  Depending on the purpose the building the elevator is in, at best one could think of it as going out and then later stopping your outing when you return.  However, in that case, the colours should be reversed.

A more logical and accessible colouring would be blue for up and green/grey for down. That way the passenger could at a quick glance see it they going toward the sky and or going toward the grassy/concrete ground.