Should April Fools Day Go The Way Of Software Easter Eggs?

When Microsoft brought in their trustworthy computing initiative, one of the first visible effects was the discontinuation of Easter Eggs in Windows and Office.  These hidden functions, while fun, violated the idea that software should only work the way that is documented and expected.  Hidden functionality and behaviour is undesirable if software is to be trusted, so they had to go.

One morning as I looked though a gallery of April foods jokes there were some, such as the phone glove, that I could see as possible products similar to ones that I would expect at a conference like CES.  In addition, as ZDNet pointed out, the hoax twenty-five years ago from apple was that it had a network that worked through power lines, something that is common today.  In an industry that prides itself on thinking outside the box and is highly competitive, odd new products should be expected. 

The problem can also be seen from the other side.  Who would expect after reading all the negative news on BlackBerry that they would be able to stop an accessory for the iPhone from being sold?  I can easily imagine an April Fool's article declaring that courts rule that BlackBerry owns the QWERTY keyboard.  If I found out about the ban on April Fool's Day, I might wonder whether it was a hoax as the headline screams April Fools’ joke.

This makes me think that while I enjoy these fun ideas and even think they might be valuable in creating future products, they should they be clearly marked as humor.  WestJet ended KargoKids with an April Fools message, to the dismay of many viewers.  In this case the April Fool's message greatly improved the joke but even if it didn't would it ever harm a joke if it was clearly identified as such?

We rely on the press and other websites for accurate news and to have false information, even if it is on a widely published day of hoax, degrades the ability of these media to convey information.  All one has to do is think of the all the legitimate news published today that is in doubt simply because they released on April 1st.

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.

Personal Navigation Using Self-Driving Technology

If you are blind, the current solution is to provide you with a seeing eye dog. Seeing eye dogs seem to work ok, but I started wondering if self driving technology,  such as what Google is developing mixed with navigation software, that is already used to replace seeing eye dogs, would be better.

Imagine if a person could be provided with a hat/glasses that would have the same sensors as the cars, but they would be smaller, easy to wear and look less out of place. An ear bud (and/or other feedback device) would direct the person as they navigated the street. It could provide directions with the same level of detail that they would get if a human were leading the person. 

For example, a navigation sequence could be:

• Keep walking along the sidewalk straight
• Watch out for the paper box to the right in three meters
• There is a puddle in four meters that is one meter long and one meter wide
• You have turned enough to a avoid the puddle
• You have turned enough to keep from leaving the sidewalk
• You will be clear of the puddle in two meters
• You are approaching a crosswalk in three meters. Press the button at you right upon arrival.
• Your hand is too high
• Your hand is on the button
• The walk sign is on, proceed five meters straight to the other side