Google Glass and CAP uses

[Tim Medeiros]

I was just watching the promotional video for Google Glass and it struck me that this could have interesting uses within our organization.  My first thought of course was in the ES realm, where a ground team could relay a visual of their location to the base on the fly (depending on the type of connectivity the device uses).

What say you, masses of CAPTalk?  Do you see a possibility for CAP use?

[Eclipse]

I know I'll do just about anything (short of actually paying the $1500) to get my hands on a set!

I think the ultimate possibilities are pretty much endless, but there are a lot of issues that will need to be worked out, and
while I'd like them myself, if people are distracted with their phones, imagine what this will be like.

Like tablets, it'll take the right combination of device, OS, and price to get them to hit.  Tablets took 10+ years to get there, though I think the
adoption curve will be quicker.  Maybe 5 years from the first reasonable devices.

[a2capt]

Anyone enter? .. or anyone get accepted if they did?

I did, and I got accepted.

[Tim Medeiros]

I didn't enter as I do not have the financial resources available, yet.

[Майор Хаткевич]

I wish I had 15 extra Benjamins...

[Walkman]

I wish I had 15 extra Benjamins...

I only have one extra Benjamin. Can't spend it though... he's my son. 

[brent.teal]

for now a smart phone works just as well.  i think where things could get interesting is things such as agmented reality. 

imagine connecting it to a df anf it pointing you to where the signal is coming from.

Looking at a planes tail number and bringing up info on the owner and last flight plan filed etc. 

[NIN]

Sadly, I think Google Glass will wind up like the Segway of the second decade of the 21st Century.

A lot of hype, but really, the practical application will wind up being far more limited than everybody's imagination thinks it can be.

[Майор Хаткевич]

Sadly, I think Google Glass will wind up like the Segway of the second decade of the 21st Century.

A lot of hype, but really, the practical application will wind up being far more limited than everybody's imagination thinks it can be.

I'll bet a beer on it. You are going to be very wrong.

[NIN]

I'll bet a beer on it. You are going to be very wrong.

OK, you're on. What is our success criteria? (mind you: the success or failure of Google Glass won't be measured in months. It will be years before this is determined to be successful or a failure)

[Eclipse]

Sadly, I think Google Glass will wind up like the Segway of the second decade of the 21st Century.

A lot of hype, but really, the practical application will wind up being far more limited than everybody's imagination thinks it can be.

I'll bet a beer on it. You are going to be very wrong.

I think ultimately it'll be "the way", but on the same timeline as cell phone convergence, I think it's very plausible that
some sort of neural integration will be available and people may leapfrog to that.

I'd say right now Glass is in the stage of the Psion or at best the PalmPilot - early adopters "get it", but are struggling to
find uses for it that don't feel "strained".  For the first 10 years or so of the PDA, it was still a niche product, with all sorts of
industry pressure regarding device "convergence", but it wasn't until about 2004-5 with the Treo 600 that the price point
came down to a level that Joe Sixer would really be interested.

Once that happens it's "game on", but even then it was another 4+ years until the introduction of the HTC Dream and the Android operating system that "smart"phones really came into their own and the average feature-phone user was interested.  The aging-out
of the last generation of technophones will probably accelerate adoption curves in the future, though, since the boomers will be the first generation of retirees who aren't afraid of LED lights.

(During that same time, another company from Cuperstown, CA, or something, basically copied hardware and software features of other manufacturers, dumbed them down, and then doubled the price.  That company's steadily decreasing market share indicates the direction of that platform, so it's really a non-player in the smartphone wars.  They make great headphones, though!)

[vento]

...

(During that same time, another company from Cuperstown, CA, or something, basically copied hardware and software features of other manufacturers, dumbed them down, and then doubled the price.  That company's steadily decreasing market share indicates the direction of that platform, so it's really a non-player in the smartphone wars.  They make great headphones, though!)

When Eclipse talks about the company from Cuperstown, he is no longer the logical Vulcan, but reverts back to mere passionate human full of emotions.  :angel:

[Storm Chaser]

Once that happens it's "game on", but even then it was another 4+ years until the introduction of the HTC Dream and the Android operating system that "smart"phones really came into their own and the average feature-phone user was interested.  The aging-out
of the last generation of technophones will probably accelerate adoption curves in the future, though, since the boomers will be the first generation of retirees who aren't afraid of LED lights. [emphasis mine]

Interesting. I remember history a bit different.

(During that same time, another company from Cuperstown, CA, or something, basically copied hardware and software features of other manufacturers, dumbed them down, and then doubled the price.  That company's steadily decreasing market share indicates the direction of that platform, so it's really a non-player in the smartphone wars.  They make great headphones, though!)

I guess profit share don't mean as much as market share. I guess history will tell. 

[brent.teal]

Until glass looks as unobtrusive as a pair of raybans it will probably stay a gimick or more narrowly used in in such a way as segways are used today.  In very small numbers in very specific circumstances. Not to mention the price.  Its a bit beyond the stage where the google self driving car is at right now. 

[Woodsy]

Your anilogy to raybans and segways is perfect. The big, awkward glasses are similar to the segway in that the uses are kind of cool, but the look is just plain nerdy. 

[Майор Хаткевич]

Granted on the years...bit I'm thinking deeper integration with smartwatches. More so as the control change from the current glass set up. Voice/eye/motion control ultimately. There's a Star Marine book series with implant tech that basically is glass 100+ years in the future. Sci fi certainly comes up with a lot of ideas that I can see coming online now.

[Storm Chaser]

The concept of Google Glass is a good one, but I agree that it will take awhile (at least a decade) before the technology evolves and the price comes down enough for them to become mainstream. That's what happened with smartphones and tablets. They were initially a niche and now they're everywhere.

[Eclipse]

What I find amusing is all the privacy concerns - as if you can't do basically everything that Glass does today with a cell phone in your pocket or hand ("...yeah, just updating TwitSpace, click, click, click...").

For a great read and the direction this type of tech will likely move, I highly recommend "Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom", which can be downloaded for free in multiple formats, including audiobook,
legally from the author's site:  http://craphound.com/down/?page_id=1625

[NIN]

Cory Doctorow is awesome....

[wuzafuzz]

When Google Glass (or similar devices) can provide augmented reality via the darknet, everyone will want them.   

If that made no sense, then read about the books "Daemon" or "Freedom" by Daniel Suarez.

I'm terrible with names so the idea of call outs over everyone's head is mildly appealing.  ;-)  Privacy?  It doesn't stand a chance unless we start wearing cloaks with masks and use palm sign language like some characters in "The Light of Other Days."