Microsoft Surface

[pcchen]

Click on an icon? Give me functionality, not flash. What has been shown is all flash on what we already have. I'm rather tired of the same thing in new clothes. Clicking on a icon takes all of half a second and performs the same function. It might not be as fancy on placing the camera on the surface, but it performs the same exact function in maybe all of five seconds more time.

It's not just about "fancy." Knowing the exact location of the camera and let the user to deal with it directly does improve usability. And that's the main point of Surface. Using icon is not as intuitive, and some people may have difficulties finding the location of a new icon. Not to mention if an user connects two or more cameras at once.

This is actually similar to the "minimize animation" in Windows. Some people may think it's just a fancy animation, but it serves a purpose as letting the user know where the minimized window goes in the taskbar.

 

[Joe DeFuria]

Click on an icon? Give me functionality, not flash.

If I had a nickel every time I had to tell my Mom which icon to click and what to do after clicking it....

What has been shown is all flash on what we already have. I'm rather tired of the same thing in new clothes. Clicking on a icon takes all of half a second and performs the same function.

No, it does not.

You have 5 people in a room that want to share photos with the cameras they toted around today.

If you go the "click on an icon" route, you need to choose which of the 5 cameras "in range" you want to work with...and what if multiple people own the same make or even model of camera? You think this doesn't confuse grandma?

Instead, take the camera out of your pocket and put it on the table. Done.

It's not about "functionality." It's about usability.

 

[Joe DeFuria]

It's not just about "fancy." Knowing the exact location of the camera and let the user to deal with it directly does improve usability. And that's the main point of Surface.

Bah...beat me to it.

 

[nutball]

Well the other model would be to click a button on your camera (or more likely mobile phone), it'd search out the nearest device to sync with. Any device will do, they'll all have wireless broadband internet access by then. The device would merely relay those photos from your camera to your photo-sharing web page.

It'd then probably fire up a web browser to browse that web site, though of course you could browse it from anywhere in the world on any device (eg. by clicking the "show my photos" button on your camera or mobile phone, which would search out the nearest syncable device to order it to do so).

The "device" may well be built by Microsoft, or run some bits of MS software, the "photo-sharing web site" and all the other stuff will be made by their parent company (aka Google ).