Looking Glass

[alexander]

I don't know if you guys keep up with SunOS, but they have recently announced their new project in developement of a 3d desktop environment. Written entirely in JAVA this is a revolutionary breakthroug in the outlook of your desktop as a new 3D environment will take over...

Check it out at: http://wwws.sun.com/software/looking_glass/

Hopefully after it's release (unlike Microsoft this will be open scource), someone will be bored enough to edit the code to work with Linux and maybe compile it and make it work for Windows.

If anyone has Cable or DSL, download the Demo (upper right on the provided page). It's awesome, really!

[Tormod]

Hm. I watched the demo and failed to see anything that had any practical value. This was all glossy 3D effects. Who needs to watch a video mirrored? And taking notes on the back of a browser window...that was probably the only "innovation" that demo showed.

 

The demo failed to say anything about what this is supposed to bring to the desktop apart from a flashy, 3D, moving background and windows which has small icons on the bottom showing what's on the big screen. Looked pretty much like my Apple Powerbook's OSX desktop, actually.

 

But you obviously liked it. Why is it awesome? Maybe I missed something.

 

Tormod

[alexander]

First of all, it increases your work space to 4 times that of the one we use, maybe more than 4 times.

You are correct, there is no use in watching the movies backwards, but I think that you are trying to stay minimalistic with the standard issued desktop, you know using Power point instead of flash for your presentation, there is really no need, but it looks better and mush more professional. I think that someone asked me a similar question when the moving screen savers came out... well everyone (mostly everyone) that uses a screensaver has a moving one: either pipes, rotating text, moving icons or anything else, most people dont use a picture for the screensaver.... Why is anything new awesome?

I mean why are the new games awesome; games like Half Life 2, i mean just because they developed a 3D engine that was so fast that they had to add dust particles to the air to slow it down?

Please do appreciate what others do, ex: if you were to come out with the first ever 3D engine that will make an ordinary website and put it into a new 3d environment, only to have someone say that it's junk, and it is unnecessary... Seriously, arent you tired of your everyday desktop? Dont know about you, but I am, so I'm looking foreward to it.

Hey, maybe all it is is that you have a problem with Sun Microsystems ei?

[Tormod]

Originally posted by: alexander

First of all, it increases your work space to 4 times that of the one we use, maybe more than 4 times.

 

Have you tried the Exposé effect on the new Mac OSX Panther?

 

most people dont use a picture for the screensaver....

 

Well, I do...but I admit, they move around. I wouldn't call that awesome, though.

 

Why is anything new awesome?

 

Depends on the eye that sees, I guess. I really didn't find the demo interesting at all. You did. I have no problems with that, Alex. It's very good of you to post the link, I appreciate that you enjoy it - I simply wanted to know WHY you think it is interesting.

 

I mean why are the new games awesome; games like Half Life 2, i mean just because they developed a 3D engine that was so fast that they had to add dust particles to the air to slow it down?

 

Well, Half-Life 2 will hardly be playable on most computers anyway. New games are often crap because they look incredible but have no gameplay. Recently I found one exception to my rule: Far Cry. It is an astonishing looker but the story is mostly crap, yet I enjoy it immensely because of the wonderful graphics. But then again, there are extremely cool games out there, I don't challenge that. So again, it always depends on what you like and what you don't, I guess. And Far Cry has big problems on my Athlon XP 3200+ with 768 MB (and a crappy old GeForce 4 ti4200...).

 

Please do appreciate what others do, ex: if you were to come out with the first ever 3D engine that will make an ordinary website and put it into a new 3d environment, only to have someone say that it's junk, and it is unnecessary...

 

I think it's anyone's right not to appreciate everything that comes out. And I never said that Looking Glass was junk, I just questioned what it could be used for. I simply don't see the point of it. The demo doesn't show the point of it except some flashy windows which can be flipped over for notetaking, some icons that show movies, and a desktop that has a 3D effect. Sorry, if that's all then there is no innovation. Usefulness is more important than looks to me - but I'm not saying good design is not good. I thought the windows they showed looked rather ugly...but I agree, the desktop looked nice.

 

Seriously, arent you tired of your everyday desktop? Dont know about you, but I am, so I'm looking foreward to it.

 

I don't spend a lot of time looking at my desktop. It's a bit like my car - I don't rearrange the dashboard every day.

 

Hey, maybe all it is is that you have a problem with Sun Microsystems ei?

 

No problem with Sun.

 

Tormod

[alexander]

Tormod said:

New games are often crap because they look incredible but have no gameplay.

I hope that you didnt mean to say that Half Life has no gameplay. HL has lots of action, no story, but lots of action and 2 movies one in the beginning and one at the end of it and that is pretty much it (unlike Tomb Raider).

 

Have you tried the Exposé effect on the new Mac OSX Panther?

Sorry but no... personally think that macs are only usefull for graphics, but still think that macs inhale vigorously in an upward and outward motion somewhat convulsively...(in words of a friend of mine "I don't think anything of Macs, they suck")

 

I thought the windows they showed looked rather ugly.

True, I think that they should add like an XP theme to it or something, that i do agree on.

 

The demo doesn't show the point of it except some flashy windows which can be flipped over for notetaking, some icons that show movies, and a desktop that has a 3D effect.

That is the point of it, but this is definately the next step to developing full 3d working environment. You know, I just realized something: I heard about a year back that some company came out with a monitor that colorises air particles to display images, and didnt need to use any other media such as glass to work, it could display something about 260 thousand colors or so, but nad a resolution of like 480 X 600, and could also act as an input device like a touchscreen, but with no screen to touch. if you were to somethow come up with 100000 bucks and buy the monitor, and then to use lookingglass with it, you could almost create a 3d desktop environment at your station...(just a thought)

 

don't spend a lot of time looking at my desktop. It's a bit like my car - I don't rearrange the dashboard every day.

Whoever said anything about rearranging anything anywhere any day? I was thinking that this desktop environment would look cool for presentations and such. I know, i dont spend too much time looking at mu desktop, to be true with you, i like to use dos or unix (non user friendly environment), but sometimes i do get tired of typing so i go back to my desktop...

[Tormod]

Originally posted by: alexander

I hope that you didnt mean to say that Half Life has no gameplay. HL has lots of action, no story, but lots of action and 2 movies one in the beginning and one at the end of it and that is pretty much it (unlike Tomb Raider).

 

Half-Life was a very good game, scared the crap out of me. Half-Life 2 is probably a very good game too, and will probably scare the crap out of me again (except I'll need a new graphics card). If they can only ever bring it to market. Which version are you referring to?

 

Have you tried the Exposé effect on the new Mac OSX Panther?

 

Sorry but no... personally think that macs are only usefull for graphics, but still think that macs inhale vigorously in an upward and outward motion somewhat convulsively...(in words of a friend of mine "I don't think anything of Macs, they suck")

 

What an astonishingly narrow-minded statement. So much for the love of "innovation". I use an Apple Powerbook for graphic design, text production, music production, and web development. If your friends think that Macs suck, without having tried one, how did *you* form your opinion?

 

This is not a Mac vs PC discussion - I use both, and can positively say they are both very good platforms, if you know how to use them and own the right software.

 

This is about innovation. What was the last great PC-based innovation? If you say "3D graphics" I'd say it runs as well on a Mac as on a PC. Macs have AGP slots too, you know. OR DVD Burners? Or 64 bit processing? Or wide screen LCD desktop screens? Or...? You do know that OSX is Unix based, right? You can use the shell right from the OSX desktop.

 

don't spend a lot of time looking at my desktop. It's a bit like my car - I don't rearrange the dashboard every day.

 

Whoever said anything about rearranging anything anywhere any day? I was thinking that this desktop environment would look cool for presentations and such. I know, i dont spend too much time looking at mu desktop, to be true with you, i like to use dos or unix (non user friendly environment), but sometimes i do get tired of typing so i go back to my desktop...

 

So what would your need for a 3D desktop environment with a moving background be? That was my point. Innovation is good. New ideas are good. But I was looking for the *purpose* of Looking Glass. I *still* don't get it.

 

Tormod