If you can't beat them join them

Hoorah, for Microsoft??? Yes Microsoft are going to open up Kinect to let hackers play around with it according to the BBC. This is great news for everyone, Kinect is a great peace of hardware with enourmous untapped potential. Check out this article for potential uses for kinect (google for more, there are heaps out there). Everything from controlling Windows 7 to controlling robots!!!

My favourite potential use for Kinect is that it provides the technology to build Minority Report style interfaces.

To my knowledge the ultimate use of Kinect has yet to be applied. That is of course to allow cats to use the internet. Due to a lack of opposable thumbs cats have thus far been excluded from the net. They have to do with make do with manipulating their owners into managing their social presence with some success. An estimated 10% of all internet traffic is now related to cats.

The iPad was the first device that handed control over to our future feline masters (with so far, limited success):

It won't be long now until some fool owner creates software that connects Kinect with cats. Then we're doomed; 99% traffic will be cat related and 99.9% of e-commerce traffic will be cat related, mostly ordering kibble.

Become a Jedi / and about Kinect

Hmm, rather excited about the possibility of using Kinect in a Star Wars game.

One of the best parts of Star Wars has to be the Jedi Light Saber. While the Wii could be a good candidate for a light saber game the graphics are poop.

The XBox 360 with Kinect has both the power and the interface now.

Read the Eurogamer review of Star Wars Kinect or view trailer below:

Goes to show that these new Wii clone controllers have potential for more than the family market. Serious gamers can get on board too. It'll be interesting to see how the user actually moves about... is this controlled by Kinect, a controller, or do you move around arcade style? I hope they have found a way to move around freely otherwise it'll just irritate.

If you can't wait for this Kinect game? Get the Force Unleashed 2. I've played the first and can't wait to try the second. Ok, so it's not connected to Kinect but still one of the best Star Wars games out there. 

PS: Just saw a fun little Star Wars fun in the snow video tweeted:


Snowy trench run from Aaron Dabelow on Vimeo.

Also of much excitement (thank you @Melkirk for tweeing this) is the news that Kinect may be developed for the PC. The possibilities of how this could change the way we interact with PC's and TV's is large. The most obvious application - Minority Report style interaction:

You wouldn't even need the silly glowy things on the fingers that Tom Cruise uses.