Our world does not seem very far off from becoming a futuristic science fiction novel. Upon viewing the REAL world through our own eyes, we might see as many people who are plugged into their iPhones or Blackberries today, getting their digital fix through sunglasses and earpieces. People will be moving their hands in front of them- a silent charade of air guitar and wiggly fingers- collecting, creating, sharing data and entertainment through a screen only visible to them. People will become even more efficient in their digital lives, but like we can already see in today’s world, much more disconnected with their natural reality. The pleasure received from putting on these glasses and instantly being connected to ‘the matrix’ will be extraordinary and people will not understand its long-term effects and consequences, just as many don’t with our current personal computer devices. The same as we see today from video games, ipods, and mobile web access, people become ADD- lazy in physical or mental hard work but superspeed with digital work or entertainment-, more removed from their fellow man (following them on facebook does not count), and less and less reflective and peaceful in God’s nature.
Although I myself often wish I had an iPhone to download a million of the new applications, believing that they can improve my life’s scheduling/efficiency/
Yes, its ironic that I actually work in a digital media industry while saying all this. As someone who assists brands explore new ways to digitally target different audiences, I may be one of the very people causing our society and culture to become more plugged in and utterly dependent on their Smartphone. I guess I rationalize this cognitive dissonance with 2 things: first, that the brands I work for and the ways we're targeting their audience doesn't seem to be detrimental to our culture (I generally just place ads on website and newsletters for Harvard Business School and Rite Aid Pharmacy) The second rationalizing tool is the hope that people know that too much TV and connectivity isn't always the most positive thing and that it is important to go 'off the grid' every now and then. However, when I see the whole train in their own digital world, I think this hope might be in vain. Ideally, I'd like to be able to understand and grow in this industry enough to where I may be able to work with these technologies, but use them for positive intentions. It's a tough idea to wrap your mind around though, when you think that it may be the technologies themselves that's doing the harm.
Augmented Reality (AR) mobile application facial recognition allows people to hold up their Smartphones and see icons floating around anyone someone’s head! So, you can pass someone on the street, hold up your iPhone to them, and it will search websites (flickr, facebook, etc.) for their pictures. Once its pinpointed that person, through your iphone video camera, you’ll be able to see icons of, for example, their LinkedIn profile, Facebook profile, business card, etc ‘floating’ above and around their head. Wild, right?
See
http://www.readwriteweb.com/
So how about if a brand, say Tommy Hilfiger for example, invited people to pull the TH logo onto their displayed ‘floating’ icons. “Are you Polo? Then show the world!” Some campaign like that. So then, you have people becoming their own personal racecar hoods/doors, with many different logos and brands associated with that individual person! Creepy.
From that, maybe that brand could be collecting photos of people on the street that have opted-in to the brand’s floating logo. If a particularly attractive man or woman was found wearing that product’s clothes and captured in an appealing pose, maybe Brand X could contact that person saying, ‘You have what it takes to be a Banana Republic model! We’d love to use this photo of you for future ads. Click here if you’d like to be our next BR model and we’ll send you $100” or something like that. I’d imagine the legal terms on using this person’s likeness/ image would be miles deep, but- basically you’d be allowing everyone in the world to feel like a model for their favorite brands.
Also, people will be able to take on Augmented Reality personalities much more so than they currently do in RPGs like Second Life or World of Warcraft. A member of these games will be able to create an avatar for themselves, to be seen by someone else through AR. So, when a AR screen recognizes another person, the user will not see the human, but that person’s character (ex. A wizard or warrior, etc.). Through the screen, we could potentially be walking around in ‘cartoon-world’ in just a few years. What also might be neat/possible is to alter someone’s voice through their selected avatar. This would require someone using an AR screen to also have AR headphones, although I’m not sure if these have been created yet. So, the person choosing a wizard or warrior or whatever might decide that his avatar has a deep, scary, Scottish accent for example. Along with selecting the look of his character, he would also be able to select a voice that would be digitally rendered through the AR headphones. Wow. Again, very creepy stuff here that seems like it might be possible and not too far away.
Augmented Reality will also be able to take off from the new ‘tablet’ technologies from Apple or Freescale. Rather than have an actual electric screen, soon we will be able to carry around a small, lightweight board with a computer system inside, but no screen. Through AR glasses, we will be able to see a screen projected onto this flat board and even be able to interact with the image itself. The glasses will sense our hand movements on specific keys, links, or tools and, after a few versions to perfect the technology, will become very natural and ‘real’ for the user. The next phase a few years down the road after this is being able to carry around a computer on your shoulder or backpack, while no tablet at all is needed. With our redesigned AR glasses, we will be able to project a ‘screen’ in front of our eyes. We will be able to push and pull windows and tools, applications and programs, ‘keyboards’ and ‘mouses’ in and out of our line of vision, everything in front of us interactive. People will be able to look at each other’s ‘screens’ by looking at another person’s AR glasses and syncing up (much like the iPhone bump). Then, both glasses will be able to view the same AR screen.
