The Moon, Europa

The Moon, Europa

Monday, December 19, 2011

Christmas List

It's a little late in the season for me to be compiling a Christmas wish list, but hey, it's a WISH list. Besides, for the benefit of all the other guys out there who like to be prepared for anything, and who may have trouble putting their hearts desire into words, here are some helpful suggestions to pass on to your significant other; or if all else fails Santa:

1. Stargate SG1 fans, and anyone else with a penchant for great firearms, will love the FN P90 Rifle.

2. You will be ready for the zombie apocalypse, alien invasion or chaos in general with the Gerber Apocalypse Kit and Benelli M2 Shotgun.
3. In the event all of our wonderful technology is wiped out by an EMP attack and we are sent back to the iron age I recommend a purchase from Albion Swords...Just in case you run out of ammo for your P90. I recommend a curved blade if lopping off zombie heads is what the situation requires.
4. The LifeStraw can filter just about anything out of up to 1,000 liters of nasty amoebic dysentery filled water; making it a necessary addition to any survival kit.
5. There are several choices for emergency rations from MREs to freeze dried hiking fare but for the minimalist don't forget Mainstay or (the tastiest) Datrex bar.
6. Until then the Razer Blade gaming laptop: 6.6lbs, 17" monitor, 8GB DDR3 Ram, Nvidia GEForce GPU and 'Switchblade UI' (an on board auxiliary display and touch screen interface) from Razer Gaming Gear should keep you adequately entertained.


Merry Christmas To All

J.A.S.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Eye Tracking

     The Swedish tech firm Tobii appears to have a new spin on the use of eye tracking to interact with the PC. 
"An eye tracker estimates the point of gaze with extreme accuracy using image sensor technology that finds the user’s eyes and calculates the point of gaze with mathematical algorithms. In other words, the eye tracker works much like you would if you face another person and estimate at what they are looking just by observing their eyes." 
     Eye tracking has been around for awhile, but it has yet to gain widespread popularity; possibly due to its inaccuracy. Most systems use either the 'bright pupil' or 'dark pupil' method of the tracking the eye and both have minor flaws such as not working outdoors or not tracking well with certain eye colors. This new system uses both tracking methods in an attempt to eliminate some of the bugs and eliminates some the accessory problems, like the need to wear a headset. The Tobii eye tracking system is in its infancy so whether or not it proves a viable option for the disabled, and a nice performance enhancement for those who are not, remains to be seen. 


Tobii Website
Fox News Story - Eye tracking useful to wounded warriors