There’s a really interesting dialog going on right now about integrating gaming dynamics and principles into into traditionally non-gaming experiences.
What if we could inject a little joy and surprise into everyday or otherwise mundane tasks?
The above TED Talk does a good job of outlining a few of these principles and giving examples.
Right before seeing this video I coincidentally bought an iPhone to-do list app that uses the RPG metaphor of leveling-up your character as you complete tasks. I’m not a to-do list app type of guy, but I was so impressed with the execution that I decided to check it out.
Weeks later I’ve found myself consistently interacting with the app every day - though I’m still only a Level 2 Stooping Dwarven Nerd-Do-Well.
Not only am I having fun with this app, but I’m actually accomplishing more things as well.
Very interested to see where this new thread takes things.
As other publishers have demoed their tablet vision over the past few months, there’s nothing really new that we’re seeing here. But that’s likely because Wired is one of the first to get past the prototype and into a live product. No small feat.
The content is created in Adobe InDesign(!) and powered by an AIR app. I think I just heard a collective sigh of relief from print designers.
Editor Chris Anderson sees this (as do the other publishers) as an opportunity to “reset the economics” of publishing, and give people an experience that they’re willing to pay for.
As I look at the stack of un-read copies Wired in my office, who knows, maybe I’ll bite when I get my iPad.
I’m continually baffled by retailers that waste their money (and our time) with impossibly useless product finders. This one from BestBuy is one of the worst ones I’ve come across in a long time.
There is just so much wrong with it that I can’t bear to waste even more of my time writing about it. If you feel like wasting some of yours, check it out for yourself.
Otherwise I think the image above says it all.
Just imagine if BestBuy created an easy to use tool that asked human questions and gave meaningful results. Think of what that could do for their brand.
Then again, considering the BestBuy in-store experience, maybe this tool real is on brand.
It’s finally here. The ultimate device that we’ve all been waiting for, right?
The iPad is probably the most controversial and polarizing piece of consumer technology to date. Never has anything been hyped this much before its announcement - not the iPod, not even the iPhone. And with such a monumental build up, shattered expectations could only follow.
All this, and so few have even touched this thing.
I have to admit, when I saw Steve Jobs unveil the same over-sized iTouch that all the Photoshop retouchers had predicted with such a lack of imagination, I was disappointed. We expect more from Apple. I mean, don’t I already have the Internet in my had with my iTouch?
It all really clicked for me, however, when Steve played the promo video - seeing the device on the coffee table and on the couch, watching people having a shared experience. I really think Apple has reinvented the computing experience here. Surely they have on the UI, but much much more on the where and how we interact with the computer. Apple has un-glued us from our desks, un-cramped our hands from the laptop, and shown us how the computer can more seamlessly and naturally be integrated into our home.
And man are we pissed. Why do so many people want this thing to fail? We all look to Apple to innovate, and when they do we’re criticizing them for going too far (or not far enough if you ask others) - “it does too much”, “it doesn’t do enough”.
All of us who live in this (tech) world tend to forget that using a computer is not a pleasurable experience for the average person - Macs included. The iPad just might change that. Apple’s talent is in stripping away the features, not adding them. Do fewer things, but do them right. That was the magic of iPhone 1.0.
There’s a lot of debate over how the public will perceive needing a device like this. Many are calling it a luxury device. Need is a relative and ever-changing thing though. At what point did you realize you needed a smartphone, or a netbook, or a Kindle, or an mp3 player? I distinctly remember turning the corner on the Kindle - going from “that’s too expensive” to “that would make my life easier and more enjoyable”. Many said the Kindle would never succeed - it’s too expensive and it only does one thing. I was one of those people. Turns out we were wrong.
But rather than ramble on further ... My thoughts on all this are probably best summarized in a response I posted on a friend’s blog - which I’ve re-posted below. It’s probably best to read his post first. He’s skeptical, I’m optimistic. We’ve bet a bottle on it.
Microsoft researcher Johnny Chung Lee hacks the Wii Remote to create this very cool VR prototype.
There’s speculation that Apple is working on displays to bring this technology to your desktop. I could see this working great for games, but, with the amount of times I shift my position while in front of my computer, I’d find this disorienting in a desktop environment.
You can check out more of Johnny’s Wii hacks at his blog.
