With the US Department of Justice trying to split Microsoft in two,
Netropolitan has been wondering whether true innovation might begin to reach the
graphical user interfaces (GUIs) of tomorrow. Some think that two-dimensional
GUIs like Windows have had their day. One way of providing a 3D front end for
Windows has been dreamed up in Israel by Clockwise Technologies of Tel Aviv.
Called (with huge originality) Win3D, this might be one direction for the future
of GUIs. Instead of navigating a desktop, you move around a 3D graphics
environment that includes themed Office, Internet and Games “rooms”—and
open applications by using the 3D objects you’ll find within them. Download the
test version for free at www.clockwise3d.com.
If a virtual office seems a little limiting, then Dutch programming outfit
Vimana has developed 3D Top, a virtual expanse within your desktop
(www.3dtop.com/sw/index.htm). It’s a bit like a minimalist theatre set, with
icons and folders hanging in space around you. Bill Gates isn’t resting on his
laurels, however, and Microsoft is already on the case to update Windows along a
similar “more inviting and interesting” line. The TaskGallery is Microsoft’s
concept product: a 3D graphical space where hanging pictures are replaced by
open applications. Check out pictures and videos of the possible future of
Windows at http://research.microsoft.com/ui/TaskGallery/index.htm.
A 3D interface might sound a little implausible on a 2D screen, so how
about a truly 3D interface that you can actually stand in? Chalmers Medialab in
Sweden is working on a device called a 3D-CUBE
(www.medialab.chalmers.se/cube/index.html),
a 3-metre cube that uses 3D glasses, a
motion tracker and a dataglove to completely immerse the user in the software.
It’s a bit of a brute-force solution—there’s certainly a huge processing
overhead—but at least people are beginning to think about making computers
more fun.
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