Some additional news today about getting your next Lazzara Yacht with Microsoft Surface (see here for original post).  There are really two parts to this story:

1. Lazzara’s announcement marks the first time Microsoft Surface is being made available to consumers.
2. Adding Surface, and some special applications for Lazzara owners, to the yachting experience can improve the yacht ownership experience (already pretty good, I’m guessing!) in interesting ways. 

The last post focused on the announcement, and this follow-up is more on what Surface and some unique applications can mean for a yachting experience.

Rich Lazzara, VP of Sales and Marketing, at Lazzara Yachts has links to pics and more info here, and says:

“With the Surface technology on the yacht owners will be able to research the various ports of call they are traveling to and find out about activities, events, restaurants, services in those locations.  In addition it will also be used to display the owners manual, family pictures, control on board audio system and link to other Surface devices.  With the launch of a Lazzara Yacht Club Social Network this year owners will be able to link to each other and network and share information around their yachting lifestyle.”  

Additionally, MegaYachtNews has this take on pairing Lazzara Yachts with Surface.

“…suffice it to say that Microsoft Surface will improve the ownership experience, the guest experience, and even the crew’s experience dramatically.”

They also have a link to a video of the first Surface app for Lazzara taken at the Miami Yacht and Brokerage Show this weekend (which is open through tomorrow, 18-February). 

Specifically, Lazzara is working with Microsoft partner Infusion on the following Surface apps for use on Lazzara Yachts:

• Trip Planning – Nautical Way Finder with GPS and point of interest suggestions
• Tour Guide – interactive tour guide concierge (image shown to right)
• Ship Management – onboard ship management and controls
• Social Networking – share photos and activities with friends and families – including connecting with Lazzara Yacht owners’ own social networking web site.

Some folks might be wondering how any of these apps will really be different from just bringing a laptop on board or having a computer installed in the yacht?  The answer lies in designing to leverage the unique capabilities of Surface.  Specifically, design points for Surface apps include: 

• Direct interaction. Users can actually “grab” digital information with their hands and interact with content through touch and gesture, without the use of a mouse or keyboard.
• Multi‐touch contact. Surface computing recognizes many points of contact simultaneously, not just from one finger as with a typical touch screen, but up to dozens and dozens of items at once.
• Multi‐user experience. The horizontal form factor makes it easy for several people to gather around surface computers together, providing a collaborative, face‐to‐face computing experience.
• Object recognition. Users can place physical objects

The technology behind the design for these applications includes a range of software and services working together in harmony to enable a new kind of experience.  (BTW, at a basic level this is what Microsoft means when it says “software-plus-services”.)  Some of the software and services: 

• Software: Microsoft Surface (itself based on Windows Vista), WPF, Visual Studio, Expression
• Services: Virtual Earth, Live Framework, and Windows Live ID – all part of Live Services. 

Finally, if you’re not able to get down to Miami for the show before it closes tomorrow, you can also see the new Lazzara Yachts, along with Microsoft Surface, at the Dubai International Yacht Show, March 3-7, 2009.