I've posted before about some cool physics on Microsoft Surface with a fluid simulation and the Wii balance board mashup. People love touching the water on Surface. I have Crayon Physics Deluxe on my notebook too and it's brilliant. Internally, our devs have created several different physics simulators based on the applications they are working on which always seem to make adults giddy as schoolkids.
If you're remotely like me, you'll also like what Dave Brown has created. Dave works in the UK at one of our Microsoft Technology Centers. His job is to create proof of concepts for organizations working with Microsoft products. He's also a part time wizard. Seriously. Not only is the simulator crazy fun, I'm told his code is very elegant as well. After viewing the video below, head on over to Dave's blog to see more videos. It gets even better with each one.
I had the privilege of working with Dave and the rest of the MTC team in producing the Education Surface PoC for RM called Finguistics; mentioned in an previous post. Dave’s physics engine was initially created as part of our application but he has since made some significant additions and improvements. His posts and video are well worth a look, in particular the 3D globe bouncing around the Surface or pool balls.
As Dave is a Microsoft developer with obviously a very high calibre of technical skills is there any way of this physics panel getting into the Surface core presentation dll as an alternative to the scatter view; even getting it into the SDK would be a start. Having actually used the physics panel it makes the Surface experience much more realistic, really greying the boundaries between the physical and virtual; making it very tangible and tactile.
There is some physics built into the ScatterView control, and I think the possibility exists to extend physics control in the SDK at some point. We have fans of Dave's work on the product team and we also are aware of the opportunity to make that type of functionality more accessible. Is that vague enough of a response? I hope so. I can't say how or when at this point. :)
You all rock... love the blogs... Mine is starting off...
http://www.microsoftsurfaces.com
Physics on Surface are fantastic as can be seen from Dave's work! Here's something to consider when using physics in everday scenarios:
For instance, the original rationale behind a more mild physics engine in ScatterView, is that we have found users are more able to seamlessly perform simple tasks without alot of real-world physics.
So, the challenge for us was to create a fine balance between making the interaction model be both delightful and familiar enough to indicate how the space works - all while filtering the frivolous artifacts (physics) that didn't add value so people can get things done efficiently.
ALl of this adds up to an experience that 'feels' physical and efficient at the same time.