Here’s a recap of what we talked about this week in the Microsoft Surface blog.
Next week is PDC. Kyle is our man on the ground. He’ll take photos and send back reports from the event in case you miss anything. If you can’t get your news fast enough, there’s always Twitter.
I’ve confirmed that we’ll have the complete suite of applications from the Hard Rock Cafe installed on one of the Microsoft Surface units at our PDC ‘09 booth next week. That means that if you’re in attendance, you’ll be able to check out the Memorabilia and other Hard Rock branded apps. Make sure to see our session as well and follow us on @MSurface.
Recently, I was down in Las Vegas at the grand opening of the NEW Hard Rock Cafe on the Las Vegas strip. It’s an amazing location to shop, dine and take in a concert. While we were there, we shot a video interview with the team that brought the Surface experience into the venue. The resulting impact is brilliant when you walk in the doors at the Hard Rock Cafe.
For a video demo of the Memorabilia application, check out this previous post. For a little more background on what went into creating the application, here’s an interview I did with Paul Osburn, Touch Technologist at Vertigo. Vertigo is a Microsoft Surface Strategic Partner. The Memorabilia application was created in partnership with Hard Rock, designed by Duncan/Channon and built by Vertigo.
Eric Havir: Why did you choose to create the experience on Surface?
Paul Osburn: All of us at Hard Rock, Duncan/Channon, and Vertigo wanted to create an experience that showcased Hard Rock’s music memorabilia collection. We didn’t want a traditional user interface to get in the way. With the Worldwide Memorabilia application, the content is the interface. Want to find where Hard Rock is located in Europe? Spin the 3D globe to Europe. Want to look at Bo Diddley’s guitar in more detail? Touch the guitar and use your fingers to zoom into it. Want to share what you find with a friend who is sitting next to you? Slide the guitar over to them. Using Surface allowed us to make the memorabilia the focus and create a social experience for the user.
EH: Can you describe the application?
PO: The Worldwide Memorabilia application allows users to explore Hard Rock's memorabilia collection in detail, read the story that goes with each item, watch videos, and discover Hard Rock properties using the 3D globe. Users open collections of memorabilia that float around on Surface and then zoom into any item they’re interested in. Up to 5 five people can use the application at the same time, from any side of Surface. From John Lennon’s army jacket to Michael Jackson’s white glove to Buddy Holly’s iconic glasses, there are thousands of items to look at and more being added every day since the application is connected to Hard Rock’s digital asset management system.
EH: What was the process for creating this experience? Where did you start and what did you want to accomplish?
PO: Our vision was to provide people at the cafes with a fun way to explore Hard Rock’s music memorabilia collection and properties. We started brainstorming what the application could be. We prototyped ideas and played around with them on Surface, continuing to refine those we liked and scrapping the rest. As the overall design matured we started building the application in earnest, using short iterations as checkpoints along the way.
We had several user-testing sessions, even going so far as setting up a mock Hard Rock Café in our offices: videos playing, loud music, Surface units, you name it. User testing ended up having a big impact on how we spent our time when it came to refining the application and adding the polish that makes it so engaging and fun to use. It really focused us.
EH: In general.. What other applications / experiences would you be interested in creating?
PO: We’re interested in creating experiences where users forget they’re using a machine, where they become completely immersed in the content, and where that experience can be shared with others. The interaction that takes place between people as they use our applications on Surface are just as important and exciting to us as the application itself.
EH: All technicality aside, what would be your fantasy application and where would you want to see it deployed?
PO: How cool would it be if an application on Surface allowed you or your group to connect with some of the musicians represented in the collection? Twitter, live video feeds, whatever … features that let you to get to know the artists by communicating with them directly from the Cafe.
Finally, it would be fantastic if there was an application for Surface that allowed you to create your own donut. You choose the style of donut, the flavors, toppings, etc. Then, touch something and BAM! Out comes a piping hot donut from the new deep fryer that’s built right into the Surface.
Please let me know if you have any questions about Surface here in the blog comments.
- Eric
The Microsoft Surface SDK Workstation Edition is now available for MSDN subscribers.
If you’re an MSDN subscriber, make sure to get over there and download the Workstation Edition SDK. This will allow you to develop Surface applications using your PC. With less than a week to go before PDC, you might want to familiarize yourself with the toolset before our session and Ask the Experts for even more insight.
Microsoft Surface lands and deploys in a big way in over 60 Vodafone flagship stores across seven European markets.
Customers in Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom can now engage with Surface to explore the services and features that are part of the Vodafone 360 offering. A suite of innovative internet services for the mobile and PC, Vodafone 360 gathers all of a customer’s friends, communities, entertainment and personal favorites (i.e., music, games, photos and video) in one place giving users an integrated mobile internet experience.
Vodafone and Microsoft worked closely with Microsoft Consulting Services to create a custom retail application designed to enhance Vodafone’s assisted sales scenario.
The customized application includes a video introduction to the Vodafone 360 experience and an interactive tour of Vodafone 360 features and capabilities. When the Vodafone 360 mobile devices, shown in the store, are placed on the screen it opens up additional content that lets the customer compare and contrast features and price plans of the range of Vodafone 360 mobile devices.
Microsoft Surface’s massive multi-touch technology enables multiple users to interact freely with content and compare their findings, rather than leafing through paper brochures. Vodafone sales personnel can use Surface to create a more personalized and engaging retail experience for their customers while interacting with them face-to-face.
At Vodafone, the latest product information is updated to Surface from a central location for each country. This creates an efficiency of distribution that is only possible with digital content. And yet, with Surface, the digital content handles intuitively like a brochure.
If you’re in Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain or the United Kingdom, why don’t you head down to your nearest flagship Vodafone store and see if they’ve deployed Microsoft Surface. If so, we’d love to hear what you think of the experience!
Microsoft Surface and WPF Session
Attendees of PDC 2009 should mark your calendars for our session on Thursday. First there was Surface, and now touch has come to PCs with the launch of Windows 7. Robert Levy with Surface and Anson Tsao with WPF will be leading a session about multi-touch for .NET developers. You’ll want to attend this session. Not only is the content very relevant, there are some amazing demos planned that show off some of the unique capabilities of Microsoft Surface that take multi-touch to a whole new level.
Title: Multi-Touch on Microsoft Surface and Windows 7 for .NET Developers
When: Thursday at 11:30AM
Where: Petree Hall C
Ask the Experts
On Wednesday night, we’ll be hosting a table at the Ask The Experts. Bring your questions for the Surface team.
Microsoft Surface Booth
We’ll have a Surface booth with 4 Surface units showing off a bunch of applications. I should have more on what we’re showing as details get finalized closer to the show.
Surface Conference Connection Stations
We’ll have several clusters of Surface units spread throughout the Los Angeles Convention Center. They will have our conference connect experience with business card exchange plus Twitter and Flickr feeds. If you haven’t seen that software, check this out.
Last week Microsoft launched the first of the new Microsoft Retail Stores in Phoenix with Microsoft Surface. This week we’ve launched a new store in Mission Viejo, and Microsoft Surface is there too. If you’re in SoCal, head on down to the Shops at Mission Viejo and check out Microsoft Surface.
From last week..
Microsoft Surface is not being offered for sale to consumers at the store. Surface is in four distinct merchandise areas at the corners of the store – supporting Games, Mobility, Personalization and PCs.
Microsoft worked closely with our partners Vectorform, Infusion and Wirestone to create custom applications for the retail experience and we’ve also included some other engaging applications that showcase Microsoft Surface for visitors to the store. You will find a mobility selection tool for Windows Phones as well as a Surface version of the hit service Skin-It for mobile phones, laptops and other devices. There are other applications that offer the visitor utility, exploration and fun.
If you’re in the Mission Viejo area, stop by and check out Microsoft Surface. Here’s the press release about the Microsoft Store.
Today is a big day at Microsoft. Windows 7 is now available worldwide and our new Microsoft online store has launched. There’s coverage of what is happening over at The Windows Blog. It’s a party over here at Microsoft Surface too, because our contributions to the Touch Pack for Windows 7 have officially launched. What’s the Touch Pack? Check out my previous post on the topic or learn more on the Microsoft Surface site or on the Windows site. The Microsoft Surface team’s contribution includes Microsoft Surface Globe, Collage and Lagoon. From the Windows Blog: “[Touch Pack] is available to PC makers (OEMs) who will have the option to pre-install some, none, or all of the applications available in the Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7 on PCs designed for Windows Touch…” Keep an eye out for these features when buying a new PC.
Update: See the Lagoon and Collage on the Today show. (1:40 into the clip)
I’ve received inquiries in the past from those in the Phoenix area who’ve wanted to see Microsoft Surface in a public space. While there have been units behind closed doors, now you’ll be able to come in and check out Surface at the Microsoft retail store in the Scottsdale Fashion Mall. Microsoft Surface is not being offered for sale to consumers at the store. Surface is in four distinct merchandise areas at the corners of the store – supporting Games, Mobility, Personalization and PCs.
Microsoft worked closely with our partners Vectorform, Identity Mine, Infusion and Wirestone to create custom applications for the retail experience and we’ve also included some other engaging applications that showcase Microsoft Surface for visitors to the store. You will find a mobility selection tool for Windows Phones as well as a Surface version of the hit service Skin-It for mobile phones, laptops and other devices. There are other applications that offer the visitor utility, exploration and fun.
If you’re in the area, stop by and check Microsoft Surface out. Here’s the press release about the Microsoft Store.
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Eric (@mssurface)
I don’t want to put any pressure on Michael and the team over at Carnegie Mellon University, but you guys should be getting an A for your class project this semester. Their Dungeons & Dragons experience called “Surfacescapes” on Microsoft Surface is amazing. This is the future of how computers will aid in board games. Remember, D&D playing aids like this are for serious role playing gamers who might normally use balsa cutouts and not just wimpy printed maps. The computer is has a technical role in the gameplay but the DM and the players are the storytellers. That’s why it doesn’t look exactly like a video game. Not that it isn’t seven shades of wonderful. This is crazy cool stuff for role players – unless your dream is a mashup of Project Natal and LARP. ;)
Surfacescapes Demo Walkthrough from Visual Story TAs on Vimeo.
P.S. When I last talked to the team at PAX, they were planning on bringing this to PAX East this spring. I’ve got my fingers crossed!
Along with Ann Morrison and Giulio Jacucci of HIIT (Helsinki Institute of Information Technology), Dennis Wixon and yours truly will be organizing a second workshop devoted to multitouch, surface computing, and natural user interface at the annual CHI conference. Every year in April, the conference draws a few thousand students, researchers, and practitioners of human-computer interaction. Check out the website and call for position paper here.
Yesterday, Darren David from Stimulant came by the office to show us the Microsoft Local Impact Map on Surface. It’s an application Stimulant created for the Microsoft Citizenship team.
As an industry leader and the world's largest software company, Microsoft has a responsibility to act as a good corporate citizen all around the world. Whether it is complying with local laws and regulations, demonstrating ethical business standards, mitigating risks to the environment, or protecting human rights, Microsoft is committed to being a global leader in corporate social responsibility.
The Microsoft Local Impact Map is an application where individuals can discover program stories and programs from around the world. The Microsoft Surface version of this tool lets groups interact and share learnings with each other. Check it out.
- Eric
Joe Engalan from Vectorform came in to give me a tour of an application they developed in collaboration with FD Kinesis for Coldwell Banker on Microsoft Surface.
This Coldwell Banker proof-of-concept is a great example how Surface can change the way you may buy or sell your home. It extends functionality available on Coldwell Banker’s website in a new way for the realtor/customer consultation. You can screen homes based on the usual parameters and look at property photos. The window into neighborhoods with the satellite imagery with Bing maps using gestures is very useful. The experience is more than access to data and multi-touch. It’s about how a consultation becomes an activity where the realtor has a more personal touch with the buyer or seller as they collaborate together.
I’m posting to remind everyone that we have a contest going on right now, put on by Microsoft Surface. The challenge is directed at creating applications that use the unique properties of the platform to address needs within the automotive, retail, healthcare, financial services, hospitality or public sector industries. See our contest page for more details. “Create the most innovative application experience and you could win your own Microsoft Surface unit.” See current submissions out on Facebook and size up the competition or cheer on your favorites.
Developers and Designers. While the subtitle says developer challenge, we are speaking to both coders and designers. Just like the early days of GUI and the web - coders, graphic and user experience designers will need to collaborate to build a winning NUI application. Don’t try go it alone. Form a mini-team at your company that draws on different design and development practices. Be prepared to have your initial concept changed as you take it through user scenario testing.
Multiple users can break the experience of typical step-by-step wizards commonly found in single-user applications. Expect the unexpected. Your users may be sitting at any angle around the screen and they are communicating to each other both verbally and non-verbally to negotiate rules for sharing. Don’t forget to add elements of delight, even if you’re working with a serious scenario. Delight doesn’t have to mean childish. Remember that you’re working with really cool tech here and there are subtle ways to make that experience more exciting.
I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of applications on Surface. The best lead with the scenario, focus on Surface’s strengths (direct interaction, multi-user, multi-touch and object recognition), provide user delight and then they test, test and test.
The contest ends October 12, 2009. Hurry up! See the official rules.
Last week there was a press event at the new Hard Rock Cafe in Las Vegas. Microsoft’s Industry Director Sandra Andrews was there to represent Microsoft Surface. I’ve included links to photos and embedded video of the coverage by local media outlets. You’ll see in the video and photos the Rock Wall, the Booth Interactive and Microsoft Surface.
For video of the Hard Rock memorabilia application in action on Microsoft Surface, check out my previous post.
Eric
Because it is a multi-user computer, it’s important for Microsoft Surface to convey rich information to the software designers and developers to create brilliant experiences. Surface uses an vision system to see the interactions of hands and other physical objects. You can build your own vision based computer using parts off the shelf, but what makes Surface a unique commercial product is the engineering that has gone into both the hardware and software to provide a very powerful tool for businesses.
