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Google Glass Project In Flux

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Despite news that show Google's Project Glass project is still in flux, one investor and researcher is making his own. Rod Furlan reports at the IEEE Spectrum site how he decided to make his own Google Glass prototype.

Project Glass Update with Babak Parviz

Furlan's post follows on the heels of an interview that IEEE Spectrum had with the Project Glass leader, Babak Parviz. According to the Spectrum post, Parviz said that the “feature set for the device is not set yet” and “is still in flux,” and that Google has “experimented a lot with using voice commands” and “with some hand gestures.” When asked about the Glass business model, Parviz said that it is “still being worked on,” while adding that there were no plans to display advertisements through Glass “at the moment.”

I'm glad to hear that there are no plans to show ads on these glasses yet! But I'm sure that ads popping up in your glasses are only too soon for most of us.

IEEE Spectrum asks Parviz about the potential of Google now, which is like Apple's Siri, a virtual assistant that can help you process information and requests verbally. He sees Google Now integration as a  very interesting opportunity because you can get that information almost instantly.

Build Your Own Google Glass by Rod Furlan is exciting because he walks you through how he did it. I've heard about other makers and inventor types tinkering with similar designs. As Mr. Furlan summarizes the experiences of building his own, he explains:

"When I wear my prototype, I am connected to the world in a way that is quintessentially different from how I’m connected with my smartphone and computer. Our brains are eager to incorporate new streams of information into our mental model of the world. Once the initial period of adaptation is over, those augmented streams of information slowly fade into the background of our minds as conscious effort is replaced with subconscious monitoring."

Mr. Furlan's work is opening up the potential for more entrepreneurs to start building their own wearable devices. Many are already in the works, but none as elegant as what Google has started.

But in the quest for figuring out how people will actually use the devices, here's one that I think is worth a look:  The Recon Heads Up Display (HUD) for skiers and snowboarders. These snow goggles are impressive. I haven't been able to test a pair yet, but I hope to try some out this ski season at Whistler.

If Google doesn't hurry, you might see people walking around the city in a Recon HUD. I realize the Google Glass technology and implementation is far different than what Recon offers, however, you can see some of the future of having information delivered into your field of view in a non-obtrusive way. Add to it that someone receiving information in a set of ski goggles is probably seeing that information while bombing down a slope. Recon has nailed making that work, it appears.

Oh, and here is the interview with Parviz on the IEEE Spectrum post: Google Glass Features and Apps Still in Flux.