3D

New 3D display may soon ship, sans glasses

Minority Report's holographic images made 3D cool again, and still more impressive was 6th Day's highly interactive virtual girlfriend who could even unzip your pants. But until that day arrives, PureDepth's upcoming MLD (Multi-Layer Display) project looks like a start. Developed jointly with Samsung and rumored to launch soon, this joint effort will roll out a 46-inch MLD LCD display that consists of two or more layers of LCD panels sandwiched within a frame and sharing a common backlight. The result is images onscreen that have a 3D appearance. Better yet, there's no need to don … Read more

Autodesk add-in models 'green' goods to come

Software plays a key role in the clean-tech world, whether helping consumers size up their carbon footprints and crunch the costs of solar panels, or aiding manufacturers in reducing toxicity throughout the supply chain.

Autodesk unveiled an add-in in April to enable designers using prototyping software Inventor to calculate the carbon emissions of an array of products.

The Sustainable Materials Assistant, available as a preview through Autodesk Labs, also adds up data about the toxicity and recyclability of materials used, and how the final result might comply with regional regulations.

Users must populate data fields with information about toxic ingredients, … Read more

Nvidia to make all your PC games 3D (if you so choose)

Thanks to a new software driver Nvidia is cooking up, any PC game can be played in 3D, with no extra work on the part of game developers.

Beginning this summer, any PC with an Nvidia graphics processor will have the ability to run a game in normal mode, or in 3D, with the aid of 3D glasses.

The software driver will enable the ability to have two views--left eye and right eye--which, at the push of a button, appear blurry and pixelated to the naked eye. When viewed through 3D lenses though, the game pops into three-dimensional mode.

The … Read more

Want to see that ad in 3D?

Here comes a new way for advertisers to capture attention: software that turns 2D images into 3D simulations when consumers play with them in front of a Webcam.

Total Immersion's D'Fusion system is composed of a kiosk, Web cameras, and software capable of recognizing, tracking, and rendering images.

It works like this. Customers view themselves on a screen through a Webcam and hold up a 2D picture. Suddenly the 2D picture pops up and consumers see themselves holding a 3D simulation of the product in the brochure on the kiosk's video feed. Sometimes it doesn't work: … Read more

Google takes Street View to Europe--in 3D?

Google Earth and Maps could cover a lot more territory with a lot more detail soon, if some photos from Italy are anything to judge by.

First, evidenced by Google-branded cars traversing Milan, is the possibility that Google is acquiring European imagery for its Street View feature.

Second is the observation, based on scrutiny of those pictures, that Google could be gathering 3D data along with the photos.

"With an automated solution, they could go for blanket 3D coverage," rather than the more limited approach today involving user contributions of basic 3D models, robotics engineering student Mark Cummins … Read more

Gadgettes 86: The Body Episode

Fit yourself with your best hot breath voice and say it: Body. It's fun, if not a bit creepy. That sums up this week's episode pretty well, come to think of it. Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 86

Robotic snake surgeon tinkers with your heart via your mouth http://dvice.com/archives/2008/04/robotic_snake_s.php

Power Shirt charges gadgets as you walk http://dvice.com/archives/2008/04/power_shirt_cha.php

Ergoskin: Underwear that makes you sit up straight http://dvice.com/archives/2008/04/ergoskin_underw.php

Remember Ring (Thanks, David!) http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/04/remember-ring-s.html… Read more

Linden Lab demos hands-free interface for Second Life

While the Nintendo Wii has garnered attention from consumers and media alike for its innovative motion-based controls, Linden Lab is experimenting with a new way to interact with its Second Life virtual world with nothing more than a Webcam. Codenamed Segalen, the technology makes use of 3D Webcams, such as the ones from 3DVsystems, to track user's body gestures to let them navigate and edit within the environment.

In a YouTube video (embedded below), Second Life creator Mitch Kapor and Kapor Enterprises Inc. employee Philippe Bossut demonstrate the basics of moving around the 3D virtual world without the use … Read more

DAZ Studio provides 3D for free

Google SketchUp landed with a big splash last year, but it's not the only freeware option for budding 3D designers. From the makers of the popular scene-rendering program Bryce comes DAZ Studio for Windows and Mac, a powerful freeware 3D modeling and CAD program that looks great, but is a resource hog and can be sluggish for the average user.

The publisher recommends at least 256MB of RAM, but I found that to be wishful thinking at best. The program runs choppily on anything less than 1GB, although some of the more complex rendering was processed more slowly than … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 699: The smell of pong

It's episode 699, in which we coin a new phrase, "swang pong." You figure it out. Also, video on Flickr and bad news about promotional CDs (and goblins). Also, if you live in the U.S., it's time to feel good about yourselves and your Internet. According to a new European study, it's one of the best in the world. Who'da thunk? Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 699

Video on Flickr! http://blog.flickr.net/en/2008/04/09/video-on-flickr-2/

Wal-Mart going hardline on DRM-free online music store; SonyBMG and Warner Music … Read more