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e450 — Contractual Obligations

By Michael Martine | January 22, 2024 - 06:30 |January 22, 2024 Podcast

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reading glasses in focus on top of a stack of papers representing a detailed contract — Photo by Mari Helin on Unsplash

Published 22 January 2024

Andy and Michael M are back in studio to talk tech. While missing co-host Michael R, Andy and Michael M talk about AI, humanoid robots that make coffee and fold laundry, the uncanny valley, Apple’s Vision Pro, Michael R’s Wasted Time Pro app and take a moment of zen in an emoji garden.

Staring off with some old and new games, Andy and Michael talk about the success of Hogwarts Legacy from WB Games versus the decade of Rockstar published games. Turning to the classics, Andy shares a website that has a series of old Mac game demos, and the co-hosts take a short stroll down memory lane.

After considering a Pascal poster, the pair ponder the relative security of code written by AI agents from a Schneier on Security article. Next is a thorough treatment on humanoid robots – and some discussion on the uncanny valley, as well as the fit for purpose opportunities for advancement on things like wrists and knees that do not need to be fully replicated.

In a bit of “inside baseball”, Michael and Andy talk about a recent article on the shrinking podcast industry, followed by the usual plea to subscribe, like and share.

Then, it’s the moment that everyone’s been waiting for – the chance to order your own Vision Pro, provided of course that your shipping address and locale is in the United States. Michael and Andy give a flyover of a plethora of Vision Pro articles. Among the stories from the past week include promotional videos from Apple, initial reviews, stories about third parties that will and will not support the Vision Pro ecosystem, and the fact that you will have Wasted Time Pro available at the launch of the Vision Pro.

The team wraps up the episode with a moment of zen that wreaks a bit of havoc with the audio recording – Drawing Garden. This web page allows the user to create a garden simply by moving their cursor across the page, replete with sound effects.

What is the first Vision Pro application you would you want to try out? Have your bots 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know!

Selected Article Links

New games, old games

Kotaku article: Hogwarts Legacy Just Broke A 14-Year Games Industry Streak

Classic Macintosh Game Demos

Code, AI, Robots

For Niklaus Wirth, 1934-2024.
Apple's classic Pascal poster, remade as a nice clean vector image. Print at any size with the PDF link.
http://www.danamania.com/print/Apple%20Pascal%20Poster/PascalPosterV3%20A1.pdf

— Nanoraptor (@NanoRaptor) 2024-01-04T20:31:16.603Z

The Register article: RIP: Software design pioneer and Pascal creator Niklaus Wirth

Schneier on Security article: Code Written with AI Assistants Is Less Secure

The Verge article: BMW’s South Carolina plant is testing humanoid robot workers

TechCrunch article: Elon’s Tesla robot is sort of ‘ok’ at folding laundry in pre-scripted demo

Tell your friends about us (please!)

Semafor article: The incredible shrinking podcast industry

Contractually obligated to discuss

The Verge article: Apple Vision Pro hands-on, again, for the first time

9 to 5 Mac article: Apple Vision Pro: EyeSight, comfort, and more impressions from my latest demo

Bloomberg article: YouTube and Spotify Won’t Launch Apple Vision Pro Apps, Joining Netflix

Wasted Time Pro

iMore article: Apple unveils new App Store feature that will let developers link to alternative payment methods — but it will still take 27% commission

Games at Work e419: A Vision of the Future?

Moment of Zen

Drawing Garden

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e449 — AI in CES

By Michael Martine | January 15, 2024 - 06:01 |January 14, 2024 Podcast

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futuristic auto control panel with engine stop start button in focus. — Photo by Goh Rhy Yan on Unsplash

Published 15 January 2024

Michael, Andy and Michael are back in studio to talk tech – and have a terrific show without the dreaded CESCrud focusing on AI, several human computer interface (HCI) technologies, new AR glasses, and a new metaverse.

This episode starts with a drive by of some of the automotive technology showcased at CES2024. AI seems to have permeated all manner of innovations, including the embedding of generative AI, such as with Volkswagen’s and Mercedes’ Cerence-powered infotainment systems. The co-hosts discuss autonomous garage parking via Valeo’s functionality. They also discuss the importance of opting out of all the data collection and reference the Mozilla Foundation’s privacy review discussed in e444 and e432 last year.

Moving along to new an interesting HCI controllers, the team considers Skyted, a mask-like device that provides the ability to have private conversations anywhere. This reminds the co-hosts of a the Razer Project Hazel which was designed to do the opposite – amplifying the voice of a person wearing an N95 mask so they could be heard and understood. Check the show notes for a link to e304. Another intriguing controller is the MouthPad^, which leverages a tongue-driven interface. Check out the embedded video below. A third example is an arcade game where the VR headset is attached to a gun giving an immersive experience to the player.

Staying with the VR theme, XReal headset announcement at CES had some of the thunder taken away by the Apple Vision Pro announcement last Monday. Astute Games at Work fans will note that the new Acer Swift computer discussed in this segment does in fact sport the Microsoft Copilot key on the keyboard discussed in last week’s episode! Plus, of course, with Acer naming one of their new computers “Predator”, how could the co-hosts ignore it?

The team wraps up the episode with an article about Ernest Cline, author of Ready Player One who has teamed up with Futureverse to create Readyverse, a “a dynamic interactive platform of interconnected digital experiences”.

Which of the new HCI innovations would you want to try out? Have your bots 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know!

Selected Article Links

Cee Eeeh Ess

The Verge article: Google Chrome is coming to your car

Ars Technica article: Volkswagen is adding ChatGPT to its infotainment system

Cerence

The Verge article: Mercedes-Benz taps Will.i.am to create an ‘interactive musical experience’ for its cars

Car and Driver article: Mercedes MBUX Infotainment Goes Full Tech Bro at CES

BMW news press release: BMW at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024.

Valeo’s PARK4U® AUTOMATED PARKING SYSTEM

Games at Work e444 Glitch in the Matrix

HCI Controllers

TechCrunch article: This startup bets that looking like Bane is the future of gaming

Kickstarter: Skyted : Stay Connected in Silence

Games at Work e304 Duly meh-ed

NBC News article: ‘A mouse for your mouth’: New device allows users to scroll with their tongues

MouthPad^ by Augmental

Adrian Hon’s Have You Played? post: VR Agent

Visual Experience

The Verge article: Xreal’s new AR glasses are aimed at the Apple Vision Pro

XReal Air2

The Verge article: Acer is bringing its glasses-free 3D screen to a more affordable laptop

Ready Player One Metaverse

Gizmodo article: The Author of Ready Player One Has Launched His Own Torment Nexus

PR Newswire press release: FUTUREVERSE AND READY PLAYER ONE CREATOR AND PRODUCER TEAM UP TO LAUNCH “READYVERSE STUDIOS” BRINGING LEADING IP AND BRANDS TO THE METAVERSE

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e448 — Bricks (Falling and Cars)

By Michael Martine | January 8, 2024 - 06:13 |January 7, 2024 Podcast

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building facade reminiscent of Tetris bricks — Photo by Luca Nicoletti on Unsplash

Published 8 January 2024

Michael, Andy and Michael are back together to record the first episode of 2024 – and have a fantastic show on keyboard keys, a VR trackball for your feet, bricks in the form of a bricked car, the game of Tetris, the LEGO version of a Polaroid camera and a whole lot more.

This episode starts with the new Copilot keyboard key for Windows computers, which on the surface (not the Surface) sounds like a small change, but one with significant ripple effects through the computer supply chain. Check out the show notes below for a humorous Mastodon take on this, as well as Andy’s custom escape key.

Switching from keyboard input mechanisms to trackballs, the cohosts check out an innovation from Sony designed to provide VR navigation in small physical spaces. This reminded the team of the Virtuix Omni One which provides the ability to walk and run in a 4 foot diameter space.

Changing gears to the automotive world, the cohosts discuss the potential for cars to become incapacitated due to software update problems, as one redditor shared. With over the air (OTA) updates applied away from home, there is a possibility that an update causes problems operating the vehicle. Also in the automotive space, there is a story about a Toyota engineer that designed a fake manual transmission for electric vehicles to add the experience of rowing through the gears back into driving.

A listener link focuses on the story of an Oklahoma teenager who beat the NES edition of Tetris. This is an incredible feat that required amazing control. Have a listen to the soothing 8bit tones of the game music from the link in the shownotes below.

The team wraps up the episode with a couple of follow on notes from the last episode – a Star Wars role playing game, and the probable Games at Work bump for Dave the Diver selling over 3 million copies worldwide. Michael M learned that it was available for the Switch and bought a copy, so there’s at least a +1 for the Games at Work impact right there.

Have you bought a copy of Dave the Diver? Would you drive a “manual transmission” EV? Have your bots 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know!

Selected Article Links

AI

The Verge article: Microsoft Copilot is now available as a ChatGPT-like app on Android

Ars Technica article: Microsoft is adding a new key to PC keyboards for the first time since 1994

BREAKING: We obtained an exclusive photograph of the new AI assistant key on Windows keyboards
( ref: https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2024/01/04/introducing-a-new-copilot-key-to-kick-off-the-year-of-ai-powered-windows-pcs/ )

— lcamtuf :verified: :verified: :verified: (@lcamtuf) 2024-01-05T02:52:02.005Z

Andy’s keyboard with a special escape key design — Photo by Andy Piper, Jan 2024

VR

Tom’s Hardware article: Sony sticks its foot into VR — patent reveals trackball foot controller that boosts immersion for players in smaller rooms

Games at Work e412: 3D or not 3D

Virtuix OmniOne

Games at Work e368: Chaos Agent Without Pants

XR BBC Micro

Bricked Car

"Unfortunately, a recent software update was not successful. Your vehicle cannot be driven.
Please call customer support"

— Dan Luu (@danluu) 2023-12-25T20:49:45.707Z

Original thread on Reddit

The Manual article: EVs don’t need a multi-gear transmission as much as we do

Games (some with bricks)

NPR article: A 13-year-old in Oklahoma may have just become the 1st person to ever beat Tetris

Ars Technica article: 34 years later, a 13-year-old hits the NES Tetris “kill screen”

Slashfilm article: The Modern Star Wars Universe Owes Its Existence To An RPG Most Fans Have Never Played

Game Developer article: Dave the Diver has sold over 3 million copies worldwide

LEGO Polaroid OneStep SX-70

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e447 — 23 and Games

By Michael Martine | January 1, 2024 - 06:46 |December 30, 2023 Podcast

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Dungeons & Dragons adventure characters generated via DiffusionBee — Image by Michael Rowe with DiffusionBee, December 2023

Published 1 January 2024

Andy and Michael R are back while Michael M is away – and have a fantastic show on the DNA of 2023 in games.

This episode starts with a stroll down the beginnings of Dungeons and Dragons, with Michael R sharing a couple of links from the Internet Archive. He found a veritable treasure trove of documents, rulebooks and more. A couple of which are in the show notes below. Michael R noted that AD&D was not only about dungeons and dragons, with the same rules and mechanics applied to other sci-fi genres. An additional example of the AD&D system was used by the RPG game Toon.

Turning next to PC (personal computer) based games, and moving forward a bit in time, Andy and Michael R start with games that were sold and distributed via (gasp!) physical media! No cloud based games in this selection, though many of them are now available via the web and can be experienced (sort of) with modern hardware. Andy comments that he and Michael are of the cohort that experienced the transition from analog to digital, and that experience will never be repeated because it just can’t.

Michael R shares his enthusiasm in playing Baldur’s Gate 3, exclaiming that he now understands why everyone is so drawn in by it. With 108 gig of content, it’s no surprise that the graphics and gameplay are such high quality. Of course no discussion of games would be complete without World of Warcraft.

The co-hosts also discuss several NPC (non personal computer) games such as those on the Playdate, and a large number of games on Steam. Vote for your favorite Steam Deck games on The 2023 Steam Awards – by 2 Jan 2024 10am Pacific. One of Andy’s particular favorites is Dave the Diver.

Andy and Michael close out the last episode recorded in 2023 with the hope that there will be many unique and valuable experiences in VR and AR beyond Beat Saber.

Michael M was also “playing a game” on the evening of 29 Dec — enjoying time in the Smith Center while the university students are away, and looking forward to hoisting up the sousaphone once more to play for the women’s basketball team on New Year’s Eve closing out the #JordanYear.

What games are on the top of your list to play in 2024? Have your bots 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know!

The Games at Work team wishes our friends and listeners a very Happy New Year!