The new Apple iphone and Jeff Han

The hoopla around the launch of the iphone is further proof of the power of multi-touch interfaces to transform the way we use computers.  Jeff Han blew away the TED audience in Monterey in February with his pioneering demo.

There were rumors that Apple had tried (unsuccessfully) to hire Jeff at one point to work on the launch of the iphone. NY Times techie David Pogue even asked Steve Jobs about him on the day of the launch. So I pinged Jeff to see if he had any comment on it. Here's his response:

"The iPhone is absolutely gorgeous, and I've always said, if there ever were a company to bring this kind of technology to the consumer market, it's Apple.  I just wish it were a bit bigger so I could really use both of my hands."

Something tells me there will be a LOT of ongoing excitement and delight around multi-touch in the next couple years. Hopefully Apple will publish APIs to allow third party apps on the iphone. Yesterday's outpouring of geekjoy could be just a foretaste.

Comments

[Baris Karadogan]

If indeed one cannot use both hands with the iPhone, it could be a big problem. I hope that's not the case.

[Ahmed Nuaman]

Well even with one hand it should still be fine! I really don't understand why other companies are so slow at getting places! I mean it's not like touch screens are a new 21st Cent technology are they? Much like with OS X, it takes one company to really push the bar up!

[kenoli]

I'm happy to have one company making these big jumps. There is too much of a rush to obsolete existing products for my taste, already. Probably this focus on bottom line keeps these big companies back, as they are terrified to do something that might not fly, which often actually results in both holding them back and doing things which don't fly.

I want a cell phone and computer that keep working at basic tasks and remain capable of handling the current software technology for a long time. I don't want to HAVE TO buy new things just to function. I love seeing apple come out with a startling advance every now and then that moves the bar higher where, hopefully, it can stay for a while. And Apple has always been loyal, at least for a reasonable time, in supporting previous systems as they move ahead.

Society needs time to to both integrate and inform technological development. It's not about products, it's about people.

[fmindlin]

I wonder if the software applications Jeff has developed for touch screen use could be run in OS X and used on the Axiotron/OWC ModBook tablet (http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=2386)

It's configured with Wacom software for use with a stylus, but seems like a touch screen adaptation should be possible...

[anders@thinque]

Hi friends and blogsters,

Back on the sunny continent since a week. It has been a week filled with action and progress. I have dedicated this week to thought leadership, designing/planning and reading/reflecting. My newest ideas surround a program called Second Life - Your World. Your Imagination - a virtual world on the internet.

I will start off with thought leadership. This is an organisation run by one of Australia's premier presenters and keynote speakers, Matt Church, and is an innovative organisation, highly unique, and yet somewhat similar to ted.com, in my opinion. This summer's bootcamp was dedicated to thought leadership, recognising value on different conceptual levels, and how to be an innovative thought leader. There was some great content in this, and some great strategies useful in NLP, were demonstrated by speakers such as Peter Sheahan, Matt Church, Rick Otton, and David Penglase. An inspiring time for both me and Kimberly. We walked away with plenty of new insights and ideas for our monthly speaking forum, the details of which will be announced in the next few weeks.

The second major development in the last week has been the internet and the focus it is currently getting in the media. The trends that I am talking about refer to dual personalities and virtual realities.

While programs such as Second Life and Ebay are fantastic trendsetters and market leaders, I sometimes question the underlying demand for some of the products and services they offer. Take SL for example, a cutting-edge program by Linden Labs where avatars stroll around in a virtual world on the internet. It is free, anyone can play, yet it has become a multi-million dollar industry, with currently 2 million members. IBM and several other companies allegedly run company meetings in SL, the first SL real estate millionaire has just emerged, and people are spending countless dollars on improving their virtual characters. A new character strolling on a beach in SL seeking friends, may be met with a friendly 'F#$@ off!' if they are not deemed cool enough, prompting creative directors, lawyers, and hundreds of thousands of Gen Y:ers to spend up big on their 'self'-improvement. Jewellery, night club tickets, hair cuts, insurance, cars etc are items and services for which SL members pay real dollars, so as to improve themselves in the meritocracy that is SL. So far, so good - I believe in the free choice of individuals to make their own minds up as to what they want to spend their money on.

My concern is with how fulfilling a kick-ar@$ life in SL really can be for the individual sitting in front of the screen. I mean at the end of the day, they still have a real life, a real job, and a real setting to go back to. Knowing that you are 'someone' in a virtual reality among your faceless internet buddies, may not be satisfying when you are sitting in your rocking-chair at age 90 reflecting back on your real life.

I congratulate the founders of SL on their ability to create a setting where people can live out their dreams, because I believe in the virtue of creating spaces in which this can occur. It may also provide further richness and spice to the members' dreams, yet at the end of the day, when all comes around, wouldn't these people be better off trying to improve their real lives, by attending the gym, taking an evening course, following their passions, or going for that dream holiday?

While I am an avid supporter of multimedia as a communication tool that provides experiences for its recipients, in relation to the pursuit of happiness in a virtual world, I am not sure whether success in a parellel life provides sustainable fulfilment in real life. I am keeping an open-mind about this and I would love to hear your opinions about this!

On a related note, a Wollongong philosophy student has just sold his life on ebay. He received close to $ 8 K Australian for his life, and it seems that the bid came from the UK. Once again, my belief systems tells me - what would be so interesting about someone else's life that we would fork out this amount of money in order to take a crash course about this person's pick-up techniques, ex-girlfriend's, and skirmishes with philosophy lecturers? Or is it that the bidders are so unhappy with their own lives and once again want to step into a parallel universe where they can pretend to be someone else?

We have had reality tv shows, is the next era one for 'virtual reality tv shows'? I don't know, but I would love to hear back from those of you with an opinion on this. The mind works best like a para-chute, when its open, and I reserve my right to final opinion for another life, and another day. :)

Anders

Second Life Character: Amoz Wunderlich

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