facebook is a kettle. I am a pot.
“Hey guys. I have a problem with your naming convention rules for pages. My business name is ‘doyleAR.tv’ <- in that form of capitalization for a reason. That is the brand I am trying to promote, not ‘Doylear.tv’ as your terms and conditions suggest. Not to call the kettle black, but would ‘facebook’ get through as a page name? Wouldn’t the suggested name be ‘Facebook’? Please amend this so you can help promote proper brand recognition.”
This was my support issue sent to facebook. For those of you who know me I am working on moving all my Augmented Reality related content over to doyleAR.tv. To help with publicity I was going to create a facebook page, because that’s what you do if you want audience interaction (sad but true). facebook’s pages terms state that:
Page names must:
“Our automated system will not allow the name ‘doyleAR.tv’. We have suggested ‘Doylear.tv’. Learn More“
Is this some kind of breach of freedom of speech? Is this fair? It’s removing the ability to create specific brand names. How can you make a page for the USA? For MLB? NFL? Three giant corporations (lol, USA as a Corp).
The best part is that all these pages exist. Even “NFL on ESPN” exists. So … wait. Because they are acronyms. Ok, well doyleAR.tv is kind of an acronym. It’s doyle (that’s me) – Augmented Reality (the acronym) – .TeleVision. Seems legit to me.
Robodashy, AR Doyle, Ashley Robin Doyle, – OUT!
Episodes…
Posted by Robodashy in Randomly rambling on 16/01/2013
Ironic.
The fact that this post is titled episodes.
Because “episodes” are the only thing left for me to do on my new blog.
But there is one thing that I MUST do before I can embark on that journey – the next chapter in my plan (scheme might be a better word to use).
Back to the irony.
The reason this blog post is titled episodes.
I feel like I just had that “Series” defining moment in one of my life’s “episodes”. That moment where you see the main character make a decision and take some actions that will change them forever. They’ve finally made the right choice and are now going to be able to succeed in completing their character arc.
Now, maybe it could be because I’ve been trying to let my mind wander and create and come up with crazy ideas for what I can do with the episode portions of doylear.tv (your imagination is like a muscle, work it baby).
Maybe it could be that I was letting my mind wander while listening to busdriver - the trippy song that isn’t much more than low bass tones.
Maybe it could be that I was letting my mind wander while listening to busdriver and going back down stairs into my room, which involves closing a lot of doors behind me before making myself comfortable to settle in to what I must do next. There’s a word for it. Ahh well.
It COULD be because I’ve been going over old uni notes about character development and this is exactly what it felt like I was going through. But whatever it was.
It felt like my “Season Finale”.
It felt like this is that moment where everything is in place, and next season is going to be one hell of a ride.
Maybe I’m just looking forward to 2013.
But 2013 isn’t going to be ready.
Song’s finished now. See you next time.
Robodashy out!
Awesome memories.
Posted by Robodashy in Randomly rambling on 14/01/2013
Lol.
I remember this one time, Baxter and I were chilling out watching a movie downstairs. Then we noticed something moving near the door. Upon investigation we noticed it was a fairly decent sized huntsman. Not HUGE but still big enough to be of concern.
Now, I don’t know about you but I’m a big girl when it comes to spiders. Why the hell do they need to be so ugly? I’m not saying I’d like them any more if they were cute and friendly looking, but seriously – what’s with the ugliness? Fkn 8500 eye 8 legged creeps. Even talking about them gives me the creeps, and yes I am looking around frantically as I type this.
K, back to the story. Freaking out about this spider, I ran around looking for bug spray and B was looking for something to squish it with. Instead I found what he was looking for and he found what I was looking for (hmmm, that makes sense I think). So, timidly we approached where the spider was and I sprayed the area. He (the spider, such a formidable opponent that he has gone from creature to god) ran out at us and John threw the shoe – missed – and I proceeded to spray that little fracker until it was white and could not move due to the sheer weight of the amount of the spray I put on it. Having defeated the god like enemy (WINNAH) we sat back on the couch to continue our movie.
After about 2 minutes of awkward silence we both kind of looked at each other and said “screw this I’m going to bed”. Ahhh the good memories with good friends.
Robodashy out.
It’s been a while… (also known as Robodashy has a whinge :P )
Posted by Robodashy in Interruption, Randomly rambling on 08/12/2012
It has hasn’t it? It’s not just me. The “it’s been a while” thing. It’s been almost 6 months since I was last here.
Bit sad really to think that my blogging experience only lasted a frequently interrupted 6 months. Please note this wasn’t my intention. I’ve been a bit busy you see. Any great writer will tell you this is no excuse, and in order to remain competent in the skill of writing you must practise every day. But I have been practising I tell you. Practising the art form of writing with a pen on paper – it truly is an Art form, and I’m not talking about calligraphy. But no, I haven’t forgotten you. You are always on my mind, like a constant questioning of whether or not I’ve left the computer on, or a window open. The thought of you lingers there like some unresolved conflict, like some unanswered question and now you’ve forgotten what the question was but you still know what topic it was to do with. I’ve wanted to visit, I’ve wanted to keep you updated, but to be honest I’ve been too selfish and focussed on things that are more important and urgent to me. Not saying that you’re not important to me, quite the contrary. But sadly to get to you I must get through my studies.
Studying has been the big thing taking up all my time, it’s actually had me run off my feet to be quite honest. I haven’t been doing as well as I would have liked, so it has required bit more effort than I originally would have thought. Oh and I’ve found a new job which is good. But it’s not regular hours so it’s really hard to find a routine, and that mixed with study and travel time … yeah it’s been an interesting few months. Not to say that I’m hard done by, just saying that it’s been a completely different way of living. I’ve gone from spending the last 8 to 10 years working 40+ hours a week from 9am to 5pm (and having the income from doing so) – to working 20 to 30 hours a week and studying for the 40+. When I first went into this I was thinking it would be great. My routine wouldn’t change time wise, just what I did during the times would change.
So Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm would now be spent studying, and 6pm until midnight-ish most nights would be spent working. Apparently life doesn’t work that way.
I now work in a 24/7 call centre that rosters me on at different hours on different days so I can never get into a routine, and I have to fit my study (which requires 40+ hours a week) in around the job. All the while still trying to have a life and most importantly spend time with the one’s I love most … my Girlfriend and my cat (lol insert ALL the cat jokes).
Now I knew that life would change, and that I wouldn’t be able to afford living the life that I’ve been living for the past few years, so now I have to go back to being a uni bum – but you try telling my debts and bills that. Not much I can do there, but 10 years of financial mistakes don’t give a damn if you want to return to your studies.
It’s the lack of a routine that has made things most difficult. It used to be that I’d:
- Wake up at 6am to get ready and go to work by
- 8am and then
- be home by 530pm to start studying by 6pm to finish
- at 12am to sleep by 1am(ish) …
I handled that fine. No worries. I was tired and stressed and felt like I never slept, but I got through everything with ease.
Now how does my normal week go?
- Monday, wake up at 7am to be at uni by 9am until
- 12pm, but then because I start work at
- 2pm I have to drive to uni and HOPE that I find a free parking spot or I have to pay for that too – then head to work until 10pm, which is fine but then when I get home by
- 10:30pm and want to sit down to study I need to unwind and get into the mood for study, so by about
- 11:30pm when I’m ready to get into it I realise that I have to be back at work the next day at midday. So I go to bed at about … 2am to be asleep by 230 to be up by
- 8am. Which is fine I guess, but then trying to get sufficient study done in the 2 hours between
- 9am – when I’m awake, fed, and dressed ready to start my day – and 11am – when I need to be getting ready to leave for work – is actually pretty pointless.
- I mean sure I could probably knock out a weekly reading. But to read and understand and make notes on something and then make sure those notes make sense – or to apply it to a practical situation … yeah 2 hours barely cuts it. And what happens when I run out of readings? It’s just a waste of 2 hours to be honest because really if I was to do anything in a rush in that time I’d probably look at it later and think it’s rubbish and just start again. Then when I get home that night at about 8:30pm and want to start again by
- 9:30pm then …
You see what I mean? I’m given 2 – 4 hours here and there where I can get some stuff done, but it’s not enough.
My kingdom for not having to worry about working like most of the kids I study with.
My kingdom for a night job that needs me from 6pm to 10pm Monday to Friday and which pays me sufficiently enough to cover all my debts and bills and leave me with a little bit of money each fortnight to spend on a night out with my girlfriend. Hell I’d even work from 6pm to midnight every night of the week if it gave me THAT much money.
Honestly sometimes I feel like she’s suffering through this worse than I am. But the part of me that wants to quit my studies and return to full time work so that things are easier on her and for her realises that this is the exact same mistake that I made in 2003 when I first tried to go to uni. Life got hard, the person I was with at the time started to suffer. I felt selfish, I felt like I wasn’t doing my bit. I felt like it was my duty to drop everything and work my butt off to make things as comfortable as possible. All for what? To end up in a job I never wanted?To suffer later on in life, like now? To hell with that!
Mark my words. I still feel like I’m being selfish. I DO feel like I’m not doing my bit. But I KNOW I am doing the best that I can in the situation I’m in, and for me that’s good enough. While I would still like to find a job that I have more control over my working hours, I love where I work.
Compared to the other jobs I’ve had this one is like a holiday. Call volumes vary depending on the time of the day so that’s ok I guess, call handling time … can get a bit out of hand – it’s not unusual to sit on hold for 45+ minutes only to have a 5 minute conversation. But between each call we can sit and read (which is why doing uni readings at home is pointless, I’ve usually got them all done after the second week), play scrabble, or just do absolutely nothing. So there’s no stress. I’ve got it pretty good to tell you the truth. It always comes down to the same thing: Time is money, but earning money takes up too much of my time. I want to be able to work on things that are actually important to me. I want to work in the industry I’m studying to be in. Every job I’ve had – EVERY JOB I’VE HAD – I have excelled at. I just want to excel at what I love. But it looks like I’m going to have to wait one more year before this dream can be realised.
Ah well. #firstworldproblems
Robodashy out.
AR Invaders are invading my sanity – not my reality.
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 19/07/2012
Welcome back everyone to this edition of “let’s make a game and give it no background and call it Augmented Reality” – or what I like to call:
AR Invaders by Soulbit7.
…… yeah … ummm well what to say. Look, it’s actually a bit of fun to play. But as far as the whole Augmented Reality thing goes – I feel like I’m banging my head on a brick wall. Maybe it’s just because I’m reviewing free apps, I know I’m going to have to fork out cash eventually – I just hope that when I do, I get something that’s actually AUGMENTING REALITY! One thing that annoys my about the video alone is that it shows the missed shots actually damaging the surroundings. Now, I’m not saying I want my phone to start shooting lasers and destroying things – but it would be nice if the missed shots actually registered on objects within the game and the “burn” mark was permanent. For example:
See. They just disappear and nothing happens. Even the hit image looks poor. This reminds me of that awful “Destroyer AR” I destroyed a few weeks back…. hmmm seems I’m repeating myself.
The description says that “Augmented reality means you play in your real surroundings” … no it doesn’t. I’ve just finished telling you it doesn’t. It means you AUGMENT REALITY. Damn it.
Let’s be positive here for a bit. No I’m serious, these guys have made a fairly decent game – it’s just not AR. As I’m repeating myself let’s say this:
As a game it’s alright, very playable. It has it’s challenges; they’ve done a great job on the soundtrack and the sound effects; the controls are intuitive; the graphics aren’t terrible (even if they’re not as good as they appear in the youtube demo.
BUT
It is in no way, shape or form ANYTHING RESEMBLING AUGMENTED REALITY!!!!!!!! (Unclench fists, take off caps lock, and breathe).
If I was reviewing games, and they had put in a cool little background I’d probably say they’ve done a good job, and give it 3 out of 5 stars noting that the graphics and game play could be improved. They’ve taken the foundations of a semi-decent game, removed the background and substituted that for whatever the camera can see, and called it “Augmented Reality”. These are the types of developers I’d like to slap around the ears. Unless the game in some way AUGMENTS REALITY it’s not freaking AR ALRIGHT?!? This doesn’t get any star rating – just a big
F.
Please stop ruining the name Augmented Reality with rubbish that doesn’t AUGMENT anything. I’m not going to delete this app just yet – because as I’ve said, it is actually a bit of fun to play. And yes I know I’ve plagiarised myself – but no I’m not going to sue myself over it.
Anyway, I’m sorry that robodashy.com got off to such a negative start. Not what I’d hoped for to be honest. I’m gonna go shoot some hoops to cheer myself up. Looking at the eight apps I’m still yet to review, it would appear that I’m saving the best for last.
See you next time
Robodashy out!
Lights, AR 3D Camera, RANT!
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 19/07/2012
No no no no no no no no no no no no no no NO and NO!
This is not what AR is about! Wait, sorry – let me back up a bit. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you…
AR 3D Camera Lite by Fenice Software.
See – not even my cat looks impressed. Kind of looks like someone has just taken a picture and super-imposed a 3D model of a bird over it. OH WAIT! That’s exactly what HAS happened. I’m sorry, but you know this really annoys me. Yes okay I could have angled the bird slightly more to make it look like he was really there. This reminds me of that awful “Destroyer AR” I destroyed a few weeks back. I’m sorry for the negativity (not really), but I’ve gotta tell it like it is. THIS IS NOT AUGMENTED REALITY! I’ve already done this before on an older post - but clearly I need to break it down a bit more to prove this to you:
Dictionary.com defines “Augmented” as (grammar): “To add an augment to”. Okay, so “add an augment” – this has definitely added something. Let’s see if it’s an “augment”. The definition of “Augment” (same link – other than what you read into their obsession with size) appears to be (read the origin): “To increase…” – let’s call it enhance.
So, let’s quickly check the definition of “reality” (don’t get all philosophical on me): “The state or quality of being real”.
Okay, so – if you take these two definitions and put them together you should reach the conclusion that “Augmented Reality” “Enhances Reality”. The question then becomes – does this clearly 3D and superimposed bird look out of place in this picture of what is real? Do it ADD to the reality? No, no it does not. It looks fake, and terrible. Does it enhance reality? No. Let me try again with a different picture …
Does that look any better? Hmmmm, again no. Not really. Also looks fake. And terrible.
I’d like to apologise to the folks at Fenice Software for my negativity. I really would, but I’m not going to because this annoys me no end. I know in SOME (not many – if any) small ways this is “augmenting” reality, but not in the true AR sense. This has no benefit to anyone! In fact, people have been able to do this sort of thing for years. Ever heard of MS Paint? Or photoshop? Or any other photo editing software anyone can think of? These applications have been allowing people to add odd out of place looking objects to their pictures for a while now. F for effort though.
Next, let’s hope AR Invaders by Soulbit7 can lighten the mood.
Robodashy out.
An announcement, a review, and a discussion all walk into a bar…
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality, Randomly rambling on 05/07/2012
And there is no punch-line. Because none of those things are independently capable of walking – they must be accompanied by a human-being at all times … anyway – first line in and I’m already off topic. Which is bad considering how long this post is.
Firstly – the announcement: As very few of you would be aware, I spoiled this surprise a week or so ago – but I also own www.robodashy.com. Currently this is a Private Blog meaning that no one other than myself can access it. Well, the announcement is that over the next two weeks everything should be moved over to robodashy.com and I will no longer be posting on TheDashingRobot. Unless I can come up with another use for it – but probably not. I bought robodashy.com a few months ago as a present for myself with all intentions of moving everything quickly – but as we can see this didn’t happen. So TaDa!!!!!!! That’s the announcement.
Secondly, the final review for the week. This will be very brief as I want to tie it into the discussion outline. So:
Floodlines: A living memory of Queensland’s floods:
Okay, so for those of you who aren’t from Australia or don’t watch International News services – Summer 2010/ 2011 was pretty rubbish for those of us in Queensland (Australia all round to be honest, but that’s not what this is about), as there was flooding throughout most of Central and Southern Queensland – and Cyclones up in Northern (and down towards Central also) Queensland. Basically, fun stuff all around.
So, what the lovely people at the State Library of Queensland have done is set up and exhibit which shows – through various forms of media – the living memory of the flood. This was done using static and interactive forms of media, one of which I’ll be focussing on here – The Floodlines: Augmented Reflections application which was done in conjunction with the team over at Josephmark.
Fortunately I arrived to the discussion early, so I had an opportunity to play around with the application and see it in all it’s glory. One thing I really enjoyed about this application was that not only was it interactive in that you pointed the iPad at the marker and could interact with the objects on the screen (watching the water levels rise and fall as you change what time of day it was) – but you actually had to walk around the room to locate different markers to see different areas. It wasn’t all laid out in one spot – there was a bit of investigation involved. If you knew what part of the city you were looking for, you had to “walk down the river” which was laid out on the floor, and read what was on the marker to know where you were. As a local, this brought back the memories and associated emotions of a time when over 30 people lost their lives, three-quarters of the State was declared a natural disaster zone. (For those of you playing off shore – the State of Queensland covers approximately 715,309 square miles – so that’s a fairly big parcel of land to be declared as a natural disaster zone).
The one thing I didn’t like about the app was that there was a little game in there, where each marker had an object you had to find (tractor, cattle, crocodile, etc.) – yet there was no endgame. I raised this issue at the end of the discussion (more on this in a sec) and it was explained to me that this was a last-minute addition. Fair enough I thought, but to me if you’re going to put in something whereby users (this was aimed at kids) have to find objects and touch them to “collect” them, there has to be some kind of reward. So really I saw three issues:
- The application didn’t store whether or not the user had previously found the hidden object, so when they return to any marker the object is there to be found again;
- There was no endgame reward for finding all the objects; and
- With this in mind, I would have at least expected the finding of these objects to have some educational merit to it – ie. I would have thought that if you found the cattle some form of statistical data could be returned to the user to educate them on how much livestock was lost during the floods.
But that’s just me. Other than that, it was a beautiful exhibit and I’m glad I got to have a look.
So, onto the discussion.
The discussion was entitled “Digital Display and Interfaces – why bother?” – and a webcast can be downloaded from here (second one on the list).
The speakers at this discussion were:
- Deb Polson - Founder and Principal Designer from newishmedia and Lecturer in Communication Design from QUT;
- Jess Huddart - Creative Director for Josephmark; and
- Lubi Thomas - Senior Curator for Digital Media at QUT.
First up I’d like to thank these three ladies for putting on an interesting and informative discussion for the crowd – and to be honest there were a few more people there than I expected to see. Good to know I’m not alone in my love of this tech 
Sadly, I think there were a few people there who had no idea what the heck they were talking about, and were expecting more information on the floods – one guy even left.
I was originally going to provide a transcript of the discussion, but then thought I’d bring up the points that were raised, what was said about them, and where possible provide my own thoughts.
Other than getting a few decent links to follow on projects that the speakers have been involved with, it was good to be able to sit and listen to people who have been in the industry ask and answer questions about what it’s like to work with this technology.
The first question that was asked, was “What keeps you going?”. Presume the question can be rephrased as “Why do you keep pursuing these challenges in this already challenging industry” – all the answers had similar feels to them. If I could put it in a sentence the answer would be: “Wanting to help players change from the passive experience to the active experience, and as a developer always wanting to stay ahead of the game and not get left behind – while taking every opportunity to make new friends and new business contacts”. That there is a combination of all three of their answers – and if Deb, Jess or Lubi are reading this I’m sorry for paraphrasing.
Then of course came the best question: “Where do you think digital (technology/ capabilities) will be in 5-10 years?” Now I consider this to be the best question because the answers are always irrelevant. It’s good to hypothesise but really – it’s anyone’s guess. There could be a major technological breakthrough tomorrow which could change the course of the world in an instant – so really it is just a guess. And anyone can do it, even if they have a basic (limited) understanding of where digital technologies and capabilities are at the moment … crap I’m rambling again. Ok, so the summary of answers comes to something like: “Iron man is one possibility – we’re already seeing these technologies emerge. But it will get to a point where we will start to have trouble in identifying what is our real world and what is our ‘alternate’ one”. Jess went on a mini rant prior to answering the question (and we all know how much I love my rants) about the fact that not knowing where the technology is going to be is part of why “as creative people we can’t not go down the corridor that others aren’t”.
In an attempt to avoid making this the world’s longest blog-post I thought I’d just summarise what I got out of this discussion group, as well as cover off on a couple of questions other participants came up with at the end.
One thing that I love about this technology, and how it was used in the Augmented Reflections application – is that people want to learn. Think about children (THINK OF THE CHILDREN!), all they do is ask questions. It’s because humans are interested creatures. So if you give an adult a way to interact with things on their terms, with their technology, and educate them in doing so then they’re going to demand MORE!!!
Deb mentioned how she envisions cyborg’s as a background idea to be used within the Digital technology space as a prosthetic. Love it! Augmented Reality contact lenses/ glasses; making a phone call and having someone’s 3D self-image appear in your living room (it’s actually being done in prototype form in Europe right now); – remember what I said about being able to walk down the street and seeing everyone’s profiles as you look at their faces? Does nobody listen? Man, I’m chock full of ideas but NO ONE CAN HEAR ME! It’s okay, I’m calm.
Another point I’ll bring up is what was mentioned about our imagination being our only limit. DAMN STRAIGHT!!! Deb (almost as bad as Marsha) brought up her “Dev-Fi” class (Sci-Fi but for Developers) – such an awesome idea! Really when it comes down to it – if we went to the moon (or at least into outer space) on less technology than what is in most smart phones then what the hell can’t we do? We just need to know how to do whatever it is we want to do, and it can be done! One big difference change social media, and new technology in general has made in the world today – EVERYONE has a voice. Heck, any idiot can start-up a blog and ramble on for months about anything they want, whereas it used to be that only prominent figures could get a voice – now everyone can be heard (whether they are or not is a completely different issue).
What this has to do with future tech – I have no idea. But I’m sure it’s relevant somehow.
Good night world, and if you made it this far – wow. I’m sorry. I won’t do that to you again … for a while anyway.
Robodashy out!
An Augmentedly artistic approach to decorating, with Augment from AugmenteDev
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 05/07/2012
Hi again, it’s just me – Robodashy.
How’s it going? What ya been up to? Have you checked out Augmentron yet? No? Why not? Well you should, unless you’re busy decorating your home of course – if that’s the case, then you should probably check out:
“Augment” by AugmenteDev.
Now, when I first opened this one up I was a little confused. I didn’t quite know what to make of it. But as you can see from the youtube clip above, this application allows users to view 3D models in real space. Why would anyone want to do this you ask? At first I couldn’t answer this question either, but then I had a play around with the marker I printed out from here - put it in different locations; look at it from different angles; whatever – and I thought “Hey wait a sec, this could be pretty cool”. Let’s say you had a bare wall, and you wanted to put up some art, but had no idea whether or not it would suit the decor. Load up Augment and BAM you can see what the Mona Lisa would look like sitting on your living room wall. I shit you not!
In fact after having more of a play I found that you could picture almost anything anywhere any time.
Want to tell your friends you got a brand new GS3. Load up Augment and you can have one sitting on your desk, take a photo, send it to them, done!
Got some mad 3D skills and want to distribute your work? Upload custom models to the Augment application for others to download.
One other thing I liked was the fact that when you were viewing the posters you could go to the distributors site and purchase the poster you wanted. I’m sure that this functionality could also be implemented when viewing furniture/ artwork/ other cool stuff they have done in the 3D models.
Now, one thing I did not like about this – the fact that iOS (crApple) gets the 3D model functionality first, and us ‘Droid users are stuck with cubes only for now. Not that the cubes are crap, in fact some of them were pretty cool – but I prefer even playing fields so can’t wait for this functionality to be available across both platforms.
All in all, a cool application. I wouldn’t say it’s for everyone, but I can definitely see what they are trying to accomplish with this – and the technology will only get better. I for one, cannot wait.
Next, I jump back a week and do a quick review of the “Floodlines” application and a brief outline of the discussion “Digital Display and Interfaces – Why bother?“
But for now, Robodashy out.
It’s a great day for Tech Thursday – starting with Augmentron Augmented Reality
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 05/07/2012
Hey there boys and girls, welcome to this weeks Tech Thursday.
Not only is it a great day for Tech Thursday because it’s Thursday (that just goes without saying), but it’s been a great couple of weeks for me and Augmented Reality – so it’s about time I share the news.
Firstly, I attended an AR seminar of sorts last week – but I’ll get to that later.
Next, I’ve begun work on my very own AR Application – don’t get excited just yet, it’s going to take a while so you probably won’t hear more about it until it’s ready to go.
Finally, I’ve got two awesome AR apps I’ve reviewed – so I’ll share them first.
As with all the apps I’ll be reviewing, these ones came from the google.play store.
Now, please remember - this is just my opinion. You don’t have to agree with it, you’re entitled to your own opinion. However I do ask that if our opinions do differ and you think I’m wrong, please try to keep it to yourself. I’m all for freedom of speech, but frankly you telling me that my opinion is a load of rubbish has absolutely no chance of changing it – and I’m probably not going to care so much anyway. It’s my opinion, let me have it – just like I’ll let you have yours. Deal? Oh, and what I said last week about what I’m reviewing this week – change of plan. Okie dokie then, let’s kick it off.
Augmentron Augmented Reality, by Fuzzy Logic:
WOW! I’m fairly sure I’ll keep playing this one. Not much too it, but it’s so well done it’s definitely one to keep for later bouts of boredom. Let me break it down for you (BREAK IT DOWN NOW!):
First you download the app, then you print the marker. Start the app and point your phone’s (or tablet’s) camera at the marker. BAM you’ve got Augmentron.
The good folks at Fuzzy Logic have done an awesome job with this little game – and are well deserving of their “AR Developer of 2012″ nomination with the “AR Awards” found at http://www.augmentedrealitysummit.com/ (bookmark this site for great AR info).
In this game you control Augmentron, defender of earth from galactic threats. Augmentron transforms from his robot form into fighter-jet form, and takes to the skies (space) to destroy incoming asteroids. Some, he can’t destroy so you have to swerve to avoid them … only thing I wonder is what happens to those he’s let through – screw the earth – you’re Augmentron! Other than that logical flaw in Augmentron’s gameplay – this game was awesome fun.
- Graphics – for an Augmented Reality game on a smallish screen (I own a Samsung GS2) this was so cool. The 3d was nicely done, and the fact that when you move your device around the camera angle reacts accordingly was a big point scorer for me.
- Soundtrack – from the sound effects, to the background music while you play the game – awesome. I imagine that if you were really good at the game the music could become a little repetitive, but hopefully you’ll be too busy worrying about the asteroids to care. There’s a sound effect for everything Augmentron does: shooting; blowing up asteroids; swapping feet (you’ll have to play it to see for your self); and dying.
- Controls/ usability – piece of cake. Anyone who’s used a touch screen phone (and can read the 3 instructional messages can easily start this up and play like a pro. Touch the asteroids to shoot them, slide your finger left or right to evade the indestructible ones.
So all this game requires is some hand eye coordination and a printer. Loved it, keep up the good work – and good luck with the AR Awards.
Next up, I’m going to review AugmenteDev.com‘s “Augment” app.
Robodashy out.
AR Sudoku Solver – This guy deserves a medal, right here on Tech Thursday.
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 21/06/2012
OMG, OMG, OMG, Oh My God, Oh My God, Oh My God, Oh Em Gee, Oh Em Gee, Oh Em Gee!!!!!
In the words of Eric Cartman ”Oh my God, you guys, seriously! Just wait until you hear this, you guys!”.
Someone has actually done it. Someone has found a fully practical use for Augmented Reality Technology. And it KICKS ASS!!! I present:
AR Sudoku Solver
If I ever have the opportunity to meet Thomas Frey I will high five him so hard it could probably be classified as assault. This guy has done something AWESOME! Now, he’s only made it as a Tech Demo to show what he can do – and he can do amazing things.
Simply open the app, point it at an untouched Sudoku grid, and watch it go. The program has been set to recognise grids that are freestanding, flat, and not yet started. It also requires a minimum of twenty symbols in order to complete its calculations.
I gave it a go on my Galaxy S2 and it worked fine, the only problem I had with it is that I couldn’t keep my hands still for long enough to get it to give me a complete answer. I could however see it run through potential answers and different calculations, but I kept moving and it wouldn’t give me a complete answer – so, my bad. I guess the confusing part from that perspective is that in the video demo above they continuously move the camera. I’ll keep playing with it to see what results I can get.
I just love the fact that he has done what so many others have not (*cough* Destroyer AR *cough*) – made a program that actually augments reality. Yes it’s technically cheating, but it’s cheating in the most awesome of ways. The frame rate is a little low, and you can’t really have anything else in the picture close to the grid (I tried stabilising the phone on two coffee cups to see if it could project a full result for me, but it didn’t like the fact that the coffee cup was so close to the grid), but other than that this thing is fan-freaking-tastic!
He’s been nice enough to list the devices this application works properly on, so if you have any of the following I’d suggest you try it out for kicks and giggles:
- Samsung Galaxy S
- HTC Desire HD
- HTC Desire
- Samsung Galaxy S2
- Samsung Nexus S (2.3)
- HTC Wildfire
- Samsung Galaxy Tab
- Samsung Galaxy Ace
- HTC Nexus One
- LG Optimus One
In fact, if you have an Android device listed here that isn’t listed above, I’m sure Thomas would appreciate the feedback from you on whether the application actually works on your device or not – or even if it half works you could give some feedback about what does work and what doesn’t.
I’m going to give it 4.5 stars out of 5, with the .5 being my “there’s always room for improvement” thing as well as the low frame rate. Thomas Frey, I love your work!
Next time, I’ll be reviewing “AR Invaders“, “Piano Reality” and the newly much publicised “Optus AR“. Until then:
Robodashy out!
Destroying Destroyer AR on Tech Thursday…
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 21/06/2012
Welcome back.
I hope you enjoyed the quick ad break where you’ve probably found yourself stuck in some annoying youtube loop of cat videos – or is that just me? Once I start I can’t stop, it’s so bad. But actually that’s just good “recommended videos”ing.
Right. So I’ll try to be nice, but the key word here is try. It’s time to look at:
Destroyer AR
This little … gem comes from the folks (looks like it’s all actually one dude) at Welancers.com. Looking at the rest of his stuff, he seems alright. But this “Augmented Reality” game … me no likey.
Big time. As far as games go, he hasn’t done a bad job. As a game it’s alright, low quality – but playable. It has it’s challenges; decent enough sound effects; easy enough to control; graphics aren’t terrible. Now here it comes
BUT
It is in no way, shape or form ANYTHING RESEMBLING AUGMENTED REALITY!!!!!!!! (Unclench fists, take off caps lock, and breathe).
If I was reviewing games, and he had a cool little background going I’d probably say he’s done a good job, and give it 3 out of 5 stars noting that the graphics and game play could be improved. But he’s made the foundations of a semi-decent game, taken out the background and substituted that for whatever the camera can see, and called it “Augmented Reality”. These are the types of developers I’d like to slap around the ears. Unless the game in some way AUGMENTS REALITY it’s not freaking AR ALRIGHT?!? This doesn’t get any star rating – just a big
F.
Please stop ruining the name Augmented Reality with rubbish that doesn’t AUGMENT anything. Deleting this app right now. Let’s hope “AR Sudoku Solver” can cheer me up a bit yeah?
Robodashy out.
Time for something practical on this Tech Thursday.
Posted by Robodashy in Augmented Reality on 21/06/2012
Howdy there ladies and gents.
Today’s a brand new day, so how about we start reviewing stuff?
Over the next couple of entries I’m going to look at some AR and Augmented Reality apps that I found while surfing the Play Store. I’ll try to do three or four a fortnight, and I’ll cover off on both fun (or not so fun) Augmented Reality games as well as useful (and useless) applications. As I’m a poor uni student I’ll be starting off with the freebies, but I may splash out every once in a while and get some paid apps later on.
One thing to remember: this is just my opinion. You don’t have to agree with it, you’re entitled to your own opinion. However I do ask that if our opinions do differ and you think I’m wrong, please try to keep it to yourself. I’m all for freedom of speech, but frankly you telling me that my opinion is a load of rubbish has absolutely no chance of changing it – and I’m probably not going to care so much anyway. It’s my opinion, let me have it – just like I’ll let you have yours. Deal? Okie dokie then, let’s do it.
Satellite AR:
This nifty (who says nifty these days? I’M BRINGING IT BACK!) little app from Analytical Graphics, Inc. lets you view what satellites are flying overhead by simply pointing your phone at the sky … once you’ve started the app and told it what type of objects you’re looking for of course. I found it to be both a lot of fun, and quite freaky once I realised just how many objects there are out in space so close to earth.
- You can browse the satellite database if you know which company makes the specific satellite you’re looking for (ummm slightly odd);
- You can see when the International Space Station is going to make it’s next overhead pass (I haven’t been up late enough to see it yet but fingers are crossed);
- You can view amateur radio satellites (fair enough); all active satellites – which is where its freaky because you then realise that there are over 150 objects flying over our collective heads at any one time;
- One really cool feature is that you can see all potentially visible objects – which not only shows all satellites in the common knowledge sense of the word, but also all literal satellites. You know – things in orbit. So you can track space junk, as well as any asteroids that are fortunate enough to make the database list.
But my favourite part of this app is that not only can you see where these objects are in the sky, you can also look into that object a little bit deeper. By selecting any one of these objects you’re given the option to look at several different databases which may (or may not) contain further information on the chosen satellite. You can learn things such as: when it was launched; whether or not it’s currently active; what the heck it’s doing up there; where it was launched from; and even how much it cost to get going.
A little bit nerdy I know, but I’m all for nerdy. Here we can see the practical applications of Augmented Reality. Yes this application is aimed only at the super nerdy, but it’s worth a download if you’re even mildly interested in what’s up there looking down on us. This app is completely free, and from what I can see works on most (MOST) Android devices. Until I find myself a nice piece of land with no light pollution and can actually check the accuracy of the application, I can only give it 3.5 out of 5 stars – because there’s always room for improvement.
If you’re looking for the Mac version, there isn’t one (I only review Android & PC based applications, Apple can go suck it as far as I’m concerned, to the point where I’m not even going to link to them 
) – however you can check this out as a free iTurnative.
Next up – “Destroyer AR“, but for now:
Robodashy out.
Revamp/ re-do/ restart…
Posted by Robodashy in Archives, Randomly rambling on 13/06/2012
Morning all.
I started this off strong. I came out doing what? Four, five posts a week? Then dropped off to three. Then … I kind of just disappeared. I know I had good reason for most of it, but then there was the after part where I just disappeared altogether. Then I tried to hide it (a little) by back dating my most recent Silly Sunday posts (I actually intended to back date all categories in an effort to catch up). Which I guess is fine, if you don’t like finishing what you start – which I really don’t.
I’m not going to make any excuses, and let’s just leave it at that (or it’ll seem like I’m making excuses won’t it)?
So, how about I just restart this the way I actually intended to start in the first place?
What I really wanted to do with this blog is show my own work, and display my interest in Augmented Reality. Then I diluted it with comics and other hilarity as well as some random ramblings.
Now I’m not promising weekly updates. I’ve stated previously that I’m going to make my Augmented Reality posts fortnightly, which I can do. As for displaying my own work, well I guess I can’t display stuff if I don’t have any to display – so I guess I’ll have to get my butt into gear and create something huh?
Now if you don’t mind, I’ve got some creating to do,
Robodashy out.
The day is at it’s end, thankfully it’s a Sunday
Welcome one and all, boys and girls, short and tall. But not too tall. Gigantor.
As the title suggests, and as I implied last week, Silly Sundays is at it’s end – for now.
Honestly it comes down to the fact that I’m getting tired of taking other peoples material. Not that this doesn’t happen all the time, and not that I really mind. I may come back and do my own “around the net” style Sunday post every now and then if I find anything worth sharing but really it comes down to the fact that me trolling through stuff I’ve all ready read to find funny stuff to put up takes a lot of time, and not that I don’t love you guys reading this – but I’m fairly sure you would all appreciate this a lot more if you were reading new and original material that I’ve created myself. Or, if anyone wants to point out an up and coming comic let me know – happy to share someone elses new work. I know it’s pretty much the same thing, but I’d feel better about it if it was new and if I had permission.
So with that said, I’m going to continue with Tech Thursdays – but on a fortnightly basis. This gives me a little more time to get better content for you all to read through, and also gives me a bit more time to focus on things such as work, my other blogs (coming soon, I’ll let you know), more importantly uni, and several other things I’m hoping to get up to, but we’ll see how that goes.
Hmmmm so what to do on this final Silly Sunday? Should I go back through and get out my favourite bits of content over the past few months? Should I get my favourite piece of comedy from each of the five different sources I’ve been using? Should I introduce something new? I know you shouldn’t do that, it’s bad form. But to hell with convention, this is my show and I’ll throw pies if I want to.
So today, this last Silly Sunday, I introduce to you one of my all time favourite pieces of comedy.
It really is. I’ve been reading content from this guy for years now, and pretty much everything he posts is comedic gold. Ok, so maybe not gold, and maybe not all of his content, but when he’s right he’s right – and when he’s funny he’s freaking hilarious. In that sick demented way, but I like it – and that’s the main thing.
He’s been going since 1997 and I started reading in 2000 – not that it really matters. But anyway.
Now due to the fact that a lot of his satire is completely text bases it makes it a little difficult to transfer it to this site without entirely plagiarising his content – thankfully some of his favourite work comes from some of the pics he’s put up. So I’ll put them up here, put a caption of what he had as a comment for the image, and link it back to him. So, for my final Silly Sunday I’m going to continue to steal peoples material and post it here. Some things never change.
Another crappy movie getting rave reviews. Unbelievable. The best thing about this movie was the score at the beginning during the credits, and only because the composer, James Newton Howard, ripped off Shostakovich’s Chamber Symphony Op. 110a (check it out, Shostakovich’s work is much cooler and often plagiarized in Hollywood; for more on plagiarized sound tracks, see the score to “Psycho”).
This movie wouldn’t have been so bad if it actually went somewhere. It was like a porno with no money shot. One of those slow motion soft-core Showtime specials that start out as being mediocre detective melodrama, but you keep watching any way because it’s starring Shannon Tweed and you know there’s going to be a shower scene but you know it’s going to suck because some dude inevitably comes in and starts man handling her and the camera man does nothing but zoom up on his ass. That’s exactly what “Signs” is like: the camera man zooming up on some guy’s ass for two hours.
Don’t see “Signs.”
Hahahahahaha I remember this was one of the first of his articles that gave me tears in my eyes from laughing so much. He’s so right though. Signs was terrible. Absolutely terrible. Ahhh before Mel Gibson went totally nuts.
Next up, he takes the mickey out of kids art work. Does this again later on. In fact, he made a whole site dedicate to being better than children. Here are my fav’s:
You spelled America wrong asshole. Also, I could have sworn America’s colors were red, white and blue. There’s no yellow anywhere, traitor.F
Hahahahaha. This kid is 8, and he’s already showing Communist traits.
Holy shit, I almost had a seizure when I saw this one. Three words: too many colors. Also, eggs aren’t supposed to have ears, dipshit.F
Now keep in mind this girl is only 6. But he’s right (of course he’s right), even at 6 I’m pretty sure I understood the concept that eggs don’t have ears. What a dumb ass.
Ding Ding! Here comes the shit-mobile. I’ve never seen a fire truck that needed to be shaved. I would rather be burned to death than be saved by this hairy piece of shit. F
HAHAHAHHAHAHAHA far out. This kid’s also 8, but WOW what the freak is that? Nice attention to detail though – but I think attention to the details of something that isn’t a fire truck.
That’s interesting, everyone in this picture is white. Even the rainbow is white. Perhaps in an ideal world, everyone would be white isn’t that right, Rachel? Or should I call you RACIST? Nice try, Hitler. F
Is the second one in an animal of some sort? I’m both scared and confused by this image. The SS is making a comeback.
Vrrrroooooooooooommmmmm! F
Lol. I don’t think too many more words could have described this one. Unless of course you take the sexual innuendo approach then … well I’ll let you go there.
See what you’re going to miss out on? Love you all, thanks for reading. I’ll probably put some more up, but yeah – I’ll try to keep it original.
Robodashy out!
One last spin around the net?
Welcome one and all to around the net.
The title of the post is just phrasing alright, the last Silly Sunday post will be next week.
Now to lighten the mood with some human stupidity as we go
I’ll explain why next week, but I’m shutting down. Mostly. I’ll explain more next week. But anyway, lets go one more dance around the net shall we?
OH! MY! GOD! DUDE!!! That had to suck. That wasn’t even his fault. I mean, he should have been a little more cautious but still, that just isn’t cool. Funny but HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
I’m pretty sure I’ve said something like this before, but children and animals don’t mix. Except for when one turns against the other. Then it’s HILARIOUS!! Good little monkey. Sadly I couldn’t get the better quality version to work so we’ll just have to make do with this one.
There are no words that explain the true level of awesomeness and luck that is required to pull this off. Not to mention stupidity. But man he was lucky to not have broken his neck – or any other bone for that matter.
At least he’s trying to keep fit. Well, that’s what I’d like to think he’s doing – really he’s just another piece of waste in the gene pool. Makes me sad, happy in a hahaha laughing at his stupidity was – but sad in general that there are people out there like this guy.
So good! Pesky little buggers keep stealing our food, it’s about time we steal them … well we can’t exactly steal their food, it was ours to begin with. That’ll teach them. No, it won’t – they’re birds, they’re idiots.
Have fun y’all. See you next week.
Robodashy out!
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