Novel Use for Smartphone Cameras in New Game

"German game developer and publisher Mobile Scope has announced that a new version of its popular Moorhen game is to be introduced in March 2004, dubbed Moorhen Camera X. Unlike previous versions of the game which have relied on navigational pads for input, this latest edition will draw upon the capabilities of integrated cameras found in smartphones to provide what appears to be an entirely new user experience.

As a 2D shooter where hens are the primary target, players have thus far aimed manually to be able to take out hens. Innovatively, Moorhen Camera X makes use of the camera of the device on which it is running to position a cursor relative to player movements, comparing picture data frame-by-frame to determine in which direction the handset is being moved." [infoSync]

Well, this would definitely blow my cover in meetings, and I'm trying to picture a bus full of cameraphone users pointing, tilting, aiming, shooting, etc., but I'm still intrigued.

"If you get a little fried working in your Library, checking out the Library of the Month over at WebJunction might help. It won’t give you a raise or improve the demeanor of your patrons, but it can be a bit uplifting and professionally inspiring. This time their selection is the San Carlos Public Library." [Libraryman]

I love this idea, but I'll never remember to check back in with the site. This feature SCREAMS RSS feed!

Mobile Phones as Identity Providers

"Nokia has now announced successful pilots with Vodafone and Orange: 'Nokia has announced successful completion of pilots with Orange and Vodafone, featuring single sign-on for mobile devices, a technology eliminating the need for multiple entering of user authentication credentials when accessing different services, such as gaming or ticket reservations. In addition, Nokia is working with America Online, Inc., to demonstrate a prototype Nokia mobile device offering Radio@AOL, a leading online radio service. All these service pilots are based on Liberty Alliance Project specifications, a group committed to developing open, interoperable specifications for network identity....' " [Mobitopia]

An interesting idea, although I guess you're SOL if you lose your phone. On my Treo 600, I surf the web using Handspring's browser, Blazer. I also have eWallet on my PDA to keep track of all of my passwords. Unfortunately, the two programs don't interact at all, so I have to leave the web if I forget a password for a particular site. Ugh.

It would be cool to be able to embed my library barcode number somewhere on my Treo (in eWallet or Blazer) and automatically authenticate to my home library's databases.  :-)

On a side note, Nokia also announced a ton of RSS feeds about their programs and products [via All About Mobile Life]. However, the feeds seem to be more topical. If I owned a Nokia phone, my first and foremost desire would be for a feed for my particular phone (cough, Handspring, hint, hint, cough). Hopefully Nokia will pick up the ball on this one (cough, Handspring, hint, hint, cough). This is a total no-brainer that more businesses should pick up on in general.

"Symantec Security Response encourages you to ignore any messages regarding this hoax. It is harmless and is intended only to cause unwarranted concern.

The Irish Virus is a hoax and it should be ignored. The following is a sample of the hoax message:

Greetings, You have just received the 'IRISH VIRUS'. As we don't have any programming experience, this Virus works on the honour system. Please delete all the files on your hard drive manually and forward this Virus to everyone on your mailing list. Thank you for your cooperation." [Symantec, via J-Walk Blog]

Dean just came in my office and proudly held out his Sony Clie, on which he had downloaded the PLA 2004 Final Conference Program. It's available for Palm OS or PocketPCs. It's sponsored by ProQuest, and it has some nifty features.

For example, when you view information about a particular session, you can tap on the calendar icon to add it to your PDA's calendar. Same thing with vendor information - tap the phone icon within an entry and they are added to your contacts. Here's another cool tip:

"You can create an electronic trip report that includes all of your notes and the associated item info. Simply open the Guide, tap the title bar (in the upper left), tap Options and Export All Notes. Tap OK, Yes. A trip report will be created in the Memo Pad on your device. When you next synchronize, the summary will be transferred to the Note Pad on your desktop computer."

The package was put together by NearSpace, a company that's already done this for a lot of other event organizers. I realize this isn't a huge deal to those who have attended technology conferences, but it's very cool in libraryland!