Yeoww! Upshot’s Inform alumnus Total Immersion is so hot right now.
Their augmented reality software is showing up everywhere, from Nissan brochures (see the video) to Topps baseball cards, and more. For those who haven’t seen the technology in action, it’s very difficult to explain without watching the video, but we’ll give it a shot. Augmented reality overlays digital images on the real, physical world; in this case, the real world as seen by your webcam. Total Immersion’s images are 3-D, interactive, and can be used to launch subsequent games (as in the Topps example) or other applications. (In other words, it’s The OOC in action!)
It’s mind-blowing stuff, but it’s also getting its fair share of ridicule as the latest “shiny object” with no practical application. Thankfully, some innovators have solved that dilemma at… the US Postal Service??? Yes’m, the USPS is now using augmented reality to help you determine which box is appropriate for shipping a given item. Just head over to this page and click on the “See How It Works” link on the right hand side (sorry there’s no direct link).
Very cool stuff, and it will certainly be interesting to see how this technology develops in the near future.
