Space Navigator

For navigating space.

Hadn’t seen one of those before – although there’s obviously about a million and one videos on youtube. I chose this one

because the voice in the background is… um… Slovenian? Something like that – and hearing languages I don’t understand makes me feel… calm.

Anyway, it’s high time you learned Slovene, admit it. Everyone in Europe is now multi-lingual, except The English, who can barely read or write.

Anyway, the reason I find this thing interesting is because it’s the opposite of a WAAI – a Waving Arms Around Interface – as popularised by various movies with Tom (ferret-face) Cruise in them, and which are a completely stupid idea. If you’re going to be pratting about on the internet all day and all night, you want an interface which requires the absolute minimum of movement. I mean people get RSI from mice FFS – so mice are obviously too much work.

Another attempt at “interface without having to actually move that much” is this blowing one:

Where you can control your cursor (or whatever) by blowing it around the screen. You might be able to suck it as well. I don’t know. This obviously goes off the scale of the daftometer… but for one small detail…

… the guy is using it in a bar. Can you use it as a breathaliser? An anti-social-networking-on-the-web-when-drunk breathaliser? Because if you can, then they should come as standard on all (my) laptops.

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It’s also occurred to me that the first one could also be done using an iPhone balanced on your knee, or the arm of your chair or whatever. I actually do think this is a problem looking for a solution (unlike WAAI) because at the moment, 3D navigation – particularly for RC planes, sucks. Ideally you need something that’s basically a little model of the plane that you hold onto, and manipulate like some sort of aeronautical voodoo doll… to do whatever it is that you want the real plane to do.

A bit like those iPhone apps where you stick little cardboard wings onto your phone and they make a noise like a Messerschmitt

That someone went “meh” about in the comments – so remember, every “meh” is pregnant with its opposite. It’s like Edward de Bono (who doesn’t know what he’s talking about) puzzles where someone gives you a paper clip and you have to think of as many uses for it as you possibly can.

Nothing is ever 100% stupid. Nothing.