"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic" -Arthur C. Clarke, "Profiles of The Future", 1961 (Clarke's third law)

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Welcome to you, Seer of the DAL!

"Huh? What the heck does *that* mean?"

So glad you asked. My name is AutumnalDusk, and I am a c0dehex witch. That is to say, an artist of the DAL. Higher than a Seer, but much lower than an Archmage. I suppose, first and foremost, that a brief explanation may be in order. This entire blog is about Augmented Reality, and my way of looking at it.

What is Augmented Reality? Why, it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, is all. It's what VRML always wanted to be. It's been in development for years, and things are now finally falling into place. Here's the definition from Wikipedia:

"Augmented reality (AR) is a term for a live direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are augmented by virtual computer-generated imagery. It is related to a more general concept called mediated reality in which a view of reality is modified (possibly even diminished rather than augmented) by a computer. As a result, the technology functions by enhancing one’s current perception of reality.
In the case of Augmented Reality, the augmentation is conventionally in real-time and in semantic context with environmental elements, such as sports scores on TV during a match. With the help of advanced AR technology (e.g. adding computer vision and object recognition) the information about the surrounding real world of the user becomes interactive and digitally usable. Artificial information about the environment and the objects in it can be stored and retrieved as an information layer on top of the real world view. The term augmented reality is believed to have been coined in 1990 by Thomas Caudell, an employee of Boeing at the time[1].
Augmented reality research explores the application of computer-generated imagery in live-video streams as a way to expand the real-world. Advanced research includes use of head-mounted displays and virtual retinal displays for visualization purposes, and construction of controlled environments containing any number of sensors and actuators." /quote, Wikipedia.

That, my friends, is the birth of the DAL, the Digital Art Layer. As with any structure, there's a 'hierarchy', of course, and here's how it plays out ( in this primer):

The Archmages: The scribes of the code. These are the Entities and Individuals who write the underlying support software that makes it all possible. This is where the DAL is sourced from.

The Enchanters: Smithys of Enchanted Equipment. These are the Entities and Individuals who make the hardware for viewing the DAL.

The Witches: Those who weave the DAL. The artists of the DAL. Content creators, whether it be static imagry , audio visual, virtual telepresence, ect.

The Seers: "Those with the eyes to see the DAL". Basically, the end consumer. Anyone who has the ability to see the DAL. Every Witch is a Seer, but not every Seer is a Witch.

The Blind: Those who do not have the eyes to see the DAL.

The Puritans: Those who refuse to see the DAL

The Inquisitors: Those whose motivations (religious, political, social, economic) are to restrict the DAL, according to their own belief systems. These are the antithesis to "Information should be free", and are generally very Orwellian.



Another important term for this primer is the CodeHex, itself. which is simply the Machine readable code which acts as the interface point between the DAL and "the real world", CodeHexes, in their varieties have been around for a long time. From the Barcode, to the Aztec Code, to the QR code,  and the Semacode (the matrix found in the header graphic for this blog is a Semacode for this blog's URL, making the graphic "machine readable"). A CodeHex, itself, is only the 'pointer' to the actual DAL content, (in most cases). In advanced cases, it can be much, much more. The most recognizable Code Hex (in AR) is the ARTag Marker:
18 of the over 2,000 ARTags, used in "Magic Lens" and "Magic Mirror" Metaphors.

There is, also, a trend in "tagless" AR, where just a simple picture, or logo, can generate the AR link.

Over time, I'll be covering "all that has been" to catch up. Along the way, we'll also look at "All that is" and "All that *may* be".

In the meantime, take a look at some of "what has been done". Use your imagination, and visualize "What may be". Who knows? You may be the next CodeHex Witch. ;)

Until then, Stay Augmented.

1 comment:

  1. magazines like Better Homes & Gardens are using these to provide readers with special offers and coupons. in the information, though, they list 'smartphones' as being the device to be used and make no mention of plain old computers.

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