In the near future ways of managing various devices and computer systems will be much more than they exist today. Development computer technology it has reached a level where it no longer seems fantastic that your TV monitors your movements around the room and adjusts the picture to fit them. It also doesn't look like anything special that your phone can recognize when you look at it and when you turn away. What was science fiction ten years ago is now perceived as commonplace, moreover, annoying and often unnecessary. The kind of chips that you try once and immediately forget about them.

Thalmic Labs decided to explore the possibility of gesture control - in fact, they took the idea of ​​​​the same Kinect, but turned it the other way around. The Kinect has a camera that tracks your movements, while the Myo bracelet has sensors that capture how your muscles contract. Depending on how the muscles contract, the bracelet understands what movement you are making - clench your fist or straighten all your fingers, bend your palm towards you or away from you. Turn your hand and so on. The idea is promising, and it was implemented in a real bracelet, which was called Myo (pronounced as My and then Oh, with a kind of aspiration). The bracelet is available now for $199 pre-tax, a Kickstarter raised $4 million in 2013 and more than 30,000 orders. Then it seemed that it would be much easier to create a bracelet, it was assumed that its sales would begin at the end of 2013. In reality, the bracelet came out a whole year later. But the interest in this niche is such that imitators have appeared, those who create bracelets, rings and other accessories to control devices using gestures. The number of players in this non-existent market is already in the tens, and Thalmic Lab's great success is that they have attracted investments from large players, for example, Intel Capital. In total, about $15 million was invested in the company. And this is only in the presence of early prototypes, vague sales prospects. Investors were investing their money in the future, not in the first generation of the device, but in the technology itself, which promises to be a breakthrough. And today, anyone who spends $200 can try this future on their hand.

What's included, how to set up the Myo bracelet

A small box, a bracelet is visible inside - you can buy a black or white version.

We open the box, inside there is a cardboard with an address where you can start setting up the bracelet, a USB cable, as well as plastic braces that narrow the bracelet. There is also a USB dongle that links the bracelet to a Windows or Mac computer.

Let's start with the fact that the bracelet is only available in one size, and this is a clear disadvantage for those with large hands. The maximum arm coverage is 34 centimeters. The bracelet is attached to the forearm, since here the movement of the muscles is most pronounced. I have a forearm of 35 centimeters, the bracelet can be used, but it is tight and after 15 minutes it cuts into the skin. Owners of smaller hands say that it is relatively comfortable to wear the bracelet for 10-15 minutes, then the elastic cuff begins to interfere, touches objects, and so on.

There is a battery inside the bracelet, charging is done with a microUSB cable, you can fully charge the bracelet in an hour. It's enough for a whole day's work. The company icon is also an indicator, it is highlighted.

The quality of the bracelet is excellent, there are no complaints. Good plastic, assembly for five plus. You understand that the thing is not made on the knee. You can connect the bracelet to a computer (this is where a Bluetooth adapter comes in handy) or an iOS/Android tablet/smartphone. In all portable devices requires Bluetooth 4.0 Apple devices - iOS version 7 and above.

The bracelet offers the widest possibilities when working with a computer, and it is worth trying it first here. We download the software and install it, all steps are accompanied by tips, and training in working with the bracelet includes short video tutorials. Everything is clear and simple.

It turns out that you can't just put on the bracelet and start working with the computer, it takes 4-5 minutes to warm it up when it gets ready for work. Ideally, you should calibrate the bracelet (a series of gestures described in the "textbook"). As far as I understand, calibration is needed, as it increases accuracy, you can not always put on the bracelet exactly, each time its position is different on the forearm.

Next, you are shown gestures that you can control programs on your computer. Despite the fact that the bracelet understands about 25-30 gestures, I saw it with my own eyes at the exhibition, here they limited themselves to only five - clench your fingers into a fist, open your hand into fives, turn your palm towards yourself or away from you, rotate your fist, plus movements are also calculated hands in space, this sets the direction and speed. Inside the bracelet are three-axis sensors - a magnetometer, acceleration, and a gyroscope.

In the Thalmic Labs store, you can download programs for managing applications on your PC for free, some are already included in the bracelet. We upload the file, connect the bracelet via USB, the software is automatically installed. I tried to control the VLC player, the technology works simply - the control is intercepted and the gestures that I do with the bracelet are shown in the pop-up window. There is no practical need for such a bracelet to control music or video on a computer. The value of the device is almost zero, and you realize it in five minutes. There is no buzz from the fact that the program performs standard actions. Disappointment.

But this does not mean at all that such bracelets cannot find real use in life, as long as their use is limited to very specific scenarios, and they will not suit the mass consumer. The profession of a magician with such devices has every chance of becoming a thing of the past, they will be replaced by techno-mages, approximately the same as they were in Babylon 5. Today there are already artists who use Myo to control lighting effects. For example, this is Armin van Buuren. Watch a video showing how he controls the lights on stage. Agree that this is impressive.

It is not difficult for me to imagine how in the future such bracelets will control various shows, perhaps the appearance of combined musical instruments that will begin to combine sound, light, special effects. This is the road to a whole new world.

Another use case for the bracelet that seems promising to me is the control of drones and other similar devices. You launch the drone spectacularly, your hand is your remote control, for others it will be akin to magic, they will not see exactly how you achieve this effect. In our review video there is an excerpt about drone control. Unfortunately, programs for controlling drones in open access No, this is the future.

Presentation management is not as effective anymore, but unprepared people can be impressed. Moreover, the bracelet can be hidden under a shirt. On a smartphone or tablet today, you can control the rewind of music, play 2048, which makes an indelible impression on others - the tiles move when you look at them, they do not see or pay no attention to finger movements. But that's where all the possibilities end. You cannot control the mouse on a PC, this mode is not available to mere mortals, although such devices have existed for a long time and such a bracelet could cope with such a task. The number of available programs in which the bracelet works is just over a dozen. It's nothing. It is clear that in the future their number will increase, but it remains a toy, proof that such technologies will become common in the future.

For today's buyer, there is no point in such a futuristic bracelet, except for the opportunity to show off in front of friends once or twice. But there is no need to use the bracelet every day, the number of false positives is quite noticeable, it is difficult to use it. If the price of a bracelet in the US is 200 dollars, then in Russia it is sold for 22-30 thousand rubles, which looks like complete madness. Even more surprising is the fact that there is demand for the bracelet, although it cannot be called gigantic - the device is sold in dozens of pieces. It is difficult for me to imagine a portrait of the buyer of such a toy, since it does not perform any conscious actions. I am sure that as soon as support for the bracelet appears in popular games and / or consoles, its sales will go up, controlling a hero or a game like this is a completely different level of freedom than using a regular joystick. But this is not yet the case either. However, you can see how it can be.

From the review it becomes clear that the Myo bracelet is a great proof of concept, but a product far from commercial success and the attention of the general public. There is no practical use in it, and therefore, it will remain a curiosity. And for someone it will be a magical thing that controls presentations. But don't expect anything else just yet.

Thank you for providing the Cplaza.ru device.

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Keyboard shortcuts or hotkeys are a well-known way to increase productivity when working on a computer. We have previously considered and . However, it happens that your hands are not on the keyboard, and you, lounging just laziness, reach for the keyboard, but on the other hand, you want to do standard actions faster.

Usage third party applications can give us this possibility - the ability to control the computer with mouse gestures.

Download and Russification

There are many programs for this business, I will consider the Just Gestures program (which means just gestures in translation). You can download from the official site. Go to the DOWNLOAD tab, select the version for your operating system. And do not forget to download the crack, they are at the bottom of the same Language Packages page. Just download given file and after installing the program, copy it to the directory
C:\Program Files\Just Gestures\Languages

Interface and settings

When you start the program, the setup wizard will appear, you can not change anything there, click Further.

The main window will open. Select the menu Option, set the interface language and click Ok

Now in the main window we see global actions and actions for Internet Explorer . When you select an element on the left in the window, you see a mouse gesture, and what actions are associated with this gesture. For example, when selected, minimize the window is visible.

Selecting an action Close a window and we see that this gesture still corresponds Close Tab in IE. But it's not scary for this there is a priority setting.

If we leave the priority the same. When you play a gesture, the program will open a window where you can choose what action to take.

But you must admit that these are additional manipulations, and because of them, the very meaning of “quick gestures” is lost.
Therefore, it is necessary, and we will set priorities. If we make it a priority Close Tab for Internet Explorer Above. Then, when working in IE, the action of closing the tab will automatically be performed, and in all others, the action Close Window (Close window). And no unnecessary manipulations, everything is cultural and neat.

Adding a new application

What if, you say, I don't use IE at all? I will answer not scary, the program has the ability to add new applications, and assign them "hot gestures". Choose Add new group Applications

Click Choose, and specify the path to the application. Write any name you like.

Since Explorer is there by default, but I don’t use it, I chose another one to configure Opera browser. Now it's time to add gestures for the opera, to do this, click Add new gesture. We select the category of action - Internet settings (since we are setting up the browser). Let's create, for example, a gesture for creating a new tab. We choose to use this gesture for the application, and in the drop-down list we select the desired application, in our case it is Opera!

And here we already get the opportunity to either draw a gesture ourselves, with the left mouse button, or select an existing one on the left. Just below you can change the name and give your own. You can also assign not only gestures, but also combinations of mouse clicks. To do this, go to the Double Click Combinations tab. Click Next, assign a name and finish. All new gesture to control the application is ready.

Conclusions

The program has great functionality. Understand, experiment and make work at the computer more convenient and interesting. If you have any questions, write in the comments, I will answer. Thank you!

AT new version operating room Android systems 9.0Pie Google borrowed another interesting feature from Apple - gestures, like on the iPhone X. Now, in the new Android, navigation consists entirely of swipes, and there is not a trace left of the previous traditional icons.

It takes some time to get used to the new controls, therefore, to facilitate the process, we will tell you how to use gestures in Android 9 P. And for those who can’t come to terms with the new order of things, we have prepared detailed instructions how to bring back the classic buttons.

How to enable or disable gesture control in Android 9.0 Pie?

For those upgrading from Android 8.0 Oreo to Android 9.0 Pie, the new gesture navigation system will be disabled by default. To enable the new controls, open "Settings" -> "System" -> "Gestures". Then touch the button "Swipe Home Button" and enable the feature. The icons will then switch from the 3-way navigation to the new icon. To disable gestures in Android 9P, follow the same steps.

EK Chung, user experience manager for Android smartphones at Google, confirmed to Android Central that future Google devices will only ship with gesture navigation. This means that we will most likely see this feature installed by default on the Google Pixel 3 and all subsequent devices.

How to use Android 9P gestures and the new Home button?

Although the button "Home" is now an icon, it still works like the old circle. Click on it to go to main screen, and a long press will launch Google Assistant.

When you're in the app, a back arrow will automatically appear to the left of the home button, just like the old navigation system. Click on it to return to what was previously viewed. It disappears from the main screen.

How to enter the menu?

To access a list of all installed apps, swipe up from the bottom of the screen. You will see the classic program menu. At the bottom of the screen, you can place several applications for quick access, but above them is now new panel"New Applications".

How to see a list of recently running apps in Android 9 Pie?

To view latest apps all you have to do is drag the Home button about half way down the screen, then down a bit and release. A carousel of recent apps will appear and you can scroll left and right.

To quickly return to the previous or next app, simply swipe the new home button left or right.

There is also another way to access running applications. Hold and drag the Home button left and right. A slider will appear on the screen, in which you will see all running programs. Once the desired app is in the center of the screen, release the button to open it.

To close an individual app, swipe up on the specific app's tile. Scroll windows to the left and click "Clear All" to close all apps at the same time.

How to run multiple applications in separate windows?

To view applications in split screen mode, tap the icon desired program at the top of the carousel running applications. Tap on the Split Screen option and scroll through the list of different apps available to choose as a second app. You also have the opportunity to go to the menu and select any installed application to start multi-window mode.

Gesture device control technologies have long been of interest to developers and users. Suffice it to recall the Kinect for consoles or the Leap Motion prefix for computers. Alas, the second failed to gain popularity and become quite common among developers, and most importantly, users. Perhaps you need to start small and gradually accustom people to the fact that with the movement of a hand in space, you can interact with devices and control applications. This small may well be playing music on a computer using a variety of players. Take control of them with gestures will help new free app Control Air for Mac. And in the future, Eyesight plans to expand its reach to TVs and computers, which will be able to understand many more gestures and interact with many applications using their technologies.

So, ControlAir for Mac is designed to control music playback without using a keyboard, mouse or touchpad. And the list of compatible applications includes almost all the most popular players: iTunes, VLC, QuickTime, and Rdio. Immediately after installation, you need to calibrate the application using the computer's camera so that it correctly identifies the user, and after that it remains only to go through a short training course.

Working with ControlAir is extremely simple. To turn the sound on or off, just put your finger to your lips. A very obvious and common gesture, it should be noted. To switch tracks, pause or adjust the volume, you need to raise your index finger, after which a transparent ControlAir interface will appear on the screen indicating the player that is in this moment active, information about the track being played and buttons for control. Swiping your finger to the side allows you to select the desired interface element, and pressing is carried out by bending your finger, as if he were pressing an invisible button. Such a system is very convenient and does not require getting used to.

The only problem with ControlAir is that the user doesn't need to be very far from the camera. In other words, controlling music from the couch while the computer is on the table is unlikely to succeed. It turns out that the application competes with the multimedia buttons on the keyboard, the convenience of which few people complain about. However, Eyesight is still just testing gesture control for its improvement and improvement in the future, so it's more correct to call ControlAir an alpha version of the technology and not judge too harshly.

The system will adapt to the user and help you use your smartphone less often.

To bookmarks

Google released a beta version operating system Android P, which should be released in the fall of 2018. The presentation took place during conferences Google I / O, also company representatives spoke about the system to The Verge.

Smartphone usage control

In Android P, a panel with information about device usage will appear - it will show how much time per day the user spends on various applications, how many alerts it receives, and so on. Google explained that this should help get rid of the habit of constantly holding the phone in your hands, for fear of missing something.

Android will allow you to set a limit on the use of certain applications - after it is reached, the service icon will turn black and white, and when you try to start the service, you will be notified that it is on "pause". To use it again, you will need to remove the restriction in the usage information panel - the "unpause" button may appear later, but for now, Google wants to know how users will react to the new service.

In addition, the user will be able to set the time intended for sleep, during this period, the entire system interface will turn black and white, and the phone will automatically enter the do not disturb mode.

If notifications from a certain application are often rejected, the system will offer to turn them off for a while. The Shush function will also appear - if the phone is lying on the table with the screen up, and the user turns it over with the screen down, then the “do not disturb” mode will automatically turn on.

Gesture control

Android P will have gesture controls similar to the iPhone X. Instead of three buttons, there will be only one on the main screen. It will be used for management. The back button will only appear in menus and apps.

With a short swipe up on the home button, a list of open applications will appear. You can swipe left and right on it. With a long swipe up, a menu with applications will open.

General list of gestures with the home button on Android P:

• Pressing - return to the main screen.
• Long press - launch Google Assistant assistant.
• Short swipe up - go to the last open applications. In them, you can select text without going into the application itself. In this mode, a list of services offered for launch appears.
• Long swipe up - launch the list of applications.
• Swipe to the right - a list of recently used applications, before it was launched by a separate button.

Also, Android will show screen rotation buttons when appropriate (e.g. when starting a video on Full Screen when the screen orientation is fixed to vertical). When taking screenshots, you can draw directly on them before saving the image.

Customization for the user

Android P will use machine learning systems more actively, Google promised. One such system will monitor battery usage - for example, adjust brightness and turn off apps that aren't likely to be used anytime soon. To adjust these Google systems will use data about how the user adjusts the brightness and uses applications.

"Actions" will appear in the application list - functions that can be immediately launched in different applications. Google shows them based on data about what the user does most often during the day and which services suit him right now.

"Actions" - you can call a friend or start a workout.

Also in Android P will appear Slices - feature suggestions in desired applications. For example, when a user searches for the Lyft app, they can immediately call a car at their address instead of going to the app and doing it manually.

Google noticed that developers will have to refine their applications for "Actions" and Slices - this is necessary so that the system does not just communicate with the service via API, but "understands" what actions can be performed. Details of the necessary improvements have not yet been published.

In addition, Google announced the MLKit framework, which will allow you to use machine learning in services, and then use it both directly on Android smartphones and iOS, as well as in the cloud.

Where is the Android P beta available?

Google promised that Android P will appear on devices different manufacturers much faster than it happened with previous versions. For this, the Treble system is used, which in android oreo and allows you to change only the necessary parts of the system during updates, without affecting it entirely.

The Verge notes that even Treble is unlikely to allow Android devices to be updated as quickly as the iPhone, but it can speed up this process. However, Essental said they were able to release a beta version for their Oreo smartphone just a week after receiving a test build of P.

Test assembly of the next android versions will be published for the first time not only for devices from Google itself. It will be released for the following smartphones:

• Google Pixel
• Google Pixel 2
• Sony Xperia XZ2
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
• Nokia 7 Plus
• Oppo R15 Pro
• Vivo X21
• One Plus 6
• Essential PH-1