MPJ

If you start thinking of augmented reality, what will come to your mind first? Well, I don't know about you, but if you ask me, there is no doubt it's the car keys. Yes, car keys. Let me explain. This is one of those weird situations when you're approaching your car from a distance and vainly trying to unlock the door with your fancy wireless keys. You are simply too far away from the car. But if you put the keys next to your head and try again, your brain will do the magic. It will augment the poor thing and considerably enhance the wireless range, and the car will no longer be locked. Don't believe me? Try it for yourself. I don't remember exactly where I saw this, probably in those documentary shows like "Brainiac" or "Top Gear", but it works every time. The human body is a large conductor when it comes to radio waves, and it easily alters the field when it's close to a transmitter or receiver, but still, this is a very nice example of ho...

In the past, as a software developer, I was participating in a couple of projects regarding GPS tracking. One was a big project for two companies in Denmark who wanted to have installed a "vehicle tracking" system in their cars and trucks along with commercial features, loading, communicating, invoicing, etc. One was a courier with small handheld GPS-capable PDA devices, and the other transportation company with large trucks equipped with big PC-based cockpit computers. These two projects were very exciting for me, lots of good times with, at the time, new technologies, real-time testing, listening to people in the field for their wishes, complaints, and new requests. Anyway, GPS tracking software is now a regular part of smartphones and a kind of new entertainment for their users. This weekend we wanted to have a small breakfast-picnic at the local waterflow resort, and I turned it on when Viktor and I stepped out of the house. We were walking about two kilometers on foot...