Linux MPX Multi-touch Alternative to MS Surface

An anonymous reader writes "Gizmodo has published an article (with video) on the Linux-based free alternative to MS Surface along with a quite interesting interview with its creator, Peter Hutterer. "It may not be as fancy-schmancy as Microsoft Surface or Jeff Han's demos but this video of a Linux-based MPX multi-touch table shows that things are moving full speed ahead in the land of the free penguins. We talked with developer Peter Hutterer, who gave us his insight on the project, the iPhone and the ongoing multi-touch craze." He talks about Jeff Han's work, MS Surface and defines the iPhone as "not the first in what it's doing, but definitely a huge impact" in the field."

MultiMeh...

[pohl (872)]

Meh. All this multitouch hype is such a fad. Sure, it's great eye candy, but it's totally impractical. Do you really think that shit is going to scale down to the size of a phone!? Oh, wait...

Re:MultiMeh...

[pasamio (737659)]

To be honest I use the multitouch trackpad on my Macbookpro all of the time. Two finger tap for right click, two finger drag for scrolling with the usual single finger tap for left click and single finger drag for normal drag. Multitouch in a small sense is something that I miss when I go to another laptop because I instinctively two finger tap trackpads to try to right click. No need to scroll in a special part of the track pad, no need to press a special part for left and right click. Just the gesture anywhere on the trackpad. Thats multitouch for me in action and working.

"schmancy"? well la-di-da

[icepick72 (834363)]

It may not be as fancy-schmancy as Microsoft Surface

I love how the community words stuff, sounds like a child being envious of big brother syndrome. I don't consider Microsoft offerings superior to others, just pointing out the wording and what is sounds like. I hear that kind of stuff way too often. Linux should be comfortable in what it is and not feel the need to compare.

Re:"schmancy"? well la-di-da

[CaptainPatent (1087643)]

I love how the community words stuff, sounds like a child being envious of big brother syndrome. I don't consider Microsoft offerings superior to others...

So would I be correct in assuming you're saying: "Microsoft Shmicrosoft?"

Re:"schmancy"? well la-di-da

[Otter (3800)]

Once I saw them call themselves the slashdot for people who actually have touched a woman or something like that.

Sure, until now. But with vi running on my coffee table, things are going to change around here!

Re:"schmancy"? well la-di-da

[nagora (177841)]

Linux is NOT an Operating System it is a Kernel. An operating system is Gentoo, Red Hat, etc..

An operating system controls access to the hardware. Linux is an example.

Gentoo, Red Hat etc are application suites. Bash is not part of an operating system, it is an application, just like Inkscape or Word, or Emacs

TWW

So, does this mean...

[jcr (53032)]

...that someday soon, we can run Linux on a big-ass table? [youtube.com]

-jcr

Ke?

[MrBandersnatch (544818)]

Im was trying to work out what the big deal is here....there have been multi-touch drivers around for quite a while now and that video on the table looks rather primative compared to what a lot of DIY enthusiasts have running (e.g. overhead projector). Then I realised that the big deal is having multiple input devices for one X session and that the multitouch table is actually getting in the way of that and has the potential to be quite interesting. Anyone up for missile command? :)

Why not...

[virgil_disgr4ce (909068)]

Build your own multi-touch sensitive display device? It's surprisingly easy:

http://www.instructables.com/id/EJIXKOEF3ER7VN5/?A LLSTEPS [instructables.com]

Hardware seemed the issue

[ArcherB (796902)]

I felt it would have been better had they used an actual flat-screen touch monitor. The shadows from the projector kinda killed it. Put a decent touch-screen monitor down there and we may have something.

Also, I don't think it would have taken much to add Beryl for that extra bling that MS can't offer.

Re:

[ArcherB (796902)]

A traditional touch-screen monitor can only read one touch at a time.

Then we should break from tradition. [multi-touchscreen.com]

I'm sure cash is a limiting factor at this point, however.

Question: Common Practical Uses?

[Penguinisto (415985)]

It's kind of neat and all, but aside from the Star Trek TNG factor, what practical uses could anyone really put this to? If it's on a flat horizontal surface, it's sort of wasted space (after all, I can store stuff on a tabletop!) If it's on a vertical surface, then typing becomes a raging PITA (unless typing will become obsolete/replace with something else to express thoughts and work?)

Maybe it's just me, but I'm not seeing any widespread practical use for this critter outside of some extreme niches (e.g. kiosk or limited industrial or medical machine interfaces).

/P

Re:

[Jeff DeMaagd (2015)]

Storage? How often do you store things on the surface where you use your computer?

Re:Question: Common Practical Uses?

[Tabernaque86 (1046808)]

Any company that has a drafting department should love it. Just develop a CAD program so you can work on a drawing on an actual "page" that could be displayed at 24"x36".

Also, save the CAD file to a PDF, e-mail it to the client, and he can view the drawing package in full on their table, "Red Line" it/mark it up, save it, and e-mail it back.

Considering a package can run from ten to a hundred drawings, this potentially saves a ton of paper and other resources.

Actually it's more impressive...

[kebes (861706)]

You know what makes the video demo in TFA more impressive that the Microsoft Surface demos I've seen?

This demo uses real applications! It's easy for MS (or whoever) to throw together a video of someone using a neat interface. You see all kinds of slick animations of photo-libraries and data being automatically uploaded to cellphones. The problem is it's probably all fake--the visual equivalent of a mockup. Basically they are showing you the way they *hope* it will look at work. If you look at some of the older Vista demos (before it was released) you'll see alot of mockup video that was never realized into actual code.

In this demo, they actually start by using Google Earth and scrolling through webpages. The fact that they are using real applications is much more impressive. It makes me believe that they may have something functional in a reasonable amount of time. It also shows that they are thinking about it as an extensible platform that can run generic software, rather than something locked-down that will only run approved code (i.e. just a really big PDA interface, rather than a novel way to interface with existing computer hardware and software).

I'll be impressed when...

[blankaBrew (1000609)]

I can finally touch my pr0n.

Re:Actually it's more impressive...

[dave420 (699308)]

How is it impressive? The microsoft demo showed a mobile phone being put on the table, it being recognised, and files being sent to/from the device. That's not been done before in such a fashion. Having google maps on a touch-screen isn't new in the slightest. It's not integrating anything new. The MS device had a whole different bunch of applications shown on it. As it can be so much more than just a desktop - a new way of interacting with a computer - showing it acting as a desktop is a bit short-sighted and uninspired :)

Or do you think MS were somehow incapable of getting google earth to run on a computer? Because that's the only assertion you've made that, if true, would make this offering "more impressive" than that from MS. Or, maybe, these guys didn't have the ability to make new applications, and had no choice but to use some really basic stuff somoene else had made, that's been knocking around for years?

Arbitrary window rotation?

[LoudMusic (199347)]

Are these table displays going to be the first need for arbitrary window rotation? We'll be having people sitting on all sides of the display - eventually someone will want a window squared to them, but they won't be squared to the table. Does this cause difficulties with rendering the content?

Everything should be vector drawn, so theoretically it shouldn't be a problem. But it will require pretty high resolution to keep from getting too fuzzy of text. At least that's how it seems to me.

Re:Arbitrary window rotation?

[tourvil (103765)]

what if 4 philosophers are sitting around a display and each one needs 2 windows but the display resolution only supports rendering 6 windows at a time?

what then?

The one without any windows can pick up his chopsticks and eat.

MS Motion-Detect is more like

[djupedal (584558)]

MS 'Surface' is an array of cameras that motion-detect. The cameras are below the surface and they are responsible for all proxy work done between user and the system.

There is no interaction with the 'surface' other than to prescribe a boundary layer (zone) for the cameras to baseline.

Re:

[figleaf (672550)]

Apparently there is more than one group at Microsoft developing multi-touch capabilities using different techniques.
Here is one without cameras: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulwA3n8AYM0 [youtube.com]

Re:MS Motion-Detect is more like

[east coast (590680)]

While this may be true it's like saying that a mouse is just a couple of wheels that need to be moved on an X-Y axis basis to move a cursor. It's trickery on a certain level, sure. I guess that's why it's called an interface.

I don't understand all the sour grapes associated with this. While I have no use for the interface it's not to say something worthwhile can't be produced.

demo shows flakiness

[edxwelch (600979)]

Did anyone notice in that video that he had to click couple times to get some of the widgets to activate?
Maybe the mouse still has some advantage?

Software!

[mrchaotica (681592)]

You know, Microsoft didn't invent this multi-touch stuff, and neither did Apple. Its been around as research projects for years. So why is the MS version such a big deal?

Software!

See, the real hard part about all this is the fact that you need to come up with a completely new set of UI conventions and implement a completely new set of applications in order to make it a useable product. Until now with MS, nobody's done that.

From the article, this MPX thing seems to consist of nothing more than a modified X server, running "normal" (i.e., designed for a single cursor) applications. Therefore, it is not nearly as impressive as the MS Surface.

Re:

[Foerstner (931398)]

Of course not. Everyone on Slashdot knows Apple invented multitouch for the iPhone.