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A comment on Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose faith.

Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by jimrandomh on Friday November 14, 2014 @03:50PM (#8609412)
Google needed to do either of two things: make the software good enough to be acceptable, or provide source code so that people could fix the issues bothering them themselves. They did neither of those things. Instead, they took the open-source Android operating system, made a closed-source fork, and proceeded to go around breaking APIs to stop regular Android software from working.

When I got Glass in November 2013 (XE11), I could run an ssh client on it and use it with a Bluetooth keyboard, along with lots of other Android software. A month later (XE12), they somehow managed to break the dialog box API. And XE11 was configured with the most aggressive auto-updater you'll ever see, so you couldn't stay back. Four months after that, they released the brick-half-the-fleet update (XE16). (That happened because Glass was configured with no swap, all their users had 1GB memory devices, but all their internal testers had 2GB memory devices. The updater would run out of memory mid-update and die, leaving an unbootable system.) As a side effect, that update also flashes a hidden firmware so XE11 won't boot anymore. Also, it strips out everything related to bluetooth keyboard support. Also, it disables touchpad gestures for Android apps.

Also, the terms of service for the Glass SDK are incompatible with the GPL, ban charging for Glass sofware, and ban advertising in Glass software, so there's basically no third-party software and none coming.

Oh, and it sends all your photos to Google (can't disable auto-backup even by rooting and messing with internals). And if you pair it with a phone, it copies any text messages stored on that phone, and sends those to Google.

This is very sad, because the hardware itself is excellent, and it (almost) does something that I really really wanted. XE11 worked well enough that I invested considerable time and energy into it, and I ended up walking away feeling like Google was constantly sabotaging my efforts.

Meanwhile the pace of actually-useful updates is utterly glacial; there clearly aren't enough developers working on it to have any hope of fixing the outstanding issues. So yeah, I've given up hope on Glass. I'll revisit it if they open the source code or announce new management with someone who understands software at the helm.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by freehunter on Friday November 14, 2014 @04:37PM (#8609642)
I hadn't considered that use case. How nice would it be to have a terminal in one eye where you could sit in any position with a keyboard on your lap and never need a desk?

Now I want a terminal strapped to my face.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by yzzxy on Friday November 14, 2014 @10:36PM (#8610756)
This was available in some (probably limited and gimmicky) form decades ago in devices like the Reflection Technology Private Eye. This is the best link I could find:

http://www.loper-os.org/vintage/paralleleye/eye.html

... I think it was in Hackers, so you know it's good.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by alttab on Saturday November 15, 2014 @01:05AM (#8610991)
It sounds like a good "eye-dea", but its not. Reading any real amount of text on Glass gets tiring after a few minutes. It's really best for momentary use. They really did screw up the software. Why didn't it integrate more with the phone in the first place? So much wasted opportunity, even with the physical limitations like resolution, eye strain, and battery life. I've relegated it to large events and vacations, it works great for documenting that stuff!
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by hyp0 on Saturday November 15, 2014 @01:21AM (#8611030)
regarding eye-strain: do you think it's due to the specific display hardware Glass has at the moment, or a fundamental problem with headsup displays?
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by alttab on Saturday November 15, 2014 @06:09PM (#8612910)
The position is a little tiring, but its semi-transparent, and the text is small, and the resolution is low. Also, you are reading with one eye. That makes a difference after a bit.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by hyp0 on Saturday November 15, 2014 @07:48PM (#8613118)
Thanks! Semi-transparent and one-eye would be tiring. Fixing them (two-eyes + removable patches) would be a different product, almost an occulus. But it's helpful to see the keyboard...

I go bicycle touring, and a heads-up map while cycling would be convenient. Plus, it would require less room to use in a small tent/bivvy bag.

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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by alttab on Saturday November 15, 2014 @11:45PM (#8613452)
Here is where I've found it good use: biking, hiking, parties/wine tastings/weddings, parades, etc. Driving is a fairly good use case as well. If there is a clear use for it people don't seem to care I'm wearing it, and its pretty fun with Auto-Awesome.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by serf on Friday November 14, 2014 @11:25PM (#8610817)
that's (sadly) what I keep envisioning an occulus for.

not for convenience, simply to shut out the rest of the world. full screen mode on steroids.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by hrktb on Saturday November 15, 2014 @10:57AM (#8611900)
The mention of steroids seems spot on. I'd imagine using the Oculus for long time spans and/or demanding tasks would have so many side effects, like severe eye-strain, lack of resolution of the environment, lack of reactivity to external inputs, and so much more.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by seanp2k2 on Saturday November 15, 2014 @11:39AM (#8612011)
In the future, we all (developers / engineers) go to work by getting out of bed and strapping on a helmet to join our team in a virtual office environment.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by hyp0 on Saturday November 15, 2014 @01:19AM (#8611028)
earphones for your eyes
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by amelius on Saturday November 15, 2014 @10:21AM (#8611811)
You wouldn't need an actual keyboard, of course, because the glass could just watch where you're typing and convert that into keystrokes.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by natch on Saturday November 15, 2014 @10:35AM (#8611846)
Um, no. This isn't easy to do, except in movies. Glass doesn't have the CPU power to do it, so you'd have to rely on cloud power; do you really think everybody wants all their key strokes sent to Google? And language models aren't that much help with terminal commands. And even humans can't do this; you're expecting Glass to be smarter than a human... not impossible, but think about what processing power and memory it has on board, both constrained by battery. And your head would have to be in an incredibly awkward position. So many reasons, no.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by melling on Saturday November 15, 2014 @11:00AM (#8611911)
Yes, I'd send my keystrokes to Google if I could do this. Sure, this won't work for everyone but it will for most. Let's optimize the problem for the 80% and continue working on the other solution.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by natch on Saturday November 15, 2014 @11:38AM (#8612008)
If all the problems could be solved, it would be awesome. But I'm very skeptical. And I misspoke about keystrokes, of course: what we're really talking about sending to the cloud is finger and hand movements; the keystrokes would be coming back from the cloud. Sounds laggy maybe, on top of all the other problems I mentioned.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by Istof on Saturday November 15, 2014 @10:25AM (#8611820)
probably would be more effective to have an electrode connected to your brain
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by melling on Saturday November 15, 2014 @10:58AM (#8611902)
Why do I need to have to have a keyboard? I'd rather use voice recognition and gestures. Why do people always just want a faster horse?
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by ioedward on Friday November 14, 2014 @10:32PM (#8610747)
Would love to hear more about the terminal as well - how did you input commands to it, and how does it compare to using a phone or computer?
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by jimrandomh on Friday November 14, 2014 @10:52PM (#8610779)
It used to be possible to pair Glass with a bluetooth keyboard, and there are some very nice keyboards on the market which fold up to about the size of a cell phone, and unfold to about the size of a normal laptop keyboard. This is as good as a laptop keyboard if you put it on a table, pretty good if you rest it on your lap, and passable walking around if you hold your thumbs on the bottom to stabilize it while typing with the other eight fingers. The main caveats are that the Glass screen isn't very high resolution, so you can't get much more than 80x25, and it's not very usable while walking around even if you can manage to type, because head-vibration makes small text unreadable.

Unfortunately, this is impossible in versions of Glass since XE16 (April), and fraught with difficulty in the version before that (XE12, where dialog boxes don't work, so you need a modified SSH client and a modified Settings app to pair). I also had to modify the ssh client to fix some keybindings, and to add a left-margin because my device was missing 4 columns of pixels on the left edge. When it works, it's significantly better than ssh on a phone, because you can use a real keyboard without needing three hands or a surface to put things on. It's less nice than a computer, mainly because of the low screen resolution.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by krisgenre on Saturday November 15, 2014 @02:53AM (#8611151)
Wow! I never thought of paring a bluetooth keyboard. This could be an excellent use case for something like Ubuntu Edge. A full operating system, displayed through glass and bluetooth keyboard attached. Sounds prefect to me :D
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by jimrandomh on Saturday November 15, 2014 @12:06PM (#8612058)
Google actually demoed Glass running Ubuntu inside a chroot, with its GUI shown in VNC over loopback. Setting it up was a pain, but this gets you a working web browser, which Glass doesn't have otherwise. But it isn't possible anymore, unless you feel like decompiling and trying to fix Google's bugs for them.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by digi_owl on Sunday November 16, 2014 @09:50AM (#8614299)
Hmm, wonder if that Vuzix M100 would be a better investment then.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by merrua on Saturday November 15, 2014 @05:21AM (#8611370)
Not open sourcing it was a mistake.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by meddlepal on Saturday November 15, 2014 @01:07AM (#8610995)
Google dropped the ball. Give it 5 to 10 years and we'll see a fully polished Apple clone of Glass that doesn't suck for consumers... Which is unforunfortunate because Apple products sucks.
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by arsenide on Saturday November 15, 2014 @01:15AM (#8611017)
"we'll see a fully polished Apple clone of glass that doesn't suck..." but it sucks? What do you mean?
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Re:Google Glass future clouded as some early believers lose ... by cscurmudgeon on Saturday November 15, 2014 @01:48AM (#8611067)
Naked cognitive dissonance
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