Instant Insanity – Computer Vision & Robotics

Posted by admin on March 2nd, 2010 and filed under computer development | 5 Comments »

[Recorded: 1971]
Over the last decades, computer vision systems have become increasingly capable of controlling robotic movement. One example of early research and development of computer vision and robotic systems was recorded at the Stanford University Artificial Intelligence Laboratory in 1971. This film shows a computer vision system and robotic arm solve the Instant Insanity puzzle, which has been around for more than a century under various aliases. It consists of a set of four cubes with one of four colors on each of their six faces. The goal is to arrange the four cubes in a row so that all four colors appear on each of the row’s four long sides. The order of the cubes doesn’t matter, but that simplicity is deceptive. There are 41,472 different ways of arranging the four cubes in a row, so this is not a trivial task. The computer vision system first finds each of the four cubes by matching the visual edges to a prototype cube. In the case of a cube with only two faces visible, the arm turns the cube 45ยบ so that three faces will be visible. The colors of the faces are then determined by reading in the scene again under three different color filters. The cubes are then turned over so that the three hidden back faces are visible to the camera and the process repeated. Once a solution is found the computer directs the arm to stack the blocks in the required order.
Originally, this film was recorded without sound. A narration by Les Earnest and Lou Paul, of the Stanford AI Lab was added in 2009.
Original Film Credits: Richard Paul, Karl Pingle, Jerome Feldman, & Alan Kay
This film made available to the Computer History Museum courtesy of Stanford University.

Duration : 0:6:27

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Left 4 Dead – Developer Commentary Map 1 (Part 2)

Posted by admin on February 27th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 7 Comments »

(Part 2 of 2)

Just a recording of the developer commentary from Left 4 Dead. It’s an amazing game, and Valve is probably one of the best game development companies to date. They at least seem to genuinely care about their fanbase, and they develop great games. Part of what makes their games so awesome is that they AREN’T just random blastfests. At heart, yes, they are still videogames, but Valve doesn’t begin crafting a game with that in mind. Valve begins development on a game with an experience in mind, and with the player in mind. These commentaries are really informative and entertaining. They’re great if you’re a fan of Left 4 Dead, but I also think they’re really interesting if you have even the slightest liking for video/computer games, and I think they’re a must-watch if you’re even CONSIDERING going into the game development field.

(Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for fair use for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.)

Duration : 0:4:29

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Nvidia Tegra HD Mobile Phone – Development Demo

Posted by admin on February 24th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 15 Comments »

Noah takes us to Nvision 2008 in San Jose to get an up-close look at Nvidia’s Tegra system on a chip platform for mobile devices. The first Tegra smartphones should be out in mid-2009. This demo makes ‘em worth waiting for – for starters, Tegra sports 720p HDTV capture and playback and a slick 3D user interface. Check it out.

Win phones! Free to enter @ http://www.phonedog.com/sweepstakes/default.aspx

Duration : 0:4:49

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Computer Science Technology Game Programming

Posted by admin on February 18th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 25 Comments »

www.tstc.edu
The Graphics, Gaming & Simulation specialization of Computer Science Technology is designed to prepare students for entry into the world of graphics programming. Graphics and simulation is used in several segments of Information Technology, including Education and Training, Aerospace and Defense, and Gaming.

The curriculum for this specialization begins at a more advanced level than other curricula of Computer Science Technology. Prerequisites for entry into this curriculum include College Algebra and College Trigonometry.

Graphics, gaming and simulation programmers tend to push hardware and software to its limits. An introduction to Assembler is included in this curriculum, but C++ is the primary programming language. After mastering the fundamentals of C++, the student moves into advanced applications of C++ in animation programming, multi-user interface programming, advanced mathematical applications, and artificial intelligence. Tools such as Open GL and DirectX are included in this curriculum.

This degree plan ends with a Comprehensive Software Project, in which the student designs and develops a portfolio of Graphics, Gaming and Simulation programming to present to potential employers.

Client Server Specialization…A specialization in Computer Science Technology at Texas State Technical College.
The maturing of network technology during the last decade of the 20th century has made possible the distribution of data and computing over a variety of hardware and software platforms. User-friendly graphical interfaces running on a client system can access data that is available to multiple users across a network. A growing number of businesses and organizations are using the Internet to interact with their customers and clients.

The curriculum for this specialization begins with fundamental programming and database concepts, and features both the Oracle and the Microsoft SQL Server environments. Students learn to install and administer Oracle and Microsoft databases running in a Windows server environment. Programming languages covered include C++, Visual Basic, and Java. Deployment of information using Internet technology is covered in the Advanced Visual Basic and Advanced Java courses.

Unix C++ Specialization…A specialization in Computer Science Technology at Texas State Technical College.

Unix is a popular multi-user operating system used by a significant portion of the Information Technology (IT) community. C++ is the language used most often by IT professionals working in a Unix environment. Other languages, such as Java, are also used in the Unix environment.

The curriculum for this specialization begins with fundamental programming concepts and progresses to intermediate and advanced courses in Unix, C++, and Java. Students will learn to install and configure a Unix installation as well as a Linux installation. Students will learn to create and execute programs written in C++ or Java on Unix and Linux systems.

Oracle Application Developer Specialization…A specialization in Computer Science Technology at Texas State Technical College.

The Oracle Application Developer Certificate is a four-semester program for developing skills in development of database applications. The curriculum is intense and progresses into advanced topics rapidly. Emphasis is on using Oracle databases. Programming tools such as Visual Basic, C++, and Java are taught at the introductory and advanced levels. Development of database applications for web implementation is included. A student who already has a degree in a different field should consider this certificate program as a means of gaining technical skills for employment in the computer science field.

Duration : 0:5:22

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On the Road to Computer Literacy

Posted by admin on February 15th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 1 Comment »

November 14, 2007 lecture by for the Stanford University Computer Systems Colloquium (EE 380). In order to identify some of the technological gaps that hinder the implementation of universal computer literacy, which Robert defines as society’s ability to read and write computer programs, this talk looks back at the development of literacy and the associated technologies from before Plato through Aldus Manutius and beyond.

EE 380 | Computer Systems Colloquium:
http://www.stanford.edu/class/ee380/

Stanford Computer Systems Laboratory:
http://csl.stanford.edu/

Stanford Center for Professional Development:
http://scpd.stanford.edu/

Stanford University Channel on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/stanforduniversity/

Duration : 1:24:7

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Computer Programming Tutorial, by Nick Antonaccio (#2)

Posted by admin on February 13th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 8 Comments »

Learn to Create Computer Programs – FIRST CODE EXAMPLES (CUT/PASTE SIMPLE GUI SCRIPTS INTO THE INTERPRETER)

Here are links to this entire video series (currently more than 8 hours total):

http://musiclessonz.com/rebol_video_links.html

These tutorials demonstrate how easy it is to accomplish real world programming goals with a flexible and powerful language called Rebol. The video tutorial closely follows the written text at:

http://musiclessonz.com/rebol_tutorial.html

which aims to teach average users to program computers to do useful things, without the long and difficult learning curve imposed by other programming languages. If you’re an experienced programmer, it’s strongly recommended that you read the more concise tutorial at

http://musiclessonz.com/rebol.html

You’ll be amazed at Rebol’s compact code and simple cross-platform usability.

Duration : 0:4:9

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1963 Timesharing: A Solution to Computer Bottlenecks

Posted by admin on January 30th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 25 Comments »

[Recorded: May 9, 1963]
This vintage film features MIT Science Reporter John Fitch at the MIT Computation Center in an extended interview with MIT professor of computer science Fernando J. Corbato. The film was co-produced by WGBH (Boston) and MIT.

The prime focus of the film is timesharing, one of the most important developments in computing, and one which has come in and out of favor several times over the last several decades as the dichotomy between remote and centrally-managed computing resources played out; the latest incarnation for centrally-managed computing resources is known as cloud computing.

Timesharing as shown in this film, was a novel concept in the early 1960s. Driven by a desire to more efficiently use expensive computer resources while increasing the interactivity between user and computer (man and machine), timesharing was eventually taken up by industry in the form of special timesharing hardware for mainframe and minicomputer computer systems as well as in sophisticated operating systems to manage multiple users and resources.

Corbato describes how after the mid-1950s, when computers began to become reliable, the next big challenge to improve productivity and efficiency was the development of computer languages, FORTRAN being an example. One of the next bottlenecks in computing, according to Corabto, was the traditional batch processing method of combining many peoples computer jobs into one large single job for the computer to process at one time. He compares batch processing to a group of people catching a bus, all being moved at once.

Timesharing, on the other hand, involves attaching a large number of consoles to the central computer, each of which is given a time-slice of the computers time. While the computer is rapidly switching among user applications and problems, it appears to the user that s/he has complete access to the central computer.

Corbato then describes in technical detail a complex description of timesharing before showing some examples of timesharing from a terminal using a simple program to calculate a simple geometric problem (Pythagorean theorem).

In the long run, Corbato says, timesharing will help address the increasing need for computer time and ease-of-use.

Duration : 0:27:38

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Sacca Sees `Robust’ App Development for Apple’s IPad: Video

Posted by admin on January 30th, 2010 and filed under article development | No Comments »

Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) — Chris Sacca, a former Google Inc. executive, talks with Bloomberg’s Matt Miller about the outlook for Apple Inc.’s iPad tablet computer and applications development.
The iPad starts at $499 with a touch screen, Web browsing and e-mail functions. (Source: Bloomberg)

Duration : 0:1:59

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Chess Now – episode 60

Posted by admin on January 16th, 2010 and filed under computer development | 10 Comments »

Nat does a fine job hosting this production of Chess Now.

The portable rackmount computer makes it to the set. See our website over the coming weeks for details on how to construct one, and load software into it. Its first task is for video processing including computer vision algorithms.

Duration : 0:28:0

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Demonstration of Brain Computer Interface Using the Emotive Epoc

Posted by admin on January 1st, 2010 and filed under computer development | 24 Comments »

April 9, 2008 lecture by Randy Breen for the Stanford University Computer Systems Colloquium (EE380).

The Emotiv EPOC (www.emotiv.com) now makes it possible for games to be controlled and influenced by the player’s mind. Engaging, immersive, and nuanced, Emotiv-inspired game-play will be like nothing ever seen before. Based on the latest developments in neuro-technology, Emotiv has developed a new personal interface for human computer interaction.

EE380 | Computer Systems Colloquium:
http://www.stanford.edu/class/ee380/

Stanford Computer Systems Laboratory:
http://csl.stanford.edu/

Stanford Center for Professional Development:
http://scpd.stanford.edu/

Stanford University:
http://www.stanford.edu/

Stanford University channel on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/stanford/

Duration : 1:8:46

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