Vect-O’Lantern
Posted by Vectorform – October 20, 2008Halloween is right around the corner, and here at Vectorform we are setting the mood with our newest Surface Experience: Vect-O’ Lantern. Created using Microsoft Expression Blend, this application is proof that developers can make unique and engaging Surface Experiences with simple controls that come bundled right in the Surface SDK. Vect-O’Lantern is made by using an Ink Canvas layered with effects to make a highly addictive Pumpkin Carving Experience.
So this year, instead of going through the trouble of buying a pumpkin, carving tools, and covering kitchen tables in newspapers, we can all draw on our pumpkins on a Surface. Save as many custom Vect-O’Lanterns as you like, then watch it come to life, flickering with a soft candle glow and cycling through other pumpkin creations. Okay, okay maybe this year we don’t all have a Surface…next year then!! (~_^)
GO is a go on Surface.
Posted by Vectorform – October 8, 2008Authenticity is the driver for the cool ancient Chinese board game of Surface GO. When the Microsoft HPC group approached Vectorform with this concept, we jumped right in and crafted the NUI to drive home the Surface experience through intuitive gesturing game play actions, design and functionality.
Using WPF coding allowed us a shorter development time and gave our creative team the ability to make larger contributions. We used Microsoft Expression Blend to build UI elements such as clam shell and slate stones and a fully 3D rendered wood grain board.
To round out the authenticity of the experience, we added in ambient and game play sounds. Surface GO features multiple game play options including a 9×9 board, a 19×19 board, handicap options, and most exciting is that you can chose between human vs. human, AI vs. human or AI vs. AI. That’s right, you can chose from a list of GO engines and pit super computers against each other. This game has more move combinations than chess and will be featured at Microsoft PDC 2008.
Check out these design studies:
Vectorform’s apps are being highlighted at the Web 2.0 conference in NY this week.
Posted by Vectorform – September 18, 2008
- Rock out with DJ Kev himself on the Surface DJ!!
- Test your drumming skills with the VF Drumkit.
- Leave messages for the VF team with newly developed VF Fridge Magnets.
- Play political pundit with the same election software you see on MSNBC!
- And many more…
If you’re around, come by the Microsoft Surface booth and see us!
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Direct from the conference and DJ Kev:
We are booming. Our booth has been overwhelmingly crowded, and everyone is loving our apps. Our business card supply has pretty much been depleted.
There have been a lot of people who recognized the NBC apps as well, and they now know which company created them.
Anyway, congrats everyone, you are apart of “the coolest stuff at the conference” (quoted from many attendees).
Kev
It just keeps growing..
Posted by Vectorform – August 24, 2008The Vectorform Surface team that is. Since receiving our first Microsoft Surface in April, our team has grown up and out quite a bit. We now have eight Microsoft Surface units in the house and have expanded the team to 20+ people. The team definitely stays busy. At times, there’s a backlog of people that need to get onto the machines for something or other.
From Pilot to RTM
Posted by – July 1, 2008Our first initial batch of Microsoft Surface units that we received came pre-loaded with the pilot version of the Microsoft Surface SDK. This pilot included a few demo applications that served as tech demos for the product’s capabilities. However, after developing a few applications for the Microsoft Surface, we began to notice a slew of performance problems, mostly regarding contact recognition and overall sluggishness.
On June 30th, 2008, Microsoft released the RTM build of the Microsoft Surface SDK. This new release promised performance increases, improved stability, and better contact capturing and recognition. After the long update process we finally had our units running the shiny new SDK. The first thing we noticed was a modified version of the default Attract Application. Attract apps are designed to attract users to the Microsoft Surface with useless, but fun, very small apps that entice users to touch and play with it. Microsoft’s default Attract Application is a top-down view of a small pond that allows water to move in sync with your hand gestures. With the new version, not only can you change the background image as you might expect, but you can also change the reflection map. Cool! There are underwater lights in each corner and an overhead light. With the ability to change these settings based on time, you can really make a simulation that impresses people over and over again. However, we still had one lingering issue: contact hover. The Microsoft Surface will capture contacts that are up to an inch high from the table top. This produces many unwanted contacts and forces us to do a lot of contact filtering in code.
The RTM build also included a few new demo applications and updates to previous demo apps. However, the most exciting addition was the update to the Microsoft Surface SDK’s APIs. Microsoft introduced new events and functionality that we can use to create even more exciting apps. Needless to say, we’re eagerly anticipating Microsoft Surface SDK 2.0.
Pilot Attract Application
RTM Attract Application
The Surface Team
Posted by Vectorform – June 20, 2008The members of Vectorform Labs newly minted Surface team are starting to get their hands dirty and make some really sweet stuff. Our assembled A-list includes Joe, Dan and Brad, the genius minds driving new technology and interactive development, and Florin, Clemens, Aaron and John, masters in user experience, interface design and motion graphics. Today, the guys are exploring the capabilities of the Microsoft Surface SDK, as well as the applications that came preloaded on our unit, including:
• Data Visualizer
• Controls Box
• Finger Fountain
• Grand Piano
• Paddleball
• Photopaint
• Scatter Puzzle
• Shopping Cart
• Virtual Concierge
And many more…
