Monkey Vs Robot – My Weekly Idealist post
Layar
Augmented reality is the “combin[ing] of real-world and computer-generated data (virtual reality), where computer graphics objects are blended into real footage in real time.” Smartphones with larger screens, better displays and enhanced video capture are gaining in popularity and as they prolifererate we’re beginning to see application makers leverage mobile technology in innovative ways.
One application maker called SPRXmobile has released an “augmented reality browser” called Layar. Layar, through their API, allows companies to publish layers to their platform. Users can then easily switch between the various layers to dislay a variety of content on their smartphones -
One application for the iPhone, called acrossair, displays the nearest subway entrance in way that’s more obvious than you’d find Google Map -
Another application, called TwittAround, shows you were people are tweeting from in real-time -
Other layer ideas include real estate listings, Wikipedia articles, job postings and health care providers. But what about the nonprofit world? What information might be more useful in the context of Layar? Volunteer opportunies? Nonprofit job listings? What do you think?
