Technabob » force

Lightsaber Detects Which Side of The Force You Belong On

Technabob — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 17:40:22 +0000

Whether you’re Jedi or Sith, you need a lightsaber in your bag of tricks, right? But what if you don’t know if your life’s calling is to work for the Dark Side or Light Side of the Force? Grab one of these Force detecting lightsabers, and you can find out.

After you assemble this miniature lightsaber kit, place the saber in your hand, and it’ll glow blue if you belong on the Light Side, and red if you belong on the Dark Side. I wonder what color it glows if you don’t have the force at all.

While I’m guessing it works its magic through a simple random number generator, I’d rather keep myself under the delusion that it can actually detect whether you’re good or evil.

Grab one over at the Star Wars Shop for $14.99 (USD).

Infinitouch: Turns Any Surface Into a Touch Panel

Technabob — Wed, 23 May 2007 12:27:04 +0000

QSI Corporation has revealed a new technology that lets any semi-rigid material sense touch. Any combination of materials such as glass, plastic, metal, stone or wood can become the touch input surface.

Their force-based InfiniTouch technology can not only read X and Y coordinates, but even the Z-axis force, so they can sense the intensity of the touch.

Designed for use in environments where traditional touch panels won’t survive the elements, initial applications will be in places like tollbooths, outdoor kiosks, ATMs, building lobbies and gas stations. The technology also provides designers and architects with tremendous creative freedom, such as in the photo above, which shows a touch panel made from slate, with water running across the surface.