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William Newell, NorthSouth Studios, Firefly Group Inc, mobile app development, digital publishing, software development
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My Blog

Let me start by saying that as a gamer at heart I love VR. However from a creative standpoint, real world application, and overall potential I am convinced that augmented reality (AR) provides a much bigger and interesting opportunity. Both AR and VR concepts have been around far longer than most people imagine. VR has been viewed for decades as the future, particularly for games, simulations, and at one point, to drive the creation of virtual worlds. For gaming and simulations VR can deliver a rich experience. But some of the old challenges still remain—limited social interaction, expensive to produce…

AR: New Frontiers, New Deals

12 Oct 2016, Posted by William Newell in Technologies

In my past few posts I have repeatedly expressed my enthusiasm for AR. There’s no question that as a geek at heart, looking at new technologies, tools, platforms, form factors, UI and other innovations is tremendously exciting. But I am also a businessman and I know that new technologies and new distribution channels also bring new challenges that can’t be ignored. The art of making deals, licensing content, knowing with whom, and how to partner, or set up a joint venture is as essential as knowing the technology options intimately. Just think about the opportunity that IBM left on the…

GPU Essential hardware component for AR and VR

11 Oct 2016, Posted by William Newell in Technologies

Continuing with my current series of post covering AR and VR I thought it would be a good idea to talk a little bit about hardware. I know is not the sexiest part of the story with AR and VR, but I think it is a key component for those who really want to learn and understand the ins and outs of these two emerging technologies. For years we focused on the CPU as a central component for strong performance in a computer, and of course that has not changed. Today the current CPUs available, for example Intel’s i5 and…

The Value of Platforms for AR: The DAQRI Solution

06 Oct 2016, Posted by William Newell in Technologies

If you are looking to incorporate AR into your products and services, there are many things you need to consider in terms of technology. Fortunately, a few companies have focused on making the task as painless as possible. DAQRI is one of the leaders in this space and I recently had the privilege of spending some time with their Chief Product Officer, Roy Ashok.  During our conversation I learned about DAQRI’s commitment to creating the strongest set of tools to transform the way we work in many fields.  By focusing on cutting-edge devices and tools, they are enabling developers to…

Visual Recognition: A Key Factor for AR

28 Sep 2016, Posted by William Newell in Technologies

Continuing with my series of posts about Augmented Reality, let’s take a look at visual recognition. For those of you who are just starting to evaluate AR as a potential addition to your services or products, visual recognition is at the very heart of this new technology. Whether you are producing AR or MR content, visual recognition is the life and soul of the user experience. Several companies have filed patents, created algorithms, and platforms that employ visual recognition. Today we are going to look at one of the leaders in the space, EyeCue Vision Technologies, www.eyecue-tech.com Partners Ronen Horovitz,…

Augmented Reality: The Importance of UI /UX Innovation

21 Sep 2016, Posted by William Newell in Technologies

I think it’s fair to say that most people in the tech industry agree that AR and VR are the future of computing. Companies around the world are spending vast sums of money and resources exploring the opportunities. Most efforts have centered on hardware like smart glasses, visors, helmets, and other form factors. A great deal of attention has been placed on visual recognition, but a challenge that comes along every time we go through a quantum leap in technology remains—user interface. Without intuitive access, new technologies cannot thrive. That’s why I was so excited when I learned about Eyefluence,…

Augmented Reality: Next Generation Apps

12 Sep 2016, Posted by William Newell in Technologies

I started working on Augmented Reality (AR) and Mixed Reality (MR) almost two years ago. At first I focused on creating demos, proofs of concepts that could serve to spark the imagination. Later I joined Google’s Project Tango initiative and began looking at the possibilities more in depth. I examined HMDs (head-mounted displays) and various technologies, learning about new approaches to UI (user interface) and UX (user experience). I was immediately fascinated by the possibilities, imagining a future where computers and mobile devices are replaced by something as simple as smart glasses. I continued learning about the finer aspects of…

One of the great things about creating products and services is that every day is a learning experience. I love that about my job. I learn from our clients and their initiatives. I learn from my team, the experts and the interns. I have learned to appreciate that everyone has something to offer. I guess it’s part of growing (That’s a lesson that I started learning long before this, but truthfully it took me a while to master it.) I recently released a new mobile game. It’s a puzzle game named “Tolaca Rocks.” While this is not the first game…