Microsoft makes functioning HoloDesk

Researchers at software giant Microsoft have created a functional "holographic display" where one can interact with 3D objects. A post on Microsoft's "Next at Microsoft" blog hinted at future applications with the HoloDesk, a project of Microsoft Research's Sensors and Devices group. "(While) this is only a research project at this stage, I can envisage future applications in areas such as board gaming, rapid prototype design or perhaps even telepresence, where users would share a single 3D scene viewed from different perspectives," it said. It said what sets the HoloDesk apart is the use of beam-splitters and a graphic processing algorithm to provide a more life-like experience. This was the among the latest research papers Microsoft Research published at the User Interface Software and Technology Conference. A separate article on The Next Web said the HoloDesk has the potential to change the way people physically interact with digital items. "It’s a bridge, essentially, between the physical and the digital," it said, adding the project uses Microoft's motion-sensing Kinect device. — TJD, GMA News