This is a good example of what happens when I have too much time on my hands. It started when Tim and I were watching a Star Trek movie and thought about how it would be interesting if we could talk to the digital photo frame.
I downloaded the Microsoft Speech SDK and started coding. In just a few hours, we were able to talk to the frame and get information like the current weather and the current deals on Woot, SlickDeals, and Steep and Cheap.
It's still a little rough around the edges. I want to make it scroll the text vertically when there is too much to fit on a single screen. I'm also trying to figure out how I can get it to stream TV from my computer in the bedroom by simply saying "Computer, ESPN!"
So check out the video below for a demo of the voice commands in action. It was my first attempt at a two camera shoot (a digital camera and a camcorder.) It was a lot of extra editing work, but I think it was a nice touch. Unfortunately I forgot to align the color balances before shooting so I just went with black and white instead.
Get the Flash Player to see this player.
[UPDATE] Forgot to mention that this is also availble for download in the Videos section.
[UPDATE] If you would like to see the code or even contribute to it, head over to http://www.codeplex.com/photoframe/
var FO = { movie:"/web/projects/flash_flv_player/flvplayer.swf",width:"320",height:"240",majorversion:"7",build:"0",bgcolor:"#FFFFFF",
flashvars:"file=/web/video/startrek.flv&showdigits=true&autostart=false&showfsbutton=true" };
UFO.create( FO, "playerstartrek");
During my brief stint with Lockheed in Minneapolis, I contributed a bit of code to an after-hours UAV project. Unfortunately I didn't get involved until almost the end of my time up there, but I was enthralled with the project. Since then I've always had an idea in the back of my mind to buy an off-the-shelf RC plane and add an autopilot to it.
It's obvious that I love winter. All summer long I wait for the snow to fly so I can get out the planks and start carving down the hills.
Saturday started off with a trip to H&R Block. I always say I'm going to do my taxes on my own, but then tax season rolls around and I find myself in the comforting confines of H&R Block. I walk in and two hours later I walk out. No stress. No worrying. No procrastination. Uncle Sam cut me the biggest rebate check of my life. I think I need to adjust my W-4.
The digital photo frame in our living room is now set up to receive pictures from you! Frankly we get tired of looking at our own pictures and it would be great to have some new content. Here's what you need to do to participate:
Plan B: I bought some styrofoam and spent hours carefully carving out the right nooks and crannies for the laptop to fit in just perfectly. I was particularly proud of this idea. When finished, it would fit perfectly in the hole in the shelves and hold the laptop securely in place. After I painstakingly cut out the styrofoam block, I powered up the laptop and was greeted with a blank screen. Somewhere along the way, I trashed that flimsy connector and I couldn't get it working again. (Yes, I know this looks very much like my laptop from my old job. I assure you it's not the same one. It's surprising how cheaply you can pick up old laptops like this on eBay.)
Summer Plans?
Kyle has been saying that I should get into mountain biking, and now Tim has his bike here and he's finding local trails. I might have to pick up a mountain bike and join him. It seems like everyone in Seattle rides a bike so I guess it's the thing to do, right?