The augmented reality future is now for workers using 3D smart glasses in healthcare, warehousing, construction, and oil and gas industries, notes Atheer Labs CEO Alberto Torres.
"Augmented reality... will transform the global enterprise and the way work is done in the future, in nearly every imaginable way," said Atheer Labs CEO Alberto Torres in a recent email interview. "From the warehouse floor to the operating room," augmented reality "will unlock human productivity and enable faster, safer, and smarter workflows for everyone."
Augmented reality is a direct or indirect view of a physical environment whose elements are "augmented" or enhanced by computer-generated input such as audio, video, graphics, or locational data.
In the near future, added Torres, "users in the industrial workforce will leverage powerful technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, IoT (Internet of Things), and thePhysical Web to enhance their capabilities well beyond those of an unconnected worker or a standalone machine."
Based in Mountain View, Calif., Atheer Labs provides a 3D augmented reality platformwith gesture-based interaction for enterprise customers in the medical, oil and gas, and industrial verticals. Atheer's platform consists of its AiR Smart Glasses and AiR OS. The company also provides a developer kit, the AiR DK2.
Also, in this Q&A, Torres shares the company's take on the demise of Google Glass in the consumer market, talks about industries in which augmented reality is seeing traction, and what led him to accept the CEO post at Atheer Labs in 2014.
TechRepublic: What potential does augmented reality technology have to disrupt and transform enterprises? What changes could we possibly see within five to fifteen years?
Alberto Torres: Augmented reality -- and in particular, Augmented interactive Reality(AiR) -- will transform the global enterprise and the way work is done in the future, in nearly every imaginable way. From the warehouse floor to the operating room, AiR will unlock human productivity and enable faster, safer and smarter workflows for everyone.
Atheer CEO Alberto Torres
In a warehousing logistics scenario, for instance, workers equipped with AiR devices could optimize the workflow of every pallet build, from picking order to item stacking, regardless of past warehousing experience. In an industry such as oil and gas, where human error can lead to disastrous consequences, equipping field workers with AiR devices while performing safety checks could mean the difference between life and death. AiR devices utilized for medical applications will enable professionals to take the next step in patient care. Doctors equipped with AiR smart glasses will have unprecedented access to patient data and unfettered access to communications, enabling smarter, timelier, and more impactful patient care.
This is not some futuristic scenario. This is a reality today.
Looking forward five to fifteen years, the power of smart glasses really shines as the world becomes more connected and coordinated. With the AiR system of the future, users in the industrial workforce will leverage powerful technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, IoT and the Physical Web to enhance their capabilities well beyond those of an unconnected worker or a standalone machine. For the coming generations, AiR technology is poised to completely change the way we interact with all types of computers, our peers, and the connected environment at large.
TechRepublic: Why is it that Google Glass did not fare well in the consumer marketplace, and what can a B2B-oriented firm like yours learn from that?
Alberto Torres: The arrival of Google Glass was a turning point for augmented reality -- one that signaled a promising future for smart glasses, a technology which had previously been considered by many as "aspirational" or "ahead of its time" at best. When a company like Google announces a project like Glass, the future appears much closer all of a sudden.
However, introducing the world to an entirely new class of technology is no easy feat, especially if your initial target market is mainstream consumers. Long story short, consumers have remarkably high expectations and -- as Google found out first hand -- meeting them, universally and on day one is nearly impossible. In this case particularly, those expectations were amplified by the considerable hype surrounding Glass, making customer expectations an even higher bar to meet. Then there was the $1,500 price tag.
While we firmly believe that smart glasses will be widely adopted by consumers in the long run, we recognized these challenges early, and identified the enterprise as the most natural starting point for smart glasses technology adoption. Just as mobile phones arrived on job sites more than a decade before replacing landlines, we saw augmented reality through smart glasses as a technology that would be following a similar trajectory.
The lesson learned is that when it comes to introducing an entirely new device category -- especially one that requires behavioral changes like smart glasses -- finding high-value use cases is the key. As we have discovered since launching Atheer, these use cases can be found at every corner of the enterprise, because there are a variety of mission-critical job functions that are not able to fully leverage today's digital technology in a matter that enriches their work.
TechRepublic: In what industries do you expect to see mobile 3D platforms have a more immediate impact?
Alberto Torres: While the applications for AiR are limitless, we are seeing considerable traction in the industrial, medical and oil & gas segments. These are areas where high-value assets need regular attention and AiR can provide an immediate impact with high returns.
Image: Atheer Labs
Doctors in many of today's modern medical facilities use tablets for everything from triage to surgery in order to access information; however, touch-screen devices like the iPad are not practical in the many situations where medical professionals wear gloves and are in sterile environments. Atheer's hands-free gesture platform allows healthcare professionals to access vital medical information without physically touching a screen or interface. Not only does our technology improve workflows for healthcare professionals, but it also prevents contamination and eliminates the downtime of scrubbing in and out to access information on a computer.
In the industrial sector, Atheer's large, natural interaction display allows users to more easily view and complete tasks, as well as access step-by-step instructions, analytical data, instructional videos, images, emails, and more. Atheer's precise, mobile-optimized gesture recognition software allows the user to interact with things like 3D blueprints of structures and equipment. Users can also live-stream their point-of-view to get expert support and receive feedback in real time. All of these applications are highly valuable in construction, heavy machinery, and other industrial workplaces that place a premium on workers' hands being readily available, and on enabling the worker on the ground to get the job done right the first time.
In the Oil, Gas and Petrochemical industries, having the best tools to minimize down-time of high-value assets is critical. Atheer AiR delivers the compelling benefits of productivity and safety to the mobile Oil & Gas workforce. Workers in this industry typically wear gloves, drill mud, have greasy hands, and other issues making it impossible for them to efficiently use a tablet. Atheer's hands-free gesture-based platform allows workers in these fields to work more seamlessly and safely by allowing them to access critical data without having to physically touch a device.
TechRepublic: What are the things are really define Atheer Labs' technology? How to do want to innovate over the next several years?
Alberto Torres: Atheer is the industry's only mobile, gesture-based AiR computing platform, designed with the enterprise customer in mind. Enterprises and the mobile workforce of today require portability, natural data interaction, immersive displays, and extensive ecosystem support. We believe that the Atheer AiR platform stands alone in uniquely delivering on all of these requirements.
I believe that hands-free, AiR computing is going to revolutionize the world of computing. It is a game-changing paradigm shift in human-computer interaction and mobility.
Alberto Torres
Our smart glasses are the industry's only mobile, gesture-controlled see-through smart glasses. Users can see critical workflow information overlaid onto the real world, interact with it in a natural way, and collaborate with peers like never before.
Currently, the AiR platform is available to companies and independent software vendors around the world developing applications for the enterprise in these sectors. We are continuing to expand our platform by working directly with our enterprise customers to create a product that has practical, real-world implications.
TechRepublic: What attracted you about the opportunity to become CEO at Atheer Labs last year?
Alberto Torres: Having spent many years in the mobile space, including my time with Nokia, I was most attracted to Atheer Labs, because I believe that hands-free, AiR computing is going to revolutionize the world of computing. It is a game-changing paradigm shift in human-computer interaction and mobility. Adding rich digital information within the context of real-world scenarios, opens up possibilities for unprecedented collaboration and knowledge.
AiR promises to be a powerful enabler of true change across many different industries. Atheer is at the forefront of the industry from both a technology development and vision standpoints. We are in the right space, at the right time.
TechRepublic: Having secured a new round of funding in February, what are your main goals for the remainder of 2015?
Alberto Torres: We've spent the past few years developing the ground-breaking AiR platform, refining our patented gesture technologies, and conducting pilots with Fortune 500 companies within the Medical, Industrial, Oil & Gas fields. For the remainder of 2015, we are continuing to expand our AiR Pilot program, creating next-generation productivity applications, and working towards a wide commercial release of the Atheer AiR Smart Glasses.
Royal Dutch Shell Plc won U.S. approval to resume oil exploration off Alaska’s Arctic coast after regulators imposed safety conditions meant to avoid the mishaps that plagued the company three years ago. Environmental groups decried the decision.
The Interior Department on Monday endorsed Shell’s plan to have two rigs drill up to six exploratory wells in the Chukchi Sea, if it gets other permits needed, sets plans to control any leaks and keeps its ships at least 4 miles away from any walruses. Shell wants to resume work halted in 2012 when its main drilling rig ran aground and was lost. It also was fined for air pollution violations.
“As we move forward, any offshore exploratory activities will continue to be subject to rigorous safety standards,” Abigail Ross Hopper, the director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, said in a statement.
Oil exploration and production companies in the past decade stepped up plans to drill in the Arctic, using technology that may let them reach vast reserves trapped in the sea floor beneath ice. The Arctic seas contain an estimated 24 billion barrels of oil, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Shell, which discovered oil in the same part of the ocean in 1986, is the first major explorer to return to the region since the last offshore Arctic drilling boom fizzled almost 30 years ago amid slumping crude prices.
Remain Locked
Exxon Mobil Corp., BP Plc and other producers have discovered more than 10 billion barrels of oil in North American Arctic seas since the early 1970s. Those resources remain locked beneath the sea floor because of a lack of pipeline capacity to haul them to markets.
Ross Hopper said on Bloomberg Television that other companies probably will “wait and see how Shell prevails” in the region. The U.S. approval is “an important step forward for Shell,” she said in the interview.
Environmental groups, citing harsh conditions and a fragile ecosystem, say it’s a mistake to drill in the Arctic.
“We can’t trust Shell with America’s Arctic. As we all remember, Shell’s mishaps in 2012 culminated with its drilling rig running aground,” Cindy Shogan, executive director of Alaska Wilderness League, said in a statement. “Shell’s 2015 plans are even riskier and dirtier this time around.”
‘Wrong Headed’
Franz Matzner, director of the Beyond Oil Initiative at the Natural Resources Defense Council, called it a “wrong-headed decision.”
“No company deserves a license to despoil our last pristine ocean and spew massive amounts of carbon pollution into our atmosphere,” Matzner said in an e-mail. “Any major Arctic Ocean spill would be impossible to clean up.”
Shell drilled two test wells in 2012 after spending about $6 billion over almost a decade in preparation. This year Shell plans to simultaneously use two vessels to explore about 70 miles from the village of Wainwright. The drilling will take place in 140 feet of water.
In its review, the Interior Department found that drilling at the site would have no significant environmental impact. In approving Shell’s plan, the government listed 18 conditions, including a requirement that the company get other needed permits and that it comply with endangered species protections.
“The approval of our revised Chukchi Sea Exploration Plan is an important milestone and signals the confidence regulators have in our plan,” Curtis Smith, a spokesman for Shell, said in an e-mail. “However, before operations can begin this summer, it’s imperative that the remainder of our permits be practical, and delivered in a timely manner.”
Cue the headlines claiming that Microsoft has now officially declared Windows 10 the end of the Windows trail.
As those who've been paying attention know, Windows 10 technically isn't the last Windows release. It might or might not be the last Windows release granted a new version number. But that's basically a branding decision.
Microsoft will continue to update Windows 10 with regular security updates, fixes and new features. Those who sign up for Microsoft's free Windows upgrade deals -- via which consumers running Windows 7 and 8 will get a free upgrade to Windows 10 -- agree as part of that deal to get all the updates to Windows 10 that Microsoft delivers pushed to them automatically.
(For those wondering what the "for the lifetime of the device" support statement means, in terms of the free Windows 10 upgrade deal, I asked Microsoft again last week for comment on this and was told the company isn't yet ready to disclose those particulars. I'll keep asking.)
Those who don't want all the updates, and want the option to stagger their delivery, can opt to go the Windows Update for Business route. Those who choose this option will have the choice of getting security fixes only. Also -- despite headlines from last week claiming Patch Tuesday is now dead -- this is not the case.
"Windows Update for Business can take responsibility for the timely distribution of security updates for customers for free. Customers that choose to distribute updates themselves will continue to receive the updates on the 2nd Tuesday of the month," said a Microsoft spokesperson when asked for an official denial of bogus reports of Patch Tuesday's demise.
Microsoft officials can opt at any time to call a set of updates to Windows 10 a new version. There are already at least three "bigger" sets of updates (that I've heard about from my sources) on the Windows 10 release timeline: An update this fall (possibly October); an update next spring and another in the fall of 2016 (the latter two are part of a wave codenamed "Redstone").
Microsoft is unlikely to label any of these things Windows 11 or 12 or even lucky 13 because the company is trying to get its customers to understand its "Windows as a Service" positioning -- which, as my Windows Weekly podcast co-host Paul Thurrott notes, has already been the way Windows has been updated/serviced for a while now.
Bottom line: Nobody panic. Windows 10 isn't the end of the road. Patch Tuesday isn't dead. IE 11 will still be available with the desktop SKUs of Windows 10 for backward compatibility reasons. The words and positioning may be different, but especially for business customers, the Windows song remains largely the same.
Recently, Google released 70 new Google Now cards. Here are 10 that professionals can get the most out of.
Many professionalsdream of having a personal assistant-- someone to help with daily tasks such as scheduling and booking travel, and to help them keep their lives in order. For most, though, it's only a pipe dream.
However, advances in mobile technology have gotten us a little closer to that dream with digital assistants as part of our smartphone operating systems. For Google users, that assistant is Google Now. The personal assistant is available via the verbal command "Ok Google...," and displays information to the user in the form of "cards" for various applications.
Earlier this year, I highlighted 10 Google Now cards that professionals could use to get the most out of Google Now. At the end of April, Google announced it was working with new partners to bring 70 more cards to Google Now.
That's a lot of new cards to sift through, and many won't be relevant to your lifestyle. For professionals, here are the 10 most useful cards from the new lot.
Wunderlist
Wunderlist is widely regarded as one of the best applications for creating lists. The Google Now card that integrates with Wunderlist will show you upcoming scheduled items at a glance, allowing you to stay on-top of the things you need to get done.
ABC News
During a busy day, it can be difficult to stay up to date on breaking news without taking time out of your day to browse news sites. Google Now has an ABC News card that will keep you informed about breaking news and current events. A mockup of the card reads "Because you're following this story on ABC News," which leads me to believe that the card will update you on topics you have chosen to follow.
Zipcar
Whether you live in a big city, or travel often, finding a quick set of wheels can be difficult. Zipcar is a membership service that allows you to reserve and "rent" cars at will around the country. The Zipcar card will notify you when your reservation is coming to an end and help you find and navigate to a drop-off location.
Indeed
Indeed is a job listings website. The Indeed card on Google Now displays current job listings based on what you've searched for in the past. The card will also display job listings you saved on Indeed. A great resource if you are looking for a new gig.
Cleartrip
Google Now is great for many aspects of business travel. Users can now get updates on trips they have booked through Cleartrip, an online travel booking service. For example, if you are traveling by train you can see your train number, the on-time status of the train, the previous station you left, and the next station you'll hit.
Gett
Formerly known as GetTaxis, Gett bills itself as a black car service without price surging. The Google Now card for Gett will remind you to order a Gett and show you the estimated travel time back home. Users can also order a Gett directly from the card.
Any.do
Any.do is an app for lists, tasks, and reminders. Using the Any.do Google Now card, users are reminded of upcoming tasks directly on their device. From the card, users can choose to be reminded again later, or mark the task as completed.
Feedly
Online reader app Feedly is another to join the ranks of Google Now integrations. One of the top readers for former Google Reader users, Feedly is an RSS reader that allows users a single place to aggregate their favorite sources and stories. With the Google Now card, users can stay updated with trending content.
Lumosity
The chaos of professional life means it's easy for your mind to get jumbled after a while. Some people turn to the popular Lumosity site for brain games to keep their mind sharp. The Lumosity Google Now card will remind users to keep up with their lessons and tell them when the last day they trained was.
TuneIn
Podcasts are a great source of inspiration and market knowledge for professionals. The TuneIn Google Now card will recommend new podcasts for users based on their listening history and what podcasts they follow on TuneIn.
The pitch seemed irresistible: Here was a chance to connect with a money man for billionaire Carlos Slim.
But the supposed financial whiz, who called himself Ken Dennis, wasn’t who he said he was, authorities now claim. In truth, he’s Troy Stratos -- and is now standing trial in a bizarre fraud case that provides a glimpse into how money and influence flow through Silicon Valley.
A powerful investment consigliere; a Facebook Inc. insider; the ex-wife of comedian Eddie Murphy: this story has all that, and more.
It begins one evening in December 2010. Divesh Makan, who today manages the fortunes of Silicon Valley billionaires, was working at Morgan Stanley advising well-heeled clients. He shot an e-mail to David Ebersman, then the chief financial officer of Facebook:
“I wanted to introduce you to Ken, who runs the funds for the Slim family and related parties,” wrote Makan. “I will leave it to you to connect. Best, Divesh.”
With that introduction, a methodical charmer got one step closer to stealing $11.25 million from a group of East Coast millionaires looking to buy scarce Facebook shares before the company went public, prosecutors say.
Stratos, a self-described movie producer and music impresario, was about to be indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice for allegedly stealing $7 million from Nicole Murphy, ex-wife of comedian Eddie Murphy. His trial on the Facebook charges started Monday in Sacramento, California. Another, on the Murphy charges, is set for October. The DOJ expects to take eight days to present its case.
In Jail
The 49-year-old, who’s pleaded not guilty to both crimes, has been in jail in Sacramento County since his arrest in late 2011, when the Federal Bureau of Investigation found him hiding in a closet in a rented luxury apartment in Los Angeles. The government added the Facebook-related charges to the original indictment in May 2013.
Stratos never delivered the Facebook shares, according to his testimony in a bail hearing in January 2012. He said he connected the investors’ money manager, Tim Burns, with a Facebook executive and others who said that they had stock for sale. He said he spent the money -- which he called a fee -- paying old debts, trying to develop a restaurant in Las Vegas, and buying a Range Rover, a Chevrolet Camaro and a $200,000 Audi convertible.
Philadelphia Families
Burns, like Makan, is a Morgan Stanley alumnus. He left there in 2005 to start ESG Family Office to manage the fortunes of wealthy denizens of Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs. He raised a $13 million fund from them, specifically to invest in Facebook shares.
Burns declined to comment. Makan’s spokesman, Paul Kranhold at Sard Verbinnen & Co., said Makan had no comment. Facebook spokeswoman Vanessa Chan declined to comment. Jack Siegal, a lawyer for ESG, didn’t return calls.
Before Facebook, Stratos spent decades traveling the world signing up investors for films that never got made and real estate projects that weren’t built, according to a story by Bloomberg Markets in 2011.
Nicole Murphy says she heard from Stratos in 2006, shortly after she and Eddie Murphy divorced. She and Stratos had been close friends in high school in Sacramento, and now Stratos offered to help manage the millions she’d gotten from Eddie in the split.
One move Stratos recommended: Move the money to Dubai, where she could get higher interest rates. She agreed, but instead of stashing the money safely overseas, Stratos spent it, the government alleges.
‘Smoothest Guy’
“He’s the smoothest guy you’ve ever met in your life,” Dennis Rush, a real estate agent in Hawaii, said in an interview in 2011. “He’s a con man’s con man.” Rush won a $2.1 million judgment against Stratos in 2001 for money he put up for a music project.
Facebook promised an even bigger bounty for Stratos. Wealthy investors were prowling for employee-held shares of the private company after a plan to distribute millions of them fell apart in January 2011. That’s when Goldman Sachs Group Inc. excluded U.S. clients from a roughly $1.5 billion investment in the social media company, saying “intense media attention” on the deal may have violated rules for marketing private securities. Investors, including the group represented by Burns, started looking elsewhere.
Detailed Look
Court documents in the criminal case and a civil suit that ESG filed against Stratos provide a detailed look into how Stratos constructed the alleged scam that cost Burns’s clients millions.
Burns and “Ken Dennis” first spoke in March 2011, introduced by a broker who knew Burns was on the hunt. Dennis told Burns he ran a company called Soumaya Securities, named after Slim’s late wife. Slim has never had any contact with Stratos or a man called Ken Dennis, Arturo Elias Ayub, a spokesman for Slim, said in an e-mailed statement.
Dennis said he knew Facebook executives who were ready to sell shares for $27 apiece. When Burns asked for references, Stratos sent him to his lawyer, David Meyer, in the Los Angeles office of Venable LLP, a national firm with 600 attorneys. Meyer told Burns that Dennis was indeed affiliated with Slim, ESG said in its complaint.
Meyer, now at Los Angeles law firm Arent Fox LLP, didn’t return calls or e-mails. Nor did his lawyer, David Willingham. Venable partner G. Stewart Webb didn’t respond to calls or e-mails. In 2013, a federal judge dismissed ESG’s claims against Meyer and Venable after both denied any wrongdoing. ESG has appealed the decision.
Makan’s Introduction
Around the time he met Burns, Stratos used Makan’s introduction to reach out to Ebersman, the Facebook CFO, telling him he had office space in Los Angeles that Facebook might want to rent. The connection was key because Stratos then wooed Burns in part by arranging a telephone call with him and Ebersman, according to court documents.
On April 19, 2011, Burns committed to the deal and wired $2.8 million to a trust account at Venable to be ready for the purchase. Stratos withdrew some of the money to buy the $92,000 Land Rover, make a $50,000 deposit on a Las Vegas condominium and pay $333,000 to a professional gambler, ESG’s complaint said.
Stratos, still operating as Dennis, strung Burns along. That July, he said a deal was imminent, according to the government’s indictment, convincing Burns to send $7.2 million. The following month he asked for another $1.25 million to get it done. Meanwhile Stratos was withdrawing cash at the rate of $40,000 a day, ESG alleged.
Fateful Error
Shortly after, Burns made a fateful error.
When it appeared that the Facebook deal would earn him millions in commissions, Burns used cash from investors’ accounts to buy a beach house in Avalon, New Jersey, for $4.6 million, said ESG investors, who filed their own suit against Burns in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, in 2013. He also put a $1.13 million deposit on an office building in Conshohocken.
The Facebook deal collapsed in December 2011, when Stratos was arrested and charged with defrauding Nicole Murphy. Still acting as Ken Dennis, Stratos tried to keep the deal alive from jail by having associates text Burns to say that Dennis was unavailable, the government said.
Burns finally e-mailed Venable. Webb, the partner there, responded, saying that the contact information Burns provided for Ken Dennis was in Meyer’s files under the name of Troy Stratos. “Mr. Stratos was, we understand, arrested early last week by federal authorities,” Webb wrote in the e-mail.
The government charged Burns in May 2013. He pleaded guilty to fraud on June 25, 2013, and awaits sentencing.
What ESG’s clients didn’t lose to Stratos, they lost to Burns. Facebook shares, meantime, have more than doubled since the company went public in May 2012.
CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap's director and producer Robin Hauser Reynolds tells TechRepublic why tech's diversity problem affects everyone, not just women.
Filmmaker Robin Hauser Reynolds saw a seemingly simple situation that didn't make sense: there are tons of open tech jobs, and the promise of good jobs right out of college, but so few women are employed in those jobs.
When she and the team behind the new documentary CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap, an official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival, started exploring it, she quickly realized it's a complicated issue.
"At first I said, well, they're just not hiring women, then I realized there are very few women coming through the pipeline and then we began to explore, well, why is that the case?" Reynolds said.
She saw a prime example in the struggles of her own daughter, an otherwise solid student who was a computer science major in college but felt so out of her depth that she wanted to drop her major.
"She began to call home with doubts and concerns and she told me she felt as though everyone else in the class was much further ahead," she said.
She was one of two women in most of her classes. In reality, she was in the top third of her class, but against the boisterousness of classmates who had been messing around with computers and gaming since childhood, her impression was that she was failing.
It's not an uncommon experience for women in computer science programs, and it's just one of a great many hurdles to clear along the way to a career in tech.
Reynolds said they constructed the documentary in pods of sorts, highlighting stories from various women in different positions. They all represent different aspects of the current state of women in the tech industry. Take Evelyn Cordner, a 26-year-old software engineer at Strava who played lacrosse for MIT. Strava's made an effort to create a culture that differs from the brogrammer culture -- employees tend to bond over athletics -- and she feels satisfied in her job despite being one of only two or three female engineers.
There's also Courtney Nash, who grew up in foster care, in Compton, California, and had to overcome a multiple obstacles as a woman, a minority, and a member of a typically marginalized socio-economic segment of the population to earn a B.A. from Loyola Marymount University and set off on a career in computer science.
Reynolds and her team were also able to talk with people like Megan Smith, who is the current CTO of the United States, as well as engineers at companies like Spotify, Github, Facebook, Twitter, and Pixar. The documentary took about 14 months to produce.
With particular regard to Smith, who was previously at Google, Reynolds talked about the dearth of female role models in computer science and STEM subjects in general. Young children might know who Marie Curie is, and an older crowd might have heard of Grace Hopper or Ada Lovelace, but they probably couldn't even explain who they were or what they did, let alone knowing the women who programmed the ENIAC (the US army's first digital computer).
"These were all women who were incredibly influential in the history of computing. If you ask someone in this day and age, if you said to someone 'name some famous people that are related to computers,' they tell you 'Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, Bill Gates.' They're all these modern-day male role models," she said.
This isn't about belly aching. And it's also not an issue that merely stays buried in the short-circuited careers of women over the course of decades.
One of the big ideas behind CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap is that the lack of diversity in tech is, as Reynolds put it, not just a gender issue for the sake of being a gender issue. The White House projects that there will be a million unfilled jobs in tech by 2020. If Americans can't fill those jobs, they'll go over seas.
"Since technology is the fastest-moving industry of our time, it has the potential to completely stall out our economy," she said.
And that's part of the point -- the gender gap affects everyone.
Along those lines, Reynolds is also hoping that this is a documentary with takeaways for everyone, both from an entertainment and educational standpoint.
"I didn't want it to be a film that spoke only to people in the industry. I wanted someone to be able to walk away and think, wow, I didn't realize that this really is important and we really have code at the base of so much of what we do day to day," she said.
And the hope is that watching this documentary might make the audience consider biases -- blatant or unconscious -- they have as parents, teachers, co-workers, and bosses, and also the way we're impacted by the culture stereotype of the programmer.
"How do you change a stereotype?" she said. "The stereotype that we have of a computer science programmer is absolutely de-incentivizing young girls from going into STEM and computer science fields."
Kiosks make
it easy to display information about your company, allow users to interact with
website-driven company directories, get details about products, advertise your
products and services, and much more. But how do you set up a kiosk? Surely
they are complex creatures that require much care and attention!
Not
even remotely. Kiosks can be created using a standard machine or even a tablet.
With simple and cost-effective solutions, you can have one up and running
quickly. If you don't want to invest too much time and money into the project,
the five kiosk apps listed here are well suited for the task. In some
instances, these apps will require you to have the HTML pages already set up
and ready to go. Let's dig into them and see if one will serve your needs.
SureFox
SureFoxis a great Android and IOS app that
locks a tablet into browser mode and allows you to set a whitelist of pages the
browser can visit. This Android app is the best in breed for this purpose.
SureFox lets you set up categories for users to select and add multiple URLs
(and even include subdomains).
Other features include the ability to
enable/disable zoom (you can also set the percentage of zoom), complete device
lockdown (pro version only), browse privately, prevent auto-suspend, do tabbed
browsing, view full screen mode, and configure remotely.
SiteKiosk
SiteKioskis a more
feature-rich kiosk app for Windows and Android. Instead of being limited to a
kiosk to display information, SiteKiosk can also be used as an internet cafe
tool. With this take on the kiosk app, you can define viewable URLs, add
payment devices (for using the kiosk), include session reset, set content
filters, view full-screen mode, customize the user interface, and add an
onscreen keyboard, among other features.
Porteus Kiosk
Porteus
Kioskis a Linux distribution that only
allows usage of a web browser. The configuration is simple, the distribution is
lightweight (60 MB), and it has low hardware requirements (so you can make use
of those old machines lying around). Porteus is free and open source. You will
also be hard-pressed to find a more "locked down" kiosk than this
one.
FrontFace
Lockdown
FrontFace Lockdownis a simple
tool for the Windows platform that allows you to easily set up either a digital
sign or an interactive kiosk. Once you've selected and applied a profile, you
must select a user for that profile. You might want to first create a specific
user for this purpose. (This person must be an admin user.)
Fluxbox
Fluxboxis actually a
Linux window manager that I have, on a number of occasions, deployed as a
kiosk. It works well as a kiosk because you can easily limit what users can
access from the main menu. If you want users to be able to work only with a
browser, add that single entry to the menu. You will need a bit of Linux-fu to
work this, since the menu is configured via a flat-text configuration file. And
once you've logged into the Fluxbox desktop, you'll need to know what you're
doing to get to a terminal window to do anything but run that browser.
Atheer CEO Alberto Torres
