Surface is a horizontal display on a table-like frame that goes from being an ordinary tabletop into a new tool for bringing digital content to users. What is cool about it is the way people interact with digital content by using their hands.

With natural gestures, touch and using physical objects, the user can interact with digital content effortlessly. And because Surface is housed in what is essentially a table, it is easy for people to gather around it to collaborate in a way that feels familiar.

The company says MS Surface will blur the lines between the physical and virtual worlds. By using your hands or placing other everyday objects on the surface, such as an item you are going to purchase at a retail store or a paint brush, you can interact, share and collaborate.

Imagine you are at C'est La Vie in Douglas with friends enjoying a glass of wine. You each place your drink on the table. All kinds of information appears by your glass, such as wine pairings with the menu. Then, with the flick of your finger, you order dessert and split the bill. How cool, and helpful, would that be?

Surface computing is a concept whose time has come. A lot of the features now available in mobile phones, PCs and other devices are not even used because people find the technology somewhat intimidating. Surface computing breaks down these traditional barriers so people can use it more intuitively and efficiently.

Vice president of the Microsoft Productivity and Extended Consumer Experiences Group, which brought us Xbox and Zune, Tom Gibbons said: 'It's about technology adapting to the user, rather than the user adapting to the technology. Bringing this kind of natural user interface innovation to the computing space is what Microsoft is all about.

'Through the years, we have done a tremendous amount of research and development in this area. The new hardware and software in Surface, along with a predominant focus on the consumer experience, support our Connected Entertainment vision — making entertainment more personal, more interactive and more social.'

It is said that the shift to surface computing will be as significant as the move from DOS to GUI operating systems. And remember life before ATMs? No? Neither can I, but I suspect our grandchildren will not remember desktop or laptop computers either. And surface computing is the next logical step.

It lets users manipulate a tremendous amount of information with their hands. With Surface's mapping application, for example, you access personalised data for local sites, attractions and venues. Or, with Surface's photo application, you have the ability to sort through pictures, decide which ones you want to share, zoom in for a closer look and more.

The first companies to roll out Surface will be Harrah's Entertainment, Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, T-Mobile USA and distributor International Game Technology.

At T-Mobile stores in the USA, customers will be able to set a phone down on the surface to read its bar code and get information about the handset displayed. Customers can also select calling plans and ringtones by dragging icons towards the phone.

Guests sitting in some Starwood Hotel lobbies will now be able to gather around the Surface to play music and then buy songs using a credit card or rewards card tagged with a bar code.

Microsoft says future versions of Surface will incorporate a myriad of device-sync capabilities. For instance, users could set a digital camera or mobile phone on the surface and watch as their pictures spill out across the table.

Is surface computing really the Next Big Thing? Only time will tell. But one thing is certain: technology innovation will continue to change our lives.


>>Sherrilynne Starkie is the managing partner at Douglas-based Strive Public Relations, a virtual communications consultancy serving the Island's tech sector. She provides her views on business and technology, and the business of technology, each week in Tech Talk. Visit her business blog Strive Notes for frequent updates.

www.strivepr.com