Where Has Google Glass Gone?

By Hector Cisneros

Courtesy of  commons.wikimedia.org

Anything that Google touches has significance. Even if it's just because they can spend an ungodly amount of money on anything in which they have an interest. It's not only that - Google has a very futuristic view of things. When they purchased YouTube for an unheard of amount of money - a lot of people said they were crazy. Boy, were they wrong. In 2012, Google announced the creation of Google Glass, a prototype wearable computer that was worn as a pair of glasses. They then released a limited edition of the actual product in 2013 and called it “the Glass Explorer” for the tidy sum of $1,500. Most Google products get a lot of attention and this one gave birth to a whole line of copycats and controversy as it launched us into a new era of personal computing. In this episode of Working the Web to Win, we will explore Google Glass, how it started, where it has taken us over the last three years and where we predict it will go from here. So read on and hold on to your glasses as we tackle Google Glass and the new industry it has spawned.

Are Google Glasses the Great Game Changer or a Passing Fad?

By Carl Weiss

As a kid, I remember the ads in the backs of magazines showing cool gadgets and seemingly magical devices. I remember the ad for X-ray Glasses, Space Helmets, hand held communications and other futuristic promises that were yet to come. Jump 50 years forward and we have space helmets, smartphones and Google Glasses. I know, they are not X-rays Glasses but they have stirred a hornets nest of controversy even though they can see through your clothes.

There has never before been such controversy over a technology that has yet to reach store shelves.  This wearable computing device is going to take technology to a whole new level… literally.  The device itself sports nothing radically new.  All the devices and operations performed by Glass are available on any Smartphone or tablet PC.  Voice actuated, record video, take pictures, run apps etc… What seems to be causing all the anger is the fact that Google Glass is a camera/video platform that can start snapping pictures and make video recordings without being noticed.  This has caused a number of institutions to ban their use and has spawned a number of legislators to consider legislation to limit when and where people can use Glass.