Cebit 2008

Video is intense, and I love it. So indulge me on this one.

Here's a frame from a video we recorded (from the ABC?) of The Exalted One. The frames before and after it aren't full images like lots of JPEGs one after the other. One of them's similar to a JPEG, and the others are mathematical representations in time of where blocks of 8 x 8 pixels (macroblocks) move to in the space of the frames.

It's easy: click the image to get a close look and imagine how His 07-ness is moving. He's not (at least not much), and neither is the background, but his hand is. So you sibdivie one image into macroblocks and tell them how to move according to how the images change from frame to frame.



The result is that the macroblocks move from image to image depending on where the motion in the video is. Check out those green arrows, and check out the original image. The long arrows show you where the motion is from picture to picture and where the blocks of detail are moving. And that's what motion vectors look like.

Hooray for video analysis tools!


Also on the subject of video are these glasses from Myvu that have two small 640 by 480 LCD displays in front of each eye. They say they've got a 3D and VR version planned, but right now they'll set you back $399. Plus, you look like Geordi when you're wearing them.



You can connect it to any composite video signal including an iPod, because its native input is a 4 pole 3.5mm jack. Electrically that's left, right, video and common from the tip down. They look like this when you stick a camera lens where your eye is:



Back to the show floor!