For all the talk of a reading revolution and Amazon, Sony and now Apple are creating, all of this new technology doesn’t actually change reading very much. There’s some text on a blank background and – well, that’s about it.
But a new concept developed by Swedish firm Tobii Technology promises to change all that by turning the tables on the reader – in this case, the book reads you.
By using a combination of web programming languages and a tracking camera, what Tobii Technology call Text 2.0 actually tracks your eye movements to see what you are reading.
Focus on a word for a while with a screwed-up face and Text 2.0 will assume you’re confused and will look up the word. Skim quickly through a page and it will cut out the extra information there, leaving only the important stuff.
On top of that, the tech will also allow e-book makers to add contextual information, without the ugliness and distraction and of a hyperlink. All in all, it’s fascinating stuff and very promising. Check out the video to get a sense of what might soon be possible.
[Source: WIRED]
