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Knock Some Commands Into Your Laptop
Posted by
Zonk
on Sun Jul 30, 2006 03:36 PM
from the wake-up dept.
from the wake-up dept.
An anonymous reader writes "For the first time, you can smack your computer and get a meaningful response! An article at IBM Devworks show you how to rap on the laptop case with your knuckles and have commands run on those knocks. Enterprising hackers have developed modules for the Linux kernel to take advantage of laptop integrated accelerometer sensors; with them the possibilities are endless."
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Linux: Monitor a Linux Box With Machine Generated Music 114 comments
mcappel writes "Linux and Unix admins are familiar with vmstat and top, which are visual tools displaying the health of a computer. chordStats adds a new interface to a system monitoring setup — information passed through tone, timbre, and harmony. IBM's Nathan Harrington, who wrote Knock Some Commands Into Your Laptop, created a simple Perl script to send note events to FluidSynth that forces various system events to be interpreted as a part of a harmonious interval, and looks at options for enhancing a musical system monitor."
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This technology was first developed... (Score:2, Funny)
multiple desktop switching (Score:5, Informative)
A MacOSX program called VirtuaDesktops has integrated this sort of thing, but it's still a bit finicky. You knock the laptop and it switches to the next desktop in the direction you knocked. It needs some debouncing because the recoil often just switches you right back to where you were.
Knock knock! (Score:5, Funny)
It looks like you're calling for help.
Would you like help?
* Telegraph CQD RAPE RAPE STOP NEED HELP PDQ STOP
* Just signal your distress without help
Parent
Re:multiple desktop switching (Score:5, Informative)
I think there is a video called "SmackBook" that demonstrates the use of the software you described. I thought it was posted on Slashdot.
Parent
Re:multiple desktop switching (Score:2)
Not the first time linux too (read my previous comment if you want video), but it probably is the first time published by entity that will make a lot of fuzz about it.
SmackEdit (Score:5, Interesting)
Lots of fun at the coffee shop.
Parent
Re:SmackEdit (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/HDAPS [thinkwiki.org]
Re:SmackEdit (Score:5, Informative)
On the typewriters I have used, the bell doesn't ring when you do a carriage return. It rings when you reach a certain column so that you know that you are beginning to reach the end of the line and that you may want to do a carriage return before typing the next word.
Parent
Re:multiple desktop switching (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
Re:multiple desktop switching (Score:3, Informative)
Macs also have a few other apps such as stable window which keeps a window upright while turning the laptop around, plus a few games that work on a similar principles such as "Neverball" amongst others. There are even widgets that tap into the AMS to play small ball-in-hole games.
My particular favourite is the app that turns your powerbook into a light saber making sound effects as you swing it around. (MacSab
Within moments of this article being posted... (Score:5, Funny)
I don't know about you, but. . . (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:I don't know about you, but. . . (Score:3, Interesting)
http://www.gnome.org/~fherrera/blog/gtollina [gnome.org]
C'mon... Admit it:)
btw. hitting your wife is so 70's. Now its all about hitting computers.
Re:I don't know about you, but. . . (Score:5, Funny)
That is where most of us get our sex anways.....
Parent
Re:I don't know about you, but. . . (Score:2)
Funny you should mention that. My Toshiba M-200 TabletPC has an acellerometer in it. It comes with a little app to do things when it detects a sudden movement. I set up my laptop to make the "waaaah!" sound from Quantum Leap whenever Al slapped the handlink. Th
re: shouldn't really be a worry (Score:3, Insightful)
Therefore, the sensors are very sensitive - registering a response to levels of shock well below what would actually harm a spinning laptop hard drive. (If your drive was frag
Re:I don't know about you, but. . . (Score:2, Redundant)
Re:I don't know about you, but. . . (Score:2)
SB
This is not new (Score:5, Informative)
Itsy had "Rock n Scroll" in 1998 (Score:2)
pffft ... (Score:4, Funny)
I'm waiting for them to enable the self destruct sequence on Dell laptops
Re:pffft ... (Score:3, Insightful)
So I can use... (Score:5, Funny)
How 'bout compiler engines? Will it detect knocking in them?
Re:So I can use... (Score:4, Funny)
Parent
Won't work for me... (Score:5, Funny)
random sensors..... (Score:5, Interesting)
Gyroscopes for Orientation (pitch,roll,yaw)
More accelerometers
Altimeter
GPS
External temperature,humidity, pressure
Pressure sensors (which determine how hard the user is banging on the keyboard in aggrevation).
Thermal imaging
Re:random sensors..... (Score:2, Insightful)
Gyroscopes for Orientation (pitch,roll,yaw)
More accelerometers
Altimeter
GPS
External temperature,humidity, pressure
Pressure sensors (which determine how hard the user is banging on the keyboard in aggrevation).
Thermal imaging
I'm all for that, except my backpack is not big enough to fit nuclear power pla
Re:random sensors..... (Score:2)
Yes, such things exist. Back in 1982 I wrote a data acquisition and display program for one of those on an Apple ][. Fortunately, I was never treated to the sight of one in actual use, but I did see the recorded output. It was
Re:random sensors..... (Score:2)
I sincerely and abjectly apologize, but I couldn't resist.
Don't you just hate it when that happens?
Thank you for calling IBM Warranty services... (Score:5, Funny)
"Uh, well, I was drunk and I, uh... My screen is cracked."
Re:Thank you for calling IBM Warranty services... (Score:2)
*knock* "Why aren't you doing the dishes?! One knock for dishes, two for laundry!" *Krrrack*
"IBM tech support, how many I help you?"
"..my wife broke my Thinkpad over my head..."
New Dialog box (Score:2, Interesting)
What they need to do... (Score:3, Insightful)
My guess is that most people get fixated on the monitor or don't realize that if they wanted to do damage then need to strike the components that actually do the work.
Dumb dumb dumb... (Score:2, Insightful)
Write press release - introduce a few whiz-bang apps or games - stumble over an article about the concept ten years later and laugh at the idea all over again.
At least it's not the next Z-Board.
Hmm.. something useful here (Score:3, Funny)
2. sell microsoft stock
3. buy google stock
4. profit!
I guarantee.... (Score:5, Funny)
Real port knocking protocol? (Score:3, Funny)
"Why isn't the USB port working?"
"Knock first!"
The Best Possible Response (Score:5, Funny)
"Help, help, come see the vviolence in the system... help, help, I'm being repressed!!!"
Re:The Best Possible Response (Score:3, Funny)
MacBook : "Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over.
What? (Score:3, Funny)
Or, you could just wave your hand over your Mac... (Score:5, Interesting)
Peep a video here:
http://blog.medallia.com/2006/06/shadowbook.html [medallia.com]
Cheers!
Quake (Score:3, Funny)
Morse Code (Score:2, Interesting)
So... (Score:2)
I can take a framing hammer to my laptop, and it'll install Ubuntu in response?
SB
can someone tell me (Score:2)
I've been able to slap sense into my windows... (Score:3, Funny)
I've been able to slap some sense into my windows for quite some time now. It comes built-in to X11.
First off, choose a cursor theme in which the cursor for moving a window is a hand, such as any of the comix cursor themes in Debian. Next, on those rare occasions when a program misbehaves, hold down the Alt key to warn the window. Finally, click and drag the mouse anywhere on the offending window briefly, while the Alt key is still held down.
Congratulations, you've just slapped some sense into the misbehaving window.
The Module - with apologies to E. A. Poe. (Score:5, Funny)
Over many a quaint and curious man page of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, to page down I started tapping,
On the case of laptop rapping, rapping to see one page more.
`'Tis a kernel module,' said I, `understanding taps galore -
Only this, and nothing more.'
Underwood (Score:3, Interesting)
Whack the monitor with your right hand to produce a carriage return and a ding.
Would that not be totally retro-cool?
Smack alerts (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Obligatory Starter Thread - KNOCK, KNOCK! (Score:2, Funny)
Laptop owner (trying knock commands): knock knock
Laptop: who's there?
Laptop owner: me
Laptop: me who?
Laptop owner (frustrated, tries again): knock knock
Laptop: who's there?
Laptop owner: your owner
Laptop: your owner who?
Laptop owner: want your owner to knock you on the ground again?
Laptop: okay, okay, no need to become violent!