Weasley Clock Meets Twitter
HP References
Posted by: Edward
December 03, 2009, 02:42 PM
Ingenious inventors have made further strides into creating a muggle version of the famous magical Weasley Clock from the Harry Potter novels by author J. K. Rowling. FastCompany.com reports that a new version of the device has been invented utilizing Twitter to pinpoint the location of family members at any given time. Known as the Magic Clock, this device picks up on "known locator-status words" from the Twitter feeds of linked family members, which causes programmed clock hands to be "driven to point to the relevant location on the dial, with a choice of Home, Lost, Texas, Traveling, Prison, Work, Church, Minnesota, School, Read Me, Doctor and, yes, Mortal Peril." A video showing the device in action, can be viewed via this link.
As Leaky has reported numerous times in the past, developers at Microsoft have been working with similar technology using cellular phone networks for tracking family members for their aptly named Whereabouts Clock.
Many thanks to all who owled!
27 Points
That would be amazing to own! You know with a bit more science they could make it more accurate, like maybe use GPS and have there be something the kid could press if they are in danger. Ummm… That would be pretty amazing.
372 Points
KiwiBrian- it’s no more than what twitter or facebook already does for “stalking” potential. Twitter is obviously a huge way to “stalk” people, but they all voluntarily put it out there- there’s nothing big brother about that.
562 Points
Amateur Radio Operators (Hams for short) have had this available for at least a decade. It’s called Automatic Position Reporting System. It functions thru a network of radio repeaters and connections to the internet. Take my hand-held radio, add a small GPS and I can report my position from nearly anywhere for friends and family to follow. It’s as accurate as the GPS unit (within a few meters) and runs in real-time. Many Hams have their car(s) equipped with an APRS setup. That makes it easy to find out where the car is. There is software available for PCs to display the position on a map. An Amateur Radio License is required to operate the radio transmitter. Local Amateur Radio Clubs offer free classes to get the License. These Hams are the same people who volunteer to provide emergency communications in the aftermath of weather disasters. In the USA, our national organization is at www.arrl.org. Info also available online by search engine using APRS as the keyword. 73’s (best wishes). I am K4NPF.
HA! “Texas, Traveling, Prison” ;)