h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Ooh, my grandma's had her corneas replaced. Bet she wishes they'd been replaced with tiny cameras.

Having only peripheral vision in one eye sounds unpleasant, Ictoan. I've got the opposite problem- peripheral field acuity is quite poor, especially to my left. I've walked smack into more parking meters than I can count.

Still doesn't account for my poky reflexes though.

The hologram TV idea sounds interesting. Especially as it wouldn't need to take up space when it wasn't in use. I'd have liked a larger set than 32", but my living room's too narrow.

But surely that means that you don't sit too far away from it?

Yes, but the small set looks dinky and anything bigger would look like crap because we'd be sitting too close. I suppose the set would look better if I could mount it on the wall, but there's no stud behind that part of the wall.

C'est la vie; when we move to a bigger place I will get a second set. Maybe they'll have some super-modern holgram ones by then.

"I've walked smack into more parking meters than I can count."
When I had the op I had to wander round with a big white patch plastered over the eye for a bit. Walked into quite a few people who'd start getting narky untilI pointed out the large white patch. If yer gonna sneak up on me on my blind side...

Actually the worst bit is being the optician's guinea pig. Went for one and when he found out about the op, because my responses to his tests what not what he expected - ie read the first row of the grid "there's nothing there" - he got all excited cos he'd not seen one before and then put me through a complete battery of tests! Quite interesting but still...

Tv size vs room size? What? The correct equation is TV Size vs. bank balance!

Proper holographic is coming - there's a very neat clip I found somewhere of a projector which ionises (i think) the air at precise points. So far it can only do white and create geometric patterns in the air. Very cool but not exactly R2D2 territory.

Maybe they'll be able to project movies straight into our brains.

weeeelllll there is a technology being developed which directly stimulates the visual receptors in your retina. adjusted for lens and retinal imperfections so should be able to deliver the best picture definition your eye could possible receive (ie better than 20/20).

Yeah...but that wouldn't deliver all the small, taste and touch sensations.

Imagine the possibilities for pr0n.

(actually, I know people working in innovative display technologies, so I know my way roughly round the field)

any one seen Oliver Stone's "wild palms" tv series?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106175/

in it was 3d holo-soap in your living room...

TV size vs bank balance wasn't much of an issue, thankfully; I found one I wanted (most importantly 1080 dpi) on sale, and my annual bonus last year was enough to get the TV and a new vacuum (Dyson Ball Pet model).

It'd be awesome to experience watching video that was sent right to my eyes, or directly into my brain, or something. But imagine what hooking up a VCR/DVR would be like- it'd be like the gaming console in "Existenz".

So long as they couldn't download from your brain too.

Actually...that's reasonably good proof that telepathy doesn't exist: I don't get slapped in public by women.

I tend to take filthy thoughts as a compliment.