I broke it already?

If I can't use it to take photos,
 at least I can take photos in it

As soon as I left Google, I happily wore my Glass all the way to my car. All the fuss about Glass "being banned while driving" tempted me to rebel and rock the device while driving.

So I did.

While in park, I gave the command "OK glass: Record a video. Extend." Then began narrating and rambling on about how it wasn't distracting and actually better alternative to cell phones. I did the tour guide thing too. "This is Venice Beach, as you can see its pretty cool to be able to show viewers my POV."

Once I was done playing tour guide to a non-existent audience, I thought I'd charge the battery on my drive home into my Android's charger. As soon as I did that I realized some coding and an updating symbol came up.

Uh-oh. Maybe I'm not suppose to use a car charger? Oh sh*t, what if I broke it already??

Driving and troubleshooting Glass isn't conducive to one's full attention--it wasn't responding to my gestures and the coding symbols looked like an error, so naturally I thought to reboot the device the way Anngie showed me: "Hold the power button for 15 seconds if it ever get buggy."

Why won't you work!!

Bad mistake.

I got home, plugged it into a wall power source and crossed my fingers.....Nope. The Glass screen looked like the movie theater screen right before they play the previews, a lit screen but no video actually being projected.

Time to call Google.

I called Google, explained the problem and they said they didn't know what was wrong either. The technician called me back later that day and said I'd have to return to the campus to exchange my device.

Yes, I get to go to Google again! Wooooo. Booo, that means all my videos didn't load. 

Today, I went to Google to exchange my device. My Glass guide Frank was really nice and assured me it wasn't my fault.  Turns out that coding and updating symbol were actually the OS going from XE4 to XE6, via the bluetooth internet connection. What we think happened was as soon as it was hooked up to a power source, the device went into update mode. When I rebooted it, I stopped that whole process and then the device just became unresponsive. It never "unpacked" the updated software and there was nothing I could do to wake it up.

Needless to say, I haven't had much time to play with the device but when I do, I'll be sure to write about my experiences here. :)

Happy Sunday everyone.

Second time's a charm?

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WILLY WONKA CHOCOLATE FACTORY

I've got the golden ticket! 

Okay, not really. 

But it certainly felt like I was Charlie and had received an invitation to visit the Willy Wonka  Chocolate Factory.

With my nerdiest-techy friend Ronald invited, we met at Google's Santa Monica campus for my appointment. Yes, it was just as cool on the inside as you imagine it to be.

Anngie and I 

We were greeted by Google Glass employees sporting the device and then led to a check-in table where they handed us our "Glass XE" badges.  

My Glass "guide" Anngie walked us through the patio (which has a projector screen, hammocks, gorgeous landscaping and beautifully designed outdoor tables) past the cafeteria (the food smelled delicious and fresh) and then into the Glass campus.  

The interior and layout reminded me of an empty, intimate Apple store. Hardwood floors, wooden accents, white displays, clean lines, and simplistic design. 

Unfortunately, the only rule was "No Video"...using my camera. But I did get a bit of "OK glass: Record a video" footage! 

When you try on this new technology, its hard not to get carried away with excitement. As you can tell from my "THIS IS SO COOOOL" statement in the video, I was so involved with the Glass I wasn't conscious of the actions that were being documented. You'll also notice we graciously accepted the delicious mimosas, beer and snacks offered ;) 

I tried on all of the Glass colors and selected "Cotton." Also known as white, but I was indirectly corrected so many times, I now know the damn color is called Cotton. 

Charcoal, Sky, Tangerine, Cotton, and Shale.

THE TUTORIAL

Once I selected Cotton, Anngie gave me my own box to unwrap...unbox?   

 The packaging is similar to Apple products. Simplistic, white, clean.

Anngie helped me get the Glass "fitted."  Adjusting it to the kind of nose you have and where your brow line sits affects how well you'll be able to see the Glass comfortably. Took a few tries but eventually we were able to find a comfortable fit.

Next, she explained how everything worked and helped me setup all of my accounts (Google+, Facebook, Twitter, etc.). I even got to use the Chrome book!

You can tell I'm excited to be using the Chrome book.

After a bit of playing with it, I got the hang of it! Swipe forward to go to the right, Swipe backward to scroll left, Swipe down to go back, Tap to select, Say "OK glass" to give a command.  I got this.

I tend to laugh at myself a lot. 

 We used the ScreenCast feature which lets you share what you, the Glass user, sees with others by projecting it onto your mobile screen.  

I asked Google, "How old is Barack Obama"

The last and coolest thing we did was a Google Hangout. Joining a Hangout while on your Glass means the other members in the Hangout will not view your face, but view what you are seeing. I invited Ronald to hangout and then experimented by trying to invite others. I was lucky enough to have my dad be online and I was able to share the Glass Explorer experience with him via hangout. Veryyy coool.

In the screen, you'll see my POV which is Ronald taking THIS picture. I think it's so cool. 

Look at the bottom left screen. You can see me wearing the glass and Ronald taking a picture. Then look at the main screen. That's my POV of Ronald taking a photo. 

After about an hour-long session, I was all setup and ready to head out on my own to try Google Glass. See all the photos from today here.  

RECORDING A RECORDING?

The last cool thing I'll share is two videos. The first was taken using the handheld camera. The second  video was used recording the experience of the first video via Google Glass. Just watch the first, then the second and it'll make sense. 

I had a phenomenal day at Google campus and I'm extremely grateful! 

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EXPLORER SUBMISSION

You probably want to know how the hell I got a Glass, right?

I submitted through Google's #IfIHadGlass campaign, where you had to submit via 140 character (and an optional video or photo) what you would do if you had glass.

I submitted the following video:

Every day on my commute,  I see a crazy amount of homeless individuals.  On my 10 mile drive from the South Bay into Santa Monica,  I see the same homeless people everyday. 

Most of them have a commute similar to mine. They head north on Lincoln Blvd to work and head south to go home. I see them on the same street corner with their same sign, and by 5:30pm they are walking "home" to their destination, which may be located in a cardboard box, homeless shelter or under the Playa Del Rey bridge. 

What strikes me so much is the contrast that I see on this commute everyday. Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, Venice Beach etc. has a sleuth of wealthy individuals and yet the amount of homeless people is overwhelming. Its so bizarre to see a homeless man being ignored by plenty of BMWs, Mercedes, and Range Rovers. 

Heck, I'm guilty of it too. Initially, I would search my car frantically to see what spare change I had...but then as I started my work routine, I realized they had a routine. I'd see the same guy in Marina Del Rey, the same lady pushing her cart in Venice and I wondered (still do), is this a job for you? How much money do you earn pan-handling?  Some days, I would pretend to be reading a text message or fixing my hair not to have to deal. 

Sometimes, its difficult to see such sadness and poverty and often it's easier to ignore it than to do something about it. 

Now, I just give an "I see you and acknowledge you as a human" good-morning nod and occasionally share whatever lunch left-overs I have on the way home. 

I realize this is a much larger issue at hand. Many homeless people suffer from mental illness, addiction and psychiatric disorders. Others have just hit bad luck, lose hope and turn to self-medicating perpetrating a downhill battle.

Long story short, Glass provides the opportunity to showcase this......aspect and disregard of our society. Sharing this experience--will if anything else--provide awareness to the problem. My hope is to just inspire one other person on my same commute to give a nod of acknowledgement to these people, instead of blatantly ignoring a despaired soul. 

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BEFORE GLASS

In a few hours, I will be an official Google Glass explorer.

I must say that I've cheated a bit.

Last week, I spent a week in NYC demoing Google Glass with my company, Somo Global. I only wore it for about 1 minute and immediately felt simultaneously self-conscious, uneasy and ecstatic.  Then the rest of the week was spent watching my two colleagues interact with it and watching others experience the same excitement and fear of the unknown.

There's also a whole bunch of video and photos from people demoing the "OK glass: Take a picture." As you can see below, I got better at posing for these "OK Glass" moments.

Taking photos of people trying Glass

"OK glass: Take  Photo" 

By the end of the week, I'd got the hang of it!

From that 1 minute of wearing the Glass in combination with the 3-4 hours of watching others interact with it...I must say it's a fairly easy device to use. I'll soon come to know what it's like first-hand tho!

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