Google's Clear Spudgun in 720p High Speed.. Cool footage

[bighead33]

*Edit by Starman*

viral marketing at its best

I wonder why they didn't hire anyone from spufiles as a spudgun expert ?

I wonder why they didn't hire anyone from spufiles as a spudgun expert ?

We would build a cannon that would beat the computer

they didn't hire anyone from spud files because all they wanted was to shoot a spud a real spud gunner would have done this



or this click here

[jackssmirkingrevenge]

Was there any need for 4 different ways of saying the same thing?

Besides, a real spudgunner would have shot the damn monitor! and sustained minor injuries from potato fragment ricochets...

[POLAND_SPUD]

heh perhaps we should create our own viral video... it might even be a direct response to theirs

you know just to draw some attention to the site


IIRC there was someone who wanted to create a compilation video of all the best guns posted, right ?

[Ragnarok]

I find the video suspect.

I will admit not being an electronics expert, but it does not seem likely to me that a computer would particularly appreciate being that close to a Tesla coil of that size.

Not that that affects how cool a spudgun looks in slow motion, but I don't know how much I trust the results of their experiments.

[Insomniac]

I was thinking the same thing, though it's possible they managed to isloate it from the coil to the degree where it would work for long enough for them to do their tests.

[Technician1002]

I find the video suspect.

The video is suspect but not for the reasons of the coil. the laptop is shielded. That is not the suspect problem. The problem is the way the page loads.

Any other old timers remember dial up? Photos and text load separately in HTML as the component files are loaded, then formatted. This page appears from the bottom up. Watch the spudgun shots frame by frame.

The page they are loading is all one photograph. The speed is simply the refresh rate of the monitor displaying the image. This is not a page of HTML components of pictures and text being formatted for the screen size of the laptop.

Other than their high speed video revealing this to anyone wishing to watch HTML components load and format, it is a very nice video. It best shows the ~2ms refresh rate of the LCD display.

[Davidvaini]

Not saying chrome isnt fast.. heck I'm using chrome right now.. it is fast... BUT....

It seems to me they are clicking the forward button and therefore already have loaded the page once before, meaning a lot of the data is stored in cache and will be substantially fast.

Not that I'm saying thats a bad experiment ... Cause in reality they are testing the speed of the browser and how fast it can render the page.. not the speed of the internet connection..

EDIT: Now after reviewing the video once more, I see that its not actually even a good browser test because its not loading html components and rendering the page, its almost as if its a picture of some kind.

Here is a picture showing the weird loading:




Now I have actually ran rendering speed tests for multiple browsers and found chrome and safari to be the fastest, then it was firefox and then IE being the slowest. But this if anything just hurts their cause as its not even doing it legit.

[Technician1002]

Thanks for the screen capture of exactly what I was pointing out. Nice job. This is showing an LCD screen update, not a browser assembling an HTML page of many files.

[Hotwired]

Maybe they're using a fast computer with a SSD and loading a cached page.

It's a load of balls compared to searching for a page you've never been to and downloading all the components but you can say legitimately that the browser is displaying the webpage quickly...

The small matter of it being almost entirely down to the hardware you're packing isn't important of course

[Ragnarok]

The problem is the way the page loads.

I had considered that - it didn't look right, and it's what set me off on looking at things.

What struck me as the biggest unlikelihood was problem was any electronics remaining stable with that kind of Tesla coil hanging around.
I have already admitted not being the greatest electronics experts, but I still find it suspect that there's not even a flicker of complaint of from that computer - I just can't see the necessary shielding.

[Technician1002]

I have already admitted not being the greatest electronics experts, but I still find it suspect that there's not even a flicker of complaint of from that computer - I just can't see the necessary shielding.

In a nutshell, the computer is in a box, much like in a microwave oven. As the frequency goes up, the size of the holes in the window become smaller. The reverse is true. As the frequency becomes lower, the size of the holes can become much larger and still provide 100% shielding. Most fundimental frequencies of tesla coils are well below the AM radio band with some harmonics in and above the AM radio band. If you wish to protect a cell phone from a tesla coil, simply slide it inside a 4 inch water pipe so it is more than 3 inches from the opening. You do not have to seal it. The setup is using a wireless mouse. I am sure the mouse was shielded except for the antenna. The same is true for the computer. It is in a box. The front is open, which is OK if the computer is not too close to the front of the box. The wavelength of the Tesla coil is too long to induce currents inside the box, but the wireless mouse is short enough wavelength to enter the cavity.

A study of Waveguides will give some dimensions of the minimum frequency that can enter a waveguide or cavity.
The minimum frequency that can get to the laptop in the box or through the front opening is in a formula shown on this PDF presentation.
http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp& ... 3fa9a54442

[subtleinten5ity]

Hey dudes, just registered on here to tell you this, but the guys on Slashdot are talking about the fact you beat them to this meme. They also linked to a making-of video that explains what the makers of the video did and why they did it.

In my assessment, it was all good and fair steps taken to make the video, they were testing page rendering and not internet connection speed, but judge for yourself at this "Making Of" video:

[youtube][/youtube]

EDIT: Be sure to read the description, it explains everything, but is too verbose and techy to repost here IMO

[jackssmirkingrevenge]

Hey dudes, just registered on here to tell you this, but the guys on Slashdot are talking about the fact you beat them to this meme. They also linked to a making-of video that explains what the makers of the video did and why they did it.

the making-of video is also in the original post of this thread

OK 'fess up, who is "Technician"? I have a few ideas

[Technician1002]

I wouldn't possibly know that technician there that mentioned it at Slashdot..

Welcome to Spudfiles. Pull up a chair and try building a launcher. It's a great break from the IT grind.

[jackssmirkingrevenge]

I wouldn't possibly know that technician there that mentioned it at Slashdot..

Indeed, you were the last person I imagined could be that guy