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Encouraging Glass wearers not to "Glass-out," "rock Glass while doing high-impact sports," or worst of all, "be creepy or rude," Google lays down the law regarding Glass etiquette.
Google made "don't be evil" the company mantra during its rise to tech industry power. Now the search giant is warning owners of Google Glass not to be "creepy" in a better-late-than-never nod to the etiquette questions surrounding the wearable computer.
Encouraging Glass wearers not to "Glass-out," "rock Glass while doing high-impact sports," "wear it and expect to be ignored," or worst of all, "be creepy or rude," Google on Tuesday laid out its take on Glass etiquette on the Glass Explorer blog.
"Our Glass Explorer community, which consists of people from all walks of life, actively participates in shaping the future of Glass," the unsigned message read. "With new technology comes new questions, and our Explorers help to answer those questions. The first Explorers were developers from Google I/O 2012 and people who told us what they would do #ifihadglass. Since then, we've continued to expand the Explorer Program. We're at the start of a long journey and we're looking to our Explorers to help us develop this new technology."
What follows is a list of "do's" and "don't's" for folks wearing Glass in public. The wearable computer has been through a couple of iterations and has a growing developer ecosystem, but it's still only available in limited quantities.
Google has unveiled a prescription version of Glass. Companies like Virgin Atlantic have explored the idea of utilizing Glass to enhance customer service. Glass is clearly gaining some mainstream traction, but much of the public remains wary of a product that has been associated with privacy invasion, detachment from the real world, and out-of-control nerdiness.
The Glass Explorer post addresses some of those issues head-on, even acknowledging the derogatory term "Glasshole" that critics have attached to the most showy and intrusive of Glass cultists.
"Glass was built for short bursts of information and interactions that allow you to quickly get back to doing the other things you love. If you find yourself staring off into the prism for long periods of time you're probably looking pretty weird to the people around you," the post warned.
Of course, getting some odd looks is probably among the more benevolent responses Glass wearers have received from a puzzled public. Some folks have been outright hostile to the idea of a camera-equipped computer that's always at eye-level and could conceivably be recording them without warning.
Case in point, the Seattle restaurant which 86'ed one Glass wearer last November when he refused to remove his headgear.
Glass evangelists are quick to point out that the system's red light turns on when it's recording, but as the Explorer post appears to admit, they're missing the point. People don't like being filmed without their permission, even though simply being out in public opens one up to being recorded in all manner of ways.
While camera phones or even regular cameras can also be used to record strangers without their knowledge, there's a perception that the visible action of lifting a device to snap a shot offers some kind of warning to passersby, whereas Google Glass might be used more sneakily to that affect.
And anyway, recording people sneakily with non-Glass equipment is also considered rude by many. Others may disagree, often vehemently, but fighting a war over one's right to film people in public should take a back seat to presenting a better PR face for the technology, according to Google.
"In places where cell phone cameras aren't allowed, the same rules will apply to Glass. If you're asked to turn your phone off, turn Glass off as well. Breaking the rules or being rude will not get businesses excited about Glass and will ruin it for other Explorers," the Explorer post said.
Note that Google didn't go so far as to recommend taking the headgear off completely in those instances, but it's a start.
via Technology - Google News http://ift.tt/1oQ2mhl
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