I’m trying to figure out which pairs of tennis shoes I own that can be worn with business casual attire without looking slovenly or unfashionable. I started with the most comfortable pair, Nike Air Max Trainers. The problem is, they’re primarily white, and white tennis shoes (in my opinion) don’t really go well with anything other than workout clothes. I’ll go from the tennis shoes, to the casual shoes, to the dress shoes, and rate them in terms of comfort and how long that comfort lasts. Then they’ll be rated on what makes good fashion sense and appropriateness.
Why am I talking about shoes? ConExpo
There are going to be countless press conferences, booth visits and interviews, new product announcements, the new tech pavilion, just walking around, and so on. For an information glutton like myself, I’m going to eat it all up. And to do that, my feet are going to have to be in good shape.
In this issue, we’re talking about the latest manufacturing trends in dozers (“The New Art of Dozing” by Meredith Rutland Bauer). We dive into the latest technology being installed in some of the biggest excavators (“Big Excavators, Big Tech” by Lori Lovely). And, we’re exploring the innovations that make dump trucks and trailers more efficient and operator friendly (“Carrying the Load” by Carol Brzozowski). I have no doubt that much of what we’re reporting we’ll also being seeing on the ConExpo show floor. But I’m also willing to bet there are new innovations and technology being revealed at the convention that we’ll be writing about for months, if not years to come.
I recently blogged about “mixed reality.” We have virtual reality, in which nothing is real. We then have augmented reality, which takes your view of the real world and adds digital information on top of it. And now I just learned of a third…mixed reality. In mixed reality, you can see the real world, and you can see virtual objects, and on top of that, the virtual objects are anchored to a point in real space. Those objects can be treated as “real” and can be manipulated is different ways.
This is what I plan on keeping my eyes on, this mixed reality.
Microsoft has been working on this for a number of years, specifically with its Hololens smart glasses. Microsoft isn’t going it alone. The tech behemoth partnered with Trimble and Cambridge University to study how its mixed reality Hololens can be used specifically in the construction industry.
D’Arcy Salzmann is a senior director of strategy, the Microsoft Hololens & Studio manager, and is on the Future Bureau at Microsoft. She’ll be presenting a Tech Talk at ConExpo’s new Tech Experience.
I can remember being blown away three years ago when I came to understand telematics and machine control and grade control, and they still fascinate me. I’m thinking the new, more powerful software and technology will be even moreintriguing.
Now, here’s an important piece of advice: Do not wear the same pair of shoes two days in a row. Switch it up. There are different pressure points on your feet when you’re in different shoes, and switching shoes will avoid stressing the same pressure points. You’ll thank me later.
