The Sensory Operating System (SOS) Era

Microsoft Windows 7
Ray Kurzweil on the future of the mobile

There were pre GUI systems like CP/M, MSDOS

There were GUI systems for the last 15 years or so like Mac and Windows

Vista seems more and more like the last eeking out of the GUI operating system - taking it as far as it could go.

For most of the GUI era software lagged behind hardware but for what might be regarded as the last microsoft product in the GUI era Microsoft seemed to overestimate the cost/power of hardware available for Vista

The mouse was a radical yet natural innovation for the human-computer interface and dominated the GUI era but recently many have regarded the mouse as a barrier to even better systems.

It seems as if we are now moving into the next phase of operating system and human-computer interaction. Systems in development are more "SENSORY" - they make use of other human senses and modes of interaction - speech,touch, gesture and movement.

Recent products have informed this move to the "sensory" operating system (SOS) - the success of the iPhone with its touch interface, the success of the Wii with it's motion interface.

This is good news for Microsoft as the GUI operating system is saturated and Microsoft is losing its dominance - teh GUI operating system is a commodity now and people are caring less about the operating system - as long as you can get onto the web.

Microsoft have an opportunty to set the scene for the next generation - if they are bold enough.