Fusion creates live 3D models of both people and objects, while Interactions adds a whole variety of recognizable gestures to the Kinect for Windows SDK ("push-to-press buttons, grip-to-pan capabilities, and support for smart ways to accommodate multiple users and two-person interactions, " says Microsoft).

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The new proposals include goals to reduce the amount of inputs required to operate a device - the number of buttons to push - and reducing unnecessary visual information.

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"Caregiving for a parent can bring up a lot of emotion -- parents know how to push our buttons and that does not stop with dementia, " Morhardt said.

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InterVideo has made it clear that it is issuing a legal player that won't push the DVD industry's buttons -- that is, one that licenses the Content Scrambling System (CSS) -- and the software thus cannot be open source.

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The idea, Morin says, is that people do not want to push buttons all the time to check-in and may feel comfortable with their close friends and family knowing where they are.

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There are plenty of buttons to push, including one for one-touch interior lighting.

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