Jazzmutant's Lemur could possibly be one of the most innovative control surfaces that exists so far. They have worked very hard on creating a platform that not only gives you a multitouch screen, but also gives you ways to interact with the screen. The existing operating system provides capabilities like physics that allow you to create movement based energy, force and other parameters. Additionally, the Lemur comes with a nice Javascript implementation for creating other interactive elements.
This is where the Lemur is right now. But, Where is it going? Max4live.info has recently spoke to a lot of people in the industry and we have gathered some information that seems pretty consistent across the board. As a disclaimer, we have to say that this information is still rumor and speculation, but we believe it to be pretty close to the truth.
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Jazzmutant has already announced on their forums that they are working on something for M4L. What that something is, they will not say. So here is what i gathered.
The rumor is that Max For Live integration will include the following features:
- A Default Live Clip Launcher mode that works right out of the box
- Ability to manipulate (create, add, remove, etc..) objects on the Lemur screen right from inside M4L
- Ability to change templates from within M4L
These are the few bits of information that seemed pretty consistent. We will definitely modify this information as we get more information. These are already some nice tidbits. The fact that you will be able to buy a Lemur with default functionality seems like a very solid proposition for people who are just getting into programming the control surfaces. The clip launcher functionality means that, "out of the box", you can plug the Lemur in and get going. Then, when you are ready to add more functionality, you can add elements right from within the M4L environment.
We here at max4live.info are very excited about the potential of this new OS. We don't believe that existing Lemur owners will be left out as it should be a OS upgrade to get the new functionality. We will have to wait and see, but it looks like a very exciting future for Jazzmutant and the Lemur. Stay tuned for updates and more info as we get it!
@DavidHenderson
I agree that it is going to be a little tougher for Jazzmutant when true multitouch monitors really start to hit the market at a reasonable price. You have to remember that most multitouch monitors at this point are 2 finger. They are just starting to release 10-finger and more.
Here are the things you have to consider.
- A multitouch monitor does not come with all of the extra goodies like the Lemur.
- Physics
- Widgets
- Max For Live integration
- The ability to use a standalone device without having to be near a computer
- Lots of support
- I do think that Jazzmutant knows that there will be a time when multitouch monitors combined with good software will be competition. I do, however, think there is a decent amount of value added features provided with the Lemur that currently a monitor is not going to give you alone. Maybe Jazzmutant will provide software when it gets to the point that the integrated solution is not selling as well. Who knows. I am sure they have something up their sleeves. They are a pretty smart company.
Mike