1. You have created a spacial music application which allows you to fill your room with a band. Using a microphone on your body (iPhone?), pulses are sent from stereo speakers to allow the computer to triangulate your position. With individual instrument audio tracks, you can move “closer” to an instrument and hear that instrument louder. This would make each listening experience interactive and unique.
2. You’ve developed a new 3D mapping application that uses standard stereo speakers and a microphone to map the 3D location of the microphone. Multiple pitched pulses will be sent and averaged to triangulate the relative microphone position. Linking data points together creates a quick and accurate 3D model that can be exported in a wide variety of 3D modeling formats.
3. Taking advantage of the “new” background push notifications in the iPhone, a pulse will let you know each time your modem connected mac receives a phone call. Using pre-defined rules or on screen interactions, you can screen the calls. If connected to wifi, you can accept the call via VoIP. If you are on a cellular network, you can choose to have the call forwarded to your iPhone.
Streaming radio for the iPhone? Clock linked to an atomic clock (probably a bit boring that one) The image has the right dimensions for an iPhone / iPod touch application.
A few people mentioned Airfoil Speakers for iPhone. As noted previously, that’s something that’s in progress. However, it won’t have a new name; I imagine it will just be called “Airfoil Speakers for iPhone” or perhaps “Airfoil Speakers Touch”.
Jared C.: #1 sounds incredibly interesting, but completely unmarketable. Perhaps the MIT Media Lab can make that. Or already has.
#2 is less interesting to me, but if it could work, it would be very cool.
#3 would rely on something that still isn’t available. Apple said September, and it’s now almost January, and nothing on Push. Beyond that, it doesn’t really fit our audio niche.
Fun ideas though.
Anyhow, Pulsar is actually unrelated to Airfoil in any way, and it’s not for the iPhone either. We’re hopeful you won’t have much longer to wait.
Maybe it is a program to allow the listening of Dolby 5.1 as binaural audio for portable listening. Many movies now have the 5.1 track included for TV. If you could use spacial audio in a similar way to WaveArts’s Panarama, you could have an amazing listening experience right at your desk for any movie!
At least I hope that’s what it is. It could be presented to the system as a 5.1 capable sound device. That way, even DVD Player and Front Row could pass along the audio to it, translate, and move right into my head!
It could also be an app that could allow us to stream video to something like an iphone, or maybe another computer via itunes, or from what ever it is…
I hope they come out with a fix to stop the split second drop outs, which I think happens when a song title is changed on a channel. It gets annoying when listening for awhile.
Also I would love to see an iPhone app come out for Pulsar. That would be awesome!!
Kyle says:
December 24th, 2008 at 2:27 pmWell, I’m certainly intrigued.
JPG says:
December 24th, 2008 at 2:58 pmSpace in stereo? What the H? Anyone have a guess?!?
Andy says:
December 24th, 2008 at 3:44 pmGuess #1: It’s a vocal processor which… makes your… voice… sound like… William Shatner
Guess #2: It’s a silencing tool. In space no one can hear you scream after all.
Guess #3: Beat box?
Ok, that’s all I got.
MCO says:
December 24th, 2008 at 4:56 pmAnother “exciting” iTunes visualizer?
muzz says:
December 24th, 2008 at 5:24 pman audiogame? nah
KevinR says:
December 26th, 2008 at 8:49 pmWell here it is Dec 26th and I am still looking for that “PULSAR”… :)
Paul Kafasis says:
December 27th, 2008 at 1:17 amNo one’s been terribly close yet. It’s audio-related, you can count on that.
Let’s see, can I give any other hints? Well, the name is more literal than you might think.
Sven says:
December 27th, 2008 at 4:17 pmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulsar
Christopher says:
December 28th, 2008 at 6:07 pmBased superficially on the logo, I hypothesise that it is an audio/radio broadcast app.
The word ‘pulsar’ doesn’t mean too much to me in a literal sense.
Paul Kafasis says:
December 28th, 2008 at 6:10 pmWell, we’ve already got a broadcast app, in Nicecast.
Sven’s link is a good one to learn more about Pulsars and see how that might relate to the name.
Luna says:
December 29th, 2008 at 12:06 amIs it an AirFoil remote control app for iPod Touch & iPhone??
Luna says:
December 29th, 2008 at 12:14 amAhh an airfoil speakers app for iPhone & iPod Touch?
Jared C. says:
December 29th, 2008 at 1:59 amI have the following three guesses:
1. You have created a spacial music application which allows you to fill your room with a band. Using a microphone on your body (iPhone?), pulses are sent from stereo speakers to allow the computer to triangulate your position. With individual instrument audio tracks, you can move “closer” to an instrument and hear that instrument louder. This would make each listening experience interactive and unique.
2. You’ve developed a new 3D mapping application that uses standard stereo speakers and a microphone to map the 3D location of the microphone. Multiple pitched pulses will be sent and averaged to triangulate the relative microphone position. Linking data points together creates a quick and accurate 3D model that can be exported in a wide variety of 3D modeling formats.
3. Taking advantage of the “new” background push notifications in the iPhone, a pulse will let you know each time your modem connected mac receives a phone call. Using pre-defined rules or on screen interactions, you can screen the calls. If connected to wifi, you can accept the call via VoIP. If you are on a cellular network, you can choose to have the call forwarded to your iPhone.
What can I say…I like to dream big.
micros says:
December 29th, 2008 at 5:13 amI reckon something that allows streaming direct to or from an iPhone
Peter says:
December 29th, 2008 at 12:44 pmStreaming radio for the iPhone? Clock linked to an atomic clock (probably a bit boring that one) The image has the right dimensions for an iPhone / iPod touch application.
Ben says:
December 29th, 2008 at 3:47 pmIs it an app for the iPhone that finds the phone number for any internet radio station and lets you call in to request a song?
Ed says:
December 29th, 2008 at 4:20 pmI’m still holding out for a way to use an iPhone/Touch as Airfoil Speakers… Pretty please!
Paul Kafasis says:
December 29th, 2008 at 11:06 pmA few people mentioned Airfoil Speakers for iPhone. As noted previously, that’s something that’s in progress. However, it won’t have a new name; I imagine it will just be called “Airfoil Speakers for iPhone” or perhaps “Airfoil Speakers Touch”.
Jared C.: #1 sounds incredibly interesting, but completely unmarketable. Perhaps the MIT Media Lab can make that. Or already has.
#2 is less interesting to me, but if it could work, it would be very cool.
#3 would rely on something that still isn’t available. Apple said September, and it’s now almost January, and nothing on Push. Beyond that, it doesn’t really fit our audio niche.
Fun ideas though.
Anyhow, Pulsar is actually unrelated to Airfoil in any way, and it’s not for the iPhone either. We’re hopeful you won’t have much longer to wait.
Ryan Dour says:
December 30th, 2008 at 1:15 pmMaybe it is a program to allow the listening of Dolby 5.1 as binaural audio for portable listening. Many movies now have the 5.1 track included for TV. If you could use spacial audio in a similar way to WaveArts’s Panarama, you could have an amazing listening experience right at your desk for any movie!
At least I hope that’s what it is. It could be presented to the system as a 5.1 capable sound device. That way, even DVD Player and Front Row could pass along the audio to it, translate, and move right into my head!
George Leger III says:
December 31st, 2008 at 2:29 pmI used to have a synth named “Pulsar”… could it be a synth or VI (Virtual Instrument) for the iPhone/iTouch, or maybe Logic/Garageband?
George Leger III says:
December 31st, 2008 at 2:34 pmIt could also be an app that could allow us to stream video to something like an iphone, or maybe another computer via itunes, or from what ever it is…
Paul Kafasis says:
January 2nd, 2009 at 6:53 pmPulsar has been unveiled: http://www.rogueamoeba.com/utm/2009/01/02/say-hello-to-pulsar/
Sorry to everyone who didn’t get what they wanted, but we hope plenty of you will enjoy it!
Neil Leitch says:
January 3rd, 2009 at 4:17 pmI hope they come out with a fix to stop the split second drop outs, which I think happens when a song title is changed on a channel. It gets annoying when listening for awhile.
Also I would love to see an iPhone app come out for Pulsar. That would be awesome!!
Paul Kafasis says:
January 3rd, 2009 at 11:48 pmNeil: We’ve heard a couple reports of this, and we’ll be looking in to it.
As for the iPhone, it’s unlikely, but we’ll see.