Australia's Telerobot on the Web
- — 15 January, 2000 11:09
WEB CAMS
http://telerobot.mech.uwa.edu.au
I'm a little embarrassed to say just how exciting I found this site. It is truly addictive viewing, and I'm not kidding. But I should explain just what Australia's Telerobot is.
Hosted by the University of Western Australia, the Telerobot sits in a room and hovers over a table covered in building blocks. Internet users can log into the site as guests or fill in a questionnaire and receive a user ID (and greater access rights).
If you happen to gain control of the robot, you can manoeuvre it with X, Y and Z coordinates, open the grips, pick up a block and start to build a great monument. All the while, four Web cams show you what's going on with live updates.
I was captivated, watching a user named "Darwin Boyd" manoeuvre the Telerobot to deftly pick up a block and place it elsewhere on the table in some 20 moves.
The site's "Hall of Fame" shows what patience and skill can do, with users from around the world building some amazing structures, some taking up to five hours to create - now that's dedication! - Molly Furzer
