Drew Baumann | Fullscreen BEAM, Google Glass, and Future Tech
Drew Baumann got his lucky hands on Google’s ongoing project, Google Glass. He saw there was no way to stream videos straight from your Glass to YouTube and decided to build an app for it. We get in touch with Drew and talk about his new BEAM app, Google Glass, and the future of tech.
TechZulu: How did BEAM come into mind?
Drew Baumann: It was simple really. I thought Google Glass was allowing people to easily share life’s moment through YouTube. At Google I/O a couple years back, showed a demo of Google Glass by watching a French woman holding her baby and recording that moment. The French woman pointed out that she can interact with her baby and technology is not getting in the way of her and her child.
So, when the Explorer versions of the Glass unit came out, there was no way to upload videos directly to YouTube. I thought that was weird as Google owns YouTube and that would be an obvious feature to have. I sought out to fix this problem and started working on the coding, even before I got the Glass unit. Once I got it, I did some final tweaks to make sure it worked and then released it.
How hard was it to work on the Google Glass?
Luckily it was fairly easy to work on since it was using a Rust API, which also allowed me to use Ruby on Rails. I soon understood the user interface and experience of Glass the longer I worked on it. I also had to think about how the user interacts with the application. That’s what developers are always facing when making a new product.
What are your main goals for BEAM?
Google Glass is an easy and convenient way in shooting a first-person video. When it is on you all the time, you can capture all the moments. Unlike your phone and camera, you don’t have to take it out, turn it on, and switch to photo or video. Glass can just shoot and capturing moments in an instant. There are a lot of viral videos and photos like Jimmy John Shark photo on YouTube. Every second you miss out on, the picture or video is going to produce less valuable content.
YouTube is great for short content. Someone told me, if you can be entertained for the first three seconds, you can gather a good number of views. It’s great for content creators to capture viral moments. Like I said earlier, Glass is also great for capturing moments like the mother and her newborn baby and still interacting with her child. You don’t need another person to take pictures or a video, no need for technology to get in the way of capturing moments.
The ultimate goal for BEAM is to create a great YouTube experience. I know there aren’t a ton of these units out yet, but there are people like me who want to capture video and send it to YouTube. I want to offer those people more options.
What’s your opinion on Google Glass?
The first week I had them, I thought it was really cool. I am an outgoing guy, but in the back of my mind, I was worried about what people would think of me wearing the Google Glass. I would think people would see me as a huge nerd or even as a terminator. But the reception of the Glass was actually positive.
I had some strain in my eye using the Glass for the first week. I wasn’t used to wearing glasses at all, so that took some time to get used to as well. But after a while I finally got used to the Glass unit.
What do you think about the privacy factor with Google Glass will be?
It’s really evident when I record a video. As you can see my screen lights up and you can see the Glass unit on. Plus, when I record something, I have to stare at you or whatever I am recording. I don’t change as a human being just because I have Google Glass. I don’t go out of my way to record inappropriate things. No one has gotten angry over my Glass unit.
One of the first nights I got these units, I went to a bar with some friends. I was worried that people would either start a fight over the privacy issue or just call me some huge nerd, but it wasn’t like that at all. People were curious about it and when people did ask what I thought about the privacy issue with Glass, I showed them how it works. Once they saw how it worked, they understood how easy it is to notice when it’s recording and that they didn’t have anything to worry about.
Which direction is Google Glass taking technology?
There are so many possibilities that I can’t speculate on it all. Maybe the consumers may decide they aren’t ready for this type of technology and it won’t come to market, but I’m hoping it will. Glass is following Google’s new mantra that technology shouldn’t be getting in the way of everyday life. The value of holding knowledge “at-a-glance” while hands free is pretty powerful too. Wearable technology is coming of age and more companies are looking into it.
What new technology advancements are you looking forward to?
The Google self-driving cars is pretty amazing. What that technology can do for transportation in general will be amazing. Think about reducing the number of accidents and creating safer roads for pedestrians. The potential for public safety is huge.
What other tech would you like Fullscreen to work on?
Fullscreen’s main focus is about content creators; helping people on YouTube. The BEAM fit into our idea, but it is not one of our main focuses. Once every month we have a thing called Fullscreen Labs, a day where we dedicate exploration, hacking, and trying out new things that we find interesting or that would help content creators. BEAM is an example of a project coming from Fullscreen Labs. I had the drive to build this for my own needs and for the content creators who got their hands on Glass.
Where do you think the LA tech scene is right now?
I think the LA tech scene is doing some great things. I moved from Iowa and took a chance to move out here to LA. I don’t know what LA is like compared to Silicon Valley, but LA has been very entertaining and interesting for me. I have been at Coloft in Santa Monica, which is full of driven people. I haven’t been around people like that before. I felt welcomed into the community and I think there are lots of hard workers. There are lots of companies that are building, growing, and bringing in money to making LA a more legitimate tech city. I like the community here and what it has to offer.
Thanks for your time Drew.
