Microsoft Universe

An interstellar showcase of Windows 8’s connectivity capabilities, using distributed processing to control mass particle flow. This is an abstract data representation of Windows Live Tiles – in the way they surface the latest data to the user, so this app surfaces the latest vote data and represents it back to the user in an abstract manner. What you see on a single screen is a planet with particles orbiting it and a poll asking SXSW attendees what their preferred topic of interest is at the event. The colour of the last vote made is represented in the planet and the particles orbiting it. This single screen sits with up to 74 other screens on a large display (these are a mixture of Windows 8 tablets and all-in-one PCs). Each screen connects with one another, with particles travelling across the entire area of the display. Attendees can manipulate the size and position of the planets on each screen, adjusting the direction and speed of particles travelling between the screens.