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"In just more than six months since the November 4 launch of Kinect for Xbox 360, Microsoft has done a complete 180 when it comes to hacks. The company has gone from not condoning hacks, to not protecting them by design to supporting hacks with a software development kit (SDK), which was released at its MIX developer conference in Las Vegas.\nThis development kit means we can expect a slew of new applications coming out soon, making it the perfect time to look back at the innovators who managed to create some unique hacks for the gaming hardware without any software support, aside from open-source drivers from other hackers.\nTake a look below for Kinect-fueled UIs, music videos, remote-controlled helicopters and more, and let us know your favorites in the comments.\n\n\n7 Mind-Blowing Xbox Kinect Hacks\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n1. Minority Report\n\nBe honest: It\u2019s the first thing you thought of when you heard about the Kinect. Well, it didn\u2019t take researchers from MIT long to replicate Tom Cruise\u2019s famous scene from Minority Report. After Kinect\u2019s release, they put out a video mimicking the film, as well as the source code itself.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n2. Gesture-Based World of Warcraft\n\nIf you thought creating a Twitter plugin for World of Warcraft was a marriage of two great technologies, then this is right up your alley. University of Southern California\u2019s Institute for Creative Technologies created a toolkit for Windows that leverages Kinect\u2019s sensors to allow for hands-free questing. This may result in an army of very fit gamers. That, or it could cut down the time players spend in the game.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n3. Virtual \u201CHole in the Wall\u201D Game Show\nIf you always wanted to appear on the Japanese-inspired game show \u201CHole in the Wall\u201D and were crushed by its cancellation, there is still hope. Frog Design created a Kinect version of the game for the 2011 SXSW Interactive opening party. It\u2019s almost exactly like the show, minus the bruises. They also deserve kudos for the 8-bit inspired interface.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n4. Invisible Man Hack\nEveryone has dreamt of invisibility at some point. This next hack gets pretty close by using the background image and overlaying it on a person. Maybe this won\u2019t let you spy on real people, but you can use it to spy on video conferences.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n5. Flying Kinect Robot\nI assume the military has taken note of this next hack, in which MIT and UC Berkley researchers teamed up to create a quadrocopter capable of autonomous flight. It uses the Kinect to take note of its surroundings, including newly introduced obstacles, to navigate a preset path.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n6. Kinect Helps the Blind\nHere\u2019s a hack that is both cool and practical. A team from the University of Konstanz in Germany paired the Kinect with a vibrating belt for tactile feedback, a laptop backpack for a brain and a Bluetooth earpiece for verbal instructions to create a tool that can help the blind navigate on their own. It even reads QR codes, which allows the setup to provide even more information to the wearer. Of all the hacks so far, this is the one that seems most ready for mass production. Sorry, World or Warcraft controller.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n7. Kinect Recliner\n\nThis was actually one of Microsoft\u2019s own hacks, which shows off what can be done with its developer tool kit. The planned release date is later this spring. Microsoft\u2019s coding4fun.com team wheeled a Kinect-controlled recliner on stage during Wednesday\u2019s Mix11 keynote.\nGestures not only control the omni-directional wheels but also the recline and horn functions.\nDoes it count as a hack if it was made by Microsoft to show off the new SDK? Not really, but it is still cool enough to make the list. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDisclosure: The author's company developed the graphics and XAML coding for the recliner app.\n\nInterested in more Tech &amp; Gadgets resources? Check out Mashable Explore, a new way to discover information on your favorite Mashable topics. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2011/04/14/xbox-kinect-hacks/>