After eight years of geeking over Minority Report's gesture-based manipulation interface, we're really pumped that it isn't all just movie magic anymore. It was only a matter of time before this would happen. Hackers are a crafty bunch after all.

It's always interesting to hear what new technologies are offered to what companies, and how things shake out. The iPhone, for instance, was initially turned down by Verizon before it went to AT&T. Turns out Apple could have stolen a key technology away from Microsoft's gaming division: the Kinect.

Cue the applause. Microsoft's Xbox 360 Kinect motion detecting camera is going to be huge. Why does it deserve credit? Microsoft's managed to optimize Kinect down to the core right up to tomorrow's launch.

A leaked instruction manual for Microsoft's new motion-controlled camera, Kinect, hit the Web last night and is already spurring a lot of controversy. The graphic shows a requirement of six to eight feet of space needed to set up the system for it to track your body gestures properly. That's a lot of real estate, but there is a rationale, believe it or not.