Multimedia apps that use webcam input can be built Microsoft Office Labs released Tuesday its Touchless SDK for developers to experiment with multi-touch technology.With the SDK, developers can build multi-touch applications that use a color marker and webcam for input. Utilizing the webcam, applications can track the location and size of the color marker to enable multi-touch functionality without touching a surface, according to Microsoft.The SDK can be used to build games or applications that could, for example, browse through media, said project developer Mike Wasserman. A demonstration of the technology can be viewed here. “I could see this as a great way to say, browse media like pictures, music, and video on your computer,” Wasserman said. A user could, for example, could use hands to manipulate an image on a screen and give it annotations.With the SDK, which is available on Microsoft’s CodePlex site, developers can view, use, and contribute to the prototype code. The SDK leverages Microsoft’s DirectShow API for media streaming.“Once you have a webcam installed, you can use our SDK to create these applications,” Wasserman said. Software DevelopmentDevelopment Tools