Future versions of Ubuntu may include a technology that allows users to control the operating system without input device and instead show with their motions what they want the machine to do. Canonical is conducting corresponding experiments to achieve this aim.

Rather, with the aid of hardware sensors such as cameras, Ubuntu could "see" and respond to users' whole-body movements, recognizing when they are and aren't there and reacting accordingly.

"We thought about how Ubuntu could behave if it was more aware of its physical context," wrote developer Christian Giordano on Tuesday in a company blog. "Not only detecting the tilt of the device (like iPhone apps) but also analyzing the user's presence."

Thus, a display can automatically change into full-screen mode if the user leans back or moves further away from the computer while watching a video, for instance. Accordingly, when the user is not at the computer, any notifications could be shown at full-screen so they're visible from a distance.

A gesture from the user, meanwhile, could affect the launcher appearance or even launch applications through a "windows parallax" mode, which would make the desktop appear three-dimensional. In such a case, users could lean to one side to see what's behind the window in the foreground, for example.

As an alternative to cameras, proximity could also be detected with infrared or ultrasound sensors, Giordano explained.

A video on Vimeo demonstrates an early prototype of Canonical's context-aware interface in action:

Parallax and fullscreen interaction via webcam from Canonical Design on Vimeo.

At Canonical, the experimental technology is "not planned to be developed in Ubuntu any time soon," Giordano admitted. Still, "it would be great to see what the community thinks and if they can bring this further. This doesn't mean the Canonical Design team won't come back to it at some point in the future."