Are Touchscreen PCs the Next Big Thing
The keyboard and mouse are almost certainly the most recognized I/O (Input/Output) devices ever made for computers. Type on the keyboard, move the mouse (or “rodent” as we used to call them). What could be easier? This model is certainly a lot more intuitive than punch cards, entering instructions via individual switches, or old-style paper terminals. But they’re both fairly old technologies. The keyboard, of course, is derived from (even older) typewriters and teletypes. The mouse has been infesting desktops since at least the 1960s, and tablet-style pointing devices may be even older.
Manufacturers and researchers have been looking for better, even more intuitive I/O devices since the first keyboard rolled off the assembly line. The whole problem involves what’s known in psychological and design circles as “mapping,” or the way humans interpret and use tools. For instance, look at a standard round doorknob. Its very appearance suggests one should grab and turn it. Its function is mapped into our brains, so it’s fairly intuitive. Likewise with a mouse. Move it up and down, or left and right. The pointer on screen mimics that motion, so the movement is natural. Good brain mapping translates to good design.
Given all this, one of the holy grails of computing design is the touchscreen monitor. If it works properly, it eliminates the need for the mouse. It also provides direct mapping. Touch the screen in the right place and an event occurs.
This is probably why HP has been developing what are arguably the best touchscreens on the market. A new one, the model 600-1055, has just shown up on the market. It looks pretty good overall, and has full integration with the soon-to-be-released Windows 7 OS.
Probably the only real reason touchscreens haven’t taken over the market is cost. They’re far more expensive than regular monitors, and have had reliability problems in the past. At $1600 (street) the new HP continues the cost trend, but reviews indicate it’s way better than earlier models. This may be just the boost the touch paradigm needs. But I’m not sure I’d give up my desktop mouse, since I don’t like the idea of reaching for the screen. It’d be less of an annoyance on a laptop!
October 14th, 2009 at 7:38 am
The problem is you have two different ways you need to interface with the computer:
- Iconic, touch, drag and drop, select, etc, as you can do with mouse clicks or touch screen
- Entering words to generate information (keyboard–usually, although there is some voice recognition)
You have to do both types of manipulation when using a computer for most business tasks. The typical UI forces you to click various things before you can begin typing information, for example (consider creating an E-mail in Outlook). Then editing that information requires selection and copy/paste, easier with a mouse-like device. So it’s really a combination.
The ideal device would combine gesture/manipulation inputs with alphabetic or lingual inputs. Or we need to redesign the interface itself to make both types of tasks possible using the same device or make one side of the combination unnecessary (go back to DOS, anyone?
). On-screen keyboards (even with tactile feel) seem like they’d be horrible if you have a lot to type, and keyboards are horrible at moving icons around. Voice recognition is one possibility. However there must be some kind of bridge device somewhere to allow for gestures and alphabetic input…No idea what that is. I don’t know if the tablet will be it, though…maybe if they get the on-screen keyboard right.