Comments on: I just need a little touch….

By: Ben Kepes

Ben Kepes — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 01:47:08 +0000

@MF that’s pretty cool – it’d be good to talk to the people who developed this…

By: robin

robin — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 08:03:41 +0000

This is such an ugly computer.

I mean, it’s Ugly with a capital U.

Watch it get covered in fingerprints and greasy streaks.

And to those who say that beauty doesn’t matter, look at your watch, your clothes and your car. You don’t live in a tent, either …

As Rod observed, HP just announced around 50 new products, and Apple just one.

By: Ben Kepes

Ben Kepes — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 07:41:41 +0000

@ dan – I like the idea of a waist height desk and touchscreen monitor on that – I jump around the place and standing to compute works for me

@ julian – what was that stuff called??? Oh yeah soap! But seriously – good screen protectors and a packet of monitor wipes have it sorted

By: M Freitas

M Freitas — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 04:54:41 +0000

By the way this is the 2nd generation of these computers – they have been around for about 12 months now – check http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?contentid=6974 and scroll down to a couple of pictures with Jay pointing to the screen on the previous version.

What you might now know: the technology is actually developed in Auckland.

By: Julian

Julian — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 03:43:09 +0000

What about grubby fingerprints?

By: Dan Randow

Dan Randow — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:51:18 +0000

Try holding your hands up to your computer screen and counting to 100.

I’d trade mapping between my hand and my eyes for being able to use the thing without breaking my body. Mapping is a task we’re really good at (people adapt to image-inverting glasses in a few days), and a mouse _is_ tactile.

Touch screens work well for kiosks where the screen is at about bench height. Putting them where we put regular monitors is an attractive idea, but have doubts about how workable they are for sustained use.

The same problems affect touch screens of a whiteboard’s form factor. Computer-use is much more intensive and sustained than writing a few things on a black or white board. (And these have the additional problem that you tend to stand in between the screen and the audience.)

Tabletop touch screens have the obvious problem that you can’t sit around them.

Give me cheaper, better, and more portable data projectors.