Let your fingers do the clicking, scrolling and swiping.I have two things to say here. Firstly, here's another device that also lets your fingers do the clicking, scrolling and swiping.
Introducing Magic Trackpad. The first Multi-Touch trackpad for Mac desktop computers[1]. Only[!] £59.
Cheap mouse. £3.99
Secondly, here's a USB multitouch keyboard. I used to have two of these, bought late 90's/early 00's, and I thought they were wonderful. In case it's not clear from the photo, the left and right panels are like two giant 1/2 keyboard sized mouse touch pads (they're flat except the tiny bumps to indicate the home row) but they can recognise how many fingers are touching. You could not only type, but you could and make 'gestures' involving 2-5 fingers, left and right handed to not only emulate the mouse, but a variety of macros (open/close/new, copy/paste etc.) and some application specific gestures.
The company who used to make this useful product were bought out, and closed down, by Apple in 2005. This keyboard is no longer produced (in this format anyway...)
The Fingerworks Touchstream LP.
About the only new things Apple have introduced[2] into this product is bluetooth connectivity between the unit and the main computer, and making it sound like something new. This stuff was recognisable in the late 90's guys. And Apple didn't even invent it.
[1] Technically I'm sure it's not the first, since I'm sure even a Mac would recognise a Touchstream if it was plugged into it.
[2] They have of course, removed the ability to type letters on it, reduced the size, and (presumably) removed the ability to use it on a normal PC.
LOL, Apple are renowned for taking old technology, wrapping it up in shiny-ness, sprinkling some of their magic marketing fairy dust and then charging three times the going market rate for it. Works every time
ReplyDeleteThey're still twats for discontinuing the Touchstreams. I miss mine.
ReplyDelete