31–40 of 170 posts
I think in the future there will be more integration of something like the iPad or the iPhone as direct interface to the computer.
I'm amazed that Apple seems so set on the AA battery format for desk peripherals that it is releasing a AA battery charger with the trackpad. I don't find AA objectionable, but Apple's marketing regarding removable batteries centers around "we can pack more battery in by eliminating the packaging."
It's not a pocket portable so let's not get all hung up on saving space for packaging. It doesn't work that way with a Mac Pro either, why is there so much spaaaace in there?
There are so many chargeable AA's on the market that it's simple for someone to get a set of them cheaply and reuse them for a long time without having to dock their trackpad all the time. Wireless!
I already have something like 8-10 of them because I have a wii and a digital camera etc etc etc so I'm happy that I won't have to pay for a new battery in 2-3 years.
Now Apple just needs to incorporate this into the "iPad Keyboard Dock" and I'll be more than happy to buy!
How would that work? There's no cursor for it to control on the iPad.
That said, it shouldn't. Why would anyone prefer indirect manipulation of a cursor over direct manipulation of the screen elements? If you've got an iPad in a keyboard dock, you're primarily writing and occasionally navigating. I don't see the use case.
Gorilla-arm would only set in if you were primarily navigating, in which case you'd just undock the thing.
But when I moved to Apple hardware, I basically was stuck with the trackpads, but this time around, it was different. The bigger size meant less finger movement and with the advent of multi touch, it suddenly felt like a more "natural" way to control the machine.
With the newer Macbook pros came this "the trackpad is the button" functionality and while it took me a day or so of getting used to, I absolutely cannot work with the dedicated button pads any more. Seing how quickly this became muscle memory, I assume that they did something (no idea what) right when they moved to that design.
This is how I went from "I hate trackpads" to "trackpads are the only really natural way to control the machine".
With this in mind, this new Apple device really interests me and I can't wait to get my hands on one. At worst it'll be a companion to my trackball, at best, it'll replace it (still also having a mouse connected for the eventual UT match though)
Finally some of the stuff from fingerworks starts to surface as add-ons products for desktops. I've been wanting something to replace my long dead fingerworks keyboard, so I for one am happy. Now... if only there were drivers for something other than just OSX.
(and keep two spares, in case the main one ever breaks)
Finally some of the stuff from fingerworks starts to surface as add-ons products for desktops. I've been wanting something to replace my long dead fingerworks keyboard, so I for one am happy. Now... if only there were drivers for something other than just OSX.
I would replace my mouse at work with this in a heartbeat, but I'm a .net developer by day and need those windows drivers. (I use an MBP at home) I think they're missing a huge opportunity here by not providing those drivers. Obviously an opportunity they have decided they don't care about, I just wish they did.
The iPod and the iPhone are only so popular because they embraced PC in all its ... glory. Hopefully they're already working on this.
* If it will be Inkwell compatible someday if not now: http://www.apple.com/accessibility/macosx/physical.html
* If it will BT pair with iPhone like the BT keyboard.
I'm amazed that Apple seems so set on the AA battery format for desk peripherals that it is releasing a AA battery charger with the trackpad. I don't find AA objectionable, but Apple's marketing regarding removable batteries centers around "we can pack more battery in by eliminating the packaging."
AA batteries are cheap and common, so people will have spares to swap.
OTOH laptop batteries are much more expensive and non-standard, so less users are going to have spares. It makes sense to cater to majority of users who never buy & carry extra battery.