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A glimpse of the future?
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[Tim Wilson] “I’m not saying that you need arrow keys per se, but in the current scheme of things, there’s not a simple way to nudge something on any touch interface I’ve worked with (not that I’ve worked with them all), and frankly, I need all the nudge tools I can get my hands on.”
Oy, exactly.
LogMeIn gives you arrow keys on their virtual keyboard, and they make a huge difference.
I keep seeing these demos of laser keyboards. Maybe something like that might be a control surface of the future?
You keep your hands off the screen leaving more real estate, you won’t cover the screen with your hands, you could have a 3d control surface with moving parts, just no electronics.
If you read some of Apple’s development docs, they explicitly say that for now, tablet app design should be made for short periods. You get on, find what you need and move on.
That being said, I do like the trackpad gestures in Lion. I find them very useful and makes certain actions more efficient.
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[Tim Wilson] “Being precise on an iPad is a pain in the ass.”
Exactly!
[Tim Wilson] “Good for them for thinking of ways to reduce my opportunities for making mistakes. Fooey on them for thinking of ways to reduce my opportunities.
“Hear, hear!
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[Jeremy Garchow] “That being said, I do like the trackpad gestures in Lion. I find them very useful and makes certain actions more efficient.”
Agreed. Of all the things that have matured out of the touch explosion, I’d say the multi-gesture glass trackpad experience is by far my favorite, and by far the most useful. After two years of use, I’m not soured on pads, but I do find them limiting in many ways I never expected.
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[Chris Harlan] “After two years of use, I’m not soured on pads, but I do find them limiting in many ways I never expected.”
I know this will sound weird, but those limitations are purposeful. As I mentioned, if you read the Apple documents on how they envision designing a touch app, what it’s used for and for how long it’s used, it fits the model they envision for now.
I’m not saying this won’t need to change, and that this is the way it’s going to be forever, but as Apple does, they are taking it slow.
Although, with the announcement of Mountain Lion, they seemed to have hit the skip chapter button a little bit. I just hope Mountain Lion included some real AVFoundation control and goodness.
Jeremy
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[Jeremy Garchow] “I know this will sound weird, but those limitations are purposeful. As I mentioned, if you read the Apple documents on how they envision designing a touch app, what it’s used for and for how long it’s used, it fits the model they envision for now. “
What you are saying is interesting, but what I’m referring to is the lack of precision that seems to be a natural byproduct of using the screen itself instead of an analog device like a trackpad or touchscreen. I’ve been working with touch-like screens since I got a Cintiqe about four years back, and they have definite value, but nothing like I thought they’d have.
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[Chris Harlan] “tself instead of an analog device like a trackpad or touchscreen”
“touchscreen” should have read “mouse or graphics pad.”
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Another quick musical analogy.
We were traveling while I was in the middle of a another project in the music world.
I picked up a Martin Backpacker, a tiny, lightweight guitar with a 3/4 scale neck that I could just carry on and store overhead.It was great to be in Tortola working on the beach and on a boat, but what I gained in portability and convenience I lost in precision and more detailed control.
There are always going to be things that are best done bigger not smaller, and with an actual 3D interface built to match human physiology.
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