11:28 AM
Jean Willard
HP just came out with a new computer called the HP Touchsmart PC. Basically, they combined a touch screen monitor with an all-in-one computer.
I've had this debate many times with friends and we all agree that touching the screen would be cool at first, but could never be as productive or precise as the trusty old mouse.
Sure you could touch the screen to play with pictures, flip through album art, and maybe even doddle a little bit. But what else could you do more than that, not much. Also, if you are forced to touch the screen, where's the rest of your physical desk space? For example, right now I have three monitors attached at the end of my desk, giving me plenty of physical desk space for paperwork, keyboard, phones, and more. If we're forced to touch the screen to perform basic tasks, the monitor will have to set at the edge of the desk, and force you to keep everything else behind and next to the computer--doesn't sound too efficient to me.
Maybe something like this would be perfect for the kitchen, bathroom, or even a boat, but on the standard computer desk or office, not so much.
If you think otherwise, make yourself heard.
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3 comments:
Touch on a desktop makes sense, but there are some ergonomic issues that need to be worked out first.
Microsoft's surface springs to mind. What a horrible interface to use for serious work. Having to hunch over a table top surface to interact with a computer. It would be perfect for an organizational drop space though. Drop your phone there to sync and charge, glance at important info, be on your way.
Upright surfaces might take off in scientific application, but does the benefit of an upright 'Minority Report' interface out weigh the price an support needed? Over say a good white board and projector?
I can see this being useful if youre a DJ and want a nice interface for people to make requests to your playlist. I've seen this at dance partys and was extremely impressed.
The other thing that comes into play here that would really flip my ish is the fingerprints. I am constantly cleaning the screen of my iPhone to get rid of smudges. I couldn't imagine the amounts of screen cleaner and time I would waste trying to keep a monitor clean. I'm sure I'd get used to it eventually and not be so obsessive-compulsive about it. Besides that I actually think it could be a cool idea. Eventually everything will be run through our computers anyway. Who's going to need deskspace for a phone or keyboard or mouse. It's only a matter of time.
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