Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!van-bc!tacitus!clh From: clh@tacitus.tfic.bc.ca (Chris Hermansen) Newsgroups: comp.sys.laptops Subject: Re: Any impressions of the new GrIDPad? Message-ID: <144@tacitus.tfic.bc.ca> Date: 19 Jan 90 02:40:21 GMT References: <15545@boulder.Colorado.EDU> <15782@boulder.Colorado.EDU> Reply-To: clh@tacitus.UUCP (Chris Hermansen) Organization: Timberline Forest Inventory Consultants, Vancouver BC Lines: 42 In article <15782@boulder.Colorado.EDU> fozzard@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Richard Fozzard) writes: >In article g1@drivax.UUCP (Bruce Holloway) writes: >>I dunno about you, but I can type a hell of a lot faster than I can >>legible write. ... >Perhaps a "Terminal Netnews Addict" can type that fast, but the vast >majority of people (not just us computer geeks) cannot. Also, the GRiDPad C'mon now. You too can type faster than you can write, and ESPECIALLY faster than you can print. And have you ever tried copying something by hand without looking at what you're writing? Seriously! Buy a cheapo clone and someone's typing tutor program, you'll see. The results will be worth it! >can be used *standing up* by holding it with one hand and writing with the >other, just like a scratchpad. How fast can you type with one hand? Now this sounds like a more interesting application. Sort of the Sony Writeman (no attempt to steal any trademarks here!) approach to life. I have a picture of some astronmer prodding the bowels of her solar telescope and taking notes on her Gridpad. I'd bet this application is in the minority, though. Seems to me that the "point-and-click" metaphor has been fairly well demonstrated to fit into the situation of the computer having more information than the user (ie the "majority of people" mentioned above). In the case where the user has more useful information than the computer (ie us computer geeks), I can't say that I'd prefer to write, rather than type, commands. By the way, have you checked out the portable Mac? It brings the point-and-click metaphor to the (almost) hand-held world. Besides, I *DEFY* you to conceive of how the Gridpad is going to support all those EMACS users out there :-) Chris Hermansen Timberline Forest Inventory Consultants Voice: 1 604 733 0731 302 - 958 West 8th Avenue FAX: 1 604 733 0634 Vancouver B.C. CANADA uunet!ubc-cs!van-bc!tacitus!clh V5Z 1E5 clh@tfic.bc.ca -or- Chris_Hermansen@mtsg.ubc.ca May you work in an interesting place.