state of the art; tablet pc's: computing drawn anew - pen tablet for pc

David Boginov
7, 2 contrary to popular views, Microsoft is not 800-
The behemoth of the computer industry; it's the 800-pound pit bull.
No matter how mediocre the first attempt-
Whether it's Windows, handheld or online-
The company has tenaciously integrated itself, and has spent years and money to make its invention successful.
The latest example of Microsoft's tenacity is a computer design called a tablet, which was officially released today. (
Compaq, Acer, Toshiba, Fujitsu and other companies based on this design will be available in the coming weeks. )
This is the latest expression for a long time.
Run Microsoft fantasy: a future world where you can write directly on a computer screen with plastictipped pen.
You will write a stylus, mark the document on the screen, and capture the graffiti on the number equivalent to a cocktail napkin.
Pen-based computing has been a hot topic for investors and inventors for years, as we all know, but Silicon Valley is full of bodies of famous disasters.
Microsoft's own WinPad and Windows CE devices are expensive.
GridPad and Go's Eo are distant memories.
Newton of Apple rested together.
Just this year, innovation I. B. M.
TransNote and Sony's Vaio slim top Pen tablet are quietly forgotten.
But Microsoft is confident that this time, it has found the formula for the pen
The calculation was successful.
In fact, Bill Gates told an audience at a recent trade show, "within five years, I expect it to be the most popular PC form in the United States.
"Advertising is a key reason for its confidence, not some families --
The operating system running these new machines is the Windows XP tablet version. -
An enhanced version of Windows XP Professional running any Windows program.
Microsoft stressed that handwriting recognition is not an important aspect of the tablet, hoping to avoid the ridicule of Apple Newton.
The keyboard is a standard device.
This statement could surprise anyone who imagined the clipboard after hearing the term tablet --Computer shape
Where will the keyboard go?
It turns out that only a few tablets are actually tablets;
These machines include Compaq TC1000, Fujitsu-style ST4000, and Motion m101 with separate or removable keyboards.
Other models of laptops, including Toshiba laptops and Acer TravelMate C100, are first similar to traditional laptops.
When you don't need to type, you can rotate the screen 180 degrees and fold it down on the keyboard.
This makes a double
Thickness plate, its touch
Expose sensitive surfaces and prepare for handwriting.
The screen only responds to special magnetic Touch-tipped stylus.
When you write, you are free to put your hand on the screen without worrying that your meat will trigger a random "Mouse Click ".
On the other hand, this arrangement does not allow you to use your nails or toothpicks at a critical moment, just as you do with the palm organizer.
If you put the stylus in the wrong position, your expensive touch screen will become numb.
It's fun to write on the screen.
Nevertheless, it is not as satisfying as paper.
Due to the unfortunate location of the "right mouse button", your work is often interrupted by unwanted Windows shortcut menus-
Switch on pen shaft--
The natural grip of the fingers.
You also miss the appeal of real paper;
Trying to write on the glass is like trying to hold a Pole jump on the ice.
The highlight of the tablet is a new note --
Take a program called Windows Journal
It shows a photo of a lined writing paper that you can fill with your own scribbles.
After taking notes, you can move the handwritten blocks, delete them, and even use the color or "bold "(
Fat pen).
Incredibly, you can even search for certain words in your entire "remarks bar", even if you write them on the edge or up sidedown.
This feature alone is very useful and clever, and you are almost beginning to believe Microsoft's claim that there is no good reason to convert your notes into typed text.
Then advertising will be integrated into reality.
Text is not by chance the most popular electronic format in the world.
For most people, typing is much faster than handwriting.
The text is also generally readable, which is indescribable for many handwriting.
Text can be edited, checked spelling, refreshed, formatted, copied, pasted, email
Mail and reuse.
In contrast, to share handwritten tablet notes with others, you have to export them as TIFF graphic files or web pages, or have your colleagues download the free log viewer Microsoft intends to put on its website.
Neither of these methods will win brownie points for you in the office.
Because almost every program understands typing text, typing text is also a global standard.
But there are only a few programs that accept tablets-
Handwriting style
For example, tablet users can download a free software plug-in
Let them add handwritten comments to the Microsoft Office program.
This Office Pack, as it says, lets Outlook send a handwritten emailmail --
Interesting new things
It is true that your recipient will not be able to search for your letter, sort it, or copy its contents, as your message is sent in the form of an additional graphic. (
In fact, the recipient's email
The Mail program doesn't show the graphics and can't see your notes at all. )
Nevertheless, handwriting can add a new intimacy to e-commerce
Mail, Express personality in a way that can't be touched by typing words.
On the other hand, Microsoft missed a big ship in the Word component of the Office Pack.
You can't simply mark word documents with circles, arrows, and horizontal lines, just like proofreading with a red pen.
You can do this in PowerPoint, or you can import a Word file into Windows Journal as a frozen drawing and mark it there.
But from the text itself, your handwriting is limited to the square box on the edge.
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This piece of ink
The programs that are enabled so far will only benefit you.
You end up wanting to enter text in 10,000 other Windows programs, which means you have to use handwriting recognition after all.
To use the "write to any program" function of the tablet, First Call a floating window called the tablet input panel.
After you write a few words and pause, the typing explanation of what you write will "type" into your document.
Handwriting recognition is usually accurate if your script or print is very neat ---
But often "often" is not good enough.
The error is small but infuriating, tsetse fly for Windows: "I'll see you next week" becomes "Jill will see you next week" and "This software is terrible" becomes "this
Every wrong transcript, poor punctuation, and inappropriate capital words will force you into extreme touch cramps --
Microscopic surgery on screen
When you try to correct the first transcription problem without introducing a new problem, time goes.
Also, there is no way to enter a word in all capital letters, just like using this panel in "We like computers;
This attempt is lowercase.
A Microsoft spokesman admitted that even he would not be like e-
Using handwritten mail and URLs-
He uses the keyboard. On the laptop-
The shape of the tablet is not a problem.
But if you have a slate
Shape model, you have to summon the miniature model
On-screen keyboard, you hit its key with a pen.
Is this progress?
Basic Voice Ads for tablets
And recognition software.
Headset microphone required (not included)
, A keyboard that corrects transcription
Listen to the workers within the scope and the patience of the work.
I tried out five tablets: two tablets
Style machine with optional docking station (
Sports and Fujitsu)
, Two laptops with rotating display (
Acer and Toshiba)
A fantastic hybrid from Compaq. (
It is a tablet with a keyboard, with a keyboard on its back.
You can rotate the keyboard through space until it is locked to the standard laptop location--
Or remove it completely. )They're nice-
Looks like some neat, functional lightweight machines.
For example, you can rotate the screen image 90 degrees by touching the button.
In fact, when Compaq and Motion tablets are in their dock, the screen image automatically rotates when you rotate the tablet itself.
On the other hand, each tablet lacks a serial port and a parallel port, and many tablets have insufficient screen size (10. 4 inches)
A cd or DVD drive is usually an external component that you must carry alone.
To reduce heat and extend battery life, most of these devices contain cooling-
The processor runs slowly.
The flat panel design works well in the office;
You can pop up one from its dock
$250 or $300 extra)
You can attend the meeting without turning off the machine.
However, you should not consider it a replacement for a standard laptop;
It sounds strange. it's very troublesome to take these pills on the road.
There are not only so many parts to carry (
External CD drive, power cord, keyboard)
, But the delicate screen will be exposed during transportation.
Add a padded slip sleeve to your device list.
Clamshell design and Compaq hybrid are more practical as they are all
It will only become a mature laptop for tablets if necessary.
The trouble is, most of the cost is $2,200. -
Than equal equipment, non-
Laptop Tablet
You have to pay $500 more for that touch screen. (
Compaq has adopted different economic strategies.
Its TC1000 costs just $1,700, about the same as a regular laptop ---
But the Transmeta processor is not particularly trendy, and the screen is bleak and rough. )
No doubt: the touch screen is a useful enhancement.
You can use the tablet standing. -
To be sure, it's not what people do every day, it's convenient in certain areas of work. Tablet PC-
Compatible drawing and sketch programs such as Corel Grafigo and Alias SketchBook provide unparalleled pleasure in drawing directly on the screen. (
In addition to the cheap Compaq, the harder it is for you to put up with a pen on the model, the fatter it is. )
For those of you who have handwritten notes at a meeting but don't need to pass on, Windows Journal may be an attractive option.
However, these are isolated benefits for isolated situations: Insurance surveys, graduate school courses, hospital rounds, parcel delivery, and more.
For everything else, writing on the screen is mostly a novelty, an expensive demo software that brings pointless obstacles to many quick and simple tasks on traditional laptops
Especially in this economic environment, it seems unlikely that the public will be able to get out of the way to Microsoft, thanking them for paying a premium of $500 for the opportunity.
At the same time, Microsoft faces a strong competitor who dominates the business --meeting note-taking market.
This is a rugged, collision-proof portable device that can accommodate any writing tool and feels like paper and cost.
02% of the tablet.
If what you want is prestige, you can even tell your friend that it has a fancy name: Windows XP Legal Pad Edition.
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A version of this article was printed on page G00001 of the National edition on November 7, 2002, with the title: Art status;
Tablet: Redraw the calculation.