On 25.11.2008, at 02:27, Ken Ritchie wrote: > Does anyone else recall recurring debates about cursor size and the > effect on one's ability to visually discover the location of a > cursor? Yes, there are tradeoffs between simply making cursors > larger (easier to discover location) or making cursors smaller > (easier to place precisely, eclipses fewer pixels)...especially when > the pointing devices are other than by directly touching the display > screen. Such is the case with the present XO laptops. > > To sidestep those debates, I imagine a different way -- one in which > cursors could be of any size, color, shape, etc. -- and yet still > draw my eye quickly to the locus of the current cursor. > > > VISION: Each time my finger tip lands on the touch pad I see a > circular wavefront (on the display, of course) briefly emanating > from the point of the cursor. The wave gently fades as it grows and > dissipates. Thus, it appears as if the screen is overlaid with a > clear puddle and I have lightly touched its surface. The effect > could be simulated with a simple ring; probably a simpler and > cheaper computation than a "wave" effect. A bitblt series would do. > > > Like ripples in a puddle, the visual effect and conceptual metaphor > would seem to draw on nearly universal human experience from early > childhood. Of course, the HCI labs around the world could experiment > with such effects (if not already) to understand the human factors > and optimize the man-machine interface. Meanwhile, it seems worth > trying, pragmatically. > ;-)
That is an interesting idea (though I would have to see it first to find out if I like it or not). How would I get an event from the XO touchpad when it is touched? (I wanted to figure this out before replying to your Etoys list msg ...) - Bert - _______________________________________________ Sugar mailing list Sugar@lists.laptop.org http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/sugar