On Aug 28, 2012, at 11:32 , Tom C wrote: >> >> The look and feel is different. Apple makers a big deal of that. I'm >> not saying it's better; just harder to base a lawsuit on. >> > Even with the gesture related controls. Is it right to patent > the fact that spreading your fingers means get larger and pinching > them means shrink. Is there another gesture that makes more sense? > Maybe dialing clock-wise to indicated expand, and anti-clock-wise to > shrink?
I believe those gestures were all first patented for the notebook computers when Apple placed a trackpad by shifting the keyboard up next to the screen. They shortly (after the patent was given) assigned these gestures to the electrostatic pad a few at a time to control movement on the screen. one finger, two, three, four, tap once or twice or three times, fingers and tapping, and finally, pinch and spread with two or more fingers. When Apple went down this road, Microsoft was pushing tiny little trackballs stuck in the crack at the edge of the keyboard. Oh yes, that was after Apple placed a trackball between the keyboard and the front edge of the computer, Hmm Power Book, Powerbook Duo. The Japanese makers placed a little red tipped dick in the middle of the keyboard for the user to stroke instead. :-) PULLLEASE! Credit where credit is due… (of course, I disavow any errors historical or hysterical in this message) Joseph McAllister pentax...@mac.com “ It is still true, as was first said many years ago, that people are the only sophisticated computing devices that can be made at low cost by unskilled workers!” — Martin G. Wolf, PhD -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
