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Fine motor control? So gross is okay, can move arms or legs in a big way, but not fine finger movement? The general term is "Assistive Technology".

Use built-in system adaptations: change mouse sensitivity, keyboard repeat rate, use the numeric keypad to move the mouse. See Control Panel > Ease of Access Center in Windows. "Make the mouse easier to use" and "Make the keyboard easier to use". http://www.microsoft.com/enabl...

Tremors? http://www.steadymouse.com/ to dampen mouse movement.

Move the mouse using a trackball, can't click? Dwell clicker. http://sensorysoftware.com/mor...

Could move a game controller or joystick, not the mouse? JoyToKey http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/2/...

Can move head? Cameramouse, http://cameramouse.org/

Not use a keyboard? Probably up to using an "on-screen keyboard" and "switching". There's an OSK in Windows, 7 and later is OK, before then not so good. Many others, The Grid 2 is probably the best. http://sensorysoftware.com/gri.... You'll find at this point that everything is starting to look very "special needs" - the market usually addresses people with cognitive as well as physical problems, and starts to get called "AAC". But the technology is in there. You might also want to check out switching with an iPad/iPhone - recent iOS releases have fantastic switching capacity built in. Proloquo2Go is the most famous iOS app. It's expensive for an app, but it's dirt cheap compared to dedicated hardware solutions (like Stephen Hawking stuff)

Operate one control only? http://www.webbie.org.uk/onesw...

In the USA? Try finding your state's Assistive Technology Resource Center. In the UK? ACE Centre is good, http://acecentre.org.uk/.

Key thing: usually people put off acquiring and learning to use the technology until it is too late, because it's too depressing. The medical channels for getting this stuff are often slow (at least in my country, the UK) so if your friend has a progressive, degenerative disease, you might be best going with something you can get right away and is not too off-putting - if you get an iPad and use that, you can get it right now and it doesn't have as much stigma as an obviously medical device. Many of these conditions have a very limited lifespan, so you need to get something soon if it's going to be useful.

It's also worth noting that switching is really slow and painful for someone who is used to normal usage, and that the role of the main carer/partner is essential in successful adoption of this kind of technology.

(Quick whirlwind notes from a technical rather than medical guy, excuse any slightly-off nomenclature. And your friend might just need to adjust her Windows settings, and I've leapt to much more "advanced" systems than she needs - but you don't think a trackball will cut it, and she's clearly been normal up to now, so I'm thinking the worst...)

we could get a version of windows explorer navigated by playing flappy bird.

That's an interesting idea, at least from the accessibility perspective. I've wondered for a while what'd be the most effective way for someone who can only push one button to control a mouse-driven application.

In the case of the check example, why would you want to use the app on your laptop when you could just pick up your mobile

Because my mobile is an Audiovox 8610 flip phone with no camera and no web. I keep it because service costs me $65 per year, which I've gathered is close to what smartphone owners pay for a month of service. If I have a laptop, a dumbphone, and an account at a bank with no ATMs near me, how do I deposit checks?

For the games, if its an accelerometer-controlled game, or one driven by your thumbs on the touchscreen, it might not be playable on a laptop.

If there can be JoyToKey, why can't there be JoyToTouch and JoyToTilt?

that doesn't change the point that (say) Apple's Pages for iOS is a pared-down WP app designed to be manageable on an iDevice, and if you were working on a desktop you'd generally use the full-fat OS X version.

Unless Apple plans to port more features from the full-fat Mac OS X version to the iOS 5 version for use with any of several keyboard docks. Just as the MacBook was replaced with the MacBook Air, so will the MacBook Air be with the iPad. In the worst case, only application developers and people in audiovisual production would feel like needing a Mac.

That's EXACTLY what Nintendo used to do. At least during the NES era.

I wrote about this once before on Slashdot.

Basically the controller (which worked in very much the same way as what this guy builds) was $120 by itself, or $180 if you purchased it as a complete package with a new NES. Since a new NES was the same price in stores at the time, it essentially made the controller free if you didn't already have a system.

They used to distribute these to children's hospitals too. And I can't find a link to verify this bit, but I believe it was in cooperation with The Starlight Foundation.

Sadly, I never heard of a similar project for later Nintendo consoles. I can see why they don't still make these for the Wii. It's control scheme is a bit too oddball to translate to a controller like that. But I don't know why they couldn't offer something like this for the SNES / N64 / GameCube eras.

Not developing a game and looking for a market afterwards would be a good start.

That was CronoCloud's idea. Months ago, he told me I should first make a complete PC game and then pitch it to major video game developers to get it ported to consoles.

If you are out there to make money/capture a big audience outside of the console infrastructure you develop around the end user controlled devices that are already there. Mystic Mine for example could be played by 3-4 people on a netbook.

So the major labels have access to all the buttons of a gamepad, but smaller developers are limited to A. one-switch gaming or B. households with multiple PCs. In what way is this fair? Must I post the design document for a console-style game on my web site and then whine on forums about how the gatekeepers are keeping YOU from playing this game?

There are already a bunch of options for people who can't use their hands to play video games (assuming you meant quadriplegics). First result in Google provides a decent list: http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/1/AGS/AGS-head.htm

http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/2/switch-downloads.htm

An entire website devoted to games playable with one button.

If you were an amputee with a stump for a right arm, surely swinging that like it was a full arm would be enough for Natal to compute that you were making a shot at the ball.

If you've got enough of a stump that Natal can detect the motion, then you've got enough of a stump to use a prosthetic. If you've got a prosthetic, you've already got enough ability to swing around a wii-mote. It doesn't offer anything that the Wii doesn't already offer disabled people, or that these guys don't already offer One Switch if you are more disabled then that. Sure, it'd be nice to have games made for this stuff, but I remain HIGHLY skeptical about this guy's speculation.

Many new games are developed for console, so I find the controls to be dismal when trying to play on the PC. I'm much more used to having many controls than using the same buttons for 3 or more different actions based on context.

Then I guess you'll absolutely hate these games that use one button ;-)

Four hours of battery life is plenty for me. I just need it to survive long enough for my commute to finish and to reach the next outlet. I don't mind playing tethered to the wall, or even carrying around the gear. It's just the having to hold the controller instead of the unit itself (and thus having to set the PSone down somewhere) that kills it.

On the other hand, There's always my ASCII Grip

You're absolutely right. If a company would make such a product (i.e. probably millions of dollars in R&D, with little hope of making that back in profit), it would be nintendo.

No wait, check that... it is nintendo. Check out this awesome product they made back in the 80s for kids with no/little use of their upper extemities.

I remember reading about this in the old Nintendo Fun Club magazine. They didn't try to whore it out for publicity (not that that's a bad thing: I fully support companies getting good publicity for good things), but this was so low-key and classy. Nintendo - What an awesome company.

Check out these nifty one-switch games. Not just one hand, but one button. These games are controlled entirely through skillful use of the space bar.

It should be noted that although the competition was held by RetroRemakes, the entries were not limited to remakes in any way. I entered a game in this competition, and have played a lot of the other entries. If you are curious about what can be done with just a single button, this is definitely something to check out. There are something like 70 one switch games available for free here: http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/2/switch-downloads.htm /

there's plenty of one button games available here, thanks to a competition run by retro remakes a month or so ago

Switch Gaming: They sell hardware and have game reviews for PC, console, and emulated classics. Sounds like just what you're looking for.