Tangible Interfaces for Computers

Jesrad writes "A friend pointed me to this impressive demonstration of the SenseTable by James Patten, of the Tangible Media Group project of the MIT. This project aims at conceiving better human-machine interfaces by using the concept of physical objects that the user can manipulate, to represent abstract computer data and commands. The device looks and works a lot like what was envisioned in Minority Report, it uses pressure to track blocks on a sensitive surface, and feeds back to the user by superimposing graphical data. Want to change the volume of your MP3 player? Just put a block on it and turn like you would a radio knob. Menus and commands are accessed by moving a block along command hierarchy, represented in a simple tree, or by touching the command's name. So far it only lacks a device for text input, like a keyboard, but maybe voice recognition will replace it?"

Comments

Combine with smoke screens !

[Jesrad]

Now we just have to convince the guys who make these to associate with the Tangible Media people. Minority Report indeed.

Re:Keyboard implementation should be easy...

[Jesrad]

Change your keyboard layout (which would be projected on the SenseTable) by dragging the letters around ? The possibilities are nearly endless.

Or, alternatively,

[fireboy1919]

It won't work.

The typewriter interface has been with us for over a century. We've become accustomed to it.

I remember watching Minority Report and thinking "people don't like computers now. Do you think they'll be willing to learn such an obviously unintuitive and totally new interface?"

This seemed like it would be especially true outside the tech sector, such as, for instance, in law enforcement.

Remember that the only intuitive interface is the nipple. Everything else is learned. Some people may use this, yes, but I doubt most. I don't think most can deal with anything beyond using the mouse and keyboard.

Otherwise, the following things would be used, since they're faster even though they have a higher learning curve:
-mouse gestures would be HUGELY in use
-keyboard shortcuts would be known by almost everyone
-everyone would be using vi or emacs in a wysiwsg mode instead of wordpad/notepad/word.
-User interfaces with only a single type of action (clicky-clicky) wouldn't be popular.

When and if this is ever true of most of society, then we'll be ready for the new interfaces.

Re:Or, alternatively,

[Shrubber]

I think it would *especially* be easier to implement outside of the tech sector where you do have a lot of people who are not used to the typewriter interface, even today.

A huge number of people have no idea what they're doing with a computer in their jobs, they simply are trained to press buttons and click a mouse in a certain set of steps in order to do what they need to do in order to get their paycheck. Really most office workers aren't much different than Pavlov's dogs.

On the other hand those people are going to be easier to train to use a completely new interface seeing as they don't know the underlaying reasons WHY they do what they do today.

Obviously the people who have grown up with what we have today will take longer to get used to anything new, but people have managed to learn how to use new input interfaces (mouse, touchpad, "nipple"), graphical user interfaces, etc. I'm not so sure about how useful something like this will be in reality, it has a great gee whiz factor, but if it works well people can adapt.

Re:Or, alternatively,

[NanoGator]

"The typewriter interface has been with us for over a century. We've become accustomed to it."

I agree with you that the typewriter interface isn't going anywhere, but I don't agree with your reasoning.

These days, computer fear is dying. Go back to the 80's. How many people had computers? How many have computers today? Look at how kids use computers today, do you really think that they're suddenly not going to want to use them 30 years from now?

So why do I feel that the typewriter interface isn't going away? That answer is very simple: Tactile interface. Not only can keys be found without having to have your eyes right on the keyboard, but that click a key makes is a subtletey you are constantly aware of.

I think virtual keyboards will show some success in the marketplace, there are times where they'd be incredibly useful. But they wont replace tactile keyboards. I'm not really a betting man, but I would be willing to bet that successful virtual keyboards will emit a beep when a button is hit.

I think Final Fantasy had it right. They depicted use of holograms for computer interfaces. They weren't flat Star Trek LCARSesque screens, they were three dimensional buttons along with turny knobby spherey things. The user could feel the objects as though they were solid. Aki Ross even had one of those strapped to her arm. Pretty slick.

Exactly the Wrong Direction

[BinBoy]

I hate this whole movement. Using computers should become EASIER. Who wants tired arms from searching on the computer or back pain from moving files? I'd prefer to do this stuff with a click of a mouse button.

Re:What does Doug think?

[skaffen42]

But a more dramatic example of the slowness of cultural change is the fact that I am typing this on a QWERTY keyboard. Dvorak [mwbrooks.com] has been around for years but still we type on devices that show their Victorian age heritage. Even when there is no need at all for the random shuffling of the alphabet across the current keyboard in the way we use it!

You know that this is all a myth, don't you? It is one of those "geek myths" people keep on repeating to each other without really bothering to check the facts.

I know, I used to do tell this story as well. Then I read a bit more about it and realized that there was a bit more to the story than I thought.

Straightdope summarizes it well: "(1) the research demonstrating the superiority of the Dvorak keyboard is sparse and methodologically suspect; (2) a sizable body of work suggests that in fact the Dvorak offers little practical advantage over the QWERTY; (3) at least one study indicates that placing commonly used keys far apart, as with the QWERTY, actually speeds typing, since you frequently alternate hands; and (4) the QWERTY keyboard did not become a standard overnight but beat out several competing keyboards over a period of years. Thus it may be fairly said to represent the considered choice of the marketplace."

No,This is perfect for Dyslexics and others!

[Wacky_Wookie]

This is perfect for Dyslexics!

And I should know, I am one.

For Dyslexics and people who have never used a computer before, a command line only interface is a MASSIVE hurdle. A GUI speeds up the time it takes a dyslexic to learn about computers by a factor of 10. A tactile user interface would IMHO speed up the learning (and normal human/computer interactions) by a factor of 1000.

For example I cannot spell, yet I'm asked to write the User Docs for my firms computer systems all the time. If I were in the land of Typewriters, I would probably not even have a job, let alone be asked to write for other people. So the GUI did for my computer interest, the same thing computers with spell check did to my Employability.

As a dyslexic, a TUI (Tactile User Interface) matched with a good 2D or 3D GUI is the Holy Grail.

In fact, a TUI would turn a 3D user interface into use full human/computer interaction method.

The Human brain is designed to work in a 3D space with tactile feedback. Anything else requires the brain to waste resources on "translator system" in order to use things like command line only interfaces. And for Dyslexics, everything is mucked up in "translation".

If computers had been command line only when I was in school, I would not have been interested in them and would not be doing what I am doing right now: Sitting in the office on Saturday night (I'm in London) Posting on Slashdot instead of ironing out the kinks these new computers that my firm just bought.

Wait...maybe GUI's are bad J:)

Also a "tangible" input device: Touchstream kbd

[Anonymous Coward]

I am typing this on a Touchstream keyboard (by Fingerworks)--essentially a glide-pad, like on your average laptop, but keyboard-sized and with letters printed on. It's very interesting to use, and I've concluded that I'll stick to it ... bit weird to have a keyboard without any keys at first :) but you get used to it.

It's definitely very cool to move the text cursor around, directly linked to the movement of your left index + middle finger (seemingly), and to be able to cut/paste by "picking" text with thumb + index and then "dropping" it :)

Definitely an interesting piece of technology. I can recommend that keyboard, it's worth a try for any geek.

Btw, this was already featured twice: /. story 1, /. story 2.