Posted by
CmdrTaco
on from the and-it-fits-in-the-palm-of-your-hand dept.
FTL writes "Turn an ordinary wheel mouse into a 3D pointing device. All one needs is some string, some hot melt glue, and a lot of math. 3D mice have been floatingaroundforawhile, what will it take to get people to use them?"
What's the point?
by
dirty
·
· Score: 5, Insightful
Seriously, what's the point of a 3d mouse? We have 2d GUIs.
--
-matt
Re:What's the point?
by
dirty
·
· Score: 4, Interesting
Possibly, but for general use, there is no reason for people to start using them. Not to mention, think of how tired your arm would get after hours of work on your computer.
I'm sure for specialized tasks 3d mice make perfect sense, and are probably already in use. I just don't want to have them shoved on normal use.
None of this fancy Z axis stuff.. why in my day all we had to get around with a 1D mouse. We had the X axis only and we liked it!
Next to our punch cards they were the bees knees.
-- Beings aspergers AND pulling chicks... I enjoy the challenge!
yeah, but I also heard that you have to sustain a scroll speed of 88 miles/hour for it to work correctly..and then it gets really, really cold.
-- "Good night, good work, sleep well, I'll most likely kill you in the morning." - Dread Pirate Roberts
Interesting concept
by
Ratface
·
· Score: 4, Informative
And in answer to the people asking what's the point...
a) Because it's a neat hack b) It could be used for simple 3D point scanning to measure points on a 3D model c) Could be used to manipulate information in a 3D CAD/drawing progeam, or to navigate or move objects in a solar representation or similar spatially oriented program d) Because it's a neat hack. Sheesh what more reason do you need?
--
A little planning goes a long way...
Re:Interesting concept
by
Fizzol
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
>Because it's a neat hack. Sheesh what more reason do you need?
Yes, it's a neat hack. But when the question is raised "what will it take to get people to use them?" it needs a better answer than "it's a neat hack."
Re:Interesting concept
by
Twinbee
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
Even in 2D programs, this would be useful. Think of simple controls like moving a slider or zooming in/out. There are plenty of other program specific functions too. For example, in paint programs, it could represent the opacity (translucency level).
Almost any type of program could benefit from the extra dimension. In fact, the mouse wheel on a lot of mice already counts as this 'extra 3rd dimension'. But unfortunately, it uses discrete steps to funtion, rather than a smooth continuous movement (one would think there'd be a market
for analogue mouse wheels, but no company seems to produce them... shame...).
A different solution...
by
Oscaro
·
· Score: 5, Informative
...can be built with two analog joysticks. See here
That "interesting", but what about...
by
ShaggyZet
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
...just using the wheel as the third dimension, depth? And not just for zooming in on a window, but for actually navigating in a 3d space. I never much liked the idea of a scroll wheel anyway. It's find for reading documents (yes, I know that all some people use their computers for), but it doesn't really fit in to any other UI paradigm that exists today. I think using it for depth in a 3d space would feel very natural.
6d mouse more useful
by
XavierXeon
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
Re:6d mouse more useful
by
mt-biker
·
· Score: 4, Interesting
Absolutely. I use a space-mouse at work (VR), but I guess relatively few people on slashdot know about them?
You don't move it around like a regular mouse, rather you hold the hockey-puck sized control in your hand and push/pull it _gently_ in one of 3 directions. Being able to twist the puck gives you the other 3 degrees of freedom.
The device is sprung and returns to center when you let go. The total movement of the puck is only about a centimetre (0.393700787 inches;) in any direction.
When you're used to using a normal mouse, it takes a while to get the feel of the relatively sensitive spacemouse, but since your hand remains stationary on the desk while using it, it's not tiring.
Drawbacks: Cost - the things are EXPENSIVE! Also I doubt it would totally replace a normal mouse - with the speed turned up high it wouldn't be accurate enough for fine tasks, and with the speed lower it'd take you forever to get from one side of the screen to the other. The space mouse is intended to manipulate models in 3D space.
Muscle fatigue...
by
timbloid
·
· Score: 5, Insightful
...is surely the problem with all these designs?
How many hours a day (out of an 8 hour day) do you think you could hold something (even of tiny mass like a mouse) in the air, away from your body.
And what happens when you want to type/relax/urinate? You put it down, lose your place in 3d space, and have to get it back to the same position to continue?
It's a nice hack, don't get me wrong, but there's a reason why helicopters use a 2 handed control system rather than a mouse. Doing it all with one hand just isn't very accurate, easy, or safe...
Useability; A mouse is the wrong shape
by
91degrees
·
· Score: 5, Informative
I was working as part of a research project for 3D (as well as 4D, 5D and 6D) designs for better comuter input devices. What we found was that a mouse is the wrong design.
Firstly, It quite simply doesn't make sense. Mice don't fly unless you throw them. This cognitive dissonance causes users considerable problems.
We solved this quire easily by replacing the "mouse" with a "bat".
Secondly, it creates arm ache. Holding the bat up for several hours just isn't possible. This was solved by the simple and rather crude device of a counterweighted piece of string on a pully on the ceiling. Of course, this isn't goinf to be suitable for a home user. I suggest we'll probably need some sort of rotor assembly to avoid the tangle of strings and wires.
It appears that no other researchers have even looked into our research, preferring to reinvent the wheel at every step.
He's holding it wrong! (UI ideas)
by
argent
·
· Score: 4, Interesting
What you need is to put the ring on your finger, then get one of those laser-pointer mice and hold it: now you get:
3d position of your hand. 2d attitude of your hand (pitch and yaw). 2 or 3 buttons.
Now let's pretend you have a device like this that's light enough that you can wear it like a glove (no Nintendo jokes, please) and it's wireless. Add "roll" input and implement the buttons using something like midi drumsticks based on finger movements.
Now, what's the user interface for this going to look like?
Let's avoid the gorilla-arm problem by making a state change when you rest your hand on the table. On the table it acts like a mouse, except you're not holding a mouse you're just moving your hand or finger on the desktop and tapping it to click.
So, if you're used to a mouse, you can use it like a mouse.
Next, add gestures. Thumb and forefinger together and you're dragging. Curl your fingers into a fist and you just cut (grabbed) what you selected. Open your hand wide and you paste (drop).
Now, move your hand off the desktop. A couple of inches away and you shift to 3d mode. Gestures work the same way, but now you can drag windows forward and back as well as up and down.
Next, move your hand near the actual screen. Now it works like a light-pen with gestures, so you really can move that window out of the way by reaching up and dragging it. Why, you could even apply virtual white-out on your monitor!
Finally, curl your fingers around like you're pointing at something. Now you're using a virtual laser-pointer... the mouse moves wherever your finger is pointing at. This extends the "light pen" mode back away from the screen, so you can rest your hand on the desk without breaking that metaphor.
I'm sure that not all of these modes will end up being useful, but it wouldn't take much of a change in our existing user interfaces to find something that would work better than the mice we use now.
Slashdot Mirror
Seriously, what's the point of a 3d mouse? We have 2d GUIs.
-matt
-B
Next to our punch cards they were the bees knees.
Beings aspergers AND pulling chicks... I enjoy the challenge!
I hear you can make a 4 dimensional one from extra delorean parts.
And in answer to the people asking what's the point...
a) Because it's a neat hack
b) It could be used for simple 3D point scanning to measure points on a 3D model
c) Could be used to manipulate information in a 3D CAD/drawing progeam, or to navigate or move objects in a solar representation or similar spatially oriented program
d) Because it's a neat hack. Sheesh what more reason do you need?
A little planning goes a long way...
...can be built with two analog joysticks. See here
...just using the wheel as the third dimension, depth? And not just for zooming in on a window, but for actually navigating in a 3d space. I never much liked the idea of a scroll wheel anyway. It's find for reading documents (yes, I know that all some people use their computers for), but it doesn't really fit in to any other UI paradigm that exists today. I think using it for depth in a 3d space would feel very natural.
a space mouse has 6 degrees of freedom and is very useful when working in a "3d" environment such as CAD http://www.3dconnexion.com/products.htm
...is surely the problem with all these designs?
How many hours a day (out of an 8 hour day) do you think you could hold something (even of tiny mass like a mouse) in the air, away from your body.
And what happens when you want to type/relax/urinate? You put it down, lose your place in 3d space, and have to get it back to the same position to continue?
It's a nice hack, don't get me wrong, but there's a reason why helicopters use a 2 handed control system rather than a mouse. Doing it all with one hand just isn't very accurate, easy, or safe...
I was working as part of a research project for 3D (as well as 4D, 5D and 6D) designs for better comuter input devices. What we found was that a mouse is the wrong design.
Firstly, It quite simply doesn't make sense. Mice don't fly unless you throw them. This cognitive dissonance causes users considerable problems. We solved this quire easily by replacing the "mouse" with a "bat".
Secondly, it creates arm ache. Holding the bat up for several hours just isn't possible. This was solved by the simple and rather crude device of a counterweighted piece of string on a pully on the ceiling. Of course, this isn't goinf to be suitable for a home user. I suggest we'll probably need some sort of rotor assembly to avoid the tangle of strings and wires.
It appears that no other researchers have even looked into our research, preferring to reinvent the wheel at every step.
What you need is to put the ring on your finger, then get one of those laser-pointer mice and hold it: now you get:
3d position of your hand.
2d attitude of your hand (pitch and yaw).
2 or 3 buttons.
Now let's pretend you have a device like this that's light enough that you can wear it like a glove (no Nintendo jokes, please) and it's wireless. Add "roll" input and implement the buttons using something like midi drumsticks based on finger movements.
Now, what's the user interface for this going to look like?
Let's avoid the gorilla-arm problem by making a state change when you rest your hand on the table. On the table it acts like a mouse, except you're not holding a mouse you're just moving your hand or finger on the desktop and tapping it to click.
So, if you're used to a mouse, you can use it like a mouse.
Next, add gestures. Thumb and forefinger together and you're dragging. Curl your fingers into a fist and you just cut (grabbed) what you selected. Open your hand wide and you paste (drop).
Now, move your hand off the desktop. A couple of inches away and you shift to 3d mode. Gestures work the same way, but now you can drag windows forward and back as well as up and down.
Next, move your hand near the actual screen. Now it works like a light-pen with gestures, so you really can move that window out of the way by reaching up and dragging it. Why, you could even apply virtual white-out on your monitor!
Finally, curl your fingers around like you're pointing at something. Now you're using a virtual laser-pointer... the mouse moves wherever your finger is pointing at. This extends the "light pen" mode back away from the screen, so you can rest your hand on the desk without breaking that metaphor.
I'm sure that not all of these modes will end up being useful, but it wouldn't take much of a change in our existing user interfaces to find something that would work better than the mice we use now.