touchable tech

Okay so as I said, it has been a while. I won't bore you with the details of why I was unable to blog for such a long time, but many of them were technical in nature. Anyway, here we are again. I was so excited to blog today that I could barely choose which topics to cover. The iPhone 3G? The new iPod nano? The new Microsoft commercials with Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld? I just didn't know where to begin. Suddenly it occurred to me to begin to discuss what makes technology accessible. In my mind, what makes a good piece of technology is how easy it is to use given my physical limitations. So for me, there are two good user interface models. Touch, and speech. And today we're going to tackle touch.

You will remember no doubt my excitement over the announcement of the iPhone last year. The iPhone is the first cell phone where I can use EVERY SINGLE PART of the device INDEPENDENTLY! That's entirely due to the touchscreen. But what is it that makes the touchscreen a good user interface? Well, there are several factors to consider in answering this question. First of all by their very nature, touchscreens must be large enough to be touched comfortably by one or two fingers. Sometimes, touchscreens must be large enough to allow the user to utilize their entire hand in operating the device in question. So a large touchable display also tends to be easier to read than displays that are not meant to be touched. Now be careful, I did not say that these are always as readable as we would like, simply that because of the size of the display, they are often (not always) more readable in comparison to devices without touchscreens. The second thing that makes the touch user interface extremely useful is that it eliminates the need for small plastic buttons, which can often be difficult to push. So for example, although I cannot read my e-mail on my iPhone because of my vision problem, the display is large enough to allow me to scroll through the names in my directory and tap on the desired to make a call. That means I don't have to deal with small keypads. It means I can use my iPod without having to fiddle with tiny buttons I can't possibly push. It means that for the first time in my life I can use a cell phone to check the weather. I can even use it to enlarge a webpage to make it readable when I'm not near my computer. No, it's not as comfortable as my large 21 inch display, but it is possible to read. So while the iPhone may not be ideal for some people such as the blind or people with even more severe fine motor control problems than myself, for me it has solved a huge problem. And as I started using my phone more I began to think about what touchscreen technology could do in other aspects of my life.

Let's imagine for instance that I have a touchscreen on my PC. What could I do? Well, one of the problems I have now is that I find it extremely difficult to dial an ordinary telephone and that's why the iPhone is such a godsend. So how could that same concept be used on a PC? Well, if I had a large screen display that was touch enabled, I could actually go to yellow book.com, look up say pizza, and with a single tap on the screen, call my local pizza shop automatically. Furthermore, utilizing broadband, I could actually see the person I'm talking to and believe it or not, being able to see the person you're talking to helps eliminate many of the embarrassing difficulties I encounter with people not being able to understand me. But that's just one instance where touch technology comes in handy. There are many more. What about resizing webpages to make them more readable the same way we do on the iPhone? If you could do that, no longer will you have to search to find the right menu and command to enlarge text. We could help eliminate repetitive stress injuries caused by the mouse and keyboard. Here is a real world example of a PC from HP that utilizes touch technology.if you're interested, yes you can use the entire Windows Vista 64-bit system with its typical user interface entirely by touch. You're not just limited to the TouchSmart software suite of applications. For me, being able to touch the computer the way I touch my iPhone will provide easier access and that really is the point of touch. It simplifies things for me so that I am not bogged down by fine motor control problems. I only need to be able to use one or two fingers to access important information. I don't have the HP TouchSmart PC yet, but we are hoping to have one sometime in December. There is a reason for this. No I am not wealthy but I have some new technological developments in process to further my independence. More on that later. Just as touch has made it possible for me to use a cell phone for the first time in my life and the HP TouchSmart PC will make the computer more accessible, touch technology has also made it possible for me to take up a new hobby.

Many of you may not know that I enjoy painting using acrylics. But like any good artist, I always need new material to draw inspiration from. Photos are great for this. There was just one problem. As I have stated, I have fine motor control issues because of cerebral palsy and most digital cameras have very small buttons. So what to do? Well, once again the inspiration came from my iPhone. "If someone would just develop a good 12 megapixel camera that employed a touchscreen interface, I would be able to truly take photos independently. Kodak to the rescue!My new v1273 is entirely driven by an amazing touch user interface!This mean that I can hold the camera in one hand and set all my options with just one finger. Again, an example of such technology facilitating Independence. Keep in mind this is the first digital camera I have been able to use!the photo that I included in this blog post, is one of the first I took. Again, the touch UI is what is making all of this possible. There is bound to be more of that coming. Microsoft has publicly announced that the next version of Windows (code-named Windows 7) will utilize ubiquitous touch technology. For me, this is wonderful news because when you combine this technology with that of speech recognition, you get a much more accessible PC. By the way, Steve, where is the iMac with this functionality?

Now I know that there are many people like myself who are liberated by technology that allows us to interact with it simply by gesturing. The one big criticism that those who are not enthused by touch have is that, "I don't want to touch my computer screen with my fingers. It will get fingerprints on it." Really? This is your criticism? Touchscreens are glass, so they are easy to clean. Yes, you may have to do so quite often but I hope this blog entry will help you who are not excited by touchscreen technology to have a somewhat broader perspective on why this technology is important. Of course I recognize that touch technology is not the only way to go and for people with the inability to use their hands at all, it's simply impractical. But I don't know, there is going to come a day for everyone when using mouses is intolerable and keyboarding can no longer be done efficiently.no one technology is perfect and quite often I find it necessary to have a variety of solutions working in concert with each other to solve problems. Touch technology is a tremendously important tool in my daily life. Think of all the things I have discussed in this entry and consider the fact that I would not be able to do any of them if the innovators behind these products were afraid of a few fingerprints :-)

IPhone: the price drop and Doing the Right Thing

Okay, I know. There are a lot of angry iPhone customers out there. For those of you that don't know me personally, I'm not made of money either. I bought the iPhone because it addresses a very specific problem for me. There is no way I could use any other cell phone on the market without great difficulty. I have cerebral palsy and therefore, I also have coordination problems. The touch screen means that I don't need to dial any numbers to get help immediately. I tap a name and that's it. I don't need to remember long phone numbers anymore because with the iPhone, they don't exist. I keep phone numbers with my addresses in my e-mail contacts. I can then sync my iPhone via iTunes with my address book on my PC. So all I have to do to make a call is tap a name. That's the power of the iPhone. It's a huge step forward for someone like me because it means that I don't have to deal with small buttons. I have a 4 GB iPhone. Recently when Apple announced the new iPod lineup, something strange happened. After Mr. Jobs introduced the new iPod nano, shuffle, and, the iPod classic, he introduced the iPod touch. What is the iPod touch? The iPod touch is the iPod component of the iPhone and nothing else. That's right, it's an iPod that looks like an iPhone and utilizes the exact same touch screen interface. Steve Jobs also announced that Apple was dropping the price of the 8 GB iPhone by $200, bringing it to $399.

This friends, is where all the trouble began. But let's look at the circumstances surrounding this announcement. The iPod touch will come in two models (8 GB & 16 GB). So why are they dropping the price of the iPhone? It's simple. Jobs and company can hear the sound of sleigh bells. That's right, Christmas is coming. The iPod touch is priced at $299 for the 8 GB model. If Apple can say, "wait, for just an extra hundred dollars, you can have the easiest cell phone you've ever used" , that's a very attractive proposition. Since Apple has discontinued the 4 GB iPhone, it is also logical to assume that very shortly the company will be introducing a 16 GB phone that will most likely sell for between $499 and $599. Do I think it was a big price drop? Yes, of course I do. I can however, see what Apple is doing. And I think that as computer users, we are use to new product cycles every six months and frankly, that's not how the cell phone industry works at all. Their cell phone models do usually come out about every two months. Would I like to have a larger capacity iPhone? Naturally I would. Given time, I will but this does not detract from the fact that my current iPhone is fulfilling the purpose for which I bought it. Yes, I love the iPod in the iPhone and I would love to be able to import more songs and movies on to it but ultimately, I need the phone as a phone. The last time I checked, my home phone does not have a 4 GB iPod attached to it. Does yours? If it does, I want to hear about that :-)! Perhaps one of the reasons that Apple's announcement caught people off guard is that we seem to have a rather odd perception of this company. We think that because they're smaller than Microsoft, they must be "on our side". Let's be clear. Choice drives innovation. It is therefore; good that Apple does things differently than Microsoft. In the end though, they are a company and like all companies, they need to make a profit to stay in business. Apple is doing the right thing by offering a $100 Apple store gift certificate to early adopters.

IPhone goodness

Okay, before you write this post off as another fan boy review, let's get a few things straight. I'm not a fan boy of anything. I don't care who makes your computer: it's still a computer. I write this blog because I believe that we need to start looking at technology as a tool to address our limitations. By the way, we all have limitations whether we were born with them or not. My interest in technology is not to say, "this company is better than that company". I'm far more interested in looking at a particular problem such as my inability to dial a traditional cell phone without making my fingers scream for mercy, figuring out the best solution to address my problem and then, getting the appropriate software and/or hardware in place. I don't choose a wheelchair based on who the manufacturer is! I buy a chair because after doing my research; and that's important; the particular model I finally choose is the most appropriate one for my daily living. We really need to get to a point where we choose PCs the same way. I have cerebral palsy, as most of you know and consequently, I run a large mixture of devices and software. Some of it's from Microsoft, and some is from Apple and likewise, some of my most important software is from companies that neither Apple nor Microsoft may not have heard of. And that's the way it should be. Always remember that PCs whether they run Windows or OS X, should do what you the consumer need them to. If you tried to reverse that, everything falls apart. Therefore, it's not about company loyalty. It's about solving problems efficiently and getting things done in a way that makes sense for each individual user. Now class, does anyone actually remember what the term PC stands for? Anyone... anyone...? Personal computer. If the device/computer/operating system you're using right now doesn't work for you, you need to do two things.
1. Research what works the way you would like to.
2. Demand better software. Really take the time to think about what you'd like your software to do and exactly in what manner you would like to achieve that. Be specific and tell the PC manufacturers/software giants your ideas. They really do want constructive feedback. Most importantly though, remember, these devices are supposed to be designed to make you and I more productive in the ways that We need them to. Not all devices/computers/operating systems work best for all people. But today, I'd like to discuss one device that has made a difference to me: the iPhone.

I have been using this device for a little while now andI could go into great detail about why it's easier than any other traditional cell phone I've tried, but I think the best way to really make the point is with a little story. I wake up one morning; morning ritual of checking e-mail after getting out of bed and surfing the tech news sites as breakfast is being prepared by my morning PCA (personal care assistant) when, something on the Apple site catches my eye. Steve Jobs keynote from MacWorld is available on demand. So after I finish all my morning activities such as dressing, eating, and of course, visiting the restroom, my staff person can leave for the morning and I am free to watch the keynote. I make it a point to always watch keynotes and product launches from both Microsoft and Apple or for those of you that like to quibble over semantics, Apple and Microsoft :-). So I'm expecting Steve to discuss the latest iMac or PowerBook and what's he talking about instead? A cell phone. Okay," I thought, "Apple is going to release another cell phone that I will never be able to use." Then, Steve begins to describe the user interface saying, "we're going to touch this with our fingers". I was intrigued. Then he demoed the device. It wasn't the touch screen iPod that sold me, although that's awesome. It wasn't the SMS messaging that sold me. Why would I use any kind of keyboard ever?! Being able to flick through photos with your finger is pretty cool, but that's not what sold me. You want to know what sold me on the iPhone? I'm sure it will surprise you :-). It's the ability to make calls without ever having to dial a phone number.My particular case of CP impacts my dexterity and fine motor control and as a result, dialing a long number is extremely difficult. When I saw Steve make a phone call in about three taps of his finger, I was hooked. I knew this was an answer from abovve. I call my mother at her work immediately to share my excitement. She diddn't quite understand exactly what I was talking about the next day when she came to help me in the afternoon, I showed her the keynote. I was all set to try to explain why this device was going to be helpful when after we had been watching the presentation for a few moments, she turned to me saying, "you'd better save up to get one because you need it." Those of you who don't know my mother may not understand that she's not like me. I understand technology at a very high level she understands why some technology can be helpful, she usually requires that I explain why and exactly how it will be helpful to me. Not so with the iPhone. And I have to tell you, that's amazing.

So how is the phone in reality? Wonderful. Be careful not to assume that because I said it's wonderful that it's also perfect. We do after all, need something to shoot for in version 2.0 :-). If you're blind, at the moment, you're not really going to be able to use the iPhone. That will come, I'm sure. Apple does make one of the best integrated screen reading systems I've seen in the opeerating system. It's called voice over, and it's included with OS X. so I don't think it will be too long before we see some kind of implementation of the same technology on the iPhone. The phone is TTY compatible with an adapter (purchased separately through the Apple store). The touch screen is terrific. I can't speak for everyone with cerebral palsy because it impacts everyone differently but for me, the iPhone is able to interpret my gestures nearly perfectly. Most of the "buttons" are large and friendly and easy to tap and over time, because the buttons are all virtual, I believe we will see some way to make them even larger for those that need such things. In the meantime, iPhone 1.0 is a promising beginning that is changing the way I use a cell phone. For the first time in my life, I have been able to set up my own voicemail on a cell phone. I'm musing about 90% of the applications available on the phone which is, light years ahead of what I did on my old phone. There, I used about .1% of the phone capabilities because the buttons which were physical button, were so smaall! The iPhone is different. It's not perfect. It's not fair that those who are blind can't use the phone now, for instance! But the phone is so simple and so elegant to use. It works the way I think about computers and mobile devices. When I think of computers and other smart devices, I do not visualize myself interacting with them using a keyboard and mouse. That's just not the way I work. I may have trouble pushing tiny little plastic buttons on most cell phones, but the iPhone allows me to just tap the one finger; it doesn't matter which finger; to get everything I need. II do have two important complaints about the iPhone, and here they are.

1.the virtual keyboard does work well for a keyboard, but why is there a keyboard at all? Apple spent all this time developing a beautiful touch screen interface and yet... you still have to use a keyboard (albeit virtual) for e-mail? Why?? Where is the dictation engine for e-mail? They say iPhone runs OS X. Okay boys and girls, if the iPhone does indeed run OS X, where is the speech recognition for e-mail? I realize that the "Apple speakable items" is only for command-and-control speech recognition, but my point still stands.

2.the iPhone cost $499 for the 4 GB model. That of course, doesn't include the two-year contract with AT&T. The 8 GB model is $599. Again, that's before a two-year service agreement. The iPhone is a very important device and whether the initial version in usable to you or not, the innovations introduced in the phone will impact everything. I believe that this is the most user-friendly mobile phone (for consumers) ever made. But if we're going to get it to people with disabilities like myself, over all, the price of the unit needs to come down.
The iPhone does work as advertised. It does so even for me for the most part without mistakes. And I know that because this is the initial release, the software will only get better from here.

IPhone: my expectations

Well, I did it. I ordered my iPhone. I am so excited by this product and at the moment though I'm also a little annoyed. I'm not annoyed with Apple at all. They've made a great product. Yes, it is fair to say that this is a first-generation iPhone and so as with all these things, there will be further advancements in each subsequent generation. I'm annoyed by the mainstream press. I hear people saying, "Oh, there's not a "real" keyboard on the iPhone, so you can't type the way you should. Why do we live in a society that is populated by people who insist on injuring themselves by trying to type on devices that are so small and impractical to be used for that purpose? Let me ask you something. Would you consider trying to send a text message on your telephone at home? No, of course not. You'd use your computer. I hear some of you saying, "Yeah, but I need to be able to check my e-mail when I'm not near my computer." Fair enough, but if you can afford the over $5-$600 price tag for an iPhone, you can certainly afford to buy a laptop/notebook. Why do I hate the idea of text messaging on a phone? Here's the thing. As someone who has seen far too often what carpal tunnel and other disfiguring ailments can do, I'm against using any device that will perpetuate that. Speech recognition works! It's real and any notebook that you buy today can run speech recognition software in most cases. If you want to use your cell phone to do text messaging, that's fine. But unless you use something that is speech driven, it's never going to be an ideal experience. It's going to be difficult at times and you will eventually get arthritis or carpal tunnel from doing that! It's that simple. As I've said before, speech recognition is not perfect. But it will learn and adapt with proper use and correction. We really need to stop expecting devices like cell phones in their current form factors to be suitable for e-mail. They're never going to be as nice or as comfortable as a PC or Mac, period.

So what are my expectations for the iPhone? Why am I getting one? It's simple. I have difficulty dialing a regular phone but, I can simply tap on a name and dial the number. That's what's important to me about the iPhone and that alone, could save me from harm when I'm outside. The iPod is also really cool and I hear a lot of people complaining that it doesn't have enough storage capacity. Okay, I will admit that it could be a little bigger when it comes to storage size, but consider that each of my Old Time Radio shows are ripped at 48 kb a second, which is more than adequate for something that was not originally produced in stereo. These files are typically 26 to 29 minutes in length and are between 10 and 15 MB in size, depending on the file format you use. Even audio books are perfectly acceptable at 48 kb a second, which means on a 4 GB iPhone I can dedicate two GB to iPod media and still have plenty of room.

Am I saying that the iPhone is perfect? Of course I'm not saying that. Inevidetably when I get it, I will notice things that I would like to change. Will I be doing any Internet surfing with the iPhone? In a pinch, I suppose I could browse my bookmarks, but there's no way I'll be using the iPhone as an alternative to browsing the web.

Cell phone problems. Apple providing a possible solution?

First, let me apologize for being gone for so long. I have been involved in several new beta projects which I'm not allowed to discuss at the moment. In addition, a slight accident with my wheelchair meant that I had to wait for my mouth to heal from nearly splitting my lip. During that time as you can imagine, it was very difficult to use my computer, as I could not talk well enough to utilize my speech recognition.
In any event, I'm back now and ready to begin posting once again.

Lately we've been focusing on Windows Vista. As things develop and I'm allowed to discuss the beta projects I've been helping with in more detail, we'll be covering Windows further. There are some potentially exciting developments in this area. For the moment however, it's time to turn our attention to Apple. Yes, I said Apple. Although it may be difficult to tell from this blog, I really do like Apple and its approach to computing. No, I'm not saying that they always have appropriate solutions for my situation, but their approach to what a computer should be is sometimes refreshing. More importantly, that approach influences the rest of the computer industry. One only has to look at how elegantly beautiful Windows Vista really is compared to say Windows 3.1 to see that Apple's influence is keenly felt.

Anyone reading this knows that the cell phone has revolutionized (sometimes for better and sometimes for worse) the way people communicate. I myself carry a cell phone when I go outside in case of situations like the one I mentioned at the top of this page. Cell phones are wonderful devices that have been made possible by the evolution of the microprocessor. Therein boys and girls, lies the issue with cell phones when it comes to accessibility. Microprocessors mean a micro-phone. Micro-phones mean big headaches for those of us with fine motor control problems. Sure, my cell phone is small enough to fit in my nasal cavity, but it's impossible to dial! Sure, the phone has the capability to do text messaging, but the keyboard is so small that you'd need to be a member of that famous cartoon singing group "the Chipmunks" in order to be able to send such a message successfully! At the Windows hardware engineering conference (WinHEC), Microsoft demonstrated the capabilities of tomorrow's telephones. If you're elderly, why should you have to look through a phone book to find what you need? The phone book really should be part of the phone. You should be able to go up to a large screen device and say literally, "I am looking for a plumber in my area. I'm willing to pay between X. and Y. Could you please provide me with a list?" After scanning the list and finding the one you'd like to call, you should just be able to touch the name on the screen and call that person. I know. I hear you saying, "it's just as easy to look it up." Wrong! It's not easy. If you have difficulty dialing a cell phone because of fine motor problems, you have no chance of using the phone book. Yellowbook.com is a good start, but it doesn't go far enough in alleviating the problem. So while Microsoft works out what to do about your telephone, Apple has a potential solution for the cell phone. That's right, it's the iPhone.

At MacWorld, Steve Jobs' keynote was primarily devoted to the iPhone. Why do I care about the iPhone? What's the big deal? The big deal is that this is unlike any cell phone available right now. The entire phone is a touchscreen. I can see some of you shrugging that off. But think for a moment. Think of the implications of that. If the entire device is a touchscreen, that means buttons that are actually easy to see! That means a contact list that's actually usable! Text messaging may still require to much dexterity for me to use effectively but just the promise of a usable cell phone is enough to get me excited. Still not sure why? Watch the introduction of the iPhone for yourself. Now as to how sensitive the screen will be, no one knows. It is possible that I'll have to use a stylus in conjunction with the phone to get the appropriate control. Either way, this is a great potential solution to a very real problem and I will certainly have more on this topic when the iPhone is released. In the meantime, I hope this entry shows that technology isn't just about computers. It's about solutions to everyday problems. And over the next few weeks, I'll be covering issues like this. So stay tuned.