A truly versatile input device - You!
It's great to look at the way input devices have changed over time. From what I understand the QWERTY keyboard was a way to slow down typists initially way back when we had mechanical typewriters. The seemingly random placement of the keys was supposed to slow users down to a speed that the mechanical bits could keep up with. I have been around long enough to remember the confusion some encountered the first time they used a mouse to interact with a computer. Along the way we have seen trackpoints, trackpads, the ipod 'wheel', any number of games controllers, joysticks, chords everywhere, introduction of wireless input devices, 'wands' from Nintendo, multitouch screens, interactive whiteboards, the Playstation Eye, tablet pcs, iPhones and many others. The Wii from Nintendo was a revelation for me - it brought using the body rather than just the eyes and fingers into the mainstream. So what's next? I just found this on the Guardian UK's Games Blog: Obviously there is tremendous potential in the gaming arena but think how easily this could be applied to an education or training setting. How about in skills development, rehabilitation - the use of feedback in this is just great. And - you don't have to worry about losing the device - you are it!
