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Friday, June 28, 2002
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World's Smallest Mouse?. Optical Mouse Saves Space in Cellphones
 "Chris writes 'Researchers at Philips have integrated a space-saving optical mouse into a mobile phone for the first time. Dutch researchers at the Philips Center for Industrial Technology have developed a compact, optical interface for portable electronic equipment. The team says that its new input gadget can be easily integrated in cellphones, laptops and PDAs, providing an space-efficient alternative to a mechanical trackball or touch-pad for example. The device is made up of a low-power red laser diode and a detector placed beneath a lens. Light from the 650 nm laser is focused on an object, such as a fingertip, creating an external cavity. It is not necessary to touch the lens. A small portion of this light is then reflected back and mixes with the light within the internal laser cavity.' " [Slashdot]
If the usability is truly there, a mouse on a cell phone would be great because it would help navigate through menus more efficiently. And think what it would do for wireless gaming! [The Shifted Librarian]
11:11:15 AM 
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I still wish the iPod just used 802.11b or 10-Base-T to connect. A new way of thinking about that. In the early 80s CP/M software was the kind of juggernaut that HTTP was a few years ago. This led to very strange things, like a CP/M card for the Apple II that allowed it to run WordStar, dBASE, SuperCalc etc. You could argue that Apple II software was better or faster, but the weight of a such a large mass of users made the CP/M card very very popular. Apple has a way of blazing the trail for others. The product that cleans up in this space will work very nicely with Dell, IBM, HP, and Sony computers running MS operating systems.  [Scripting News]
Dave, Rendezvous (also called ZeroConf.org) part of 10.2 Jaguar, addresses the issues surrounding the self-discovery of devices on a TCP/IP network, and is similar in concept to AppleTalk for finding printers and file servers. Once ZeroConf is rolled out across platforms, 802.11 devices will multiply!
11:04:26 AM
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E-ink Announces Thinner Displays. World's Thinnest Active Matrix Display
"E-Ink says its new active matrix screen is not only shatter-proof and flexible, but only measures 1/13 of the thickness of other active matrix displays on the market.
The Cambridge, Mass. company announced recently a new active matrix screen measuring just 0.3mm thick, half the thickness of a standard credit card. Most active-matrix displays currently in use are 2mm thick and require a backlight or sidelight that makes their total thickness 4mm or more. E-Ink's displays are over thirteen times thinner.
 ...This provides a super-thin screen that's not>infoSync]
Having just seen Minority Report last night and seeing folks in the movie reading an E-ink newspaper, this announcement is very timely! The ebook industry had better get their butts in gear so that it's ready when devices with these screens become available. [The Shifted Librarian]
10:55:51 AM
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© Copyright 2002 deeje.
Last update: 7/17/02; 9:31:01 AM.
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