Multi-touch of Windows 7 Preview

Microsoft demonstrates Multi-touch

Posted by Chris Flores on Tuesday, May 27, 2008 7:21 PM

http://windowsvistablog.com/blogs/windowsvista/archive/2008/05/27/microsoft-demonstrates-multi-touch.aspx

For years Microsoft has been investing in many forms of natural input in order to simplify the way people interact with their PC's and devices. The advent of the original Windows graphical user interface forever changed the way people used their PC's.

其实这句话说的不太恰当。鼠标最早由施乐Palo Alto研究中心(PARC)发明，并应用在Apple上，MS借用了这个概念，配合GUI图形界面，从Dos升级至Windows 3 乃至 95 98，彻底统治了用户桌面。

相信很多用户（特别在中国）是从Win95开始接触PC的，已经非常习惯鼠标+键盘，面对Windows界面。


Today, advances in pen and handwriting technology in Windows Vista offers students a natural and intuitive way to capture searchable notes and diagrams in the classroom. Others are using this technology to quietly capture pen based notes during meetings. Speech recognition, something which was once considered science fiction, is enabling many Windows Vista users to see, hear, and use their computers for the very first time.

Vista出来一年半了，骂声一片，搞得MS灰头土脸，不得不提前透露Windows7的计划。但是Vista其实代表了今后OS的发展方向，比如它全面支持手写及语音。手写输入和语音识别并不是很新鲜的技术，但以往都还处在Beta阶段，不够成熟。而MS将手写和语音与OS相结合，可以说是跨时代的。

虽然人们很熟悉键盘鼠标，但是它们并非普通人最习惯的方式，严格来说，还带有早期技术人员的痕迹。

如果能够直接用语言发号施令，并用笔进行直接操作和输入，将大大提高用户使用愉悦性。

Last year, at the Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference, Bill Gates introduced a groundbreaking new computing experience called Surface. Surface harnesses touch and multi-touch capabilities to provide users with a natural way to interact directly with computing devices. Expect to see the table-like Surface devices in hotels, retail establishments, restaurants and public entertainment venues.

Touch is quickly becoming a common way of directly interacting with software and devices. Touch-enabled surfaces are popping up everywhere including laptop touch pads, cell phones, remote controls, GPS devices, and more. What becomes even more compelling is when this experience is delivered to the PC -on a wide variety of Windows notebooks, in all-in-one PC's, as well as in external monitors. In working with our broad ecosystem of hardware and software manufactures, we're excited to be showing some of the great work and investments we are working on in Windows 7.

而Windows 7在Vista的基础上更进一步，推出Multi-touch，可以直接用手指操控。

其实触摸已经在Tablet PC 手机 GPS等有了广泛应用，MS将其引入OS也是大势所趋。

那么，如果3年之后，Windows 7 推出之日，人们真的可以用手指、语言、笔来操控电脑的话，可以说是梦想成真，科幻电影的情节进入普通人的生活。这将是OS的一大革命。

非常期待。

特别是在Google目前非常强势，全面统治搜索，并很可能在未来几年统治Web-based computing — software 的情况下，传统OS有被边缘化的危险。小打小闹，在原有的基础上增添几个小功能已经无济于事。

所以，MS此时把OS开发重点放在人机交互界面上，这个方向应该是对的。

即使Google统治了在线软件，但是人们也需要一个界面进入并进行操控，触摸+语音+手写，这种最符合人类自然天性的方式肯定会受到欢迎，Windows也还有继续存在的价值。

当然，Apple肯定也不会闲着，3年之后，很可能是Windows Mac OS平分天下的局面，两者均能实现自然方式的人机交互，共同成为进入Google世界的portal。