Newsgroups: comp.sys.palmtops
From: ematias@dgp.toronto.edu (Edgar Matias)
Subject: Re: Microwriter Chording Patents
Organization: CSRI, University of Toronto
Date: 24 Jul 92 00:47:26 GMT


Pardon me if I am replying to "old news".  I'm new to this newsfeed,
so humour me if I'm going over ground that's already been covered.

>In any case, I think the fact that the Microwriter's chords are
>"mnemonic" is a useless gimmick.

When first heard about the Microwriter (the pre-Agenda days), I thought
so too.  In fact, I think I said something to the effect of "what a stupid
idea".  However, that was many years ago and I've since changed my mind.

>Maybe it cuts down learning time by a
>little bit, but you most likely pay for it by suboptimal typing speed
>once you have mastered the keyboard.

No one knows.  To my knowledge, no one has ever run a controlled experiment
to track the learning curve of the Microwriter chording scheme. 
If someone has, please let me know as I'd be interested in getting a
copy.

>The only thing that makes the
>Microwriter keyboard potentially interesting is if it might become a
>standard.

I would be very surprised if this were to happen (at least in the sense
that QWERTY is a standard).  It may become a standard among chord keyboards
but it is too early to say.  Also, if this were to happen, it would probably
take so long that Microwriter Inc's patents would be expired by then.

>PS: I think you should indicate in every posting that you are in a
>business association with the manufacturer of Microwriter.

I am president of a company that makes one-handed keyboard software
in which I have a vested interest.  However, in my defence, I don't see
Microwriter as a competitor, since my product is not (really) a chord
keyboard, and while there's is hardware, mine is available only as
software (presently).  For the curious, here's how it works...

It is designed in such a way that typists don't have to retrain (much)
to be able to type on it.  Basically, you can type using just one half
of your standard keyboard using one hand.  To type the letter from the
other hand you hold down the spacebar which remaps the keyboard in a 
mirror image (in the same way your left & right hands are mirror images
of each other).  This gives you access to both sides of the keyboard
using one (either) hand.

For example, to type the letter K (MIDDLE FINGER of the RIGHT HAND)
using your left hand, you hold down the spacebar and hit the D key
(MIDDLE FINGER of the LEFT HAND).  Notice that in both cases you use
the middle finger.

People adapt very quickly.  We are doing an experiment here at the 
University of Toronto to plot the learning curve of this keyboard.
It's not finished yet but preliminary results have been very
encouraging.

Also the Mac version of my company's product is reviewed in the 
current issue of Macworld magazine (August '92, Destop Critic).
The reviewer was able to get up to 20 wpm after 15 minutes of 
practice.  Like I said, people pick it up really quickly...

In time, this product will be released as a component in pocket
computers (I hope).   The idea is to get rid of the plastic/keys
of the side you don't use to type, while still using full-sized keys
for the side that remains.  Using this design, a pocket computer
could be made smaller than a paperback novel without sacrificing
the ability to touch-type.  We are not sure what the top speed for
typing on one of these things is but 2 of our 10 subjects managed
to type 1 or more text blocks at 47 wpm after less than 10 hours of 
practice (and they haven't levelled off yet).

The product is called:  Half-QWERTY one-handed keyboard software.

It is available for DOS and the Macintosh.  A FREE software demo
is available on request.

Sorry if this sounds like an ad :-)

Edgar
------

Edgar Matias
President

The Matias Corporation
178 Thistledown Boulevard
Rexdale, Ontario, Canada
M9V 1K1

(416) 749-3124
email: ematias@dgp.toronto.edu