From: pollack@dendrite.cis.ohio-state.edu (Jordan B Pollack)
Subject: Alternative to the Microwriter
Originator: pollack@dendrite.cis.ohio-state.edu
Reply-To: pollack@cis.ohio-state.edu
Organization: Ohio State Computer Science
Distribution: comp
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1992 23:11:26 GMT

Since Jonathan is now SHAMELESSLY representing Microwriter in half a
dozen messages battling with this group to accept the "Microwriter
Monopoly" in the chord keyboard market, I should point out that
there is (almost) another alternative. (DISCLAIMER: if it ever sells,
I will get royalties.)

Maybe because my keyboard was invented here in America, it won't face
such a hostile reaction. I don't know, since I got so busy getting
my Phd that I never tried very hard to market it. It is very different
from a Microwriter keyboard, and in fact, easier to learn and remember,
and faster to operate.  (DISCLAIMER: unsubstantiated claims.)

It has a 6-way switch for each of 4 fingers, and each switch tilts
forward and back and can be pressed down (and tilted).  By
distinguishing the paths to the lower corners (tilt-then-press, or
press-then-tilt), each finger can send 7 different characters, for a
total of 28. The thumb controls a space bar/joystick which can shift
the character set, or act as a cursor control.

It competes with the Microwriter in terms of compactness, component
cost, and in not requiring visual feedback, but is quite different:

a) the fingers' actions are independent and can overlap in time (which
is in fact the secret to speed in a QWERTY keyboard)

b) the arrangement of letters is very easy to learn, you can start to
type as soon as you can memorize a sequence of seven words, which are
associated with the 7 directions for the 4 fingers:

Back:  THY (pinky is BS)
B&D :   QWZ ("quiz" index is CR)
D&B :  FLIP 
Down:  SERV 
D&F :  MUCK
F&D :  OBJX  (objects?)
Forw:  DANG

For example to type a "T," tilt back the index finger, to type a "E",
press down the middle finger, and to type an "M" press down
then tilt forward the index finger.
    
c) the overlap and rollover arrangement allows a surprising "speedup"
through bigrams and trigrams of characters in which fingers move in
lock-step fashion (like TH, ER, NG, and AND).

Also, unlike a chord keyboard which you can build with $10 in
pushbuttons and pullup resistors from Radio Shack (and a couple of
hours of software development!), my keyboard cannot be built with off
the shelf parts. Robicon, a little company in New Jersey has 10 custom
machined prototypes (for PC serial port) available for review and
development purposes.  And they also have built one prototype of the
ultra-cool WORDMAN: not a palmtop, but a belt-sized PC with a Private
Eye heads-up display and the keyboard.  They seem to be more interested
in getting other industries to adopt the keyboard wholesale as a
component than in building the wordman for direct sales.  

If there are any high-profile technology journalists reading this
thread (since my brother won't touch it), or developers for big
companies who need a small keyboard but can't deal with snobby british
businessmen (Just Kidding, Jonathan!!) or if there is any palmtop user
from around Princeton who wants to play with it and give this group a
more objective review, let me know and I can put you in touch with
Robicon, or you can contact Steve Lane yourself at: 
(lane@phoenix.princeton.edu)

-- 
Jordan Pollack                            Assistant Professor
CIS Dept/OSU                              Laboratory for AI Research
2036 Neil Ave                             Email: pollack@cis.ohio-state.edu
Columbus, OH 43210                        Phone: (614)292-4890 (then * to fax)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.palmtops