TouchSmarter: Touch Screen Gadgets

After 33 years of fast paced career Microsoft Chairman and Founder Bill Gates has finally retired from his position at Microsoft to devote his time into social activities and promoting other technologies which can help human-beings in future generations. At his farewell speech Gates reflected his long time passion; the human touch interfaces which he believes will change the way we use computers today. According to him, anything from tablet PCs to handwriting recognition to touch screen table computers will recognize and analyze human touch and process the data accordingly.

Microsoft is betting highly on this natural user interfaces. This is something Microsoft and Bill Gates will invest in future years after his retirement besides working for Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Gates had a well planned departure from the most exciting post ever in this industry. He gave up his post as CEO to Stave Ballmer in 2000 and three years ago decided to step back from the post of Chairman too.

Gates is not planning for an overall departure from MSFT but will focus only on few aspects of companies business which involves natural user interfaces and related activities. The 30-inch large Surface tabletop computer used in Gates office is now probably going to shift in Ballmer’s office which shows where the computers are going. This high - tech interactive touch screen tables are generally used to display maps and order food are used only in AT&T phone stores and Harrah’s Rio hotel in Las Vegas

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has expected surface computing as multi billion dollar business as they have invested heavily in its Research and development process to bring in high quality and effective devices that will recognize any human touch and respond accordingly. With aggressive competition from companies like Apple and Google, Microsoft has geared its belt tight against the innovative products from this company in the post Gates era which was completely over showed by the companies like Apple and Google.

To break into the market of internet enabled devices and gadgets, Microsoft have decided to achieve its past success by bringing in more innovative products and designer apps which can give Apple and Google a run for their money.

Though Microsoft has seen the future of Keyboard and mouse as alternate input device for the computer system but they have expressed their interest in human voice and hand touch as major input methods in future generation computers which can seamlessly be integrated with many other devices like mobile phones, X-box, PDAs and many other hand-held devices.

The folks over at Gizmondo discuss and comment on the details surrounding a multi-touch enabled MacBook. It is their opinion that the oft rumored forthcoming PDA from Apple is not going to happen, as the entire PDA industry is shrinking daily as smartphones take over. Instead, it is suggested that there is a strong chance a new, thin and touchable MacBook will be Apple’s next big thing.

If this product takes the form of a convertible tablet, Microsoft’s Tablet PC product line will surely take a beating. We are in agreement with Gizmondo that a PDA seems questionable, especially with both the iPhone and iPod Touch containing many PDA abilities as it is.

Bringing word that Finnish company Satama Interactive has been chosen to be a member of Microsoft’s Surface Partner Advisory Council.

There seems to be an abundance of international talent in the realm of multi touch and natural user interface design. Hopefully, this Advisory Council plays a strong role in developing Microsoft Surface into a intuitive and extendible platform.