Screen-top' iPad keyboard takes typing old-school

From: http://gadgetbox.msnbc.msn.com/

TouchFire

By John Cook, GeekWire

The iPad is great for many things — watching movies, reading magazines or playing games. But when it comes to typing, the onscreen keyboard leaves something to be desired.

Engineers Steven Isaac and Brad Melmon are looking to solve that problem withTouchFire, a lightweight, silicone rubber keypad that overlays the iPad’s touchscreen. The idea is to provide typists with the same tactile feel of typing on a laptop or desktop computer — letting them simply enter text without the need to look directly at the screen.

The TouchFire device is slated to ship in December, Isaac said. It’s currently available for preorder via the KickStarter funding site, for a pledge of $45 or more to the company. The Seattle-area startup is looking to raise $10,000 through KickStarter.

Isaac has been tinkering with tablet computers since the early days. He was one of the first employees at GO Corp., an early entrant in the tablet market that crashed in the mid-1990s. He also worked on Microsoft’s Windows CE mobile operating system.

When the iPad came out, Isaac said he was amazed with nearly every aspect of the device, except for the keypad.

"Typing on the iPad was certainly much better than anything that had come before, but it still wasn’t great," Isaac tells GeekWire. "But I wanted typing to be great, so I could use my iPad for everything. So I started thinking about a way to add the missing tactile features needed to have a true high performance typing experience on the iPad."

He started prototyping concepts, which he said proved challenging because he's "basically a software guy." After the initial concepts penciled out, Isaac partnered with Melmon to come up with a patent-pending design.

"We needed to provide the right sort of force resistance for typing to feel really good, and at the same time make the device be thin, lightweight and flexible enough to basically disappear in the cover when not in use," Isaac explained. "Brad had an amazing conceptual breakthrough that allowed us to meet all of these requirements, and TouchFire is the result."

Nuance to buy Swype for $100 million, report says

By: Steven Musil
From: http://news.cnet.com/

Swype lets you compose words by continuously dragging your finger from letter to letter instead of individually pecking at each key.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Nuance Communications is spending $100 million to acquire Swype, the company behind one of the most popular alternative keyboards for Android devices, according to an Uncrunched report that cited unidentified sources.

Representatives for Nuance and Swipe did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Swype, founded in 2002 by Cliff Kushler, the inventor of the T9 keyboard technology for numeric keypads, is a text-input technology for touch-screen laptops and smartphones that utilizes swipes across the keyboard instead of tapping on the keys. The Seattle-based company, which has about 80 employees, expects its technology to be preloaded on 100 million devices worldwide by the end of the year.

Nuance, which dominates the voice dictation business for Windows, ventured into the mobile market in 2010 by releasing Dragon Dictation and Dragon Search for iPhone users.

Swype announced in July that it had raised $2.5 million in series C financing from existing investors Samsung Ventures, Nokia Growth Partners, Benaroya Capital, Docomo Capital, and Ignition Partners, bringing the company's total series C financing to $6 million.

Best Keyboard Ever……

Best Keyboard Ever……

Keyboard Dock Turns iPhone Into Computer Touchpad [PICS]

From: http://mashable.com/
by Charlie White

It’s about time you put that iPhone or iPod touch to work in the office. If you dock it into this Wow-Keys full-sized keyboard, either can serve as an input device for your Mac or PC. And if you don’t like typing on a touchscreen, you can use the keyboard as an input device for an iPhone or iPod touch.

Besides those tricks, the CompuExpert Wow-Keys act just like an ordinary dock, charging your device and syncing it with iTunes at the same time. When you want to use it as an input device for your Mac or PC, there’s an iOS app with 12 hotkeys that let you perform commonly used functions.

We like the fact that this keyboard is full-sized and versatile enough to serve as an input device for both computer and handset. Take a look at the gallery, and you’ll see a few ways to put that iPhone to work. It’s not going to put your iPhone output on-screen like the Motorola Atrix does, but this could add some convenience to your daily routine.

The keyboard begins shipping May 24 and costs $99.99.

View As One Page »

Image 5 of 5

Hotkeys

Right where you need them.

Charge the iPhone as you put it to work.

Wow-Keys

1

If nothing else, you can use your iPhone or iPod touch as a number pad.

Number Pad

2

Build quality looks pretty good, befitting its $100 price.

Closeup

3

No cramped laptop keyboard here.

Full-Sized Keyboard

4

Right where you need them.

Hotkeys

5

View As Slideshow »

Wow-Keys

Charge the iPhone as you put it to work.

---

Number Pad

If nothing else, you can use your iPhone or iPod touch as a number pad.

---

Closeup

Build quality looks pretty good, befitting its $100 price.

---

Full-Sized Keyboard

No cramped laptop keyboard here.

---

Hotkeys

Right where you need them.

---

Your Keyboard Is Now Daft Punk

najle.com — Be the newest member of Daft Punk with iDaft! Have hours of fun making your own awesome remixes.

idaft
Uploaded by LTiVi. - Click for more funny videos.

Click here to have some fun on your PC: http://www.najle.com/idaft/idaft/

Put your thinking cap on and type with your mind (w/ Video)

by Katie Gatto
from http://www.physorg.com/

(PhysOrg.com) -- Guger Technologies, an Austrian-based company, has developed a computer interface that can work directly with the human brain. The interface allows a user to "type" short messages by staring at letters on the screen. Those messages can then be translated with text to speech software, giving a voice to those who cannot speak for themselves, a funky, robot voice. If speech isn't on the users mind the messages can be sent the same way any other text would be over the web.

 

Since the system only requires the movement of the eyes in order to function it could be used by people with severe spinal cord injuries or other conditions have the rendered arm movement and vocal cord use impossible or impractical.

The device, which has been named intendiX, was shown off at Cebit.Labs. For those of you who are not familiar with the event Cebit.Labs is a section of the Cebit trade show that is devoted exclusively to showing off research projects.



IntendiX features a tight-fitting skull cap that has a number of electroencephalograph (EEG) electrodes attached to it. These are the Wet style of electrodes, so they do require a gel to function properly, though there is a dry version of the cap in the works. There is also a pocket-sized brainwave amplifier, and a Windows-based application that is designed to analyze the brainwaves received and translate them into letters on the screen. The setup can be connected via a Bluetooth wireless signal.

Currently the fastest in-lab time has been .9 of a second per character, but that is after the users have been trained on the system. Untrained users testing the device have been a slow as 40 seconds per character. No word yet on when the device will be available to the public.

More information: http://www.intendix.com/
© 2010 PhysOrg.com

80s Synth Medley (3 guys, 6 keyboards)

From: EnvelopeGenerator


Three guys, six keyboards, fifteen hits of the 1980s. All played live!

Keyboards:
ARP Axxe
KORG MicroKORG
KORG Triton Extreme 61
M-Audio Axiom 61
Roland Juno 6
Yamaha SHS-10 Keytar

Star Wars Characters Rendered in Font

Published by Paul Tassi

From http://unrealitymag.com/

You’ve probably all seenASCII font art before, but this is something else entirely. It’s Star Wars characters drawn with only characters from your keyboard.

They were made by an Italian ad firm, though I’m not quite sure what exactly they’re selling. Just how awesome and creative they are?

A Stormtrooper and Yoda are below, and it really is impressive how good these look considering how they’re assembled. I wish there were a few more in the series, but maybe if they catch on the agency will do another run.

[via Geekologie]

ThinkGeek TK-421 case brings QWERTY keypad to iPhones

• By: Geoff Duncan
• From: http://www.digitaltrends.com/

ThinkGeek's TK-421 iPhone case features a (working!) swing-out QWERTY keypad and works with the iPhone 4 or 3GS.

Users of BlackBerry devices and several other messaging-centric phones have long derided the Apple iPhone for its virtual on-screen keyboard. Now, ThinkGeek is looking to offer iPhone users some thumb-tastic messaging credibility with its new TK-421 case for the iPhone 4 or iPhone 3GS, which features a (working!) swing-out QWERTY keyboard for users’ messaging needs.



The keyboard works with the iPhone as a Bluetooth input device, which means no alterations to the phone are required for the keyboard to work, although use does mean tapping a little extra battery power to keep Bluetooth running. As a standard input device, the keypad should work with any installed iPhone application or service, including email, text messaging, social networking clients, Web browsers, and more. A magnetic clasp holds the keypad open or closed, and the keyboard itself is powered by a rechargeable battery: pop the device onto a USB port to recharge. ThinkGeek is offering separate models for the iPhone 4 and 3GS, owing to the devices’ different sizes. The case is not compatible with the iPhone 3G or original iPhone.

The ThinkGeek TK-421 case will be available in late November for $49.99.

BlindType vows to autocorrect all wrongs with your iPhone or Android virtual keyboard (video)

By Vlad Savov
From: http://www.engadget.com/

718diggsdiggRemember that episode of The Simpsons where Homer gets too fat to be able to dial a number? Well, he wouldn't have had that problem had BlindType been around. This soft keyboard is described by its makers as being extremely resilient to inaccurate input and looking at the demo video after the break, you kinda have to agree -- it seems to have a pretty kickass predictive algorithm. Aside from that, the keyboard also dynamically adjusts to wherever and however you choose to type, meaning its size and orientation track along to your input, which goes some way to justifying the somewhat odd name (it's meant for blind operation, not blind people). Text can be inserted without the keyboard even being on screen, while spaces are added by swiping to the right. BlindType should be coming to Android and iOS devices some time in the near future.

[Thanks, Fadl]

Update: We asked BlindType's makers whether implementing their software will require replacing Apple's default button slate and they've confirmed that it would. They're making and submitting it for iOS use, nonetheless, "to put pressure on Apple to finally allow this kind of thing."

BlindType

What is This Instrument in a New Trent Reznor Song?

What is This Instrument in a New Trent Reznor Song?

Posted by Sean_Yeaton

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It’s the Dewanatron Swarmatron, of course!

So, Trent Reznor is back with his first musical alms since Nine Inch Nails. The project, named after British industrial noise band, How to Destroy Angels, is a collaboration with his wife, former West Indian Girl frontwoman Mariqueen Maandig.

What we’ve heard so far is really cool, and I for one am really excited about the Dewanatron Swarmatron getting some love in this video. The mysterious synth – though perhaps not as mysterious as this one – was created to produce eight tones tuned approximately to one note, each tone slightly different in pitch to produce a complex and natural choral effect.

Best of all, it’s played with a single taffy-like controller that moves the pitch center up or down.

The Swarmatron was developed by Sculptors, electronic musicians, inventors and cousins, Brian and Leon Dewan. The Dewan’s have a whole fleet of homespun electronic instruments that you should definitely check out, here

You can buy it here: http://bigcitymusic.com/product.asp?cat=new&pid=1000896

Very Cool Electric Synth Guitar

Very Cool Electric Synth Guitar - Watch more Funny Videos

No strings, no pick ups, no frets...no problem! This cool device makes some cool, unique sounds.

Little girl can type 119wpm

Lisa Katayama

This little girl can type 119 wpm. It's not just a skill, it's a hobby. She started playing on the computer at age 4 and spends her weekends typing. Her goal right now? "I'd like to get to at least 200(wpm)."

While this may sound strange, I can understand the allure of the type test — when I was in middle school, I used to procrastinate from studying by taking type tests on my super old Apple machine. It's really not that different from any other addictive game — most of us now associate it with work, but back then I was constantly trying to beat myself in speed and accuracy. By the way, if you're curious to know how fast you're typing, you can take a one-minute typing test here.

[via Mashable]

Pressure-sensitive QWERTY keyboard demo’d by Microsoft Hardware

By Chris Davies

Pressure sensitivity in musical keyboards is nothing new – pressing the keys harder results in a louder note, just as if you sit down with ever-increasing force on a piano – but until now it’s not something we’ve seen on regular QWERTY keyboards. That could all change, if Microsoft Hardware decide to put their pressure-sensitive keyboard into production: developed as a prototype for the UIST 2009 student innovation contest, it can track 8-bit pressure information across all of its keys.

Video demo after the cut

Basically, as well as recognizing when a key has been pressed, the sensor underneath also records the pressure of the press. While you’re unlikely to be making music with your QWERTY ‘board, what Microsoft envisage is different keyboard behaviors tied into different pressures: so, lightly pressing backspace will delete a single character, as normal, but a harder press would delete a whole word, while an even harder touch might get rid of the sentence or paragraph.

Alternatively you could forget the shift key and capitalize letters by pressing harder, or throw out your gaming controller and use the ‘board to make pressure-proportional jumps and other moves. Right now Microsoft Hardware say they have no plans for a production version.

[via ArsTechnica]