Design Survey

[Thomas Augustus Kimberly]

I am an Industrial Design student at Georgia Tech and am currently
involved in a project requiring me to design a cursor/pointer control
device, i.e. mouse, trackball, etc.. and am trying to get some input into
peoples troubles, likes, whatever with the devices currently on the
market.

It would be a great help to me if you could respond to the below
questionarre and e-mail it back to me as this is not a group I regularly
subscribe to.

Thank You
Thomas Kimberly
gt8...@prism.gatech.edu

----------------------------------------

Are you a regular computer user?

What sort of cursor control device do you normal use? (type, brand, model)

Have you ever experienced physical problems associated with computer use?

If so, what steps did you take to correct them?

What do you like about your current control?

What do you dislike about it?

If your could create a pointer control from scratch what would you do
different from current products?

-------------------------------

--
Huh???????

--
Huh???????

[WILLIAM J DESHAWN]

Some people like tablets. To some degree they're OK, but are very limited
because if you need more functions than the tablet allows for in space, an
alternate tablet configuration needs to be put into place. I prefer image
menus because then you don't have to take your eyes off the monitor, and
with cascading menus, you can page through different configurations or
categories much more effortlessly. Now with Block and Slide manager
programs, adding blocks and slides can be a seemingly effortless task.

--

Bill DeShawn
bdes...@prodigy.net
bi...@starpanel.com

[Marshall E. Caudle]

On 26 Jan 1999 19:48:03 -0500, gt8...@prism.gatech.edu (Thomas
Augustus Kimberly) wrote:

Whoever develops a 16 button mouse for CAD work can retire. It's the
buttons that make for efficiency, not the instrument itself.

Marshall Caudle
Architect
Monroe, NC

[VolleyPC]

If you wanted to capture 10% of the market right off the bat you could always
design a left handed mouse that fits the shape of your hand, as of now they are
only offered for right hand users.

[GDavis2265]

Calcomp makes a 12 buttom cordless puck and digitizer for around $200 that is
very slick. Also its interchangable with a three buttom cordless pen.

Glenn

[Sigraph]

>Thomas Kimberly
>gt8...@prism.gatech.edu

>Are you a regular computer user?

>What sort of cursor control device do you normal use? (type, brand, model)

>Have you ever experienced physical problems associated with computer use?

>If so, what steps did you take to correct them?

>What do you like about your current control?

>What do you dislike about it?

>If your could create a pointer control from scratch what would you do
>different from current products?

Dear Thomas

I am a Senior Tool Designer at Siemens E.C. We currently use 3 cad programs:
Unigraphics, Sigraph Design (a German design program) and AutoCad R14. We
use Unigraphics exclusively for new tool design (progressive die design and
mold design). With Unigraphics we have Space Balls. Pressure sensitive balls
that move the solid model around on the screen as if you were holding it in
your hand. It would be hard to improve the space ball, but with a large
monitor and using ACad or Sigraph Design it would be nice to have a track
ball with a heavy enough ball to allow the cursor to continue to move across
the screen after sending it in the direction you wish. In other words, Say
your drawing at the lower right corner of the screen and you need to pick a
menu icon (line for instance) at the upper left side of the display. You
must move the mouse half way across the screen, pick it up and do it again
to get the cursor to the menu icon you need to pick. I have thought many
times that it would be nice to be able to spin a heavy track ball (gently)
in the direction of the icon and stop it in the vicinity of the icon and not
have to double or triple stroke the mouse to get it there.

Later
E Raymer