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TechPost 3

farhanpatel — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 06:10:18 +0000

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The Technological Development of touch screens through History

farhanpatel — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 19:49:10 +0000

Before the industrial revolution, everything was pretty much performed mechanically. There were no fancy gadgets and there were no buttons that performed specific tasks. For example, if a child had to draw, he/she would simple take a rock and carve something out on a tree or a smooth rock surface. Back in those times, people were used to storing information like that. Men had to build machinery by hand that would execute a task, a task that provided its audience with some sort of output. Additionally, to summon someone, people used birds as their messengers, they also sent letters to each other, or people delivered information themselves on feet. During the industrial revolution, a major change in technology came about. Classrooms were built and instead of writing with rocks or charcoal, people used chalkboards and chalks. Now children had their personal mini chalkboard on which they could draw or write anything. It was efficient for the society because it was portable. It was lightweight and it had an eraser on it, which made it easier for people to erase their mistakes instead of starting all over again. Moreover, during the industrial revolution, telephones were being built with the round bulky dial through which any phone number would be connected. This was especially convenient for our society because now from the spin of their dial, they could hear a person over the phone and did not have any inconvenience while delivering a message. Towards the end of the industrial revolution, phones with individual buttons started to appear which marks the evolution of machinery. Providing an input into a certain machine was getting progressively easier. Presently, providing some sort of input into a machine has gotten far better. The concept of touch screen wiped out every possible button, or coloring book. For example computers, games, and other technology has been turned hassle free. In this day and age, phones with one button are being launched; eliminating the button pressing each time someone dials a number. The Iphone is a prime example of a touch screen phone. It includes features like gaming, listening to music, and storing data. Now with a touch of the screen, a child can pick a color and draw a picture by just guiding his/her finger across the screen. This is all the more efficient because people do not have to put any effort into carrying writing utensils when they can punch it all into their phone by tapping on the numbers and letters on the screen. Children find it interesting to virtually color a picture rather than using crayons. Technology is evolving along with the mind of a human being. Parents, especially take interest in buying their child a touch screen computer rather than simply getting them proper stationary supplies to write and color with. Pretty soon, it is predicted, that instead of service desk, self-service kiosks would be built which would let people manage their questions through a touch-tone machine. With new applications exuding themselves from the creative minds of digital signage developers, we’ll see touch screen PDAs, mobile phones, kiosks, and digital signage, come together to create customer experiences like never before.

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TOUCH SCREENS IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY

farhanpatel — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 20:24:46 +0000

Describe the technology you have selected. Is it a personal technology or device, an online service, or part of a media infrastructure? What does it do? How is it used?

The technology I have selected are touch pads or any interface where you interact directly with the screen. This technology has many uses – it can be used in personal devices such as laptops and mobile phones, however, it can also be used in devices used for the media by businesses. Touch interfaces allow users to directly interact with the screen that is showing the output and removes the need for learning other interfaces such as a keyboard or mouse.

Briefly summarize the main (or relevant) ideas in the article(s).
Article: http://www.microsoft.com/industry/government/news/e_sponder_super_bowl.mspx

The article I have chosen for my technology is from the recent Superbowl. Microsoft developed a new instrument called surface – a giant tabletop that is actually a touch screen. The sheriff in charge of the security at the stadium used the Microsoft surface technology to get a better layout of the area – making it easier to coordinate task force units in the event of an emergency. The touch interface allowed for a more intuitive response, allowing the sheriff to visualize all the information within moments. This technology existed before and law enforcement agencies were already using them, however, after implementing the touch interface, agencies could now respond quicker since the interface did not require much learning and is easy to operate.

Find at least one research, news or magazine article that describes a social, cultural or political effect that has been brought about by your technology.
With this technology the sheriff was able to get real-time details of the whereabouts of all his units and could send out help in a matter of seconds. The effect of this technology in this situation has helped law enforcement agents visualize safety information – allowing for faster and more accurate responses. This has quite a political impact as it is a great tool to use when time is of the essence. Government agencies could use this technology to manage units in small operations or even full scale wars. With the touch interface the government could use it to control riots, large scale events and evacuations. This technology, armed with real-time satellite imagery – or even aerial imagery from an unmanned drone aircraft which is used by the US military in Iraq for scouting missions – could provide real-time information to those in charge.

Do you feel that this effect is positive or negative? Why?
The effect of this technology is positive if used by the right people. Touch interfaces allow for smoother controls and easier-to-learn interfaces. In the hands of law enforcement agencies, this tool can be used to help prevent attacks and, in the event of attacks, allow agencies to manage rescue efforts and evacuation. This technology is very powerful if combined with existing technologies such as satellite imagery and GPS. Touch screen interfaces allow for a nice blend of technologies to be used seamlessly together – providing a great user experience. In the hands of those who would do harm to people, however, it could allow for terrorists to fight against coordinated attacks. The good thing is that most terrorists today don’t operate from a centralized command center, therefore, unless a new threat of a more organized and smarter attacker were to come about, most terrorists wouldn’t be using this technology.

Try to think of a plausible way that this effect could be reversed or overcome by another technology or social trend.
Touch screens provide direct control over other existing technologies, however, for some, using voice commands might be an easier alternative. Touch screens provide a universal way of interacting – it is similar to how we interact with the world around us. For example, if we wanted to show someone what we wanted, we would simply point at it. Unless touch screens were proven to cause cancer, no technology that exists could make it easier to interact with existing technologies than touch interfaces.

Bibliography
Microsoft. (2009, 01 28). Tampa Authorities deploy latest technology for Super Bowl Security. Retrieved 02 03, 2009, from microsoft : http://www.microsoft.com/industry/government/news/e_sponder_super_bowl.mspx

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farhanpatel — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 21:51:00 +0000

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