a stylus is a another thing to loose... I do NOT want to be Dependant on a stylus...<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Thu, Jun 5, 2008 at 4:14 PM, Stroller <<a href="mailto:linux.luser@myrealbox.com">linux.luser@myrealbox.com</a>> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;"><div class="Ih2E3d"><br>
On 5 Jun 2008, at 18:46, Michael 'Mickey' Lauer wrote:<br>
> On Thursday 05 June 2008 18:04:32 Stroller wrote:<br>
>> On 5 Jun 2008, at 15:38, Ron K. Jeffries wrote:<br>
>>> Can the revised case for GTA03 *please* be designed<br>
>>> to hold a stylus?<br>
>><br>
>> Nooooooo!<br>
>><br>
>> Stylii are EVIL!<br>
>><br>
>> If I can't operate an app with my fingers, then there's no place for<br>
>> that app on my mobile phone!<br>
><br>
> A stylus is inevitable given a certain combination of application<br>
> type and<br>
> physical display size.<br>
><br>
> That doesn't mean that we will not write all our apps finger-<br>
> compatible (we<br>
> also hate stylii),<br>
<br>
</div>I think what you're saying there is that 1st-party apps will be<br>
finger-compatible, but that "ported" applications are not sure to be<br>
optimised for finger use.<br>
<div class="Ih2E3d"><br>
> _but_ being an open device, we should not lock out people<br>
> who _need_ to have lots of tiny stuff on their screen hence need to<br>
> operate<br>
> with a stylus.<br>
<br>
</div>If the Openmoko dream is a beautiful, consistent interface that<br>
doesn't need a stylus, then including a slot for one is kinda an<br>
admission of defeat.<br>
<br>
Surely most end-users are - in the long-term future of Openmoko -<br>
going to use mostly the preinstalled applications, or the "core<br>
distro" and only add one or two extra applications. Sure, developers<br>
of those additional apps are going to need stylii, as they compile<br>
Thunderbird for ARM architecture and the buttons are really tiny,<br>
but the aim of applications coming-on-board to Openmoko should surely<br>
to be finger-capable.<br>
<br>
Including a stylus holder just allows developers to say, "oh, fingers<br>
don't matter".<br>
<br>
There are a dozen "smartphones" out there that I can buy now with<br>
tiny little touchscreens that need a stylus, but these are used only<br>
by geeks. The majority of people buy still buy phones with a number<br>
pad and some kind of navigating aid (a tiny wheel, or joystick nub,<br>
or up-down-left-right arrow buttons). Why is this? Probably because<br>
people like using their fingers to access their phone. I know this is<br>
an old, and perhaps divisive, debate, where never the twain will<br>
meet, but Openmoko has a great opportunity here to make a phone that<br>
combines power with ease-of-use. Enable anyone to install extra apps<br>
on their phone, and *anyone* to use it. A fiddly stylus just makes<br>
the device less accessible.<br>
<font color="#888888"><br>
Stroller.<br>
</font><div><div></div><div class="Wj3C7c"><br>
<br>
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</div></div></blockquote></div><br>