The future of the keyboard...

[Warped9]

In a lot of far-future depictions of advanced computer systems there often seems to be missing a familiar component: the keyboard.

How likely is this? Will we eventually see the obsolescence of the keyboard as a way of inputting information and commands even for sophisticated systems?

Thoughts?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

If the keyboard goes, what's left? Voice commands? What happens for those who can't speak?

 

[Soma]

Penile neural interface seems the next logical step IMHO, but maybe I'm just crazy.

 

[Psion]

Voice command brings with it noisy work environments. I don't see the keyboard going anywhere until some kind of brain-computer interface is available.

 

[sojourner]

Yeah, all those minority report inspired interfaces might work to replace the mouse, but not the keyboard.

 

[Warped9]

Some years ago before I understood what the iPad would be I was told that Apple would be releasing a small computer without a keyboard. At the time I was stumped as to how this could work! Of course later we learned that like the Touch and the iPhone the iPad would have a keyboard only as part of the touch screen when required.

I suppose we could see more of this where on the face of it the computer or system doesn't have an obvious hard keyboard, but one part of an interactive screen.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ A 'touch screen' keyboard has its place - on an iPad or iPhone. If you've got a computer sitting on your desk, such as (in my case) an iMac, and you're directly facing the screen as opposed to having it be a flat device, that's a pretty shitty angle for touch typing. Who wants to reach up like that every time they want to type?

 

[RAMA]

Did you see how many workers HP is laying off? Computers are dematerializing to smaller more portable components. Its also the start of convergence...computers will no longer just be boxes and panels but integrated just about everywhere. If HP were smart they'd innovate in these areas.

RAMA

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I admit I am not enthusiastic about the growing tendency of Mac OS X to become more iOS-like.

 

[sojourner]

Did you see how many workers HP is laying off? Computers are dematerializing to smaller more portable components. Its also the start of convergence...computers will no longer just be boxes and panels but integrated just about everywhere. If HP were smart they'd innovate in these areas.

RAMA

And yet people still need physical keyboards to do any meaningful typing with. I'd hate to be a writer and not have a physical keyboard. The desktop still has it's place.

Don't confuse form factor with use.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

"A keyboard...how quaint."

 

[RoJoHen]

Neural interface.

Until that happens, I need my buttons.

 

[Tiberius]

Penile neural interface seems the next logical step IMHO, but maybe I'm just crazy.

Giggity.

I don't think that keyboards will ever be obselete, but I can see them developing. I;d love to see a keyboard that is a touchscreen, so that it can change depending on what you are doing.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ I once saw a device that looked like a small flashlight - it projected the image of a keyboard onto any flat surface, which could then be typed on, as if it were a physical keyboard. That does have promise. I don't know how well it worked, but there we are.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Laser keyboards. And they already do exist:

http://www.thinkgeek.com/gadgets/cellphone/e722/?srp=2

 

[sojourner]

The problem with those is lack of tactile response. Makes high speed typing difficult.

Tiberius, how about this:

http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/maximus/

 

[PurpleBuddha]

Laser keyboards. And they already do exist:

http://www.thinkgeek.com/gadgets/cellphone/e722/?srp=2

It looks like they keyboard works decent enough in the video as far as that goes, but the guy is typing painfully slow. I wonder if he had to because that is a limitation of the tech or if he is just slow?

Edit: looks like sojourner answered my question just before I posted.

 

[Soma]

The problem with those is lack of tactile response. Makes high speed typing difficult.

The lack of tactile response is no problem for the generations to come. You only depend on it because you are accustomed to it. There are videos on YouTube of babies playing around with iPads, demonstrating an uncanny mastery of the touch screen interface. It's remarkable. I feel old.

 

[sojourner]

Get back to me when those babies are trying to touch type at 60 words per minute.

 

[Tiberius]

My mobile phone has a little vibrate thing whenever I touch a key on the screen. I'd expect that any touchscreen interface can have that.