Posted on 04/08/2011 6:01:39 PM PDT by decimon
The hand moves the computer mouse, but the cursor doesn’t comply. The cursor doesn’t go where told.
The hand tries again. The cursor shoots past the intended target.
The hand tries a third time – and the cursor loops farther from the target than where it started. And the user is frustrated.
So it often goes for computer users whose motor disabilities prevent them from easily using a mouse.
As the population ages, more people are having trouble with motor control, but a University of Washington team has invented two mouse cursors that make clicking targets a whole lot easier. And neither requires additional computer hardware – just some free, downloadable software. The researchers hope that in exchange for the software, users offer feedback.
The Pointing Magnifier combines an area cursor with visual and motor magnification, reducing need for fine, precise pointing. The UW’s AIM Research Group, which invented the Pointing Magnifier, learned that users can much more easily acquire targets, even small ones, 23 percent faster with the Pointing Magnifier.
The magnifier runs on Windows-based computer systems. It replaces the conventional cursor with a larger, circular cursor that can be made even larger for users who have less motor control. To acquire a target, the user places the large cursor somewhere over the target, and clicks. The Pointing Magnifier then magnifies everything under that circular area until it fills the screen, making even tiny targets large. The user then clicks with a point cursor inside that magnified area, acquiring the target. Although the Pointing Magnifier requires two clicks, it’s much easier to use than a conventional mouse, which can require many clicks to connect with a target.
(Excerpt) Read more at washington.edu ...
Ping
Heck - that will come in handy for some of us geriatrics too! I do have Magnifying Glass and it's great for a lot of things.
Helpful hint ping, Trib. :^)
This looks very similar to the magnifier already built into windows.
This looks very similar to the magnifier already built into windows.
Thanks Brit.
The Angle Mouse: Target-Agnostic Dynamic Gain Adjustment Based on Angular Deviation
I don't see much of a difference between pointing and aiming.
I don't use this stuff so I don't know. Just thought it might help some people.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.