Patent For Configurable Input System Emerges

I like!
/Borat

It's a great inovative concept.One that could actually be popular and work.

This is the most innovative idea I have seen in a long time. Way to go Apple!

After watching the TV interview... let the host ask again "Yeah, but HOW is Apple innovative?"

Can I put a beer dispenser into my MacBook?

sweet

That is such a neat idea. However, I somehow get the feeling that makes me doubt its inclusion in any of apple's new products in 2007.

this sounds pretty cool. is it possible to do this and keep a sturdy product? correct me if im wrong but i thought they moved away from the moving wheel (1G ipod) to the touch wheel because it was less moving parts. very cool and innovative. i hope this is something that gets used and knowing apple they will use it well!

racebit said:

However, I somehow get the feeling that makes me doubt its inclusion in any of apple's new products in 2007.

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Macrumors said:

As a grain of salt, readers are reminded that Apple routinely patents technology that never makes it into shipping products.

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Well it does mention that apple doesn't use all the things it patents, so it's possible we'll NEVER see this used.

I really don't think they will actually market this and if they do the modules will cost a fortune.

One word: AWESOME!

Not gonna happen. For starters, how do you type in names for your audio tracks when you've got your keyboard swapped for a mixer?

Still, neat idea.

I almost find it more likely that an oled keyset, similar to this would be stuck in a mac before a entirely touchpad interface, but then again, I'm not an apple exec.

nodrog6 said:

This is the most innovative idea I have seen in a long time. Way to go Apple!

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I had a video game sysem back in the 80s that did this...each game cartridge had its own interface and programming. It basicually used a the same touch pad to interpret the location of the finger pressing and the programing to tell it what to do with the input.

While this does present some interesting concepts...it looks like more vaporware from Apple. Companies routinely patent ideas for later use or more commonly to just 'hedge' their products or keep others from developing them. Other countries have a better idea. If you don't push to take it to market, you lose your patent. Whats the sense in patents that exist only to stiffle an industry? And I have 3 patents, 2 of which will never see the light of day. Just like many alternative fuel technologies. The small companies that hold patents get bought up by the gas guzzling car makers and the development of these technologies all but stops.

Very very slick, but (like mentioned) this looks like the kind of thing that never materializes. Say... I wonder if they could make a good espresso maker input/output system...

That is a cool idea

This could be a real winner.

I've been thinking for several years that what needs to evolve in our technology is the physical user interface... computers are fast enough (for the time being), and there's only so much you can do with software.

This opens up limitless possibilities for hardware evolution.

What will make this super for Apple is that, because they make the hardware and the software, it will work properly... unlike all the add-ons for computers as we currently know them.

This is brilliant.

cheers

Leej said:

Say... I wonder if they could make a good espresso maker input/output system...

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I'll drink to that!

At the very least, it would be nice to have tablet functionality (possibly a BTO option) in the bottom half of an Apple laptop.

BlueRevolution said:

Not gonna happen. For starters, how do you type in names for your audio tracks when you've got your keyboard swapped for a mixer?

Still, neat idea.

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Have a fixed row of preset and a few reprogrammable keys to call up the interactive functionality of each seperate module so by switching the module to do each task you could record your info with one module switch the module while the file is open push the correct preset key and name the file then go on to the next either related or new task at hand.

racebit said:

I almost find it more likely that an oled keyset, similar to this would be stuck in a mac before a entirely touchpad interface, but then again, I'm not an apple exec.

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that keyboard looks great. i'd definitely get one if it showed hotkeys for whatever pro app i was in...

Spanky Deluxe said:

I really don't think they will actually market this and if they do the modules will cost a fortune.

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Would you expand on that please?

I hope Apple comes out with a PDA cell phone that would be pretty sweet and I would totally buy one

BlueRevolution said:

Not gonna happen. For starters, how do you type in names for your audio tracks when you've got your keyboard swapped for a mixer?

Still, neat idea.

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External keyboard.

The overlay input device would obviously need to replace the laptop's keyboard, but plugging in an external keyboard would be easy enough.

I don't agree with "Spanky Deluxe" who said that these overlays would cost a fortune.

They would certainly cost less than buying a completely physically separate component.

I keep imagining something like those "Z-Board" gaming keyboards that are custom made for each game, but in this case it's just the overlay and the functionality that changes.

Interesting...

yes, please!

Neat!

That's genius. Those kind of things make me think why I haven't thought of that before. They really do Think Different.