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macOS 27 Finally Brings Direct Touch Control to Sidecar

OGsallad said:
I first heard the term "Human Engineering" a few years ago and it always stuck with me. Every time I have a bad interaction with an object I think "That's bad human engineering". The way we interact with technology or objects should be the first concern. That being said, Human Engineering is dead. Web design, Car Interior design, MacOS, and others are all more clunky messes than what they were 15-20 years ago. The first thing I do when I get a new laptop was to get a mouse. Even as the MacBook trackpads were getting so good I still cannot stand interacting with a desktop with a flat surface. The MX master is probably the last device I held that was like, These people understood the human engineering part. Everyone begged for bigger and bigger screens in their Car. Now car interfaces are buggy messes and when the 20 inch screen dies in their 70k car, the new computer module is 15k. All I'm saying with this is that Im not entirely sure people will even use or like that their new touch support MacOS or the apple tax for replacements while begging for it for so long. Worked in an automotive store and all we got was customers saying "I never should've bought the new car, I loved the touchscreen at first now it just gets in the way". Not saying that will happen here but just an observation. I never once reached for my iPad Pro trying to click on something while in sidecar mode. I'm over here still hoping for system preferences to return.
Click to expand...
I agree with everything you said about touch screens replacing buttons and knobs...
but...
Being able to mirror my Mac Mini's screen to my iPad and monitor renderings or exports and have full control of my Mini while watching a show in another room or sitting the the dinner table (instead of jumping up and running and down the stairs) could be usefu.
I don't know if or how it worked before, but I mirrored Pixelmator to my iPad and used the pencil to make repairs and edits without any issues. Someone said the pencil worked like this previously, so I'm not sure if this is new or not.
 
There are several third party solutions before this.

Don't know if you can toggle it off, as palm rejection sometimes isn't ideal, but that would make this more useful. I've used Sidecar extensively with the Pencil and an external trackpad and keyboard. This arrangement works well.
 
M4irmidnight said:
Might we see iPad Pro finally run macOS in a couple years time?

Honestly with the Neo existing, I think it’s apples only chance to save the iPad Pro .
Why pay double for a device running a phone OS when the Neo is there at half price and gets the same macOS as a m5 max mbp?
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Because the use cases are completely different? Form factor matters, a slate tablet and a laptop arent the same, though there’s overlap when the iPP is in a kb case they’re still very different

and for that matter there are a gulf of other differences between the neo and the iPP, including the iPP having a much much better display, much faster chip, thunderbolt, and the pencil
 
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seek3r said:
Because the use cases are completely different? Form factor matters, a slate tablet and a laptop arent the same, though there’s overlap when the iPP is in a kb case they’re still very different

and for that matter there are a gulf of other differences between the neo and the iPP, including the iPP having a much much better display, much faster chip, thunderbolt, and the pencil
Click to expand...
For an artist , sure. I can see it. But for most everyone else? I’d rather have more capable software without limits .

An MacBook with a base iPad is where it’s at.
 
I have no need or desire to touch targets in MacOS, but I do use the Pencil for MacOS drawing apps via Sidecar. I liked how it was before only being able to use touch for multi touch gestures (although even those I barely use because I use keyboard shortcuts). I hope there will be an option to turn off the ability to touch targets. I also use a Surface Laptop Studio with Surface Pen and I'm constantly accidentally touching the screen, and on multiple occasions I've accidentally closed the app I was using (the X button on the top corner of the app/screen is very easy to touch accidentally when adjusting the screen for example). I never actually want to use touch on this device, it only gets in the way, and there's no way to turn it off. It's a frustrating UX.
 
I've never found touchscreens very useful on laptops or on desktop systems. Apple was right, years ago, when they argued all the reasons not to go that route. (Biggest one is how uncomfortable it is to sit at a desk or table and reach out to keep touching things on a display screen in front of you.)

That said? It seems crazy to me Sidecar didn't implement touch capabilities completely. The device acting as the extra display is already a touchscreen device (iPad), and there are special use-cases I see for it.

For example, I've worked at companies using VoIP phones and they almost always have you install an app on your laptop to work as the softphone. You typically get a "dialer" window you can open to easily look at a directory of employees and can click to dial someone's extension. This is a great app to leave running on something like a Sidecar screen off to the side so it doesn't take up any room on your primary display(s), but you want touch capability for it to maximize its usefulness. Tap to dial without even moving your mouse away from whatever other application you were using.
 
Hopefully this means Wacom tablets will support touch input too

I’ve been back and forth with their support for weeks only to be told that it was a macOS limitation
 
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splifingate said:
www.scientificamerican.com

China just approved its first brain implant for commercial use, a world first

Neuracle Medical Technology’s invasive brain-computer interface has been given the green light in China for people with partial spinal cord injuries
www.scientificamerican.com www.scientificamerican.com
Click to expand...
Emphasis on sane. Not just psychiatrically or psychologically sane, but also physically and neurologically sane. Someone with spinal cord injuries is anything but when it comes to the latter two, and maybe even when it comes to the former because of the limitations said injuries impose on their daily lives, and may not have anything to lose from such invasive body modifications.
 
Excellent, now I can save a fortune not buying a MacBook Ultra!

I do use sidecar for painting in Mac apps like Rebelle sometimes, and it was always frustrating they placed that UI limitation in for no logical reason. I guessed it was to prevent sherlocking—perhaps the relevant companies have stopped paying protection.
 
Hajj.david said:
This is already a thing and has been for years. Just go to your display settings and extend or duplicate it to the ipad. You can hide any and all ipad UI at that point and use it as a purely external screen over USB C or wirelessly
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It's not a direct true DisplayPort connection though. It's a compressed video stream sent over TCP (UDP? Actually not sure on that). It's basically a virtual display the iPad connects to via screen sharing. In short, you can't take full advantage of the iPad's display.
 
OGsallad said:
I first heard the term "Human Engineering" a few years ago and it always stuck with me. Every time I have a bad interaction with an object I think "That's bad human engineering". The way we interact with technology or objects should be the first concern. That being said, Human Engineering is dead. Web design, Car Interior design, MacOS, and others are all more clunky messes than what they were 15-20 years ago. The first thing I do when I get a new laptop was to get a mouse. Even as the MacBook trackpads were getting so good I still cannot stand interacting with a desktop with a flat surface. The MX master is probably the last device I held that was like, These people understood the human engineering part. Everyone begged for bigger and bigger screens in their Car. Now car interfaces are buggy messes and when the 20 inch screen dies in their 70k car, the new computer module is 15k. All I'm saying with this is that Im not entirely sure people will even use or like that their new touch support MacOS or the apple tax for replacements while begging for it for so long. Worked in an automotive store and all we got was customers saying "I never should've bought the new car, I loved the touchscreen at first now it just gets in the way". Not saying that will happen here but just an observation. I never once reached for my iPad Pro trying to click on something while in sidecar mode. I'm over here still hoping for system preferences to return.
Click to expand...
Old man yells at cloud post if I've ever seen one. I do like cars with buttons, but screens aren't all bad. Ya know for music, maps, and settings... at least on Android Auto. Oh and this year both Android Auto and CarPlay will allow video apps.

Aside from System Settings being annoyingly new/different, macOS hasn't fundamentally changed that much in 20 years. I'm not sure if I'll use this sidecar touch feature but I'm excited about it. I bought a 13" iPad Pro as a 4th monitor and I keep it in a position that would make sense for touch, if I end up using it. Won't hurt me either way, and I bet you can disable it.

P.S. Magic Mouse is my favorite mouse of all time, no joke. MX Master is a good mouse and I've used it for years at work on a PC, but the functions and feel of the Magic Mouse are the best for me. Just an example that people like different things. I can appreciate that others might like things I don't.
 
M4irmidnight said:
For an artist , sure. I can see it. But for most everyone else? I’d rather have more capable software without limits .

An MacBook with a base iPad is where it’s at.
Click to expand...
I’m not an artist, and I have an iPad Pro because I think iPadOS is the most capable software for a tablet. macOS would be a big downgrade for me.
 
OGsallad said:
I first heard the term "Human Engineering" a few years ago and it always stuck with me. Every time I have a bad interaction with an object I think "That's bad human engineering". The way we interact with technology or objects should be the first concern. That being said, Human Engineering is dead. Web design, Car Interior design, MacOS, and others are all more clunky messes than what they were 15-20 years ago. The first thing I do when I get a new laptop was to get a mouse. Even as the MacBook trackpads were getting so good I still cannot stand interacting with a desktop with a flat surface. The MX master is probably the last device I held that was like, These people understood the human engineering part. Everyone begged for bigger and bigger screens in their Car. Now car interfaces are buggy messes and when the 20 inch screen dies in their 70k car, the new computer module is 15k. All I'm saying with this is that Im not entirely sure people will even use or like that their new touch support MacOS or the apple tax for replacements while begging for it for so long. Worked in an automotive store and all we got was customers saying "I never should've bought the new car, I loved the touchscreen at first now it just gets in the way". Not saying that will happen here but just an observation. I never once reached for my iPad Pro trying to click on something while in sidecar mode. I'm over here still hoping for system preferences to return.
Click to expand...
Screens in cars have their advantages. I much prefer navigation on a tablet screen vs the old way of a cigarette lighter plug powering my iPhone which sat in a cradle that clipped in an air vent. There was nothing elegant about the latter.

The ideal in a car is a combination of physical buttons combined with a large screen. And that's what a lot of manufacturers are starting to realise now. The only reason they went full screen was to copy Tesla, thinking that was the way forward.
 
Haiku_Oezu said:
Hopefully this means Wacom tablets will support touch input too

I’ve been back and forth with their support for weeks only to be told that it was a macOS limitation
Click to expand...
I hope for any touchscreen support on macOS ... like connecting some USB-C touchscreen (e.g. ThinkVision M14t) and using it without any problem

Could use my M1 mini as a kind of a Home hub
 
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Mainyehc said:
Emphasis on sane. Not just psychiatrically or psychologically sane, but also physically and neurologically sane. Someone with spinal cord injuries is anything but when it comes to the latter two, and maybe even when it comes to the former because of the limitations said injuries impose on their daily lives, and may not have anything to lose from such invasive body modifications.
Click to expand...

Aye; it would take a certain sense of desperation for me to entertain the idea *knocks on wood*

Heck, I don't even trust Lasic!
 
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