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Back to the drawing board
By DAVE GUSSOW
It looks like a pen and works like a pen. But it's a stylus that writes only on a portable computer screen. Handwriting recognition is back, and in a big, Microsoft way. The company's Tablet PC will be unveiled Thursday with the usual Microsoft fanfare expected. It's a notebook computer in a new form: It looks like a grownup's Etch-A-Sketch. A standard computer keyboard can be attached to it. But the stylus that comes with it, and the sophisticated handwriting function that goes far beyond the rudimentary types on handheld devices, may have the most impact on the way people use notebook computers. "What changes with the Tablet PC is that it integrates with the way we work and the way we use computers," said Michael Gartenberg, research director at Jupiter Research in New York. Doctors can fill out forms as they make their rounds. Police officers can write and send reports. People can collaborate on projects. And they can do it in their own handwriting on a full-function computer. People who would never consider typing notes on a computer during a business meeting could use the Tablet PC like a notepad. Instead of writing notes with pen and paper, taking them back to the office and inputing the data into a desktop, users can write directly into the machine in a technology called "digital ink." That lets users write, edit, share, search and send those notes, either in the original handwriting scrawl, or by converting them to traditional computer text. They can copy and paste. They can print or write in cursive. They also can use an on-screen keyboard similar to those used on handheld devices. Microsoft will release studies Thursday that say the device could improve workers' productivity by 25 percent. "We think 25 percent is low," said Matthew Panzano, a senior business productivity adviser. "We think we can do a lot better than that." The handwriting will work on any program that runs on Windows, Microsoft says, through a feature added to XP called the Input Panel. Say you're working in a Microsoft Word file. Clicking on the Input Panel icon opens a small window at the bottom of the screen. You write there with the stylus and touch the Enter key. The words show up in the document as if you'd typed them in. Microsoft says it has tweaked the software to recognize thousands and thousands of writing styles (including by lefthanders). It's claiming the handwriting should be about 90 percent accurate. Though experts say accuracy in notes is not as critical as in a business letter or presentation, one comparison that undoubtedly will be made is to the ill-fated Apple Newton. Apple killed that device in 1998, after its mangled handwriting recognition was held up to widespread ridicule, including in the Doonesbury comic strip. "Pen computing was set back probably at least a decade with the release of the Newton," Gartenberg said. At a demonstration at Microsoft's Tampa office, Panzano says the machine picked up his wife's writing perfectly. His penmanship, which he concedes is not the best, works about 90 percent of the time. But my handwriting (awful by any standard) turned Tech Times' traditional test line "The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain" to "The rian n/pain 50195." The Tablet PC's stylus is not like those found on handheld devices. It runs on a battery and also acts as a mouse with a right-click button on the side. Some also have virtual erasers that work just like the ones on a pencil: rub it on the screen and the writing disappears. And, unlike handheld devices, only the stylus will write on the screen. That means your hand can rest on the screen without creating a smudge on the document. Users will have to replace the stylus' tip when it wears out. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates has been showing off prototypes of the Tablet PC for two years, but it is only now coming to market, an indication of the complexities involved. About 15 companies, including Acer, Toshiba and Hewlett-Packard, will produce the machines, which are expected to cost between $2,000 and $3,000. There will be two basic models: One looks like a laptop, and even has a keyboard. But open it, fold the cover all the way to the back and go to work on the tablet screen. The other model looks like a slate. Some models will work with docking stations for desktop use. The biggest screen is expected to be 15.2 inches, and the tablets will weigh between 1.5 and 3 pounds. The machines will have only USB (Universal Serial Bus) and Firewire ports to connect peripherals such as printers and digital cameras. Microsoft is heavily promoting their use with wireless networks, particularly in offices. In a touch that would be nice on the desktop version of XP, Microsoft has transformed the reboot function (Ctrl-Alt-Del) into one button. Another nifty feature is called Snippet. Say you're surfing the Web. You want to save just part of page. Using Snippet, you circle the item with your stylus and it's saved automatically. Another is called the Windows Journal, which lets you organize notes and add element such as graphics and photos on a screen version of blue-lined notebook paper. The initial market for the Tablet PC will be business and information workers, Gartenberg says. Consumers may be intrigued, but the price is likely to make them stay away until later, less expensive models come out. (A promotional demonstration is online at microsoft.com/windowsxp/tabletpc.) Even though the Tablet PC is the main computing innovation coming to the market this year, it's not expected to start out with huge sales. "If it's 1 percent (of the notebook market), that'll be a big deal," said Roger Kay, an analyst with IDC. "It's a new form factor, so it'll take a while to catch on," maybe taking a year or more. Yet once people get into stores and take a look, analysts think people will be intrigued. "What we're seeing is what will become a standard part of mobile computing in the next three to five years," Gartenberg said. "Right now, it's a stake in the ground. But I think Microsoft is in it for the long haul." -- Times news researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report. Dave Gussow can be reached at gussow@sptimes.com or (727) 445-4228.
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