Blog 3
One of the big attractions (selling points) of the ASUS EeeTop, or ZZ as we now know it, is the Touchscreen (surely a Luddite concept). I will discuss its use, compare it to other similar equipment and provide an evaluation. Flip! This is beginning to read like an essay rather than a blog! Flip!! (I’m turning into one of the IT Crowd). Ned won’t be pleased. Anyway back to the blog….
So I, ZZ himself actually, configured the screen for touchy-feeliness and away we went. Well I was most impressed. I could zip through multiple windows, move icons about and scroll through documents with just a flick of the finger. ZZ loved it, especially when I managed the sweeping underhand finger point so often used in his videos (see Gimme All Your Lovin’). The other key advantage is that visitors to my office do not expect the non-PC to have a touchscreen. So when they annoyingly point at, which inevitably means have contact with, the screen; things happen by magic. This elicits excited gasps of amazement usually followed by “my much smaller mobile does that to!” This brings me to my next point.
My only other experience of touchscreen technology was the previous Tuesday at the pub quiz. One of the team, a plumber by trade, had rather daringly turned up leaving his spouse to deal with a delicate problem involving their daughter’s boyfriend, his imminent move to Huddersfield (great choice) and her wanting to follow him. By Question 7 of the quiz our technophile team member whipped out his mobile and announced he would have to text the wife. After explaining to the other teams that this was to check on his daughter, and not find out the name of the horse in Steptoe and Son, he proceeded to touch the screen. Yes, he proudly whispered aside to me, this was one of those new fangled mobiles without keys! So he started his message with me watching. By Question 36 he realised that largish fingers, more used to copper pipes and boilers, banging on a four inch virtual keyboard, was not the best way of communicating quickly with an irate spouse. He sighed and rang her instead. Perhaps, after a period of Darwinian time where our fingers evolve into short knitting needles; these phones may be as effective as the old Luddite method of shouting across the valley. I can now see why they invented the I-Pad: so that Sumo wrestlers would not feel discriminated against when texting. As they hardly move anyway they would be better off with a ZZ in any case. This leads to the last point.
As you have seen over the last few blogs I have become very attached to ZZ so I found him a suitable friend to keep him company in the office when I am not there. (see photo below).
Non PC-Man
He is known as non-PC man being ZZ’s (the non-PC) friend. It is also apt that he smokes and carries a gun I suppose. However, he has caused me to investigate ZZ’s touchscreen technology further. I supposed that the screen was oleopholic as I had noticed women with long nails having trouble with the I-Phone. But no non-PC man could use ZZ’s touchscreen as well. It must be just pressure sensitive. I suppose I’ll have to read the on-line manual. Anyway at least it won’t scratch – sorry Apple.
Next time I’ll be talking about how ZZ works with Windows 7. Where hopefully I do not turn into a computer after 8 seconds. That would be a Luddites worst nightmare: sort of a Matrix meets Terminator scenario. But it would make a good picture for the blog.
Bye for now….