Re: Multimedia

[Marc_F_Hult <MFHult@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Wed, 19 Jul 2006 12:27:18 -0400, Marc_F_Hult
<MFHult@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
<g8msb2157n8fguo5gqhrmr6k8c940tinll@xxxxxxx>:

>On Wed, 19 Jul 2006 11:50:24 -0400, eschuylerTAKE@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>wrote in message  <tPqdnY3QCLteySPZnZ2dnUVZ_sqdnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxx>:
>
>>Marc_F_Hult <MFHult@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>>
>>>On Wed, 19 Jul 2006 03:41:56 -0400, "Robert Green"
>>><ROBERT_GREEN1963@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>>><n7SdnWfNdKNIfiDZnZ2dnUVZ_tmdnZ2d@xxxxxxx>:
>>>
>>>>"IVB" <ivb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>>>>
>>>>> With the 3400, it's a full PC [$160 gets you a 10" P3-400
>touchscreen].
>>>>>That means no special card needed, just the CQC software for fully
>>>>>distributed, networkable HA & HT control.
>>>>
>>>>That's a pretty good deal for the money.  A PIII-400's got plenty of
>>>>horsepower for HA purposes - especially when used as just a "smart
>>>screen."
>>>>
>>>>How is the screen?  Visible in daylight or when viewed at an angle?
>Lots
>>>>of them available on Ebay.  I just bought one to see for myself!
>>>
>>>Jist so others do not misunderstand, the Fujitsu 3400 tablet PC  is
>*not*
>>>a touch screen in the conventional sense. If you touch it with your
>>>finger, or a celery stalk, or a pencil, nothing useful happens. It
>>>requires a special wireless electronic pen.
>>>
>><remainder snipped>
>>
>>Marc,
>>
>>I don't believe this is correct. Based on the manual on the Fujitsu web
>>site, the digitizer on the 3400 is a resistive type, and the pen is
*not*
>>active, just a mechanical stylus. This should mean that any pressure on
>the
>>digitizer will activate it.
>>
>>Eric
>
>Cool! I stand corrected.  My (more expensive, newer) Toshiba has an
>electronic pen. Shows the consequences of pontificating on a product one
>doesn't actually use ...;-)


Part of my confusion is  "loads of learned lumber"  from when I researched
tablet PC's before buying a new Toshiba Portege Tablet. Microsoft's
specification for "Tablet PC" _requires_ a pen (or it isn't a tablet PC)
that has also has to have the equivalent of mouse functions. Since an
electronic pen is required, most/all other tablets also use electronic
positioning.

Someone who actually has a Fujitsu 3400 might clarify:

1) what functions are on the electronic pen.
2) whether XP-SP2 (tablet version and non-tablet version) can be installed
without breaking the touchscreen driver (XP makes RDP available).
3) whether there is a useable screen mouse so that one can actually use
the touch screen without the pen.
4) full-screen, full-motion video performance.

In general,  the Fujitsu 3400's sound like a spectacular deal but I'd want
to know  about how well the resistive touch screens hold up on
(especially) the used/surplus  stuff that is available. In my experience,
a touch screen that is intermittent or has bad spots is as frustrating as
an X10 switch that doesn't switch. Typical LCD touch screens are at least
easy to permanently 'fix' with one hard rap with the knuckles -- a 'fix'
that just gets you bruised on a CRT-based touch screen ;-)

(I'm personally holding the line that new devices need to be 1)
RDP-enabled and 2) provide acceptable full-screen, full-motion video. I've
had IBM industrial 10" 800x600 LCD touch screen Pentium-based PC's ( like
the 3400) running HA stuff for about 6 years. The ~4X speed increase of
the Fujitsu compared to what I have isn't a large enough boost to warrant
the upgrade and the IBM cases are more compact and less ugly than that of
the 3400. )

... Marc
Marc_F_Hult
www.ECOntrol.org