I suspect you would have a difficult time presenting a mathematical lecture using a typewriter/computer unless you were one of the top LaTex people on the planet. Try it sometime.
I am not saying to get rid of language. I am simply saying there is more to communication and information than text.
As for Excel. No doubt it is useful to many, but to call it advanced is redifing the term. MatLab, Mathemaica, R, etc...are advanced. Excel is convenience.
The searching issue is a good point. I don't see why it has to be restricted to ascii text. If you were searching for a geometrical object you might want to use pattern recognition and not simply verbal descriptions of shapes.
Yes, we are using text to discuss this. It's not my fault the web won't take handwriting.
I don't deny that communication is important in science. You just seem to be restricting it to a very limited field.
While at first I was going to agree with your assessment, having given it though I'd have to disagree. Enormous amount of information can be ascertained simply by data mining existing sources of recorded data. Video recordings of patient notes would lessen that potential / future value. Taken you're ideas to the real world (well our real world anyway), what would the web be like if everyone did video blogs, video twitters, video emails, IMs, video based shops and video wikis?
Google or insert you're favorite search engine wouldn't exist.
Yes. I'm clearly taking things to the extreme. My point however is valid, medical information has far more value even in todays modern world if it's in text searchable form. If a technology exists that can reliabaly transcribe the visual (audio actually) account back into text then sure... I could see your idea as a huge time saver. A doctor sitting at his desk recording patient information on hospital forms is an ENORMOUS waste of potential resources.
Hospitals should be doing everything in their power to simplify the task of maintaining patient records WITHOUT compromising on the quality of the patient data OR the patient care... I worked for a world class cancer center for many years (till I myself became a patient) and unfortunately the path to perfect patient notes / data is not an easy trail to blaze.
Lots and lots of politics and lots of very different opinions of what's the best way to tackle the issue. The result is a compromise where very little actually got improved but it changed just enough to require the staff to learn YET ANOTHER system that was just as imperfect as the last.
Dave
I don't deny that text has its place, but it can only convey a small spectrum of information. I think you'd have a very tricky time trying to convey the information in a musical piece using text. Similarly, text is not the ideal way to convey images and other geometrical objects. While its true that we search using text tools that is because we design the search tools to do that.
The translation from a complex process to text leads to a great deal of loss of information. We haven't been in a position to do much about that but we are getting there. Not too long ago pattern recognition ( extracting images from noisy one's) was impossible. Now, image recognition is becoming increasingly accurate.
Anyway, I am not advocating getting rid of the English language. I am simply saying we need to look beyond the information that text can convey. I personally have found tablets to be wonderful in conveying mathematical models to groups. The alternative of TeX'ing on the fly is simply unrealistic and even then the hand/eye combination is very powerful in combining pictures, mathematics and text in a way that your Office suite addict just can't do without an enormous waste of energy.
We haven't scratched the surface of the unknowns that nature has thrown at us. To keep forcing descriptions of problems using text based methods is a mistake in my opinion. For one thing it tends to encourage people who have the gift of the gab or the ability to intimidate using semi-technical jargon. For the most part they not helping us get any closer to solving the really difficult problems we face. You only have to talk to musicians and mathematicians to understand that difficult problems are not solved by the blowhards of society. Unfortunately the text based internet has given those people a forum they don't deserve and it's becoming increasing harder to extract what is real from the noise that is drowning the truth out.
True, but, we are talking about power typing, here, by a trained typist.
First, the intelligent virtual kb would reposition itself to always be under the fingers, whatever the hand position.
Second, while learning the new virtual kb a semi-transparent heads-up key board could be displayed.
Third, once proficient with the new virtual kb, the heads-up would disappear== no need to look at the keyboard.
Fourth, a simple 4-finger double-tap would display/dismiss the kb heads-up when necessary.
You've got a crazy imagination!
The truth of the matter is, when this device ships, if it does have a virtual keyboard is will be a larger version of something like the iPhone's keyboard, and it will be in a fixed position when visible. It will use much the same spelling correction. KISS - Keep it simple, Sir
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xpPhone
http://www.xpphone.com/en/product/configuration.html
ROCKING!
I suspect you would have a difficult time presenting a mathematical lecture using a typewriter/computer unless you were one of the top LaTex people on the planet. Try it sometime.
I am not saying to get rid of language. I am simply saying there is more to communication and information than text.
As for Excel. No doubt it is useful to many, but to call it advanced is redifing the term. MatLab, Mathemaica, R, etc...are advanced. Excel is convenience.
The searching issue is a good point. I don't see why it has to be restricted to ascii text. If you were searching for a geometrical object you might want to use pattern recognition and not simply verbal descriptions of shapes.
Yes, we are using text to discuss this. It's not my fault the web won't take handwriting.
I don't deny that communication is important in science. You just seem to be restricting it to a very limited field.
pmcd
While at first I was going to agree with your assessment, having given it though I'd have to disagree. Enormous amount of information can be ascertained simply by data mining existing sources of recorded data. Video recordings of patient notes would lessen that potential / future value. Taken you're ideas to the real world (well our real world anyway), what would the web be like if everyone did video blogs, video twitters, video emails, IMs, video based shops and video wikis?
Google or insert you're favorite search engine wouldn't exist.
Yes. I'm clearly taking things to the extreme. My point however is valid, medical information has far more value even in todays modern world if it's in text searchable form. If a technology exists that can reliabaly transcribe the visual (audio actually) account back into text then sure... I could see your idea as a huge time saver. A doctor sitting at his desk recording patient information on hospital forms is an ENORMOUS waste of potential resources.
Hospitals should be doing everything in their power to simplify the task of maintaining patient records WITHOUT compromising on the quality of the patient data OR the patient care... I worked for a world class cancer center for many years (till I myself became a patient)
Lots and lots of politics and lots of very different opinions of what's the best way to tackle the issue. The result is a compromise where very little actually got improved but it changed just enough to require the staff to learn YET ANOTHER system that was just as imperfect as the last.
Dave
I don't deny that text has its place, but it can only convey a small spectrum of information. I think you'd have a very tricky time trying to convey the information in a musical piece using text. Similarly, text is not the ideal way to convey images and other geometrical objects. While its true that we search using text tools that is because we design the search tools to do that.
The translation from a complex process to text leads to a great deal of loss of information. We haven't been in a position to do much about that but we are getting there. Not too long ago pattern recognition ( extracting images from noisy one's) was impossible. Now, image recognition is becoming increasingly accurate.
Anyway, I am not advocating getting rid of the English language. I am simply saying we need to look beyond the information that text can convey. I personally have found tablets to be wonderful in conveying mathematical models to groups. The alternative of TeX'ing on the fly is simply unrealistic and even then the hand/eye combination is very powerful in combining pictures, mathematics and text in a way that your Office suite addict just can't do without an enormous waste of energy.
We haven't scratched the surface of the unknowns that nature has thrown at us. To keep forcing descriptions of problems using text based methods is a mistake in my opinion. For one thing it tends to encourage people who have the gift of the gab or the ability to intimidate using semi-technical jargon. For the most part they not helping us get any closer to solving the really difficult problems we face. You only have to talk to musicians and mathematicians to understand that difficult problems are not solved by the blowhards of society. Unfortunately the text based internet has given those people a forum they don't deserve and it's becoming increasing harder to extract what is real from the noise that is drowning the truth out.
pmcd
True, but, we are talking about power typing, here, by a trained typist.
First, the intelligent virtual kb would reposition itself to always be under the fingers, whatever the hand position.
Second, while learning the new virtual kb a semi-transparent heads-up key board could be displayed.
Third, once proficient with the new virtual kb, the heads-up would disappear== no need to look at the keyboard.
Fourth, a simple 4-finger double-tap would display/dismiss the kb heads-up when necessary.
You've got a crazy imagination!
The truth of the matter is, when this device ships, if it does have a virtual keyboard is will be a larger version of something like the iPhone's keyboard, and it will be in a fixed position when visible. It will use much the same spelling correction. KISS - Keep it simple, Sir