Jack SantosA group of us has been sharing a great doc by one of our editors (Vince Earl) that is a quick and extensive guide to Windows keyboard shortcuts. KEYBOARD shortcuts? Oh that is so 90s. Who needs them on an iPad? I have some analyst side bets in the works over 
how much longer the traditional form factors (PCs, laptops) hold out…or if they are going the way of Wyse terminals, 3270s, and card punches.
I was considering calling this post “The Anti-UI; a glimpse at what the world could have been like without a GUI”, or even “Man over Machine: How computers can mold your thought processes.” Larry Cannell pointed out that a GUI is as manipulative as a non-GUI, and suggested a title of “The Anti-GUI…” or “How to move fast around Windows without leaving the keyboard”.
It’s amazing how these little tricks and tips live on. What will be more amazing will be the state of keyboard shortcuts in 10 years, as the predominant form factor will be much different; gestures will make an impact (think Kinect), the predominance of other information (audio, video, image), and the subservience of text…immediately preceding the decline of civilization as we know it.
In the meantime, enjoy Vince’s notes….Computer Shortcuts
Category: Fun Predictions Uncategorized Tags: mobility, UI
1 response so far ↓
1 Vince Earl February 29, 2012 at 2:03 pm
Gartner’s Guy Creese recently published a document called “Mobility for Enterprise 3CS: At the Tipping Point,” in which he talks about the composite device. The basic premise is that you use the smartphone to check email and perhaps write very brief responses while you’re out and about, use the tablet for slightly longer responses when you stop for a few minutes, and a laptop for even longer responses when you get to the office (or hotel, in the mobile context).
Widening the context past email, I see the smartphone being used for notifications (e.g., document status updates) and high-level collaboration/reviewing (maybe evaluating a preliminary Web site design to make sure it’s heading in the right direction), the tablet for reviewing and light editing, and the laptop/desktop (or at minimum the tablet plus a keyboard) for full-blown content creation and heavy-duty computing.
Even with touch and gesutre (Kinect) interfaces, people will look for ways to keep their hands on the keyboard and/or minimize the number of clicks/taps it takes to accomplish an action. Even if there’s no keyboard, people will want some sort of “shortcut.” They may take the form of custom gestures, audio commands, scripts or macros (written with native functionality or through third-party applications), or direct cerebral interface, but people will always want immediate access to the features/functions they use most–whether the feature is on the “home” tab or not.