This is an open E-Mail (or open Letter) to the makers of http://10gui.com/ as they are requesting input for their ideas on multitouch interfaces.
Hi,
I was developing for iPhone and on platforms like pigment and clutter based on linux mobile multitouch interaction devices. What I see in your presentation is the first good thinking in directions of multitouch on the desktop. Multitouch displays will not work as of the reasons you pointed out – same happened to the light pen. If your product (including a window manager für linux) would be on the market, it would be the product for my mom.
But anyway I have other needs. For example, It is important to me to have several windows on the desktop at once. What is indeed annoying is the situation, that windows can overlap. So what I think is needed is not only a linear window manager, but a grid. What I can think of is a desktop, that is always in exposé mode. I can zoom in anywhere I want reposition the windows as needed for my current task – but they can never overlap.
One other pro for this solution is, that windows can produce their one space. For example applications like Gimp with multi-window layouts (or Photoshop) can put all their windows in one big (invisible) window – so they are grouped automatically. Then I can put my Webbrowser next to it and my IDE underneath. Now these applications are one context. Starting Mail, Tweetie and Adium as another context. All these applications will now be placed in a grid and i can zoom in stepless to anywhere on my aplication grid. This, as well as moving the view, could be achieved by gestures.
Attached you will find a mockup for this. I hope my suggestions will help you develop your ideas even further as I think they are great for a start. What I like most about the idea is the input hardware in which even a (notebook like) computer could fit.
have fun!
yours sincerely
Kai Wegner
Overview of the desktop (all windows are visible at once). View cannot be moved - all apps are visible already
Zoomed in on some applications. View could be moved any direction to other applications by a gesture.
Zoomed in 100% on Browser and Tweetie. View could be moved any direction to other applications by a gesture.
