Field Notes Inside an Integrated Communications Agency

Multi-touch will be the next quantum leap in the evolution of human/computer interaction by creating an "intuitive" way for users to use their fingers to interact with computers without the whole mouse/pointer abstraction. It has the potential to simplify complex click and drag procedures with simple "gestures" which are combinations of movements of your fingers on the computer.

These gestures will amount to a new language that will allow people to interact with computers in new ways. This will need to be a universal language that transcends spoken word and culture. This language will need to be able to evolve, but provide enough consistency so that users can use the devices around them.

My question is who will create, manage, and evolve the gesture language? Will there be multiple languages to learn? Will users be saddled with having to make the choice once again to be a "Mac guy" or "PC guy"?

The problem arises from the fact that multi-touch processing will most likely happen at the OS level. And that means Microsoft, Apple, and the Unix/Linux community need to work together... Oh, who am I kidding... Microsoft will make their gesture language so that it works well with Microsoft office and IE. Apple will have the most elegant gesture language, but it'll only work on Apple hardware. The open source community will have to work for another decade to gain some consensus.

I hear the saber rattling and the gears of war, but can't we give peace a chance?

Wanna learn more?
Jeff Han demos multi-touch at TED

Microsoft Surface  

Apple Mac Air with multi-touch features