Active Ink Software Blog

Intel's UrbanMax Tablet Prototype

Sierra Modro from GottaBeMobile posts a video of a new tablet prototype that Intel is showing off.   She goes on to state that "she hopes that they make a few alterations such as adding multi-touch, capacitive touch and include an active digitizer."  I agree.  Adding these features would make for a great looking tablet.

Amazon may enter college textbook market with new Kindle

ars technica is reporting that Amazon will be introducing a new Kindle e-book for the college textbook market.  The new model will supposedly be considerably larger than the original and shaped like an 8.5" x 11" piece of paper, and will be available to the public sometime next year.

Intel Classmate PC

Intel has announced their second generation Classmate PC, a personal learning device targeted primarily for students in emerging markets.  This low cost PC comes with a handle for easy portability and inking capability for note taking.  It ships with Windows XP, which is interesting as I thought Windows XP, Tablet PC edition was required for inking on the screen.

 

Turning Point for Touch Screens

The New York Times has an article on the growing emergence of touch screen devices.  Apple revolutionized the market for touch screens with its IPhone and created the perfect user interface for this small display.  However, I'm not convinced that touch screens make sense for every application.  It makes sense when you are acquiring information such as browsing the Internet, selecting a song or reading an e-mail, but makes less sense when you need to input data such as composing a message, writing a proposal or filling out a form.  The touch screen is the least efficient method for entering data, whereas the keyboard is the most efficient.  Even the pen is more effective for certain tasks such as drawing, capturing signatures and taking notes. In my opinion, a hybrid  approach combining touch, keyboard and pen input would be the ideal user interface.

Completely Mobile and Paperless

ULTRAMOBILE PC TIPS links to a video that shows how a real estate agent has gone completely paperless using her tablet PC.  The video appears to have been professionally done, but that's ok.  The point is that she has completely automated her job function and the question is why aren't more professionals going paperless?

Which Data Entry Method Should I Use On My Tablet PC?

One of the challenges of using a tablet PC is deciding which data entry method to use.  Should I use the pen, the keyboard, the tablet input panel or some other method?  The answer is all of the above.  The right data entry method depends upon your usage.  I prefer the pen for checkboxes, drop down fields, pop-up windows and for entering signatures.  The keyboard for entering long strings of text and the TIP when entering handwritten words.  Each has its advantages and should be utilized accordingly.

Active Ink Becomes Certified as a QuickBooks® Developer

Active Ink has been certified by Intuit as a Silver developer.  For those of you that want to integrate Active Ink with QuickBooks® accounting, we now have a solution for generating invoices.  It's called our Service Manager.

Active Ink Software Launches Tablet PC Application for Field Service Professionals

The Service Manager is a PC application for field service professionals. It automates the process of managing incoming service calls and emailing work orders to technicians in the field. The work orders are filled out on a tablet PC and forwarded back to the home office where an invoice is automatically generated. The whole process of dispatching service professionals, filling out work orders and generating invoices has been completely automated.

To see a demonstration of how the Service Manager works, click on the link below.

http://www.activeinksoftware.com/videos/ServiceManagerHVAC.wmv