10/GUI – Multi-touch Concept for Desktop Interface

10/GUI is an interesting multitouch interface concept designed by Robert Clayton Miller that aims to replace the mouse based desktop interaction model.

The mouse is replaced with a touch tablet that is separate from the screen. All 10 fingers can be used for input without obstructing the display. Windows fill the screen vertically and are organized by application in a horizontal bar.

Pressing the right side brings up the global menu.

Pressing the left side brings up the application menu.

The more fingers you use, the higher their level of interaction:

1 Finger – Interact with elements in an application

2 Fingers – Scroll or pinch zoom inside applications

3 Fingers – Move and scale applications

3 Fingers – Scroll and scale the entire application space

Zoom application space all the way out and you get an annotated, thumbnail view of all windows separated into their applications.

It’s a clever system that seems feasible to me with some iteration on the software ui. I switched to a pen tablet from a mouse a few years back to reduce wrist strain. I love using my pen tablet as an input device, but this system solves a lot of the problems I have using it (the need to put down a pen to type, gui that isn’t tailored to the input, etc). Really hope a new desktop input model reaches the real world in the near future.

3D Interface Study

Technological and conceptual developments are slowly making 3D interfaces more useful. This note card sketch study explores some of the existing interfaces that I find most inspiring.

Spectra is a flash interface for viewing MSN content. A swirling circle of stories can be sorted and browsed. The overall impact of the interface is impressive until you try to start using it as a serious news viewing tool. Despite its flaws, Spectra explores some beautiful UI ideas.

Cool Iris is a browser plugin that presents a wall of content that can be scrolled through horizontally. Clicking a piece of content zooms in on it. Cool Iris is an example of a very simple implementation of 3d that creates a new and useful way to browse many types of content.

White Void’s portfolio is getting a little older but it’s my favorite 3d interface to date. It helps that his content is great, too. A simple expanding folder system prominantly displays the current level you are at while maintaining a dimensional view of highger levels to give you constant a sense of where you are in the hierarchy.