Tablet PC

Sunday, 14 January 2007

Personal computers have recently become very popular for a variety of uses ranging from home, office, engineering, sales, marketing, and military applications. Virtually every aspect of business, engineering and science utilizes some form of computer system on a daily basis. In the field of personal computers, computers are typically made portable and may be carried from place to place. These computers are commonly referred to as "portable personal computers." One type of the portable personal computers is typically referred to as "laptop" computers. Portable computers, including laptop computers or notebook computers, have increased in popularity since their introduction to the electronics market. Recent increases in processor speed and decreases in memory cost, memory size and processor power consumption have allowed portable computers to operate at increased performance levels. Because of this increased performance, users are now able to use portable computers in many complex applications where performance is critical instead of relying only on high performance desktop computers. Typically, a laptop computer comprises a clamshell formed by a main body that includes a keyboard unit and a display unit. All of the essential circuitry of the computer, such as the central processing unit (CPU), the power supply, and data storage devices are typically incorporated into the main body. The display unit is typically connected to the main body by a hinge. The display unit is placed over the keyboard unit and can be opened upwards by the hinge. The integrated nature of the laptop computers is desirable because it enhances their portability. The increased popularity of portable computers can also be attributed to quality improvements and reductions in size and weight of other components, such as displays. The image quality of the displays on portable computers has improved to a level similar or equal to that of desktop computers. Liquid crystal displays (LCDs) are utilized in many portable computers because LCDs are lightweight, have low power consumption, and retain a good quality of display even when exposed to different lighting conditions. Laptops very effectively serve people who need a computer away from their desk. But a market exists and is growing for people who need a computer when standing. A laptop is not very useful when standing up. People need a mobile product, not just a portable product. Furthermore, Tablets are designed to be a user's primary computer.

Today many people are in pursuit of high efficiency, causing them to change from conventional diaries, personal computers and notebook computers to more portable computer devices. In computer systems, the use of pen-based input devices as an alternative to the mouse and keyboard continues to grow. In the past, portable computers were only able to accept input via a keyboard, a mouse, or a built-in pointing device. Recent advances in technology and input devices now allow for users to input data on a touch screen via a person's digits or an electronic stylus using pre-defined input screens. A pen-based computer system is typically a small computer in which a "pen" or stylus is the primary device for inputting data. A pen-aware computer system accepts pen inputs in addition to other, more traditional, inputs (e.g. keyboard and mouse inputs). Often a pen-aware computer is simply a conventional computer that has been modified to accept pen inputs. The use of a touch screen to input data is sometimes referred to as operating in "tablet mode," because the computer is being utilized in a similar manner to a tablet of paper. A pen computer system is often housed in a relatively flat enclosure, and has a dual-function display assembly which serves as both an input device and an output device. When operating as an input device, the display assembly senses the position of the tip of a stylus on the viewing screen and provides this positional information to the computer's central processing unit (CPU). In addition, the electronic stylus may be used in conjunction with optical character recognition (OCR) software. When operating as an output device, the display assembly presents computer-generated images on the screen. Among these pen computer systems, the personal digital assistant (PDA) is extremely popular. This is because the PDA is light-weight, easy to start, highly expandable and has a complete range of accessories allowing the users to install various kinds of application software to meet their needs. With a typical PDA, users can arrange schedules, search for contact information, browse outstanding appointments, take immediate memos, receive and send emails, play games and perform other tasks. The tablet PC is another type of popular pen-based portable computer device. The tablet PC is a fully functional personal computer, which may include an operating system environment computer. The tablet PC not only is capable of running familiar productivity applications, but also offers the same rich connectivity to the Internet that a desktop or notebook PC provides. In addition, the tablet PC adds the simplicity of pen and paper, because the user you can write on the screen for data input. The tablet PC is designed to work well with all types of input devices.

Tablet computers are self contained pen-driven computers generally for specific purposes, environments and user needs and include a liquid crystal display screen (LCD) positioned in sealing engagement behind an aperture formed into the front housing of the housing assembly. A tablet computer has a flat, plane box shaped main body, and does not have keyboards as standard equipment, and has a tablet that also serves as displays provided on their fronts. Selected conventional electronics are positioned within the interior volume of the housing assembly with output connectors as required disposed through the central wall of the rear housing. The tablet PC may have a touch display panel and may be able to connect to another PC through a cabled or a wireless means. Among other ways of entering textual information, Tablet PC users will often use a stylus, also referred to herein as a pen, to write on a display area of the Tablet PC. Such a pen or stylus may also be used as a pointing device directly on the screen or above the screen to make various in-air gestures. To operate the tablet PC, which is similar to common writing types, a special pen is used with a touch display screen to perform various operating procedures. The pen-based input devices fall into two broad categories defined by the type of tablet input device employed. The first type of tablet input device is a transparent overlay that sits on top of the graphics display so that the graphics display image is viewable through the tablet. The active area of the tablet input device correspondingly maps to the graphics display area. The second type of tablet input device is a digitizing table with an opaque tablet that sits off to the side of the graphics display. Similarly to the transparent overlay tablet input device, the active area of the tablet corresponds to the graphics display area. Graphical user interfaces or GUIs are becoming increasingly popular with computer users. Many people find that computers having GUIs are easier to learn and use than comparable computers without GUIs. Typically, graphical images can be input into the pen computer systems by merely moving the stylus across the surface of the screen, i.e. making a "stroke" on the screen. The pen input operation may be performed on a desk, or by holding the pen in one hand and supporting the computer with the other hand.

Tablet PCs are likely to become increasingly popular for a variety of reasons. Compared to a conventional laptop computer, a tablet PC is more compact in size and is more portable, since the LCD monitor and the system main board of the tablet PC are integrated together. The tablet PC changes the input habits of the computer user and advances the information industry to a new milestone. For instance, in the context of taking notes during a meeting, a Tablet PC presents less of a barrier between individuals than does a laptop computer. In addition, Tablet PC's allow for capturing of handwritten notes so that Tablet PC users are able to take notes in their own handwriting, in an unobtrusive manner similar to taking handwritten notes with a pen and paper. Tablet PCs provide a very natural way to interact with a computer, namely, by writing on it, without sacrificing the power or utility of various operating systems and/or various operating system-based desktop applications. Tablet personal computers are not limited to computers running a "Windows" operating system. Instead, a tablet PC, may run any other known, or later-developed, operating system. Because new operating systems are available that are specifically designed for this application, tablets can support all existing applications without modification, making it as powerful as it is portable. While providing the simplicity of pen and paper, tablet PC's have the potential to provide many features and benefits provided by word processors and other personal computer software, including sharing of notes among meeting participants in real-time during a meeting via a wireless communication link. The tablet PC, which combines the functions of a wireless web with a notebook computer, fills an important need in the processing of information. Due to the growing popularity of personal digital assistants and tablet computers, notebook computers are now being configured to alternatively operate as a tablet computer, with a stylus operating as the input device.

Related Information about Tablet PC