Absolute Beginners Guide to Tablet PCs

The Tablet PC is a notebook computer that can operate without a keyboard. Instead, Tablet PCs receive input via the use of a special pen or via speech input. Pen input (called digital ink on the Tablet PC) enables the user to write on, and interact directly with, the computer screen, bypassing the hand-cursor disconnect often encountered with mouse input.

Although the Tablet PC can receive input via digital ink, it should not be mistaken for a simple pen computer. Most pen computers are touch-screen devices, which can actually impair productivity for those who need to rest their hand on the tablet to draw or write. The Tablet PC, on the other hand, does not employ a touch screen, which means you can use it more like a real-life notebook. The pen input of the Tablet PC makes it a perfect platform for taking notes, sketching, painting, and marking up documents and drawings.

When used as a slate (keyboard removed or hidden), it is also an excellent reading platform for digital eBooks and magazines, as well as Acrobat files and Word documents. You can keep most of your reading materials on your Tablet PC for reference any time, instead of having to lug around a carload of books.

The Tablet PC Value Proposition

The Tablet PC enables or enhances the following:

• Note taking You can take notes directly on the Tablet PC in your own handwriting, which enables you to keep all your notes and files together on your computer.

• Efficient digital collaboration The Tablet PC's direct annotation capability fits well with electronic conferencing. You can mark directly on a virtual whiteboard or mark up a document with the pen instead of a mouse, making your annotations more direct.

• Speech recognition and voice control Use your voice to control the Tablet PC and dictate to your favorite word processor.

• Ultimate portability The Tablet PC is more mobile than most laptops, yet has a larger screen surface and higher usability than PDAs.

• eBook reading The Tablet PC makes it easy to read books and journals directly on the tablet.

• Electronic forms You can use your Tablet PC to fill out and sign forms and documents directly on the tablet. This is useful for mobile sales forces, databases, and those who deal often with contracts.

• Built-in wireless networking (on most models) Built-in Wi-Fi allows for anywhere access to corporate data and Internet applications. Many offices and public locations now offer wireless access for their patrons and business partners.

• Mark up documents without thinking about the software Instead of thinking about how to use mark-up software, a Tablet PC enables you to annotate documents with your handwriting to identify items that need to be changed. This can also be used for marking up drawings done in CAD and other applications.

As you can see, the Tablet PC is an exciting new device that will change the way many people interact with their computers. The size of the Tablet PC and the pen input are the features that people notice most, and tend to be the primary reasons that most people get a Tablet PC. The size of the Tablet PC makes it less conspicuous, and thus more accepted, in meetings. The pen input changes the basic interactions with the computer.

In other pen-based machines, the operating system was not designed to make the pen input significantly different from a mouse. With Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, however, the operating system (OS) handles the pen input and allows the user to keep handwritten notes as handwriting no conversion is required. And because the OS now deals with digital ink, a person can search for notes that are still in handwritten form. Windows XP Tablet PC Edition converts handwriting to text in the background so that it can use the handwriting for searches.