Do developers really need a touch screen?
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My newest laptop has a touchscreen. The only time I've ever used it was when developing a web application for POS terminals, and a few times since when demoing the same application at trade shows. Honestly, I'd like to find an easy way to disable it as I have a colleague who has problems with depth perception and will occasionally tap the screen accidently! :)
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
I have no use for one. It's (much) easier for me to use a mouse to click than tap on the screen. Same for Ctrl/Mousewheel vs. pinch to zoom. /ravi
My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
:suss: I had a touchscreen for development back in the late '80s. :cool: :omg: What took y'all so long? :wtf:
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I have no use for one. It's (much) easier for me to use a mouse to click than tap on the screen. Same for Ctrl/Mousewheel vs. pinch to zoom. /ravi
My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com
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:suss: I had a touchscreen for development back in the late '80s. :cool: :omg: What took y'all so long? :wtf:
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:thumbsup: /ravi
My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com
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MacSpudster wrote:
I had a touchscreen for development back in the late '80s.
Must be very expensive then.
TOMZ_KV
$400 for a 9" touchscreen for the then Mac Classic/Classic II. $815 in today's dollars ~ CPI Inflation Calculator[^]
The first person that replies to this comment gets $200. (Well, actually, anyone can get "$200" via copy/paste... :laugh: )
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$400 for a 9" touchscreen for the then Mac Classic/Classic II. $815 in today's dollars ~ CPI Inflation Calculator[^]
The first person that replies to this comment gets $200. (Well, actually, anyone can get "$200" via copy/paste... :laugh: )
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
Tomz_KV wrote:
Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
Absolutely yes. I've been developing touch-screen apps since 2000, which obviously predates smartphones. I've used far too many phone apps that fail basic touch usability metrics: - Touch targets are too small - Targets are placed too closely together - Icons that indicate a target don't accurately delineate the target area - Text used as a touch target (finger obscures needed information, plus text is weak for positioning cues) - Target layout without regard to tasks I attribute a lot of this to the use of emulators and the mouse in place of testing on real devices with real fingers. I know a lot of app developers can't afford to buy several devices for testing purposes, but they could at least test on a representative of each class of device: small screen smartphone, large screen smartphone, small tablet (7"), large tablet (10"), laptop. For example: one of the apps I use on my phone every day requires that I rotate my index finger 90° in order to hit one target at the edge of the screen. A normal finger press does not work. A mouse is a high-precision pointing device. A finger is not.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
No. They require shutting down the system to clean the screen.
Jochen Arndt wrote:
They require shutting down the system to clean the screen.
Not so. My touch-screen apps include a "clean" operation. It opens a full-screen window that displays a 30 second countdown and ignores mouse clicks (our touch screen hardware simulates a mouse).
Software Zen:
delete this; -
Tomz_KV wrote:
Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
Absolutely yes. I've been developing touch-screen apps since 2000, which obviously predates smartphones. I've used far too many phone apps that fail basic touch usability metrics: - Touch targets are too small - Targets are placed too closely together - Icons that indicate a target don't accurately delineate the target area - Text used as a touch target (finger obscures needed information, plus text is weak for positioning cues) - Target layout without regard to tasks I attribute a lot of this to the use of emulators and the mouse in place of testing on real devices with real fingers. I know a lot of app developers can't afford to buy several devices for testing purposes, but they could at least test on a representative of each class of device: small screen smartphone, large screen smartphone, small tablet (7"), large tablet (10"), laptop. For example: one of the apps I use on my phone every day requires that I rotate my index finger 90° in order to hit one target at the edge of the screen. A normal finger press does not work. A mouse is a high-precision pointing device. A finger is not.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
If you need to write software for the iPhone X, then yes, I'd recommend getting one. Most people reacting here in this thread are reacting before they read the entire question. ..if you don't need to write software for it, then the question would be simple; are you worth that iPhone X?
Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]
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You're welcome.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
I think it is not necessary :) Developers only need good laptop/pc. Touch screen is suitable for designer :laugh:
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
Only if they are human. Have you haver used a computer with a touch screen? Really used, not tried.
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
Nope most devs don't need them. Well Iv'e gotten by so far with not needing one, even when working on TS based projects. However... Most Devs DO NEED them, or at least the stake holders and project managers need devs to have them... Well at least if the amount of Stake Holders/Clients and Business folk that stab their fingers on my monitor when trying to "show me stuff" are anything to go by anyway :-)
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Most touch applications are developed using an emulator. The "touch" test is generally conducted on a real phone or pad. Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
TOMZ_KV
Developers don't even "need" a computer. They can handwrite code on notepads and have a typist enter it for them. :rolleyes: Anyone who's developing touch capable software* needs access to a touch screen that they can debug against for day to day work. Whether that's a discrete phone/tablet for dev use, a laptop with a touch screen, or a touch enabled monitor is a secondary concern. Unless your management is braindamaged, it should be whatever allows each dev to work most efficiently. A cheap phone/tablet/touch upgrade for a laptop only costs a few hours of dev time, so just get whatever lets them work fastest. It'll pay for itself. * This includes anyone who's writing web applications or consumer focused desktop apps. You may think someone would need to be :elephant:ing insane to reach up and swipe their laptop screen instead of using a mouse/touchpad; but a significant fraction of your userbase *does* do just that. Or at least a significant fraction of people who would be part of your userbase (and helping to pay your salary) if the crap you wrote wasn't borderline unusable on their touch enabled system. :doh:
Did you ever see history portrayed as an old man with a wise brow and pulseless heart, weighing all things in the balance of reason? Is not rather the genius of history like an eternal, imploring maiden, full of fire, with a burning heart and flaming soul, humanly warm and humanly beautiful? --Zachris Topelius Training a telescope on one’s own belly button will only reveal lint. You like that? You go right on staring at it. I prefer looking at galaxies. -- Sarah Hoyt
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Tomz_KV wrote:
Are there any good reasons that developers need a touch screen dev box?
Absolutely yes. I've been developing touch-screen apps since 2000, which obviously predates smartphones. I've used far too many phone apps that fail basic touch usability metrics: - Touch targets are too small - Targets are placed too closely together - Icons that indicate a target don't accurately delineate the target area - Text used as a touch target (finger obscures needed information, plus text is weak for positioning cues) - Target layout without regard to tasks I attribute a lot of this to the use of emulators and the mouse in place of testing on real devices with real fingers. I know a lot of app developers can't afford to buy several devices for testing purposes, but they could at least test on a representative of each class of device: small screen smartphone, large screen smartphone, small tablet (7"), large tablet (10"), laptop. For example: one of the apps I use on my phone every day requires that I rotate my index finger 90° in order to hit one target at the edge of the screen. A normal finger press does not work. A mouse is a high-precision pointing device. A finger is not.
Software Zen:
delete this;Gary Wheeler wrote:
I attribute a lot of this to the use of emulators and the mouse in place of testing on real devices with real fingers. I know a lot of app developers can't afford to buy several devices for testing purposes, but they could at least test on a representative of each class of device: small screen smartphone, large screen smartphone, small tablet (7"), large tablet (10"), laptop.
I haven't done nywhere close to as much touch work as you have, but I fully agree. And lest any bean counters freak out, you don't need to buy one of each of the 5 classes of test device for every developer and tester; just enough that there's at least 1 per person working on it a time and at least 1 full set available to be shared around as needed so the testers can try all form factors and the devs can have access to a problematic form factor as needed to fix things.
Did you ever see history portrayed as an old man with a wise brow and pulseless heart, weighing all things in the balance of reason? Is not rather the genius of history like an eternal, imploring maiden, full of fire, with a burning heart and flaming soul, humanly warm and humanly beautiful? --Zachris Topelius Training a telescope on one’s own belly button will only reveal lint. You like that? You go right on staring at it. I prefer looking at galaxies. -- Sarah Hoyt
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Developers don't even "need" a computer. They can handwrite code on notepads and have a typist enter it for them. :rolleyes: Anyone who's developing touch capable software* needs access to a touch screen that they can debug against for day to day work. Whether that's a discrete phone/tablet for dev use, a laptop with a touch screen, or a touch enabled monitor is a secondary concern. Unless your management is braindamaged, it should be whatever allows each dev to work most efficiently. A cheap phone/tablet/touch upgrade for a laptop only costs a few hours of dev time, so just get whatever lets them work fastest. It'll pay for itself. * This includes anyone who's writing web applications or consumer focused desktop apps. You may think someone would need to be :elephant:ing insane to reach up and swipe their laptop screen instead of using a mouse/touchpad; but a significant fraction of your userbase *does* do just that. Or at least a significant fraction of people who would be part of your userbase (and helping to pay your salary) if the crap you wrote wasn't borderline unusable on their touch enabled system. :doh:
Did you ever see history portrayed as an old man with a wise brow and pulseless heart, weighing all things in the balance of reason? Is not rather the genius of history like an eternal, imploring maiden, full of fire, with a burning heart and flaming soul, humanly warm and humanly beautiful? --Zachris Topelius Training a telescope on one’s own belly button will only reveal lint. You like that? You go right on staring at it. I prefer looking at galaxies. -- Sarah Hoyt