Say goodbye to the computer mouse

Journal Entry #4

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7508842.stm

According to the BBC, the computer mouse has been around for almost 40 years, but has only three to five years left on the market. New technological advancements inspired by video games are making their way into the personal computer world. Instead of a separate mouse, now really only used in the desktop environment, computers will have touch screens and facial recognition devices. Also, an even newer system of detection developed by researcher Kumar at Stanford, is eye-tracking technology. Despite this system still having a 20% error rate, it is a lot faster than using a mouse, while most people tested only did poorly due to lack of practice (http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/18254/?a=f). 

Some companies that have already made progress with facial recognition devices include big names such a Panasonic, Cannon, and Sony. Logitech on the other hand has a different view on the subject. As the world's biggest manufacturer of mice and keyboards they say that, "the death of the mouse is greatly exaggerated." I agree, that it would hardly be realistic that in three to five years nobody will have a mouse. I doubt the older generation, just recently introduced to computers, will want to relearn how to operate a new machine. Logitech is not as far behind the new technology as it may seem. They realize that there are numerous ways for people to interact using computers, and they are manufacturing many of the new devices along with the mouse. 

This article brings up a good point saying that the billions of people in the developing world still have to be introduced to the computer and Internet. So, for them the mouse will be used for their introduction, because it is what the developed world is most familiar with. 

Even though the mouse may not be eliminated in 3 to 5 years, there are subtle new technologies that are pointing it in the right direction. People may not realize they are already using this new technology, but it is incorporated with the new iPhone and Nintendo's Wii system.