"Yesterday, I spoke with one of Microsoft's larger software developer partners about Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. Like many others I queried recently, there is a wait-and-see attitude about adapting software to support Tablet PC.

Two years out of the gate for Tablet PC and Microsoft is still struggling with the chicken-and-egg problem, or so I'd conclude anecdotally. Which comes first, platform adoption or applications for the platform? The ongoing dilemma for any platform provider is getting developers to create compelling applications. But developers often would rather wait for greater platform adoption. Problem: Who will adopt the platform if there are no applications? But how does a platform’s adoption increase without applications?

Right now, Tablet PC is pretty good--and Microsoft has made sure its applications support the platform's inking capabilities. But more are needed, and in a way that would transform the portable genre. My first criterion for good high-tech product design is building on the familiar. What is more familiar to the human being than the eye and hand--as in eye and hand coordination?"

Keep read Evangelizing Tablet PC

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What if consumers could use a stylus, instead of a mouse and keyboard to move around digital photos in a digital album, or designers lay out a page using a stylus? The latter is nothing new to designers working with stylus and tablets connected to PCs. How about moving songs to a playlist in a media player or dragging video clips to construct a home digital movie and soundtrack? I see Tablet PC's possibilities as much greater than just inking, by encouraging the more natural use of eye and hand in a computing environment. But, of course, that can only happen if there are more applications taking advantage of Tablet PC's features, and Microsoft continues to extend them.

I'm not sure I follow what he's trying to get at. If there is already an application that allows you to move around digital photos, songs, video clips, etc. using the mouse, you would simply use the stylus to do the same thing on the Tablet PC, hence taking advantage of eye and hand computing.

I don't see why application vendors would need to rewrite their software to use a stylus when it's the same as using the mouse. The only rewriting I see would be adding Ink support, as that is truly unique to the Tablet PC. Other than that, your stylus is your mouse.

Am I missing something?

GeneT