Pocket computer-phone + clamshell keyboard + desktop peripherals
A peripherals and case system designed around a pocket-sized phone-computer.
I'm (experimenting with) using the "Logitech Keys-To-Go Ultra-Portable Bluetooth Keyboard for iPad" used with iPhone.
I probably should have bought the iPad case version of this keyboard.
I have been experimenting with writing technology and techniques since I was inspired to capture rapid ideas in October 1985 at the start of forming the Egodeath theory.
1987 was the year I fully developed my hand writing technique for idea development and also learned rapid keyboarding on an IBM PC/DOS environment, with monospace text, using acronyms.
In January 1988, I extended that keyboarding technique to Microsoft Word on Mac.
The weirdest communication-technology experience now is using a wireless portable Bluetooth keyboard Logitech together with an iPhone 6 Plus.
When the physical keyboard is connected to the smartphone, the soft (onscreen touch) keyboard goes away, so aside from the UI chrome of the Notes text editing app, I now have the entire 5.5" screen.
This screen has 400 pixels per inch. You can't even see the pixel-grid with a magnify glass.
There are lots of bugs, hangs, a non-tested (non-QA'd wilderness). Sometimes my acronyms auto-expand, sometimes they don't (Settings: General: Keyboard: Text Replacement).
When I go to that Settings page, for awhile, 'edt' auto-expands to "the Egodeath theory". Then it stops working.
The iPhone — the smartphone — has LOTS of room for improvement.
We are a long way from proper, designed, tested *docking* as a coherent, experience-driven, *designed* system approach.
Vastly better than this ultra-portable flat separate keyboard would be a clamshell case keyboard for snap-in fastening to the iPhone in both orientations.
The phone *has to* fasten to the keyboard, because half the UI involves pushing the screen with your finger.
My hands are typing, so I have to have some other way than holding with my hand, to keep the phone stationary.
The iPad clamshell-case version of this Logitech flat Bluetooth keyboard would work much better, because a firm requirement is to keep the touch-UI phone from moving around, and holding it in (angled) position.
The ikross portable stand fails to keep the phone stationary when using touch and multitouch UI.
The designer/programmers of tech are still thinking in terms of desktop-first, not mobile-first.
Stop assuming you and the audience have all-in-one laptop, docked laptop, and desktop multi-component peripherals setups.
Use those as a reference point that sets a high bar to meet.
Use a peripherals and case system designed around a pocket-sized phone-computer.
You must like me here *live in* the docking world centered around the phone, not around the laptop.
It needs to be a pocket-sized Microsoft Surface with (both portable and desk) peripherals support.
Surface is a Windows (desktop-OS) tablet, with detachable *clamshell* keyboard forming a stable clamshell where when using the keyboard, the keyboard attaches securely to the screen/CPU.
Needed is an OS environment that's like a phone and tablet and laptop-desktop, pocket sized screen with soft keyboard, and attachable physical keyboard.
The setup must function both ways:
As a *portable* pheripherals system like this super light thin Bluetooth keyboard (but must fasten the keyboard stably to the phone).
I balance the ikross portable phone stand) on the keyboard, a solution which doesn't work.
Ditch the separate stand, and instead fasten the phone to the keyboard (both orientations).
The usage scenario is to always have the phone with me, and do everything on it not the laptop, and use this phone as the brain (or mind) with a set of portable or stationary peripherals:
o Phone by itself
o Stationary peripherals
o Portable peripherals (keyboard fastens to phone)
As a fixed, full-size, desk-top peripherals system
I'm simultaneously Bluetoothing out to a portable speaker at the same time as using the physical Bluetooth keyboard, playing the Transcendent Knowledge podcast. It partially, sometimes works. I'm living in the tech wilderness.
When Siri reads aloud a selected passage of this Notes app text file, the music or video (podcast) volume from the Chrome or Safari app with Youtube is ducked down to half-volume, with Siri reading over it.
I have yet to experiment with mixing text inputs: soft keyboard, physical keyboard, and voice recognition dictation.
The biggest reason why I didn't continue experimenting (until now) with using this Bluetooth keyboard with this iPhone is the inefficient *Apple keyboarding design*, which is keyboard layout in conjunction with keyboard control of iOS and apps.
I need to get a clamshell case keyboard — even if just the iPad Logitech one.
I need to learn this existing keyboard's layout and how it controls the iPhone, in conjunction with the touchscreen UI.
The biggest hurdle or impediment to efficiency: God is wrathful: my keyboard+phone setup is an Apple keyboarding design, which is less efficient (number of keystrokes) than Windows' keyboarding design.
Microsoft Windows Phone with a Bluetooth Windows Phone keyboard would potentially enable more powerful, efficient keyboarding than iPhone with Bluetooth iOS keyboard.
Keyboarding support in Apple Mac and Apple iPhone is inferior to Microsoft Windows, regarding the keyboard layout in conjunction with how the key combinations control the OS and apps.
IBM Presentation Manager had no assumption that there exists a mouse or pointing device connected; all actions had to be *efficiently* supported by keyboarding.
Apple lacks efficient keyboard support; keyboarding on Apple is twice as hard as on Windows.
Mac has no underscore character for direct-access with the Alt key.
This iPhone phablet fastened in clamshell-case fashion to a sturdy keyboard could make quite a comfortable literal lap-top "netbook" (tiny laptop).
Changing the phone orientation changes the balance and angle of the lap-top or table-top clamshell arrangement.
This separate keyboard and stand and pocket phone-computer (and speaker) is not very good, not a sweet spot.
A clamshell keyboard case fastened to a pocket touchscreen phone-computer is great.
We need a Microsoft Surface but with pocket cellphone-capability computer, instead of big tablet, is the next tech sweet spot in computers and smartphones, phablets and tablets.
We need an OS environment that is in-between desktop and smartphone/tablet, more capable than a smartphone, to support clamshell-case multitasking and vigorous keyboarding and touchscreen pressing – but still fully usable in pocket size, with no physical keyboard clamshell case.
This 3-part setup (flimsy stand, separate keyboard, and phone) is an embarrassment and I refuse to show people my using this poor system as if I recommend it.
A sturdy clamshell keyboard case that firmly holds the touch phone at an adjustable angle, I would be seen using, spreading that approach-meme.
— Michael Hoffman, idea developer, regarding idea development tools and techniques.
Egodeath Yahoo Group 