Whilst the Tablet PC active digitizer pen is the trusted workhorse of many serious business Tablet PC users, the push towards touch screens has been somewhat puzzling to us.

Sure, multi-touch features are pretty cool and nice to have, but what does a swipe or a pinch really offer that is going to help you to become more productive?

Many of the people that call us insist that their Tablet PCs must have touch, but not many of them have a clear idea of why it should. There are a couple of reasons for that:

1. There is a lack of awareness of the difference between an Active Digitizer Pen and a Stylus.
2. Touch is the talk of the town
3. There is an anti-stylus agenda run by folks such as Steve Jobs from Apple.

Currently, touch offers some basic convenience for doing things like

• Clicking on links
• Typing short text on a virtual keyboard (too slow to write a paragraph without frustration though)
• Playing touch games
• Using programs specifically designed for touch

As many people have now noted, a touch screen only device does not offer you much in the way of input.

Most people don’t realize that an Active Digitizer pen is a lot smarter than a stylus. It offers you the ability to:

1. Use handwriting recognition that is accurate and fast – up to 40wpm
2. Take notes in your own handwriting – no need for text recognition or conversion, just keep your notes as handwriting
3. Annotate documents like word and PDF files in an easy and natural way.

Currently touch adds a little bit of convenience, but as Xavier Lanier noted over at Gottabemobile.com, even the die hard Apple fan boys don’t take notes on their brand new iPads – because it is not practical with only a touch screen to work with.

However, touch is destined to become much more than just a sideshow thanks to the tireless work of Microsoft Research. Touch has the ability to significantly augment the already powerful input features of the Tablet PC.

Watch the video from Microsoft Research’s Ken Hinckley here to see what we mean:

Combining natural input methods like this gets us seriously excited. As Ken points out on his accompanying blog post, this is the future of natural interface. Not just pen or touch, but both working together!

We love our Tablet PCs here “down under" and we are proud to be associated with a brilliant software package for Tablet PCs (and regular PCs) called eNoteFile.

eNoteFile is developed right here in Melbourne in a partnership between Physiotherapist Bruce Cohen and Software Development Firm Kiandra.

Kiandra was recently awarded as the winner of the Microsoft Worldwide Partner of the Year Award 2009 for “Custom Development Solutions, Application Infrastructure Development.”

eNoteFile was described by Microsoft as:

“Onenote meets the mesh”

Companies and individuals who embrace Tablet PCs will benefit from the unique digital ink, note taking, visual search and web synchronisation capabilities of eNoteFile.

Australians will be familiar with organisations who have been using eNoteFile on Tablet PCs such as:

• The Melbourne Storm NRL Club

• The Geelong Cats AFL Club

eNoteFile is an essential application for your Tablet PC or Notebook, and best of all, eNoteFile is free! No strings attached. Download it here (Registration required).

From the Kiandra website:

Kiandra has been awarded the Microsoft Worldwide Partner of the Year 2009 in the category of Custom Development Solutions, Application Infrastructure Development, for our custom developed eNoteFile software and hosted server solution for eNoteFile Services.

eNoteFile draws on the exceptional skills of Kiandra’s development team to securely record, manage, search, synchronise and share detailed notations and related documentation, in an seamlessly online and offline desktop-based environment.

Watch this YouTube video below to get a quick preview of just one of the features that makes eNoteFile a great Tablet and Touch app…

Although eNoteFile was originally intended as a digital ink based paper and filing eliminator for physiotherapists and allied healthcare, it has found application in a wide range of applications such as:

• Construction
• Education
• Project coordination
• Personal note taking
• Team collaboration

As a product, eNoteFile is continually improving, so we will be keeping you up to date with the latest news on eNoteFile.

Capitaleyes Business Technologies Helps Customers “Go Green” while Streamlining Business Processes

New Software Launch Provides Tablet PC Powered ‘Green’ Mobility Solution

CANBERRA, ACT – April 22, 2009 – Capitaleyes Business Technologies, a leading provider of document driven process improvement solutions, in conjunction with its strategic partner, www.TabletPC.com.au has announced the release of a low cost, high value software suite to the Australian market in support of Earth Day 2009.

The solution suite is centred on bridging the gap between the collection of vital information on paper forms and how and where that information is subsequently stored and then made available throughout the organisation. The use of a true Digital Ink e‐Forms technology, together with the handwriting recognition capabilities of a new generation Tablet PC or UMPC, provides a capability that not only does away with the need for additional data entry but also helps minimise a company’s environmental footprint.

In migrating from traditional paper to electronic business processes, organisations can generate numerous benefits and significant return on investment through more efficient digital workflows and reduced costs. The adoption of electronic processes to exchange information both internally and externally decreases and often eliminates paper, reducing the impact organisations have on the environment by conserving land and water resources as well as decreasing fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

For example, an employee filling out 20 paper forms each month (10 pages each) during site visits could save the following each year by converting just half of these to electronic transactions:

“Enabling streamlined business process through migration from paper to electronic is a central component of the value we bring and is a common theme across our entire product and service portfolio,” said Kevin Burdette, Principal of Capitaleyes Business Technologies. “By deploying our solutions, organisations can leverage mature technology to drive environmentally‐friendly business practices, lower their carbon footprint and achieve their environmental and business goals.”

About Capitaleyes Business Technologies

CAPITALEYES BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES provides software and consulting services to improve the outcomes of an organisation’s business process improvement strategies through the use of mature, innovative information exchange technologies. Founded in 2008, CAPITALEYES BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIES is headquartered in Canberra with partners in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and the USA. For more information, please visit: www.capitaleyesbt.com.au.

When I talk to uninitiated people about Tablet PCs (not intelligent people like you), I am truly surprised by the number of people who say:

“I can type way faster than I can write.”

Well, duh!

It seems that some people think that Tablet PC pen input is an exclusive technology that supercedes and overrides all other input methods.

Now, before you decide to throw away your keyboard and mouse because you’re going to buy a Tablet PC… stop and pay attention:

Handwriting recognition and Tablet PCs are not designed to stop you from using a regular keyboard and mouse!

…or touch, or speech, or blink input, or deep brain magnetic resonance commands*, or whatever other new input technology comes out in the next 15 years!

Guess what? I too can type way faster than I can write.

Therefore, because my Tablet PC is my everyday computer, when I’m in the office I use a docking station with a large LCD screen, an external DVD writer and a wireless keyboard and mouse.

I also keep a convertible keyboard in my car for those situations when pen input just won’t do.

Of course, the addition of pen input means that you can use your computer in so many new ways and so many new places.

The fact is, no one is going to stop typing altogether on a keyboard any time soon!

*I haven’t invented deep brain magnetic resonance commands yet, but will keep you posted.

Dealing with email overload is one of the greatest challenges in running a business. Often, many of the emails that flood your inbox are internal communications that need a quick response.

Email – meet Tablet PC

With a Tablet PC and Office 2007 (or Office 2003) you can send email in handwriting. That enables you to send emails from places like:

• An airport lounge
• A doctors waiting room
• A cafe over coffee

Tablet PCs allow you to maximise your working time by enabling you to use a fully functional PC in places where you generally wouldn’t use a laptop.

Brush up your handwriting skills, because you’re going to need them again. Tablet PCs are great productivity tools.

I received a fax this morning of a form that needed my signature on it. I get my faxes by email, so when I open up the file it opens in Microsoft Office Document Imaging.

I just click on the pen icon as shown in this screen capture, then I sign the document, save it and send it back by email. Done!

There are a couple of productivity advantages for this tip:

1. It’s the fastest way to sign and return a from
2. You don’t need to print it – saves power, saves paper – is environmentally friendly
3. You don’t need to walk to the fax (or in my case, drag out the phone cord, run it five meters and connect up the dusty old fax machine).