Taking Handheld Devices to the Next Level From: Computer - 12/2004 - Vol. 37, No. 12, P. 36 By: Brad A. Myers, Jeffrey Nichols, and Jacob O. Wobbrock A team of MIT and Carnegie Mellon University researchers are designing next-generation handhelds and applications that can be employed as more effective and easier-to-use remote controls under the auspices of the Pebbles project. For the household, the researchers have built a personal universal controller (PUC) that controls all computerized appliances by providing appliance-specific control interfaces. A PUC can establish consistency between multiple interfaces, tailor interfaces to the user's needs or preferences, furnish platform-specific interfaces, and combine the functions of multiple appliances. Human trials with the PUC inspired the development of an XML-based high-level specification language that encapsulates all the data the controller needs to automatically generate interfaces, while appliance control is facilitated by software and hardware modules that act as appliance adapters. Among the handheld applications the team developed is Remote Commander, which supports all PC keyboard and mouse functions and displays screen images on the handheld in three distinct modes; SlideShow Commander, which can control a PC running PowerPoint; and Shortcutter, a general-purpose application that allows users to build custom panels to control PC applications. These applications have been employed in initiatives that include the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Command Post of the Future project, and have demonstrated particular value to disabled users. The Pebbles project has produced important design insights, including the need for designers to consider context of use, as well as which interface components should reside on the handheld and which should reside on the original device. http://www.computer.org/computer/homepage/1204/myers/index.htm Links: The Pittsburgh Pebbles PDA Project http://www.pebbles.hcii.cmu.edu/ Pebbles Project connects PDAs up Smartly http://www.usabilitynews.com/news/article815.asp Software download http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=1&homePath=HANDANGO&platformId=2&productType=2&productId=3082§ionId=1449&catalog=30 Update on The Pebbles Project:Using a Handheld as a Personal Universal Controller and to Augment a Laser Pointer in Meeting http://murl.microsoft.com/LectureDetails.asp?783 Handhelds as Assistive Technologies for People with Muscular Disabilities http://www.necfoundation.org/grants/grants_show.htm?doc_id=165208 PDAControls.com - Pebbles Software http://www.pdacontrols.com/ PebblesPC v6.1 http://www.freewarepalm.com/utilities/pebblespc.shtml