Carry Small, Live Large

ne of the great computing revolutions of our time has been the dramatic reduction in size of processing components and the power they consume , making mobile computing a reality. The term mobile computer spans many types of devices, from laptop or notebook computers—now central to much of our work—to the smallest cell phones, which can not only provide a mundane telephone connection but also serve as an electronic organizer. The PDA, also originally part of this mobile revolution, has already largely been subsumed by the smart-phone market. The key ingredients enabling this revolution are high-performance low-power processors, high-density memory, and standardized wireless communication. The latter isn't a requirement for mobile computing per se but has become an essential ingredient of a computer's everyday use; after all, a computer without a networking capability is no longer an interesting proposition. Despite technical progress in designing and building true palm-sized computers , their use has tended to be limited in scope. Most people would probably agree that for any kind of serious computing task, certainly in the realm of enterprise applications, a notebook computer's form factor is close to the bare minimum needed for effective HCI. We can conclude that one of the main barriers for effective work on a smart phone is the tiny display and keyboard and the poor user experience that results from the size-limited interaction. The form factor of a modern day lap-top design has been honed over time, shaped by the design principle that form follows function. We might one day experience a revolution in GUI design, but I doubt this will radically change the baseline laptop's size requirements. Many people have tried to improve the WIMP (windows, icons, menus, pointing devices) interface for many years with only minor success. As a result, for now, the best bet we have for improving the mobile computing experience is to augment the I/O peripherals to provide scaled-up interaction. My Intel colleague Natalie Nielsen recently summed up this notion with the phrase " Carry Small, Live Large. " This embodies the idea that for mobility , small computers are attractive; they fit in a pocket and can be carried without encumbering their owner. " Live large " speaks to the idea that we have high expectations for our interactions with computers, and we expect them to positively impact our lives. Since the early '90s, I've been researching ways to overcome …