MK-pad: a Mouse+Keyboard input technique for distance interaction through a mobile tablet device

ABSTRACT

We introduce MK-Pad (Mouse+Keyboard Pad), a technique for entering text and performing mouse operations using a tablet device for distance interaction. MK-Pad uses the screen of a 10.1" tablet touchscreen to host a soft keyboard and turns the screen into a large multi-touch trackpad. The multi-touch capabilities of the tablet make it possible to avoid the need for explicit mode switching between text-entry and mouse operations. Similarly, because of the relatively large size of the tablet display, we are able to map the entire external screen onto the tablet display and this provides users with both absolute and relative cursor positioning: tapping causes the cursor to jump to the corresponding location, providing rapid movement across large distances, while clutching using relative mode supports fine positioning control. We conducted two studies. We use data from the first study to inform the design of MK-Pad. In the second study we compare MK-Pad against the standard mouse and keyboard. The results show that MK-Pad has potential and a good alternative to mouse and keyboard for distance interaction with large displays.

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Index Terms

• Human-centered computing

  • Human computer interaction (HCI)

    • Interaction devices

      • Touch screens