Software
N-Trig multi-touch gesture control N-Act available for beta testing
Per a tip in the forum, N-Trig has posted a beta release of their N-Act software, a multi-touch gesture application that allows a user to switch windows, select text and images, and sweep through files.
The application was previously demoed by LAPTOP Magazine (YouTube video below). The software is for Windows 7, but hardware requirements are not listed, though presumably it only works with a N-Trig multi-touch digitizer. While the download page mentions the Dell Latitude XT and XT2 and HP TouchSmart tx2 Tablet PCs, that is for the other downloads listed on the page. I see no reason why it would not work on other N-Trig multi-touch systems, such as the Lenovo ThinkPad T400 and T410. Keep in mind though, those are Lenovo’s T Series touchscreen laptops; the X Series tablets uses Wacom. Yet another reason why it is increasingly important that vendors specify what digitizer they use.
Anyway, if you’re using an N-Trig multi-touch digitizer, you can give the beta software a thorough testing. If you give it a go, let us know what you think in the comments. I really like how it shows rings around the points of contact, showing cursors that aren’t obstructed by your fingertips. What do you think?
Steve S
09/13/2010 at 10:45 am
Don’t know for sure but I assume that N-act will also work with the HP tx2…
Steve S
09/13/2010 at 10:46 am
PS: For however many fingers the tx2 software will track…
Sumocat
09/13/2010 at 1:14 pm
That’s a good point, though N-act will be far less impressive in that case. Lot of the two-finger gestures seem to be stuff that is baked into Windows 7 premium versions, like scrolling.
JD
09/13/2010 at 3:50 pm
I have a tx2 with the most current driver and it has four points of contact. The Windows Touchpack works quite well on my system, considering it is a bit underpowered for Windows 7 (in my estimation).
I have this, but haven’t installed it yet. Maybe I should, since my system has been a bit unstable since a Microsoft upgrade the past spring. Oh, those other downloads on the same page as this beta file, are just the older drivers for the tx2 and the Dell Latitude, just so you know.
Micha
09/14/2010 at 2:59 pm
I installed it, and uninstalled it after a day.
It simply doesn’t add anything extra that I would use that you can’t do in windows 7 with duosense with the “pen and touch” movement settings.
All the gestures added in N-act only makes me frustrated to remember which swipe is which, and half of them do not work the way you want, because the software in combination with the screen can’t make the distinction between them.
Just try the 4 finger zoom/capture function.
Half of the time it can only act as the zoom funtion because the drivers aren’t good to locate and reproduce your 4 fingers at that location, it skips and jumps position.
Just try it, and you’ll see that it has a hard time to make the cross between the four fingers to capture the screen.
Also the addition of a context sensitive menu is simply useless, why this menu when you have a menubar with the same and more options?
I don’t see the innovation in N-act.