Tablet PC

A tablet PC is a notebook- or slate-shaped mobile computer. Its touchscreen or digitizing tablet technology allows the user to operate the computer with a stylus or digital pen instead of a keyboard or mouse.

The form factor presents an alternate method of interacting with a computer, the main intent being to increase mobility and productivity. Tablet PCs are often used in places where normal notebooks are impractical or unwieldy, or do not provide the needed functionality.

The tablet PC is a culmination of advances in miniaturization of notebook hardware and improvements in integrated digitizers as methods of input. A digitizer is typically integrated with the screen, and correlates physical touch or digital pen interaction on the screen with the virtual information portrayed on it. A tablet's digitizer is an absolute pointing device rather than a relative pointing device like a mouse or touchpad. A target can be virtually interacted with directly at the point it appears on the screen.

The Tablet PC is a culmination of advances in shrinking notebook hardware and improvements in integrated digitizers as methods of input. A digitizer is typically integrated with the screen, and correlates physical touch or digital pen interaction on the screen with the virtual information portrayed on it. A tablet's digitizer is an absolute pointing device rather than a relative pointing device like a mouse or touchpad. A target can be virtually interacted with directly at the point it appears on the screen.

The original Tablet PC Input Panel (TIP) included a handwriting panel, an on-screen keyboard, and a write anywhere function which allowed the user to literally write anywhere on the screen, after which the recognized data would then be sent to the currently focused input box.

The enhanced TIP introduced in the Service Pack 2 update (Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005) includes improved handwriting recognition, the option to correct a recognition error before it is sent to an application, and integrates the option to manually add a word to the computer's dictionary to improve its recognition in the future. The TIP can also add inline correction functionality to applications that support Advanced Text Input Services. This works by the TIP temporarily storing the recognition results from data that it inputs into the application. This version of the TIP removed the write anywhere function in favor of a floating interface. In applications which used certain supported text controls, an icon would appear when the pen was in proximity to the screen. Tapping or hovering over this icon would open the floating TIP, which would expand horizontally and vertically as needed when the user wrote to the edge of the window. For applications which could not pop up the floating TIP, the docked state was still supported, in which the TIP would stick to the top or bottom of the screen, moving all other windows out of the way (expanding downward if docked at the top).

Windows applications

There are quite a lot of operating systems in use on devices marketed as tablets. Note that most tablet PC software is targeted particularly for the Microsoft Tablet PC API, and will not run on devices without Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. Care should be taken when researching a tablet system or any device or software that claims to be designed for tablet PCs, as the phrase does not guarantee compatibility.

Applications developed for the tablet PC cater to the form factor and functionality available on the platform. Many forms of applications incorporate a pen-friendly user interface and/or the ability to handwrite directly in the document or interface.

A brief description of the applications included follows:

Experience Pack

• Ink Desktop: an Active Desktop control designed to run in the background and allow the user to write directly on the desktop.
• Snipping Tool: a screen capture application which allows the tablet pen to be used to select a portion of the screen and then annotate it and save as a file or send in an email.
• Ink Art: a painting application developed by Ambient Design originally as ArtRage, licensed to Microsoft for release to Tablet PC users.
• Ink Crossword: a crossword application developed to mirror the experience of a paper crossword puzzle on a tablet PC.
• Media Transfer: a synchronization utility designed to download music, pictures, and videos off of computers in the same network.

Education Pack

• Ink Flash Cards: an application designed to assist memorization by using a flash card approach, enabling the user to handwrite their own flash cards and display them back in a slideshow.
• Equation Writer: a recognition tool specializing in converting handwritten mathematical equations to a computer-generated image for pasting into other documents.
• GoBinder Lite: an organization and note-taking application developed by Agilix Labs.
• Hexic Deluxe: a game with a tablet PC specific gesture enabled for easier use with the tablet