Hover widgets: using the tracking state to extend the capabilities of pen-operated devices

  • Authors:
  • Tovi Grossman;Ken Hinckley;Patrick Baudisch;Maneesh Agrawala;Ravin Balakrishnan

  • Affiliations:
  • Microsoft Research, Redmond, WA;Microsoft Research, Redmond, WA;Microsoft Research, Redmond, WA;Microsoft Research, Redmond, WA;University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

  • Venue:
  • Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
  • Year:
  • 2006

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Abstract

We present Hover Widgets, a new technique for increasing the capabilities of pen-based interfaces. Hover Widgets are implemented by using the pen movements above the display surface, in the tracking state. Short gestures while hovering, followed by a pen down, access the Hover Widgets, which can be used to activate localized interface widgets. By using the tracking state movements, Hover Widgets create a new command layer which is clearly distinct from the input layer of a pen interface. In a formal experiment Hover Widgets were found to be faster than a more traditional command activation technique, and also reduced errors due to divided attention.