XYPI, or X-Y Position Indicator

I have always hated the term "mouse" used for the computer mouse. I think we should call it something else, instead.

A while back, a friend and I were chatting about what other possible names the device could have. One we came up with was "Keyboard-less access Interface (KAI)". We had a few good ideas, as I remember, but none so great as what the original name of the device was as in the patent for it, from 1970. In the patent it is called the "X-Y Position Indicator"

We should all call it that instead, the XYPI. Pronounce it "zippy". Please, please, please, let us all stop calling it the mouse, now. Let's get back to its roots!

Due to good luck, and chat logs, my friend I mentioned above was able to find our conversation we had on the topic, and here is an exhaustive list of all the ideas we brainstormed that day, 2 years ago...

• Hand interface
• Palm interface
• Pointer controller
• Pointer controller interface
• Pointer interface controller (PIC)
• Pointer interface control (PIC)
• Pointer Interface Control Keyboardless (PICK)
• Graphical Input Device
• Coordinate Coordinator (core-core)
• Mouselike Outboard Pointing Edifice Device
• Mouselike Outboard Pointer (MOP)
• Simple digit interface
• Point and click pointer interface control (PACPIC, PACer)
• Klik Device
• Clicker/Double-Clicker (CDC)
• Cursor Mover
• Cursor Moving Device
• Graphical Cursor Moving Device
• Cursor Outboard Moving Beacon (COMB)
• Mouselike Outboard User Sorting Ediface (MOUSE)
• Lazy User Mover Pointer (LUMP)
• Pathetic Ugly Non-Keyboard
• Limited Input Device
• Limited User Mover/Pointer
• Minimum Input Mindless Operating Tool (MIMOT)
• Minimum Operation Unfortunate Stupid Ediface
• Keyboardless Access Interface
• Mice Operate Unfortunately Somewhere Everywhere
• Additional Argument Aggregator
• Cartesian Input Controller

This is an image of the patent for the xypi, by Doug Engelbart, it turns out, he was quite an amazing guy with a lot of dang good ideas back in the 1960's that seem to be exactly what modern computing has turned out to be.

Our House, in the Middle of our Street

It was the middle of summer and we all were sitting in our family room. A cool breeze blew through the window. It was nice to have a cross-breeze in our house. It was especially nice of certain hot days. But not today, however; today it is cool outside.

It doesn't feel like July, actually, because it is so cool. I remember past years where July days are so hot, that the heat is unbearable.

I remember riding my bike on hot summer days and coming home and sweating and drinking lemonade. I would also make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and eat it. I would enjoy that sandwich so much that I would always end up making another one and eating it too.

To be continued...

Playgrounds and Parks

I had a random thought today that there should be more playgrounds and parks in the world. I didn't think that for any particular reason, it just kind of popped into my head. After I had some time to think about it, I realized maybe it is because it is fun to go to playgrounds and play.

I love going down slides, but not when there is too much static electricity. I never really got into monkey bars, but I love objects to climb around on and hide behind. I had a lot of fun as a child playing tag on playgrounds.

Parks are good too. I like parks with ponds and trees and paths and grass and hills, etc. The ponds with fountains are quite dandy.

So, what do you like about playgrounds and parks?

Self-aware Dog Limbs

You know... there comes a time in every dog's life when, unbeknownst to the dog, one of its limbs will take on a mind of its own.

The limb will, as they say, become self-aware. And as self-aware things often do, the limb will in good time find that it is feeling a bit hungry. It will wait quietly for a few moments, hoping for a handout. But soon it becomes impatient with the rest of the dog, who is not used to feeding its limbs independently.

Under the pretense of trying out this newfound independence, the hungry limb will carefully stalk the dog's head, in an attempt to steal a morsel or two of food for itself.

Limbs such as these are known for their stealth, so these missions are usually accomplished without incident, and nobody is any the wiser. But sometimes the limb is careless, and inadvertently attracts the attention of the dog's head.

At this point, a vicious battle ensues. It is not always clear who the winner is.

It's cool that someone finally got it on tape.

[by Kai Esbensen]

Time Travel

I have always been fascinated by time travel and time machines. Even though it is a really cool idea, I think it will not work. But... that doesn't mean we can't dream about it still.

I think it would be cool if you could send messages like emails or instant messages to yourself in the past. Then, you could warn yourself of things that might happen, and you could prevent car accidents, etc, plus you could use it to show off and people would think that you could see the future!

By the way, a cool movie to check out is Paycheck.