2mo ago

Touchscreens Are Out, and Tactile Controls Are Back

spectrum.ieee.org Q&A: Rachel Plotnick On the Return of Tactile Controls

Rachel Plotnick’s “re-buttonization” expertise is in demand

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334 comments

They could go one step further and add braille support directly, it's just nudges. Tactile feeling is the only reason they are back.
Yes, I'm aware there are no blind drivers. The point is not having to look at your controls and doing so with something that already exists.
- Braille isn't very good for quick discernment. It's much easier to put differently-shaped buttons together or put buttons into different places.
  
  Why not both? And blind people don't seem to think so. Either way, better than what's in the picture.
  
  Feeling for a 2cm x 1.5cm button is way different than trying to read braille.
  
  Now try selecting between each of the buttons 2cm x 1.5cm for a particular button without having to feel the rest or having to glance at it.
  Literally just bumps that are even easier to make than the text on the buttons because they are just part of the plastic mold instead of additional paint jobs. Some people are just hostile to any basic improvement.
  
  We're talking about something most people's minds are not used to interpreting, so I fear that this would just add a layer of mental load for most drivers that would be actually less safe.
  
  ..... Feel free to speak for yourself ....
  
  You think most people are reading things with their fingertips?
  
  You do realize that human touch can differentiate between .01mm? It's why braille works so easily.
  
  Imagine trying to both make the argument that braille is too hard to distinguish and that 0.01mm is easy to differentiate in the same thread.
  
  Out of curiosity, have you actually spoken to blind people about how useful they find Braille?

334 comments