Ok you know on a laptop computer. well there is no mouse. but there is that thing you put your fingers on to move the cursor .(ihave no idea what it is called so i hope you know what i am talking about.) Well i have always wondered how does that thing work? like how does you putting your finger on it make the cursor move?
2006-07-28 12:30:34 · 16 answers · asked by I Luv Joel Madden!! 6 in Computers & Internet ➔ Other - Computers
ok how does the touch pad work?
2006-07-28 12:32:49 · update #1
A touchpad is an input device commonly used in laptop computers. They are used to move the cursor, using motions of the user's finger. They are a substitute for a computer mouse. Touchpads vary in size but are rarely made larger than 50 cm² (8 in²). They can also be found in PDAs.
Touchpads commonly operate by sensing the capacitance of a finger, or the capacitance between sensors. Capacitive sensors are laid out along the horizontal and vertical axis of the touchpad. The location of the finger is determined from the pattern of capacitance from these sensors. This is why they will not sense the tip of a pencil or even a finger in a glove. Moist and/or sweaty fingers can be problematic for those touchpads that rely on measuring the capacitance between the sensors.
Touchpads are relative motion devices. That is, there is no isomorphism from the screen to the touchpad. Instead, relative motion of the user's fingers causes relative motion of the cursor. The buttons below or above the pad serve as standard mouse buttons. Depending on the model of touchpad and drivers behind it, you may also click by tapping your finger on the touchpad, and drag with a tap following by a continuous pointing motion (a click-and-a-half).
Some touchpads also have "hotspots": locations on the touchpad that indicate user intentions other than pointing. For example, on certain touchpads, moving your finger along the right edge of the touch pad will control the scrollbar and scroll the window that has the focus vertically. Moving the finger on the bottom of the touchpad often scrolls in horizontal direction.
Some touchpads can emulate multiple mouse buttons by either tapping in a special corner of the pad, or by tapping with two or more fingers.
Touchpads are primarily used in portable laptop computers, because the usual mouse device requires a flat table adjacent to the keyboard not always available away from the office. But touchpads have some advantages over the mouse, particularly that the pad's position is fixed relative to the keyboard, and very short finger movements are required to move the cursor across the display screen. Some computer users prefer them for such reasons, and desktop keyboards with built-in touchpads are available from specialist manufacturers.
2006-07-28 12:35:37 · answer #1 · answered by highlander44_tx 3 · 5⤊ 1⤋
That's a great question. A computer person or engineer could answer it better than me. I think that it just has sensors that map out a grid. The grid has sensitivity to coordinates. When you touch a spot on it, the pressure activates a sensor that converts it into a weak field electrical signal that your computer is able to read. Hope you get some better answers from some girls or guys that know more than I do!
2006-07-28 19:38:16 · answer #2 · answered by 5375 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
put Ur finger in the touch pad and see the crosier is moving and just tap Ur finger tow times placing the cursor on the icon which u want to operate/open.
2006-07-28 20:06:23 · answer #3 · answered by sheikh_iqbal 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it's simple.. it's like a a small touch screen thing like where you move your fingers on it the cursor follows.. just be gentle in touching it..
there are two buttons with it and you can modify their function in your control panel(mouse) or in default it's just the same as the function of a mouse left button(left click), rigt button(right click)
or if you really dont know how to use it... just buy a mouse that connects through a USB...
2006-07-28 19:45:37 · answer #4 · answered by alex_qt88 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
smae way the mouse does it transfers the motion of your finger (fingers, whatever) into motion on the screen, thus making the pointer move. Thanx for the 2 easy points
2006-07-28 19:34:30 · answer #5 · answered by UnderGroundJesTer 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It has sensors in the bottom of the pad that feel your finger pressure and that corresponds to the pointer on the screen.
2006-07-28 19:34:12 · answer #6 · answered by m_thurson 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's called a touchpad and it works the same way a touchscreen works. It senses the heat/presure from your finger.
2006-07-28 19:47:43 · answer #7 · answered by Z, unnecessary letter 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The touchpad senses the movements of your fingers and simulates that movement with the arrow on screen.
2006-07-28 19:33:50 · answer #8 · answered by Treat Infamy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
From the heat of your finger it senses the pressure you put on it and how fast you want it to move...
2006-07-28 19:33:37 · answer #9 · answered by Jack Daniels 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its just a pressure sensitive pad that outputs the position and frequency of the pressure.
2006-07-28 19:34:26 · answer #10 · answered by Interested Dude 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋