6 ms·

The Invisible problem: why mobile text editing is worse than you think

7 points by scottjenson 3y ago

necovek 3y ago
Yeah, text editing on tiny screen keyboard sucks. I could never really make the transition myself, so I keep bringing my Thinkpads with me (guess why Thinkpads too :)). As phones are so big these days they require two hands anyway, I reminiscence of Palm Pre/webOS hold-below-the-screen-and-swipe-left-and-right to select exactly the right spot quickly and precisely. I don't remember the rest of the gestures, but at least I don't remember it being as frustrating as Android. Nokia N9 (Maemo/Meego) also had a few interesting things, as did Ubuntu Touch. I applaud any research into this though I can't imagine how it will ever beat physical keyboards (other than mind-reading).
scottjenson 3y ago
Describes the problems with mobile text editing, why it needs to be fixed, and a prototype of an potential solution.
bediger4000 3y ago
Text editing on a phone is so god damn fucking bad, I've contemplated ditching smartphones for flip phones. I'm glad to see someone else acknowledge this. I get "ok boomer" responses, or people looking at me like I'm growing a second face on my ass. Reactions are even worse than when you mention how shitty Word is as a text editor or word processor.
- scottjenson 3y ago
  I got that a lot as well, people claiming that kids were writing entire papers on their phone, therefore it must be fine. Just because some people can run a marathon, doesn't mean everyone does.
  - lispybanana 3y ago
    People make do with all sorts of things -- until someone invents the alternative!
- lispybanana 3y ago
  Text editing is dismal, in general. Structural editing in Lisps is a great convenience -- you manipulate expressions rather than characters. Schemoid for Android is an admirable example. Autocompletion based on my previous behaviors would be great, too: If I just googled “The Shining” in Android Chrome then open the Netflix app, Android should know to autofill the Netflix search bar with the completion (and select it, for easy deletion).

7 points by scottjenson 3y ago

Yeah, text editing on tiny screen keyboard sucks. I could never really make the transition myself, so I keep bringing my Thinkpads with me (guess why Thinkpads too :)). As phones are so big these days they require two hands anyway, I reminiscence of Palm Pre/webOS hold-below-the-screen-and-swipe-left-and-right to select exactly the right spot quickly and precisely. I don't remember the rest of the gestures, but at least I don't remember it being as frustrating as Android. Nokia N9 (Maemo/Meego) also had a few interesting things, as did Ubuntu Touch. I applaud any research into this though I can't imagine how it will ever beat physical keyboards (other than mind-reading).

scottjenson 3y ago

Describes the problems with mobile text editing, why it needs to be fixed, and a prototype of an potential solution.

bediger4000 3y ago

Text editing on a phone is so god damn fucking bad, I've contemplated ditching smartphones for flip phones. I'm glad to see someone else acknowledge this. I get "ok boomer" responses, or people looking at me like I'm growing a second face on my ass. Reactions are even worse than when you mention how shitty Word is as a text editor or word processor.

scottjenson 3y ago
I got that a lot as well, people claiming that kids were writing entire papers on their phone, therefore it must be fine. Just because some people can run a marathon, doesn't mean everyone does.
- lispybanana 3y ago
  People make do with all sorts of things -- until someone invents the alternative!
lispybanana 3y ago
Text editing is dismal, in general. Structural editing in Lisps is a great convenience -- you manipulate expressions rather than characters. Schemoid for Android is an admirable example. Autocompletion based on my previous behaviors would be great, too: If I just googled “The Shining” in Android Chrome then open the Netflix app, Android should know to autofill the Netflix search bar with the completion (and select it, for easy deletion).