TrackPoint Loyalists: Show Your Colors
If you are at all like me you wonder how anyone can use a notebook computer that doesn’t have a TrackPoint. The people who “get this” are very loyal to the TrackPoint cause. Conversation among loyalists quickly drifts to subjects like…What cap do you use? Remember the original rubber slippery one? Or my favorite…did you disable your track pad yet? Here let me show you how, its a trick I learned.
I’ve been experimenting with the design of a lapel pin based on the TrackPoint cap to wear as a badge of honor clearly showing you allegiance to the cause. I’m looking into getting it included in the package with every new ThinkPad. The pin uses a real cap not only allowing you to display your colors but it gives you a source for an emergency replacement. Take a look at the pictures of the prototype and give me some feedback.
David Hill
Lenovo Meet the Modder Dean Liou
Lenovo Meet the modder- Chris Blarsky Dairy 2
Lenovo Meet the modder- Chris Blarsky Dairy 1
Lenovo H320 desktop
January 12th, 2007 3:23 pm
It’s a nice idea for tradeshows and the like. I would still like to see TrackPoints across Lenovo’s product lines as part of Lenovo’s brand identity.
Can you use a future blog post to talk about productivity differences between TrackPoints and touch pads, potential TrackPoint designs, etc?
BTW, if Lenovo could ship my X60T with SXGA+ that would be great too.
January 12th, 2007 4:55 pm
What’s a nice idea!
I use soft rim cap normally so I have have several surplus classic dome cpas. May be I can make a few of those.
January 12th, 2007 5:13 pm
This is a fantastic idea. Trackpoints are way better than touchpads in my opinion, and I solely bought a Thinkpad backpack because it had a red zipper
Is there any way you’ll ship this lapel pin for older thinkpad buyers? I’d love to get one if you do.
Beleive it or not, at one we were seriously discussing the name ‘The Trackpoints’ for our small band!
January 12th, 2007 6:32 pm
“If you are at all like me you wonder how anyone can use a notebook computer that doesn’t have a TrackPoint.”
I had a 12″ powerbook briefly, but the dealbreaker was the trackpad & single mouse button. I traded that one for a T42p and never looked back (except I missed the battery life and light weight). If IBM/Lenovo made Thinkpads that ran OS X, that would be the best of all possible worlds.
As to the design of the pin, what about including the black keyboard in the design?
January 12th, 2007 7:38 pm
It is clearly dorky, but I’d wear it.
January 12th, 2007 7:47 pm
love the trackpoint (go ted selker!), but a lapel pin??? … way to geeky!
January 12th, 2007 8:22 pm
Having gotten used to trackpads on other laptops I saw the trackpoint as an excess and when I purchased my thinkpad I actually thought I would disable it.
Having tried the thinkpad trackpoint I instead ended up disabling my trackpad and never looking back. It would be hard for me to consider a laptop without trackpoint now. When using the laptop at my desk I sometimes use the trackpoint even over my MX1000 mouse. Using the middle button + finger pressure for variable speed scrolling is one those minor joys in life.
January 12th, 2007 8:27 pm
The TrackPoint is one of the features that makes
me loyal to ThinkPads i use it everyday everytime actually i’m using it right now!
i hope Lenovo will standardize it in all its notebooks and by the way the pin looks nice!
January 13th, 2007 12:40 am
I’m so with you (and Andrew) on this. I gave a good deal of consideration to buying a MacBook recently, but the godawful keyboard, trackpad and single mouse button ruin an otherwise decent machine. I got an X60s in the end and love it to bits – and Ubuntu now even supports the Intel wireless out of the box.
January 13th, 2007 4:55 am
Geeky, but I’d wear it!
I’m with you – I don’t know how people can do without a trackpoint. It’s one of the (many) things I love about ThinkPads.
January 14th, 2007 2:16 pm
Fantastic idea! Would definitely buy one
Maybe you should get in touch with these guys to market it….http://www.trackcap.com/
January 14th, 2007 8:20 pm
I would like to have one.
January 15th, 2007 7:55 pm
I love it. Only people “in the know” will get it. Everyone else will have to ask.
January 16th, 2007 12:43 am
David, you may enjoy my love letter to the TrackPoint:
http://mg.to/2005/06/08/why-i-love-the-trackpoint
January 16th, 2007 2:15 pm
So good. I love my soft rim, it gives me more control than the flat-ish one that comes installed by default on ThinkPads. The little fuzzy one is prickly and fun, but the fuzziness wears down so quickly!
Every time I consider selling my T42 and getting a Macbook Pro, I remember how awful touchpads are.. ughh.
My favorite thing ever is how I can be typing and mousing at the exact same time! When I extol the virtues of the trackpoint to my roommate (an iBook user) he says “I hate that thing, it’s so hard to use, so imprecise, and it’s in the way when you are typing”.. then he claiims that he can type while mousing with the touchpad by extending his left thumb down onto it… riiiiight.
January 16th, 2007 5:54 pm
I also love the TrackPoint and definitely use it preferentially to a mouse. I wonder if there have been usability studies showing how much disruption from time on task and how much wasted efficiency goes into moving the hand from the keyboard to the mouse and back. Ted probably has done such a study!
Anyway, on to the lapel. Good idea that indeed is geeky. I don’t think that many but ardent geeks would wear it. It may not be cost effective to include it with each ThinkPad sold, but having it available for corporate gifts and individual enthusiasts to buy would be neat.
Finally, hello to you, David! I enjoyed the times we worked together when I was in the IBM ease of use community, and was delighted to find your blog.
–Dilip
January 17th, 2007 5:56 pm
I’d probably stick one up on the visor in my car, but I don’t know about wearing it!
I’m still waiting for a darned ThinkPad sticker for my car…
January 20th, 2007 11:01 pm
I found your lapel pin idea extreamly funny and thought about the number of pickup lines it could generate at a bar. I think its great but then again, I’m French and a geek.
January 21st, 2007 3:34 pm
I’m not sure I’d wear the lapel pin, but I can say that I just cannot buy a laptop that does not have a trackpoint. I’m in the market for a new laptop (I have an R50), and I won’t even consider any models without a trackpoint. This means that most other companies cannot even compete with Lenovo for my dollars. Why don’t other comapnies employ the trackpoint? I don’t get it . . . .
January 21st, 2007 10:33 pm
i love the trackpoint; so much so, that i’m typing this on my antiqued ibm 600 which i just can’t let myself give up.
ascetically it rivals apple, and practically speaking i’ve never interacted with a computer so directly. also, its very nice that there isn’t a touchpad to disable on this model which i think would just get in the way and take up too much valuable space.
anyway the pin is a funny idea but i like it. the trackpoint is what sets thinkpads apart from the endless sea of notebooks on the market (i do know a few others have them). i believe its in lenovo’s best interest to make this point (ha!) as clear as possible.
honestly, i don’t know how many Best Buyer’s or Dell owners even know the function of a trackpoint.
perhaps lenovo should hire U2/Bono to dance around with a big red button in a commercial. i’d even be willing to dress up as the red button just to help out.
maybe the sexual metaphor of the ‘red button’ could also be used in marketing thinkpads to a younger market…
i’m not sure how good of an idea that last one is, but i seriously fear there will come a day when the trackpoint has been forgotten and my fingers are crying across a touchpad.
keep up the good design work, or which i’m a huge fan.
January 25th, 2007 4:08 am
trackpoint rocks thinkpads designs are the coolest
January 26th, 2007 4:28 am
Awesome I’ll wear it, I think. I definately want one or two though.
January 27th, 2007 1:37 pm
I have a Toshiba Satellite Pro, which has a trackpoint device they called AccuPoint II, that I purchased in 2000 (I could not afford an IBM Thinkpad back then). I absolutely abhor the touchpad. It’s time for a new laptop and this time it will definately be a Thinkpad – most specifically for the trackpoint.
Oh yeah, the pin – a must for true believers. Lenovo should include one with a laptop purchase.
January 30th, 2007 8:26 pm
Just bought a new R60 BECAUSE it had a trackpoint!
February 8th, 2007 9:42 pm
That is awesome! I need to get my hands on one of those. Loyal TrackPoint user for 7 years now.
February 12th, 2007 2:46 pm
As the guy who gets to spec notebooks for our corporation, I’m been the TrackPoint disciple to thousands. On one or two occasions, though, I’ve had users skate around me and manage to order something else with a touch pad, though, so I’m actually glad they come with both now.
But, sure, I’d wear the TrackPoint lapel pin..proudly.
March 3rd, 2007 8:41 pm
I generally wouldn’t care about this and personally would appreciate much more if you put your effort into making thinkpads available without track pad. Now this would be something that trackpoint loyalist do and the other trackpoint loyalist appreciate.
April 16th, 2007 5:52 pm
I know this is an old post but I have been using my Thinkpad for a few months now and it is finally time to change my preferred trackpoint cap, the soft dome. I have discovered that there is nowhere online where I can order a pack of several Soft Domes, all I can find are packs that have two of each type. Is there some kind of Trackpoing Cap Exchange that I don’t know about?
May 7th, 2007 11:17 pm
i love it! I can’t STAND touchpads. The first thing I look for when buying a laptop it that it has to have a trackpoint. Thank god Dell’s latitude series has them or I would have to use an external mouse (company has a contract with dell. I still miss the thinkpads
) I hope your lapel idea takes off… shit why not just sell them for 5 bucks a pop on ebay? Im sure people would buy them (there’s more of us fanatics than one might think)
May 16th, 2007 9:47 pm
Its all about the TrackPoint! Not only that, the ThinkPad series has always had the best ones too!
Of course having a digitizer pen is even better…
but even the X60 comes with a TrackPoint, a clear sign of understanding and legacy(in the good sense, not the outdated and crusty sense).
May 23rd, 2007 10:58 pm
LOVELY! How about trackpoint cuff links?
July 3rd, 2007 11:18 pm
Great idea! I’ll wear it all the time!
I’m using TrackPoint for about 10 years (from TP 370C to R50p and new T61 I’ll bye next week)
August 10th, 2007 12:57 am
I’m not sure how anybody lives without a trackpoint. I’m thinking about selling the laptop I recently purchased so that I can buy one with a trackpoint…
September 16th, 2007 3:18 am
Have you guys heard of anyone hacking a mackbook pro to add a trackpoint to the keyboard, and add a second mouse button and a scroll button?
January 5th, 2008 6:39 am
Show me a MacBookPro with a trackpoint and I’ll buy it! (I’m a loyal Thinkpad user so far…)
October 7th, 2008 2:02 pm
I simply cannot use a trackpad anymore, and everytime I have to use a friend’s laptop without the trackpoint setup I’m completely lost!
March 25th, 2009 4:36 pm
Long live TrackPoint!!!
April 29th, 2009 11:22 pm
I love the track point, and the Keyboards
thanks
June 11th, 2009 11:10 am
[...] Love live the TrackPoint. [...]
June 12th, 2009 3:03 am
TrackPoint is great!!!Hope it always will be present ThinkPads.
July 29th, 2009 12:24 pm
[...] you were a hardcore ThinkPad loyalist when you baked a ThinkPad Tablet cake. Or when you wore a TrackPoint lapel pin. You were wrong. You are a traitor to the motherlandBlack Box if you don’t ride a ThinkPad [...]
October 11th, 2009 8:01 pm
I just caved and got a MacBook Pro. My ONLY complaint so far on day 2: No TrackPoint!!! :’( I wish I could Frankenstein my X60 trackpoint (and maybe keyboard while I was at it) onto this new laptop. Sigh.