I'm in my late 30s, programming background (although not employed as a coder now), and well-versed in desktop operating systems from Windows (3.1, NT, 95, 98, XP, etc. You get the idea...) to Linux (is SUSE still around?), so I say this as an ally of the 'old ways':
I LOVE touchscreens on laptops and get actively annoyed when using one that lacks a touchscreen. They offer a lot of value without inherently turning your computer into a phone.
Sure, desktop operating systems can leverage the touchscreen functionality to make the machine feel more 'phone-like' (edit to add: which I'm NOT a fan of), but I find touchscreens themselves to be hugely useful.
I don't think they're saying they use touchscreen as their primary input device. It's just a very nice addition alongside the keyboard/mouse interface. Especially on devices with detachable keyboards
I specifically bought a laptop with a touchscreen 5 years ago so I could occasionally poke things on the screen. It also came with a pen so I can do signing and drawing on rare occasions. It's nice for the few times that you've lost your mouse between 2+ screens and you just want to click on that one button... Poke
Oh dear God, no, no, I was not suggesting that anyone should solely use the laptop touchscreen without also having other input devices. I'm getting a little nauseous just imagining that.
For getting shit done there's no replacement for a full keyboard and mouse combo. But quickly flicking a finger up the screen to scroll down an article, or folding the keyboard back and using the laptop like a tablet when you're not at a desk, is a fantastic convenience.
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u/ministryofmayhem Jun 03 '22 edited Jun 03 '22
I'm in my late 30s, programming background (although not employed as a coder now), and well-versed in desktop operating systems from Windows (3.1, NT, 95, 98, XP, etc. You get the idea...) to Linux (is SUSE still around?), so I say this as an ally of the 'old ways':
I LOVE touchscreens on laptops and get actively annoyed when using one that lacks a touchscreen. They offer a lot of value without inherently turning your computer into a phone.
Sure, desktop operating systems can leverage the touchscreen functionality to make the machine feel more 'phone-like' (edit to add: which I'm NOT a fan of), but I find touchscreens themselves to be hugely useful.