Gizmodo: virtual keyboard

Virtual Keyboard Confounds Key-logging Bosses, Criminals, and Spouses

Mark Wilson — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 16:20:00 EST

If you're browsing the web at work or just somewhere insecure, the prospect of key-logging may keep you from typing passwords and/or expletives. This Greasemonkey-compatible script brings up a virtual keyboard for mouseclick typing.

The Virtual Keyboard Interface is a free script to download and adds one of 22 clickable keyboards for the typing of your deepest, darkest secrets. You just double click any text entry box and the keyboard will pop up automagically in IE, Chrome, Safari or Firefox. Enjoy it, you sad, scary people. [userscripts via LifeHacker]

Nokia Patent Describes Cellphone With Virtual Keyboard

Haroon Malik — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 08:28:00 EST

Virtual keyboards aren't exactly a new concept, but Nokia's patent describes a cellphone with integrated equipment, which allows a virtual keyboard to be set up more rapidly. The patent, titled, "Mobile device with virtual keyboard," does away with the need for a separate projector entirely, by instead using the onboard camera and optical sensors that are already present in typical cellphones. There is a drawback, however.

As projectors are not included in your standard cellphone, there is no way to project a keyboard on an external surface. Nokia plans to use the phone's display to show the QWERTY keyboard, while the camera and sensors pick up finger position and relay that information back to the screen in real time. Inputs of sounds, or vibrations from fingers tapping, will also be translated into certain on-screen gestures. We have to give Nokia the good effort award, but it sounds awfully far-fetched. Hey, technology didn't get to where it was today by not challenging the status quo. We just think Nokia is challenging it in the wrong way. (Yes, there is a wrong way.) [Unwired View]

Laser Keyboard Getting USB Update, Still Hard to Use

Jason Chen — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 15:40:18 EDT

Remember those old Bluetooth laser keyboards from a few years back that projected a laser image on the desk that you could type on? Celluon's releasing a new version of that old device, but this time it's connected over USB instead of Bluetooth. Still compatible with Windows Mobiles, Palm OS, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows 2000/XP/Vista though. Of course, you're still typing onto a desk without any kind of "give," which means painful fingers just like the old version. [AVING via Gearlog]