When typing on a laptop, it's not uncommon for your fingers to move from the keyboard to the trackpad or mouse. The transfer time is very short, less than a second.
But, if you do it over and over again, over time, it ends up feeling inconvenient. Pointing stick is considered to be able to overcome this problem because of its very strategic position.
Know What is a Pointing Stick
A pointing stick is a mouse or trackpad replacement input device that is located in the middle of the keyboard. The shape is round and looks like a pencil eraser. The size is smaller than the size of the keyboard keys.
There are bright red colors that are easy to see, but there are also dark ones. In a QWERTY keyboard layout, the pointing stick is above the B key and sandwiched between the G and H keys.
The pointing stick is the result of the invention of a researcher named Ted Selker who has started its development since 1984. A few years later, IBM brought the pointing stick into its line of laptops and named it “TrackPoint”.
The way the pointing stick works in moving the cursor is slightly different from the trackpad and mouse. Pointing sticks rely on pressure as the input method, while both input devices rely on hand movements.
For example, if the mouse is moved to the right, the cursor will also move to the right. The further the mouse is moved to the right, the further the cursor will be to the right.
It's different with the pointing stick. To move the cursor, the pointing stick button must be pressed in the desired direction. The stronger the pressure, the faster the cursor will move.
Pointing Stick Advantages and Disadvantages
The advantage lies in its position that is one with the keyboard. Since your hands don't have to move from the keyboard, you can move your hands from the keyboard to the pointing stick much faster than when using a trackpad or mouse.
In addition, accidentally touching the trackpad, which often occurs when typing, which causes the cursor to suddenly move, can be avoided by using a pointing stick.
Unfortunately, the advantages of the pointing stick are not in line with the interests of its users. The reason is that the pointing stick input method that relies on pressure makes it more difficult to use than a mouse and trackpad. Therefore, it is not surprising that the popularity of the pointing stick quickly waned after being released by IBM.
Even so, new laptops that carry pointing sticks can still be found. The number of users is not as many as trackpad users, but after all, users are still there and on average, including users who are loyal to pointing sticks.
Some Redditors (as members of the Reddit forum) who are users of Lenovo Thinkpad laptops claim that at first they were just for fun trying a pointing stick, but it turns out that over time it actually feels more comfortable than using a trackpad.