From: utzoo!decvax!cca!dm@BBN-RSM@sri-unix
Newsgroups: net.works
Title: re: pointer device report request
Article-I.D.: sri-unix.2581
Posted: Mon Aug  9 15:10:20 1982
Received: Tue Aug 10 03:56:57 1982

From: David Mankins 
Two papers discussing selection of text using various pointer devices
(mouse, velocity joystick, light different flavors of function keys):

CARD:
Card, S.K., English, W.K. and Burr, B.J., "Evaluation of mouse, rate-controlled
isometruc joystick, step keys, and text keys for text selection on a CRT,"
in \Ergonomics/, 21, 8 (1978), pp. 601-613.

ENGL:
English, W.K., Engelbart, D.C., & Berman, M.L., "Display selection techniques
for text manipulation," \IEEE Transactions on Human Factors in Electronics, 
HFE-8/, 1 (March
 1976), pp. 5-15.

CARD, in summary (from a human factors tutorial I took at Siggraph):

    for time to locate text:
	mouse < velocity joystick < text keys < step keys

    for errors in locating text:
	mouse < text keys < joystick < step keys

    learning improvement:
			    beginner    expert
	mouse               2.2s        1.3s
	joystick            2.2s        1.6s
	text keys           3.9s        1.9s
	step keys           3.0s        2.3s

"Step keys" are the little arrow keys, up, down, left, right, one step.
"Text keys" are function keys "next word", "next paragraph", "next page",
etc.

ENGL, in summary:

    For experienced users:
	mouse < light pen < joystick (time)
	mouse < light pen < joystick (errors)

    For inexperienced users:
	(mouse, light pen) < joystick (time)
	mouse < light pen < joystick (errors)

The human factors guy didn't know of any studies comparing track balls to 
mice, et. al.