Apple gestures...quietly revolutionary

Do you use Apple gestures, have you even heard of them?

I was first introduced to them in January of 2008, when I became hipster #1 and bought the first MacBook Air. Now, three years and eight months later I am still barely using them.

Of the available fourteen there are only three I regularly use but those three are absolutely time-saving-revolutionary.

• Scroll with two fingers - just move two fingers up/down, instead of turning a mouse wheel or dragging the sidebar.
• Forward/Back with two fingers - browse the web by "swiping" left or right with two fingers, no more back button.
• Double-tap with two fingers - instead of the right mouse click (called a "secondary click"), tap two fingers to engage a secondary click.

When Apple says they are "fluid, natural, and intuitive," I wholeheartedly agree. I don't think about using them anymore and it hurts to use a computer without them. Which is when you know it's a true innovation, "when you can't live without it."

Of the other fourteen, I have three more just barely in my memory. Six out of fourteen?

It does take a while to break the old habits, especially for former Windows users. No more mouse and an almost entirely new language with my fingers. Yeah, it's tough but I can't complain about clicking less buttons and gaining agility.

It's part of the reason why I like Apple products. Their agressive forward pace, while offensive to some, keeps me on my toes and ever-improving. I can only imagine the day when I am able to handle all fourteen:

• Single click
• Dictionary look-up
• Directional scroll
• Smart zoom
• Rotate
• Scroll between screens
• Open Expose
• Secondary click
• Window drag
• Zoom in/out
• Scroll forward/back
• Open Mission Control
• Open Launchpad
• Show desktop

Watch out too because these gestures are growing exponentially. On my last computer there were only 6-7 and now fourteen. It won't be long before there are 72 gestures encompassing every feature on a computer.

We may even begin to skip the keyboard...have you seen the Swype text-input on Android?

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Written by Steven Mandzik a blogger at 1X57.com.