Visual Pills Are Excellent For Everyone Not Just Developers And Artists

Whenever a new gadget appears on the market or you come across a smart piece of technology you've never seen before, the 'See-Must-Have syndrome can so easily take over rational thinking and before you know it, yet another piece of junk makes its way home. Used for a while then into the cupboard then out to the garage, then finally a thrift shop or into the bin.

However, every now and again you find something groundbreaking, at least to you it is and it changes the way you execute tasks or maybe it improves your system of working forever.

Now graphic tablets or a computer drawing pad as they are sometimes known, are one of those technologies or gadgets and if you haven't tried one yet you really should consider it. Cheap graphic tablets are coming in at under $30 for the more basic models, $50 for a larger computer drawing pad. There is a whole world of benefits to be had for a wide range of people, if only they realized these aren't just for designers and artists, they can solve other issues too.

Something not necessarily obvious to non techie folk is the new way graphic tablets allow users to communicate with their computer by using a pen, not a mouse and some of us really do get on better this way, the author included. If you're worried they might be difficult to operate, please don't be. These are among the most user-friendly technologies out there and they have been developed with inexperience in mind.

One big advantage already discovered by many, is the handwriting recognition technology build into these pads which in English, means you don't type much at all. Instead you handwrite onto a special pad with the digital pen provided. As you write clever software converts your potentially spidery scrawl into neat typed text, in any font you choose loaded on your computer. Just magic!

Many of us find it easier and much faster to handwrite, in particular creative writing, than to type. If you are that person, this is a brilliant solution. Additionally if you find using a mouse and or the keyboard is causing pain from Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), using a pen to work with your pc offers pain-free computing.

Pretty much the same goes for arthritis which makes using a mouse comfortably impossible for some sufferers, for whom if writing with a traditional pen is not painful, find a graphic pad and pen tremendously easy. Good advice here is to consider buying a slightly higher end model because the writing surface of the pad is likely to be better quality giving a very realistic and effortless 'pen gliding over paper' feel.

There are some excellent budget models on the market such as the Genius Mousepen 8x6 and the school holidays are fast approaching. For the over 10 year olds, why not solve those bad weather boredom days and let your child find out just how creative they can be, when given a tool like this to explore with. Often you can find yourself blown away by the results.

Indulge in a little lateral thinking and you will quickly realise these are cheap and super clean to run too. No more buying paints, an end to accidental spills and no more cleaning up the aftermath afterwards either. Just disconnect and put away. Now that's what I call a useful gadget!