Every tablet also is programable?

Hi Kenneth,

I'm not quite sure what you're asking here. I think you're asking if the graphics tablets you listed map to the screen - they don't literally do so, but they could logically map to the screen. The behavior depends on the device driver they use.

If you are NOT running Windows XPSP2 Tablet PC Edition, your graphics tablet will almost certainly behave like a mouse. I.E. if you draw a stroke, lift your pen up and put it back down where you started, your cursor will not move.

If you are running Windows XPSP2 Tablet PC Edition, certain manufacturers provide device drivers that will make your graphics tablet "look like" your screen - just as the built-in digitizer does. In this case, if you draw a stroke, lift your pen up and put it back down where you started, you will notice that the cursor is at the beginning of your stroke, not at the end.

So, the answer to your question really depends on whether I've understood your question correctly.

Are graphics tablets programmable? Sure, to the extent the OEM allows it.

Can you map a graphics tablet to the screen? Sure, if you're running Windows XPSP2 Tablet PC Edition and your OEM supports it in their device driver.

What kind of input device will the graphics tablet emulate (mouse/pen)? It depends on the OS you're running and the OEM's device driver again. But 95% of the time, it will emulate a mouse.

Hope this helps,

--Hilton Locke
Tablet PC Platform Test Team

HiltonLocke-MSFT at 2007-9-8 >