Microsoft and a number of hardware partners will later this week launch the company's pen-driven Tablet PC concept. The software giant plans to make its Windows XP Tablet PC Edition operating system available, while vendors such as Compaq, Acer and Toshiba will start shipping systems that run it.

The Tablet PC, first announced at the Comdex show in Las Vegas a year ago, is designed to be used like a paper notepad - information is entered with a stylus on the screen via handwriting recognition and control applications.

Microsoft chairman Bill Gates predicted at Comdex that Tablets would be the biggest-selling portable systems within five years.

The Tablet PC version of Windows features an application called Windows Journal, which allows users to jot down handwritten notes, and later convert some or all of them into text that can be exported to other applications.

This will let staff use their Tablet PCs in places such as meeting rooms where it is impractical to type on conventional notebook PCs, according to Microsoft. "Our research has shown that a laptop doesn't get used for the bulk of most people's daily work because it is not that portable or easy to use," said Jeff Raikes, vice president of Microsoft's Business Productivity group.

Handwriting conversion

A pop-up tool, the Tablet PC Input Panel, allows users to input text to standard Windows applications, such as Microsoft Word, without the need for a keyboard. The tool, which is accessed through the Taskbar, converts handwriting into text on the fly and then pastes it into the application. Input Panel can alternatively be switched to an on-screen keyboard instead.

Despite the focus on pen input, hardware vendors are not yet ready to abandon keyboards. Most Tablet PC makers - notably Toshiba and Acer - will unveil hybrid machines that resemble standard laptops with both a keyboard and stylus. These feature a reversible screen that can face upwards when the system is closed. The exception is ViewSonic, whose 1.5kg Tablet PC V1100 is keyboard-free. Compaq is expected to unveil an unusual design that looks like a standard laptop until the screen detaches from the keyboard for use as a tablet device.

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