Is Twitter about to be replaced by Clique?
Japanese announcement of Clique
Twittering text-aholics will soon have a new plaything: Toshiba has teamed up with American microprocessor giant Intel to produce Clique, a handheld, thumb-operated device that uses only three keys.
The name ‘Clique’ announces its aspirations as a social-networking tool. The Japanese trade name, ‘Kurikku,’ is itself a Japanese form of the English, ‘click.’
Introduced in Japan at the 2008 Microprocessor Forum Japan (MPF Japan) ‘Clique’ is the size and shape of a lollipop or a disconnected, miniature joystick.
Perhaps the most startling features of ‘Clique’ are its uni-directional text stream and its reliance on an old-fashioned technology: Morse code. ‘Clique’ users can only text out. Responses are collected by the user’s designated electronic mail account.
Morse code is a sequence of electronic ‘dots’ and ‘dashes’ that represent letters that is still widely employed by the military. Toshiba spokesperson Midori Suzuki explained that Morse is an easily learned, international code, ideally suited to the single-digit platform. She explained, “Morse code has been in use for more than 160 years — longer than any other electronic encoding system.”
Earlier attempts to create a Morse-based device were stymied by the variable length of the Morse characters, which made it hard to adapt to automated circuits. Toshiba’s solution is the three keys: one for the ‘dot,’ one for the ‘dash,’ and a third that acts as a space-bar between letters –- two ‘clicks’ between words.
Reception in Japan was typically fast and furious as early adapters added ‘Clique’ to their armory of hand-held devices. Suzuki says, “‘Clique’ offers a silent and discreet texting option that is suited to today’s 24-hour-a-day lifestyle. With ‘Clique’ our customers can be in constant communication, in the boardroom, in the theatre, and in the classroom – without distracting or inconveniencing others.”
Not everyone has welcomed the new product. While Japan remains one of the most receptive cultures for new technologies, in recent years anti-technology groups, the ‘han-gijutsu,’ have also proliferated. The most extreme may be those known as ‘Tebukuro’ – ‘glove,’ in English – so-named for the four-fingered glove its adherents wear. Like the students who spontaneously create waves of suicides in Japan, Tebukuro have no leader or affiliation but signal their collective dismay with technological progress by amputating their thumbs.
In Japan, novels written on cell phones, ‘keitai shosetsu,’ have already established their own best-seller lists. Magic iLand, a site where users create personalized homepages from their cell phones, launched a free novel library in 2007 and created the first awards for cell-phone written novels. Last year, with the cooperation of NTT DoCoMo, D2 Communications and video-rental giant Tsutaya, Magic iLand created a new award specifically for novels written on ‘Clique.’
Asked whether she has read any of the ‘Clique’ composed novels, Suzuki smiled and said, “Most keitai shosetsu are for young girls and I am not so young.’
I WANT ONE!!! CQ CQ CQ CQ
I’ll not amputate my thumb so I can send 30 wpm Morse Code with my amasteur radio transceiver. All modern transcievers have a built-in “keyer,” which creates perfectly timed dots and dashes. Morse Code is also big in Europe, notably Germany and the Slovak region.
Morse Code “punches through” static and fading on the shortwave bands better than voice, because each dot or dash carries FULL POWER. It is the preferred mode of working long distance or “DX” stations.
Think I’ll want one too. cw, perfect for the blind op.
Come to think of it, this is the first digital mode (on/off bits N bytes) making a come back:-)
Maybe, this could start a Code Craze and makes CW an International Language once more (retro), or even a bigger sensation hi hi…
Sign me up for one, if it is available…
wouldn’t it be funny if right after the FCC does away with the Morse Code requirement for ham licenses, Morse Code becomes popular in the general population?
Great idea! Young people in their teens enjoy Morse Code. It would develop excellent skill in these kids too.
Think the manufacturers should have different styles and models for index finger, paddle and so on. They could add a version that responds to eye motion such as blinking or one you could use with your foot.
I guess the hams would have a great advantage when teaching others to use the new devices. Perhaps some of those folks that have been overlooked in CW will replace the sports and entertainment figures and become superstars. All the twitter users will say is QRS…QRS!
How do I buy one?
Long live morse code!
Yes sir I like it. R/Berand
Why not a keyer that plugs into a regular cell phone in order to reply to SMS messages? Instead of looking for the third button on the second row, and hitting it three times, one would hit the “dash” button three times to make an “O”, for instance.
A primitive model could be made to send all caps, punctuation and numerals 0-9.
I wonder if anyone is working on that? It would make texting easier and safer if one didn’t have to look at and manipulate the phone.
This is a practical form of digital communications! I can’t text message with my cell phone nearly as fast or as easy as I can send (and receive ) Morse Code. I hated it as first, but it so effective and now its second-nature.
Sign-Me UP!
.– …. .- - .- ..- .-. . .- - .. -.. . .-
Just practising guys :O)
73s
“Morse” code is STILL one of the most unique and elegant communications techniques ever! Dots and dashes (’dits’ and ‘daahs, more precisely!) enable anyone to transfer a message to someone else INDEPENDENT of language or cipher!
If the “texters” get “hip” with it, it will be an international craze, even though thought old fashioned and very obsolete. I think MORSE will live forever!
I’m calling this one out…
1st - Can the author please site some sources other then a website for a conference? That picture posted “announcing the device” has nothing to do with it. That site is advertising an energy drink and lists gymnastic activities. An Intel or Toshiba website with a picture of the device would be helpful as: “Reception in Japan was typically fast and furious as early adapters added ‘Clique’ to their armory of hand-held devices.” If that is the case I can find no such device anywhere.
2nd - “While Japan remains one of the most receptive cultures for new technologies, in recent years anti-technology groups, the ‘han-gijutsu,’ have also proliferated.” I can find NO information about this culture or reference. It seems bizarre that you would mention this at ALL in a post about a morse SMS device - again sources would be nice.
3rd - Unfortunately, this article was reported by AR Newsline as fact. Every search for information on this device leads to THIS posted article on mhpbooks.com. I would ask AR Newsline how they verified their “news”.
If this device is real and exists - great!
Please take this opportunity to shore up your reporting of a new technology.
- Kris
This is similar to what I did with a smart phone a couple of years ago - we used the 1/2/3 keys to simulate dot, space, dash as the space allowed us to build or chord in messages and send as SMS. When we received an SMS message, we would play back as Morse - the idea was to have a SMS type interface for vision impaired users or for people who want to send/receive without looking at the phone. Glad to see Morse Lives!
Mike
dit dit
This is a total spoof.
The “Japanese Announcement About Clique” is actually not about ‘clique’ but about “Buckets”… a movie. But, if the author knows all about japanese, you already know how to read that!
Just think you will not have to have a license to do CW.
The Morse code ,still going strong!!!
Further to Jim’s comment number 5… here in New Zealand the Morse Code requirement was dropped some years ago. That motivated me to learn the code because I didn’t want to see it die out. Reverse psychology, or something like that…
I don’t mind if Clique is an imaginary product. I’ve already started to design my own ‘Clicker’ based on the article! It’ll be a 70cm QRP device, hopefully with a decent LCD output, and the three buttons as per the ‘Clique’.
73s de ZL3UJZ Gil