The tactile interfaces aboard Inferno--all the timeships, actually--are ortholinear.
What??
Straight rows and columns. Nothing offset.
So?
Well, look at a regular keyboard. The rows are all slightly offset from each other. Even your phone's on-screen keyboard is probably like that.
I can't say I ever thought about it.
No, but it makes a difference. Everybody has their own approaches to user interfaces. Tactile input is just one part of that. I mean, not everybody punches out letters from an alphabet. Not even all human languages do that.
I'm sure this is going to go somewhere really exciting.
The Cranions love spoke patterns. Single points with a bunch of lines coming off of them. So, they really like radial interfaces. The tentacles help there. All their interfaces are designed to be spun like wheels, and easily flicked around the interface surface or volume. I say "volume" because not all interfaces are flat 2D surfaces, obviously. Or even just curved surfaces. Some are immersive volume interfaces. The Cranions didn't have a lot of that, though. That was pretty cutting edge for them. Mostly it was flat or slightly curved surfaces.
This is riveting.
This is why you're paid by the hour.
Oolians are an interesting case because they are, after all, running a multispecies civilization. They are the main species, obviously, but there are quite a few integrated species, and they are able to participate in society as much as anyone. Their standard interface is volumetric but it can be configured to create a vibrating surface in the air that feels like it's solid. They have templates for each species for virtually every application they have, from home climate control to spaceship weapon systems. Before you ask: the adaptability of these systems also accounts for people with disabilities. Missing limbs, poor or no vision, hearing impairment, enzymatic deficiencies, you name it. They even accommodate races outside their immediate jurisdiction. There's a human interface, for instance, which can use almost any known human language.
That's cool, I guess. Does anybody have any really fucked up interfaces?
The Koraxians don't use visible interfaces at all. They do direct electro-chemical impulses to the inner surfaces of their ships. I understand their buildings work the same way. As a direct experience, it's more like they touch a thing, and think about what they want it to do, and it does the thing. It's second nature to them. It can only do things it's designed to do, of course. But because everything they build is made of the same conductive fibers, virtually every building and vehicle has the ability to be used as a directed energy source--or a weapon, really. Stringing this together across dozens of ships is how their Derris Cascade planet-busting shit works. I hear they also use it for demolition. Easy enough to direct some energy and vaporize a building you don't need anymore. They usually evacuate it first.
Usually?
Yeah, they can be kinda shitty and not tell anyone. They don't have a high value on life, not even their own.
Serious question: do the Koraxians have any redeeming qualities?
They sing beautifully.
I can't tell if that's a joke or not.
It's not! Being squishy as they are, they're almost like living bagpipes. Put a hundred of them together and they'll squeeze out a harmony to make you cry your eyes out. Or they would, if they used human music scales. They tend to prefer infrasound, so best I've heard are interpolations made for human ears.
That's almost charming. Still having a hard time with the idea of them being little guys made of slime.
That's always one of their biggest image problems, honestly. But their reputation precedes them in most cases, so by the time you find out they're squishy little dudes you've already heard how they love genocide and slavery.
I have to say, that description also makes me cringe. They aren't all like that, are they?
As a species? No. As a galactic power? That is the only image they project, and it's how their government operates. There are pacifist Koraxians--I've met them!--and Koraxian artists, philosophers, social scientists, historians, and so on. They have a rich culture. It's just that their authoritarian scumbag leader sets the tone for everything else, and you challenge that at your peril.
Fair enough. This is more interesting than the user interface stuff, at least.
Oh, thanks for reminding me.
The Dor'Tel don't rely on tactile interfaces at all. For sensitive interactions, they directly jack into the hardware. For everyday use, they have encrypted RF transmissions. It's all direct programming rather than a user interface.
Pa'rians and Salmaxians are much like Koraxians, I should say. Given their common heritage, this isn't surprising.
Let's see, who's left...?
Cleronids were fun. They didn't like displays at all. Everything was buttons, dials, meters, and lights. I think this was mostly down to the fact that their vision wasn't remarkable and they needed relatively large things to stare at and understand at a glance what state it was in. A meter hand, a light, a dial, all that was easy to understand with a quick look. Humans didn't have too much trouble grasping their hardware, as you might imagine.
Vorchons didn't have a lot of ships by the time we encountered them but I got to see the inside of one. They have tendrils descending from the ceiling that they pull on. The length and force of the pull supply input. This was good at deterring enemies who couldn't simply board their ships and operate them. Downside was, this encouraged enemies to blow them up instead. Mostly Dor'Tel.
Why did the timeships have tactile panels, then? I mean, we're talking about what are basically keyboards, right?
Yeah. Stak and Vral refused to say much about it. There's no Sikaren technology to evaluate apart from the timeships. My guess is they had some inkling that humans would end up using the ships, so they designed the interfaces in such a way that humans could easily do so. The two guys never shared their true appearance, so it's hard to say what a native interface might have looked like. They'll just keep their secrets, I guess.
Still struggling with this whole "timeship" thing.
I'm struggling with not having one anymore, to be honest. Can't even go back to watch an old World Series game or something.