Bamboo tablet makes drawing a breeze

February 13, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

There’s one peripheral that’s been around for almost as long as some of the more popular devices you can hook up to your PC, but for some reason it hasn’t made it into the “every computer has one” category.

Take the computer mouse, for example. Everyone who uses a computer knows what a mouse is. They also know about printers, modems, CD and DVD drives, monitors, speakers, scanners and web cameras. Just about every computer out there has most, if not all of these devices attached because they are among the most commonly used peripherals.

So why hasn’t the graphics tablet caught on in the same big way? The graphics tablet, which can also be called a graphic or pen tablet, suffers from more than just a naming identity crisis. It’s a peripheral that continues to be ignored by the mainstream and I’m not exactly sure why that is since it’s another great way to input graphical images into your computer.

One of the things we like to do with our computers is to create and manage graphical images like the digital photographs we take with our digital cameras or images we scan in without flatbed scanners.

We scan them in, and print them out, save them to CDs and DVDs, display them on our screens and more. Well with a graphics tablet, you can literally paint and draw directly into your computer.

Using an electronic pen, the graphics tablet is a slatelike device onto which you press the electronic pen. As you move the stylus across the surface of the tablet, you see the corresponding trail appear on the screen.

And depending on the software and the tablet’s ability, you can do just about anything an artist can do with a full array of paint brushes, pens, pencils, chalk, pastels and more.

One graphics tablet maker that’s been around for a long time is Wacom, and they keep improving on the technology.

Their latest release is their Bamboo line. This newest generation introduces a new tablet size, the 5.8-inch-by-3.6-inch. The Bamboo includes Wacom’s patented cordless Bamboo pen that requires no batteries and also sports a multitouch capability as well.

Although children today begin to learn to draw with a computer mouse at an early age, many of us still began with a crayon, pen and pencil. And I don’t care what they say about a mouse when it comes to cursive writing.

Trying to sign my name using a mouse is like trying to write with a brick. Using a Bamboo is far more natural. Or just use your finger like a trackpad.

The Bamboo is a multitouch device so you can use the pinch, for example, to expand or contract the image you are looking at. You can use it to position, select objects, access menus, etc. And when you’re ready to write in a window that’s running the drawing software, it couldn’t be more natural.

In fact, if you suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome or some other form of repetitive stress, you may want to check out the merits of a graphics tablet.

The Bamboo comes complete with the pen and software that runs on a Windows or Macintosh. It connects to your PC or Mac via a USB connection. The Bamboo sells for $99.

Your computer may already have all the usual peripherals, but if you’re looking for yet another way to empower yourself with the ultimate method of digital artistic expression, then this graphics tablet has your name written all over it.

For more details, go to www.wacom.com.

Craig Crossman is a national newspaper columnist writing about computers and technology. He also hosts the No. 1 daily national computer radio talk show, “Computer America,” heard on Business TalkRadio — Monday through Friday, 10 p.m.-midnight. For more information, visit his website at www.computeramerica.com.

2011, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services