Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2017 May 31

= May 31 =

Video editing software in the 90's
I looking for a video editing software in the 90's which you could manipulate a video, meaning, to take an object from one video and to implant it in another video. I believe there was a few of them in the 90's. 77.138.185.97 (talk) 15:40, 31 May 2017 (UTC)
 * Adobe Premiere was first launched in the early 90's, if I recall correctly. ᛗᛁᛟᛚᚾᛁᚱPants   Tell me all about it.  15:45, 31 May 2017 (UTC)


 * Which end of the '90s? This was a decade when a _lot_ changed in video editing, in particular the development of non-linear digital editing. At the start of the '90s this was expensive workstations and custom hardware video boards, by the end of the '90s it was high-end commodity PCs.
 * As to brands, then Avid was the big one, then Adobe Premiere, then (for the Mac) Final Cut Pro Andy Dingley (talk) 16:20, 31 May 2017 (UTC)


 * I used the Video Toaster from 1991 to 1994 and then sold it (the entire computer and video setup) to a company that used a lot of them to make TV commercials. 209.149.113.5 (talk) 17:48, 31 May 2017 (UTC)

Thick touchpad tape
Can anyone recommend a decent tape that i can use on the bottom quarter of my laptop touchpad to dull/numb it completely? It's one of those with no independent buttons and it irritates me as I can't leave a finger or two resting near the bottom to left or right click because the cursor can't work with another finger on the pad. I've tried cut-to-size/shape decals, electrical tape, and both on top of each other. Together they were thick enough to stop me being able to use the cursor through them, but i still can't rest my fingers on the area or i can't move the cursor on the clear area above. Anyone have a solution other than a wireless mouse? Thanks ツ Jenova   20  (email) 19:12, 31 May 2017 (UTC)
 * Try a couple layers of those screen covers they sell for smartphones. ᛗᛁᛟᛚᚾᛁᚱPants   Tell me all about it.  19:30, 31 May 2017 (UTC)
 * Anything better? Touching screens still works well through screen protectors so this seems like it will require a lot of layers or just not work. Thanks for the suggestion ツ Jenova   20  (email) 20:11, 31 May 2017 (UTC)
 * That's why I said a couple. I was playing around once and found that my old Samsung Galaxy s2 wouldn't register touches through two of them. The only other thing I can think of is electrical tape with some superglue added to keep it from peeling up. ᛗᛁᛟᛚᚾᛁᚱPants   Tell me all about it.  22:20, 31 May 2017 (UTC)


 * I'll give it a try later. I've already tried electrical tape on top of a decal. That was enough to dull it a bit, but not enough to rest a finger on and still use the uncovered part of the touchpad. Thanks ツ Jenova   20  (email) 08:59, 1 June 2017 (UTC)


 * I am going to offer an "XY solution": disable the touchpad and use a real mouse (IMO even a cheap USB mouse is better than a good touchpad). This can be done programatically. IIRC you asked previously about Ubuntu-related stuff; in which case, this looks relevant. Tigraan Click here to contact me 13:24, 1 June 2017 (UTC)
 * I had that thought, but I'm not aware of a solution that would only disable part of a touchpad. If there is a setup app for the pad driver that excludes part of the touch-pad, that would obviously be ideal.
 * Most modern touchpads are capacitive sensors, which are tricky to block. "Blocking them" usually just involves putting some non-conductor down to increase the distance between your finger and the sensor. A piece of cloth might be ideal. ApLundell (talk) 13:45, 1 June 2017 (UTC)
 * Disabling only part of the touchpad at the software level is probably next to impossible, yes. Tigraan Click here to contact me 16:18, 1 June 2017 (UTC)
 * This is the sort of thing someone shouldn't say where I can read it. Because now I'm going to be loading up my old laptop touchpad driver in .net reflector and trying to see if I can do that this weekend. ᛗᛁᛟᛚᚾᛁᚱPants   Tell me all about it.  16:28, 1 June 2017 (UTC)


 * TBH, I agree with Tigraan. If a flat surface is not available, something like an air mouse might be the best approach. ᛗᛁᛟᛚᚾᛁᚱPants   Tell me all about it.  13:59, 1 June 2017 (UTC)


 * The air mouse looks interesting enough to buy anyway, but i'll try a few different thicknesses of tape and maybe cloth tonight and update on the results later. Thanks ツ Jenova   20  (email) 08:28, 2 June 2017 (UTC)