Editing Pointing stick (section)

{{short description|Isometric joystick typically mounted in a keyboard}}
{{About|a computer input device|the teaching and presentation aid|Pointer (rod)}}
[[File:Mouse pointing stick.jpeg|thumb|Pointing stick on a [[Lenovo ThinkPad]]]]
[[File:Pointing stick of a Lenovo ThinkPad keyboard-4488.jpg|thumb|Detail: rear side of a Lenovo ThinkPad pointing stick with the [[strain gauge]]s. Size: 8 x 8 mm. [https://patents.google.com/patent/US6115030A/en?oq=6115030 Out of patent] ]]
[[File:Thinkpad trackpoint caps.JPG|thumb|IBM ThinkPad caps (left-to-right): Soft Dome, Soft Rim, Classic Dome, Eraser Head (discontinued)]]

A '''pointing stick''' (or '''trackpoint''', also referred to generically as a '''nub,''' '''nipple''' or '''clitmouse''') is a small [[analog stick]] used as a [[pointing device]] typically mounted centrally in a [[computer keyboard]]. Like other pointing devices such as [[computer mouse|mice]], [[touchpad]]s or [[trackball]]s, operating system software translates manipulation of the device into movements of the [[pointer (computing WIMP)|pointer]] on the computer screen. Unlike other pointing devices, it reacts to sustained [[force]] or [[strain (mechanics)|strain]] rather than to gross movement, so it is called an "isometric"<ref>{{cite web |title=WO2001014957A1 - Control stick for a finger pointing device - Google Patents |url=https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2001014957A1/ko |date=2001-03-01 |access-date=2020-08-17}}</ref> pointing device. [[IBM]] introduced it commercially in 1992 on the [[IBM ThinkPad 700|ThinkPad 700]] series under the name "TrackPoint", and patented an improved version of it in 1997 (but the patent expired in 2017).<ref>{{cite web |title=US6115030A - Trackpoint device - Google Patents |url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US6115030A/en |date=1997-12-18 |access-date=2020-08-17}}</ref> It has been used for business laptops, such as [[Acer Inc.|Acer]]'s [[TravelMate]], [[Dell]]'s [[Dell Latitude|Latitude]], [[HP Inc.|HP]]'s [[EliteBook]] and [[Lenovo]]'s [[ThinkPad]].

The pointing stick senses applied force by using two pairs of [[electrical resistance|resistive]] [[strain gauge]]s. A pointing stick can be used by pushing with the fingers in the general direction the user wants the pointer to move. The velocity of the pointer depends on the applied force so increasing pressure causes faster movement. The relation between pressure and pointer speed can be adjusted, just as mouse speed is adjusted.

On a [[QWERTY]] keyboard, the stick is typically embedded between the G, H and B keys, and the mouse buttons are placed just below the [[space bar]]. The mouse buttons can be operated right-handed or left-handed due to their placement below the keyboard along the centerline. This pointing device has also appeared next to screens on compact-sized laptops such as the [[Toshiba Libretto]] and [[Sony Vaio UX Micro PC|Sony VAIO UX]].