Better ways of sending commands to your computer is the theme of today's column.

One example is the keyboard and mouse movement shortcuts used by Opera, the best Internet browser on the market today. Opera, which bills itself as "the fastest browser on earth", is available free at www.opera.com. It does seem to be faster than Microsoft's Internet Explorer (which has about 70 percent of the market) and Netscape in bringing up pages. The browser is also easier and faster to use through an innovative use of shortcut features using both the mouse and the keyboard. For example, in addition to the usual mouse-keyboard shortcuts available in Internet Explorer and Netscape, Opera allows browser operations with small, quick mouse movements. For example, Clicking and hold right mouse button in Opera while moving your wheel mouse up and down reloads a page. Clicking and moving up and right restores or maximises a window. Opening up a new browser window can be done by clicking and moving the mouse down, and so on. Once one gets used to these shortcuts surfing becomes a lot easier and faster.

Pressing and holding "Ctrl" on your keyboard and moving your mouse will zoom the page, useful for those of us with tired eyes or poor vision. This is a real zoom feature, one that enlarges or decreases the actual size of the page to levels unattainable in the limited enlarge features found on other browsers.

Users can also set Opera to contain multiple browser windows within the Opera interface. This means one does not have a line of open windows cluttering up the bottom of your screen. Opera's "hotclick" feature allows users to find related information on a certain word, translate it or find its specific meaning. Just highlight the word or paragraph and right-clicking brings up the translating or dictionary tools.

Opera also allows you to end a surfing session and then continue where you left off the next time. Thus, if you're interrupted while online, simple instruct Opera to save all the open windows. The next time you go back online the same windows open up. Those with limited harddrive space or older computers will love Opera, as the software is much smaller than that used by other major browsers, which have become bloated with features. Opera takes up about 3MB of space. Opera's inventors said that when they created the browser they decided to start from scratch, rather than build on the Explorer/Netscape features. It will be interesting to see whether Microsoft and Netscape incorporate the new features thrown into the ring as a challenge.

[BULLET] For those with aching hands and wrists from too much use of the mouse FingerWorks holds out the hope of a different way of commanding your computer. FingerWorks (www.fingerworks.com) has designed a small flat surface capable of sensing both light fingertip motions and hand gestures, making the raised keyboard and mouse unnecessary.

FingerWork's TouchStream technology comprises hardware and software elements for sensing, tracking, and interpreting the motions. The company's transitional keyboard, the Retro (US$249), integrates the company's gesture recognition with the usual computer keyboard. The mouse is eliminated and is replaced by a flat sensor pad, which also acts as the number keypad. The sensor pad is similar to the one found on many laptops but the underlying technology is different. The motions made with the fingers and hands are first converted into movie files by the computer. Then each movie is interpreted by the processor and is translated to commands on the screen.

The sensor doesn't need to be actually pressed. It senses the electric field generated by your hands above the surface. To get the mouse pointer to operate the user touches the sensor and moves any two adjacent fingers. To click they tap any two adjacent fingers. Tapping three adjacent fingers performs a double click operation. Opening a file is akin to opening a jar. You put down your hand flat down and twist to the left. To close a file, rotate in the opposite direction. To save a file clench your hand.

Additional commands can be programmed into the system by the user, a feature that should be of interest to the keen gamers out there. FingerWorks' full Touchstream technology, which boils the entire keyboard down to a flat interface, is currently being tested at the University of Delaware.

On BBC television one of the testers said the biggest challenge was restraining herself from hitting the keyboard too hard.

Tech Tattle deals with topics relating to technology. You can contact Ahmed at editoroffshoreon.com or (33) 467901474.