6

The tag seems to be used for a confusing mish-mash of topics.

Everything from international keyboard types and IMEs, to how to make a Submit button appear on web page form or how to attach a guitar to your phone's audio socket or how to use a joystick, these are all on the first page for the tag.

It seems to me that there's no real commonality between all those questions.

From just hearing the tag name I'd assume it was meant to refer to IMEs (Input Method Editors, usually a way to input complex characters for languages like Chinese on a keyboard with a limited number of buttons, also used to switch between different keyboard types). But I can see that most of the other questions also involve a form of input to the device.

2
  • 3
    Personally, I would say that it's about the "Choose Input Method" notification you get when you have multiple keyboards installed and you open a text input field. Then, by extension, it's also about choosing the keyboard and related issues.
    – ale
    Commented Dec 12, 2012 at 14:46
  • 1
    Ah I can see that now, didn't occur to me at first, but that's another one
    – GAThrawn
    Commented Dec 12, 2012 at 14:52

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
3

I think we need to disambiguate the tag, firstly decide what it means, and then rename it to be less ambiguous and put a matching tag wiki on there (currently there's no tag wiki for it which will partially explain the confusion in its use).

My proposal would be to rename the tag to and then re-tag all the questions that don't fit anymore, possibly creating something like a tag for some of them, and adding the (already existing) tag to others like the form entry ones?

Sample tag wiki for the IME tag could be something like:

An input method editor is a OS or keyboard component or program that allows users to enter characters and symbols not found on their keyboard. For instance this allows the user of a Latin keyboard to input Chinese, Japanese, Korean or Indic characters.

4
  • input-method-editor would get at least me more confused. Though it might be the correct term, only few will get the association. And I guess only few really read the wiki excerpt, even less the wiki itself before using a tag. In your example, what would you do to the existing tag? Make it a synonym -- and if, to what? Another point to consider: IME is not restricted to "text". There are also barcode readers around you can use as IME (e.g. ImageCode IME).
    – Izzy
    Commented Dec 12, 2012 at 17:40
  • So perhaps the answer would be to leave Input-Method in place and use it for anything related to (soft) keyboards, keyboard layouts, changing keyboards. And then (after formulating a wider keyboard related wikik than my one above) move out and retag everything that isn't related to that (the web forms, guitars, etc)?
    – GAThrawn
    Commented Dec 12, 2012 at 17:57
  • I'd count hardware-keyboards and other mentioned IMEs (Barcode readers and the like) valid -- as long as they serve to "replace" the standard IME (so in this context I adjust my above statement: resulting input should be text, as in the end that's what those barcode IMEs produce as well). Maybe really use input-method-editor as the tag, and make input-method its synonym, both refering to "IME" (this way at least some people might think twice before [wrongly] using the tag). Agreed however on re-tagging everything else...
    – Izzy
    Commented Dec 12, 2012 at 18:03
  • ...though hardware-input then could also refer to barcode readers or external keyboards, which would count as IME. Not that big problem, I think -- though we might consider tags like audio-input for your guitar, line-in, external micro, and the like instead. The "submit button" example I'd clearly count as "mis-tagged", it fits in none of the mentioned tag suggestions.
    – Izzy
    Commented Dec 12, 2012 at 18:05
3

Summing up from GAThrawn's answer and its comments, might I suggest:

  • as main-tag, with as synonym. Wiki-Abstract: About entering text using a keyboard or other devices registering as "Input Method", the Wiki text itself could list up some more examples (as e.g. barcode-readers like ImageCode IME; I volunteer to create this, just send me a @ note when I shall start)
  • new for things like line-in, guitar, and the like. Making sure by the Excerpt people don't mistake it with Siri :D
  • things like the mentioned web-button are clear candidates of mis-tagging to me (close-misses)
  • leaves the joystick and its companions (I could imagine bluetooth-/usb-mice and the like in this special category as well). Not sure about an appropriate tag here -- as could also be applied to usb-keyboards and mentioned barcode readers. We still could use this tag until we come up with something better (and rename/split it again), the few mentioned exceptions won't hurt.
2
  • 1
    In my opinion, input-device would be a better term than hardware-input
    – aleksikallio Mod
    Commented Dec 13, 2012 at 7:17
  • +1 -- that sounds much better to me as well :)
    – Izzy
    Commented Dec 13, 2012 at 7:52

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .