Free focused scroll

This software review is about an open-source driver project for Apple PowerBooks. The goal of the project was to create an alternative to SideTrack, a non-free driver, and to improve upon iScroll2. This driver achieves advanced features by running the trackpad in absolute mode. Essentially, this means that the driver can determine exactly what part of the trackpad your finger is touching. Unlike the Apple driver (and iScroll2), which both run the trackpad in relative mode, this facilitates a more complex driver but unlocks a wider range of capabilities.

It's important to note that this driver is not designed for use with the newer 2005 PowerBooks nor is it based on the newer driver for them. Rather, it is entirely based on the original Darwin ADB trackpad driver, and information for activating absolute mode was taken from the ScrollPad project. The driver also leverages the preferences daemon and two-finger scrolling code from the iScroll2 project to enhance its functionality.

At some point, the iScroll2 scroll code will be removed entirely from the driver. Nevertheless, the team behind the project believes it's possible to create much better code if it leverages absolute coordinate information instead of just relative movement. Overall, this open-source driver project offers a promising alternative to proprietary drivers and introduces a new level of functionality to Apple PowerBooks.