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Washington – When a Louisiana Indian tribe called on lobbyist Jack Abramoff to help stop a rival tribe from opening a competing casino operation, he used a Republican environmental organization with Colorado roots to get access to the woman who'd make the final decision: Interior Secretary Gale Norton.
Abramoff and the organization, in turn, used the name of Focus on the Family leader James Dobson in their efforts to pressure Interior Department officials to rule in their favor, documents suggest.
Norton, formerly Colorado's attorney general, ruled Abramoff's way, but the interior secretary says she wasn't influenced by Abramoff or her former campaign aide Italia Federici. Federici's lobbying for the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana is now part of a federal investigation.
The Interior Department's inspector general, the agency's internal watchdog, is investigating Federici's contacts with top Interior officials, said department spokesman Dan DuBray. Federici came from Connecticut to Colorado to work on Norton's failed 1996 Senate campaign.
The inspector general's investigation is part of a broader grand jury investigation into Abramoff overseen by the Department of Justice. For his lobbying activities for various Indian tribes, he and his associate charged fees that now total $82 million. Norton has not been questioned in the investigation.
Federici was a key link between Abramoff and Interior Department officials on gambling issues, though she was running a nonprofit group that was supposed to be focused on environmental issues. The No. 2 at Interior – an acquaintance of Federici's – scheduled meetings with lobbyists in his office and delivered to agency staffers materials designed by lobbyists to influence the decision.
At least three casino tribes represented by Abramoff contributed at least $250,000 to Federici's organization, according to tribal records.
Interior records document at least nine contacts between Federici and top Interior Department officials, with at least three of those contacts involving casino interests.
Abramoff boasted to a colleague that he had enlisted the help of Dobson by hiring former Christian Coalition president Ralph Reed. Though Reed denied contacting Dobson about the Louisiana casino, Focus officials acknowledge that their records show the two religious leaders did discuss it in February 2002, around the time Dobson wrote to Norton opposing the casino, although it is unclear when that conversation took place.
Federici is the president of the Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy, a reincarnation of a similarly named group she and Norton formed when Norton was Colorado's attorney general.
The organization, commonly called CREA, was to provide a voice for conservative values in debates about the environment. But when Norton became interior secretary in 2001, Federici and her organization became players in a different, nonenvironmental cause: Indian gambling.
Federici eventually started working with Abramoff, then the hottest Indian casino lobbyist in town. Soon, CREA began receiving contributions from casino tribes.
Though the Interior Department is better known as the keeper of national parks and public land, it is also home to the Bureau of Indian Affairs and a key regulator of Indian casinos. Norton reviews casino renewals and serves as the final arbiter of which tribes can be recognized to open casinos – an $18 billion industry.
Though she acknowledges that she is often lobbied, Norton says she makes her Indian casino decisions strictly on merits.
"The department is involved every day in contentious issues in which entities on both sides make their case," said DuBray, the department spokesman.
Abramoff got involved with the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana in the spring of 2001 because it was looking for help getting its casino compact with the state renewed by Interior. The tribe paid him $6.1 million, according to Senate records.
After Abramoff and the Coushattas signed a contract, Interior records show, Federici called Norton's office trying to arrange a meeting between Norton and Lovelin Poncho, Coushatta tribal chairman. Soon afterward, Abramoff told the Coushattas to send CREA a $50,000 check, which they did on March 1, 2001, tribal spokesman Roy Fletcher said.
Norton declined to meet with Poncho. But Federici tried again, and Norton and her top deputies agreed to come to a September 2001 CREA dinner party at the home of a CREA supporter, where Poncho, Abramoff and other Indian casino representatives were on the guest list. The party organizer says guests discussed environmental issues.
Federici declined interviews, but in response to a question about her organization's tax status, she said, "CREA is not now, nor has CREA ever been, the target or subject of any investigation." She declined to comment on whether she personally is being examined.
The original CREA dissolved in March 2000, according to Colorado secretary of state records. Federici, who had moved to Washington in 1998, restarted the group, tweaking the name when she registered it as a political group with the Internal Revenue Service in August 2000. Norton has not been involved with the group since Federici restarted it, DuBray said.
In addition to the initial $50,000, the Coushattas sent CREA $100,000 a year later at Abramoff's urging, tribal spokesman Fletcher said. It was sent three days before Norton had to decide on the proposal by the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians to open a competing casino.
Another casino tribe, the Saginaw Chippewa, also gave $75,000 to CREA, most of it apparently at the direction of Abramoff.
In early 2002, the Jena had announced a deal with the governor of Louisiana to open a casino closer than the Coushattas' casino to gamblers traveling from Houston.
Part of Abramoff's strategy was to get Christian conservatives to lobby against the Jena band's plans. For that, he turned to Reed, a former president of the Christian Coalition, whom he has known for decades. Abramoff would later say he used that connection to bring Dobson into the fray.
In February 2002, Reed phoned Dobson and talked about the Jena band's proposal. Dobson and Reed had worked together on gambling issues before, according to Focus officials. During this phone call, Reed encouraged the Focus founder and thanked him for writing a letter to Norton opposing the Jena casino.
The lobbyists took credit for getting Dobson on board with the anti-casino effort and made plans to use his name with decision-makers. On the same day Norton got Dobson's letter, Abramoff e-mailed associate Michael Scanlon, telling him Reed's connections had paid off.
The next day, Feb. 21, 2002, Federici drove the point home by sending a memo to Eric Ruff, Norton's communications director, according to documents. She attached an e-mail from Reed to Abramoff from the same day.
Reached at the Pentagon, where he now works, Ruff said he had no recollection of Federici's memo.
Dobson didn't know at the time that Reed was on Abram off's payroll, said Tom Minnery, Dobson's top lieutenant for politics.
Dobson has a long history of fighting organized gambling. He was a strenuous critic of wagering when he served on the National Gambling Impact Study Commission in the late 1990s. From his base in Colorado Springs, he has jumped into local fights against gambling from Detroit to South Carolina.
Reed, who got $4 million from Abramoff and is now running for lieutenant governor in Georgia, says he never took credit for Dobson's work to stop the casino.
"Ralph has no recollection of asking Dr. Dobson to assist in the effort to prevent (the Louisiana casino) from opening, though he does not deny that he may have done so," said Reed spokeswoman Lisa Baron.
However it came about, Dobson's involvement got people's attention at Interior.
Domenech referred all questions to DuBray, who said neither Abramoff, Dobson nor anyone else influenced how the department ruled on the casino.
In the end, the public campaign that Domenech feared never materialized, Smith said.
"We got a few (letters). Doug had some e-mails from Reed. But it was just a threat," he said.
As deputy assistant secretary for Indian affairs, Smith was Norton's top adviser and policymaker on Indian casinos. Nor ton's No. 2, Deputy Secretary Steven Griles, also got involved in the Jena decision, calling Smith to his office to meet with Abramoff and telling him the Jena proposal shouldn't be approved, Smith said.
Later, Griles delivered to Interior staffers a thick binder of information opposing the Jena proposal put together by Abram off. Griles admitted that the binder was put together by Abramoff only after an intense argument with the Norton advisers he had delivered it to, said a former Interior official present during the argument. Despite the dispute, the information was made part of the record of Interior's decision-making process.
Federici has had a social relationship with Griles outside of the department. She listed him as a potential witness in a bitter property dispute with the woman who owned her apartment.
In March 2002, Norton rejected the Jena compact with the state of Louisiana – the outcome that Abramoff and the Coushattas wanted.
Norton's written decision followed a staff recommendation that the terms – 15.5 percent of profits going to the state – weren't favorable enough to the tribe. At the end, she tacked on an additional point from the anti-Jena lobbying campaign – that the casino was too far from the tribe's traditional home base or service area, in the middle of the state.
But eight months later, Norton approved a casino compact with the Seneca Tribe in New York that called for the tribe to fork over 20 percent- an even bigger chunk of its casino profits. Officials say the Seneca were being granted exclusive rights to operate slot machines in western New York state, which made it a better proposal.
Ten months later, Norton allowed the Jena to take an initial step toward gambling, granting preliminary approval for a different casino site, but the initiative is being blocked by new Gov. Kathleen Blanco.
Staff writer Mike Soraghan can be reached at 202-662-8730 or msoraghan@denverpost.com.
Staff writer Anne C. Mulkern can be reached at 202-662-8907 or amulkern@denverpost.com.
Adams Schools District 14 chose MGT Consulting as its external manager despite warnings from two state board members that they don't think the group is qualified to run a district.
A man and woman have been charged in the shooting death of a Golden man.
A Louisiana fugitive being sentenced on Tuesday for his second murder in Colorado tried to walk out of the courtroom before deputies restrained him while his victim's aunt was reading a letter to him.
Jamie Giellis' mayoral campaign said that it accidentally skipped a disclosure in a letter targeting Republicans. It's the first campaign finance complaint against a mayoral campaign this season.


Hi there. I need someone who can make 2 simple multiplayer game with unity which will work with my existing server. What we need to start with is: to write some little app that sends/reveives some commands through tcp sockets to server side and vice versa. Server is coded in D language and it is working like charm with flash at the moment. but because of the mobile app I want it to be upgraded to the unity. please only professionals bid on the project.
I will pay 2000$ for 2 games.
Note: before we start or come to agreement developer needs to make some little chat app like in the picture I have attached [login to view URL] of the server will be sent you if you agree to work. if we will be able to make the test app then we can start immediately.
Hello there! I will Develop Custom Games in Unity that will support your Server in D language. Please inbox me we can discuss more details. Thankyou!


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It's a first: Falcons fly into soccer postseason
At the start of the school's second decade, the Kentlake Falcons are making their first trip to the boys soccer playoffs.
Saturday, May 3, 2008 12:00am
The Falcons sealed the deal on Tuesday night, helping their own cause while also getting some help from a Kent District rival.
Troy Brunner scored on a free kick in the 17th minute, and goalkeeper Brandon Shipley picked up the shutout as Kentlake defeated South Puget Sound League North Division leader Kentwood, 1-0.
That boosted the Falcons' record to 7-4-2 and 23 points with one game left. Then, when Kent-Meridian came from behind to tie Kentridge at 2-2 on a goal with three minutes remaining, that assured Kentlake of at least a fourth-place finish in the standings.
The top four qualify for the SPSL playoffs, which are set for Wednesday night.
"From the beginning of the season, these kids were just ready to play," Kentlake coach Kyle Smith said. "It was exciting to see kids want to go out there and change things. We took a couple of rough shots (a 3-0 loss to Kentridge on March 25, and a 4-0 rout by Federal Way on April 22), but it's a learning and building experience for them."
Kentlake closed its schedule against preseason division favorite Jefferson on Friday night (results unavailable) with a chance to tie the Raiders for second place. Depending on Friday's outcomes, the Falcons could wind up second, third or fourth in the division. A second- or third-place finish would mean an automatic trip to district after their SPSL playoff game. If they wind up fourth, they would have to win their league playoff in order to move on to West Central.
The SPSL games are scheduled for 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. at both Tahoma and Bethel high schools. Tahoma will play host to the second-place teams and the fourth-place teams from the North and South divisions. The division champions and the third-place finishers play at Bethel, with the lower-seeded teams getting the 6 p.m. game at both sites.
Kentwood back in title hunt
A rough week for Kentwood suddenly got better on Wednesday night.
After losing two straight games – 2-1 at Tahoma last Friday, and 1-0 to Kentlake on Tuesday – the Conquerors got back on track with a 2-0 victory against Jefferson at Federal Way Stadium.
The game had been scheduled for March 28, but was canceled because the field was covered with snow.
It was the second time in nine days that the Conquerors had beaten Jefferson, having won by an identical 2-0 score at French Field on April 22.
Wednesday's victory ended Kentwood's 24-hour stay in second place in the North. The Raiders leapfrogged the Conquerors on Tuesday as they ended Tahoma's 10-game unbeaten streak with a 2-1 victory. That gave them a 26-25 lead on Kentwood heading into the rescheduled rematch.
The Conquerors (9-3-1, 28 points) concluded the regular season on Friday night against Kentridge (results unavailable), needing only a tie or a win to clinch the division title.
Conner Biggs, who also scored in the first game against TJ, and Luke Angevine scored the Conquerors' goals, both during the latter part of the second half. Mitch Pombrio got the shutout in goal, which was preserved with about a minute to play when Tyler Hanson of the Raiders sent a penalty kick just wide of the post.
"It was all about certain players stepping up, certain players refocusing on what they needed to do," Kentwood coach Aaron Radford said. "Nobody was happy about our last two games. Regardless of the results, we hadn't played well. We gave up three free-kick goals.
"For us to rise to the occasion, it was definitely a gut check."
It's a deal: Conks win title, coach loses hair
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Best of Me prevails in State Legislators showdown
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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by George Griffiths
24 July 2021, 9:39am
This classic 90s slasher has a TV remake coming just in time for Halloween
I Know What You Did Last Summer, fish hook and all, comes to Amazon Prime this October.
Image courtesy of Sony
I Know What You Did Last Summer - the classic 90s slasher film that is the main reason why you just can't look at a fish hook without getting a shiver down your spine - is getting the TV remake treatment, just in time for spooky season.
Originally announced in 2019 but with filming only commencing this year (via Collider), I Know What You Did Last Summer will come to Amazon Prime this October, it's been announced.
Based on the 1973 novel and the (let's face it, more well-known) 1997 adaption, I Know What You Did Last Summer tells the story of four friends, who find themselves at the mercy of a killer one year after they covered up a car accident where they accidentally killed a stranger.
The original film came out the year after Scream and helped to solidify the continued rise of the slasher sub-genre in the late 90s, helped in large part by a very starry cast of great up-and-comers (Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ryan Phillippe, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr) and a script from Scream scribe Kevin Williamson.
While not exactly a post-modern classic of deconstructing genre tropes, I Know What You Did Last Summer is remembered fondly mainly for its pulpy storyline and Sarah Michelle Gellar's vastly underrated beauty queen character Helen, whose death was a) undeserved, b) thoroughly avoidable and c) robbed her of her deserving Final Girl mantle in this film (sorry, Jennifer Love Hewitt, but you know it's true).
The less said about the two sub-par sequels - I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and, uh, I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer (sure?) the better. Stick to the original.
As far as the Prime remake goes, no stills or trailers have been released yet, although the cast has been announced. It will star Annabelle Comes Home's Madison Iseman alongside Brianne Tju, Ezekiel Goodman, Ashley Moore Sebastian Amoruso, Fiona Rene, Cassie Beck, Brooke Bloom, and Bill Heck.
Horror savant James Wan (Saw, The Conjuring) will produce the series, after initially being attached to direct. He's replaced in the director's chair by Craig Macneill, who helmed The Boy in 2015 and one episode of Jordan Peele's Twilight Zone re-make.
The new show has been described as a "modern" take on the original story, and will shift the initial accident from occurring on the Fourth of July to the night of the main characters' graduation.
Follow i-D on Instagram and TikTok for more film news.


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The Asian Connections Newspaper / Sports / Johri found not guilty, back as BCCI's CEO
Johri found not guilty, back as BCCI's CEO
Published on November 23, 2018 with No Comments
At least three women had made allegations against Johri, during his time with Discovery Channel and with BCCI. The first allegations were made on Twitter by an anonymous complainant. Then another complainant emerged, alleging that Johri had asked her for sexual favours. This complainant was a friend of Hattangadi. Another woman, working with BCCI, had also reportedly complained against him.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) chief executive officer Rahul Johri has been found not guilty of sexual harassment by a three-member inquiry committee, and he resumed office. However, the three-member inquiry committee did have a note of dissent — Justice Rakesh Sharma (Retd) and Barkha Singh (ex-head of Delhi Commission for Women) termed the allegations "false, baseless", "motivated and fabricated". Both recommended that Johri continue in his position.
The third member, women's rights lawyer Veena Gowda, also found him not guilty of sexual harassment. However, referring to the charges against Johri relating to an incident in Birmingham, Gowda called his conduct "unprofessional and inappropriate, which would adversely affect its (BCCI's) reputation". She noted: "In view of his conduct at Birmingham as well as keeping in mind the allegations made by Ms. X and his conduct before this Committee with respect to the photographs submitted, it is essential that Mr. Johri undergo some form of gender sensitivity counselling/training."
The two-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) too saw the verdict differently. CoA chairman Vinod Rai gave him a clean chit. He cited the recommendations of Justice Sharma and Barkha Singh, and noted that Gowda too did not find him guilty of sexual harassment. Diana Edulji said Johri was not fit to be BCCI's CEO because Gowda had recommended that he should undergo gender sensitisation. However, CoA chairman Rai overruled her.
Former Mumbai cricketer Shishir Hattangadi, who deposed on behalf of one complainant, was "shocked" at the verdict. "It is obviously a divided house (at inquiry committee). It is two people saying all things bright and beautiful and the third person saying he needs therapy and that his behaviour was unbecoming of a CEO," he told The Tribune.
"I only deposed on behalf of somebody I believed in, but this actually is an insult to all the ladies who deposed, calling it (allegations) mischievous," he added. "If they (Justice Sharma and Singh) are calling it mischievous, then the third person (Gowda) must also have an opinion which is very close to it, if not the same. But her opinion is complete antithesis of what they are saying."
BCCI treasurer Anirudh Chaudhry, who also deposed in the case, said Johri's position was untenable. "This is clearly not a clean chit as is being propagated by a section of officials," he said. "This cannot be willed away by someone just because one may be in a position of authority. We cannot lose sight of the fact that one member of CoA — i.e. 50% of CoA — believes this to be serious enough to make the position of the CEO untenable ."
Comments for Johri found not guilty, back as BCCI's CEO are now closed.


Ocean is an amazing place to spend a good time alone or with your loved ones. Having a calm evening is always an easy task with ocean whether you are enjoying sea breeze from a sandy beach or snorkeling with your friends in the middle of the ocean. However, there are so many things that you can do with this amazing destination and most people seem to forget how to enjoy the ocean. If you are a traveler or if you are planning on traveling anytime soon, you should definitely add a couple beaches or oceans to your bucket list because the times that you spend on a beach are always priceless. If you are interested, you can do so much more when you are chilling near the sea other than touching the waves or enjoying a cold sea breeze. Different continents, countries and oceans have different properties and understanding them will help you enjoy your time better.
For instance, if you are planning on traveling through Asia, there are hundreds of different sea based activities that you can try out when you have time. When you are planning your trip, you can do your homework and identify these travel destinations. For instance, if you are traveling through Thailand, consider following a short diving course in koh tao and that will definitely help you make amazing and pretty unique memories. You will be able to see much more than just the waves and it will definitely be one of the best experiences that you get in your lifetime!
However, you should always keep in your mind that sea can be a rough and a risky place despite how experienced you are. It is totally unpredictable and you will never know what is going to happen next. In a way that is amazing but when you are having a nice time by the beach or surfing with a surfboard, you will not find this unpredictability amazing.
Always follow safety procedures and guidance from professional and experienced instructors. These instructors will have enough experience to meet all your requirements and frankly, their advice can save your lives too. For instance, if you have followed open water course koh tao, you will know what exactly you should do.
Take your time to get used to water and try not to take chances. It can look exciting and interesting but a simple mistake can ruin almost everything. Ocean is always not a friendly place but it will always be an amazing tourist attraction, all over the world.
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Jamie McGonigle knows this is no time to sulk.
As difficult as it is, and as cruel as it was, he and his Coleraine teammates need to rise from the wreckage of Saturday and go again.
Though the wounds from their last-gasp title heartbreak are still raw, they have one last chance to ensure a sensational season finishes with fireworks when they lock horns with Cliftonville in their Irish Cup shootout at the international stadium on Saturday.
That's much easier said than done, however, and boss Oran Kearney will need to summon one of his most inspirational team-talks to make sure his team aren't nursing any kind of hangover when they go gunning for a first Irish Cup crown since the high-water mark of Marty Quinn's reign in 2003, not to mention exorcising the ghost of last season's cup final capitulation to Linfield.
Dejection and disappointment go hand-in-hand with football, of course, and the prospect of riding off into the sunset with the trophy is a perfect way to focus minds.
Even so, there's still a lingering feel- ing the hand fate dealt the Bannsiders will take some time to get over.
For what other team in recent history has lost just once all season in the league and still not finished top of the pile?
That said McGonigle, the leading light in Coleraine's swashbuckling march to the brink of glory, is determined to stay matter-of-fact.
He acknowledges that the way they lost the Gibson Cup – with just 20 minutes to go on the last day of the season the trophy was in a car heading their way to Mourneview Park – was a particularly brutal blow.
But he insists none of his teammates will wallow in it with so much still to play for.
"I think everyone will be gutted about the way we lost out to Crusaders in the league but as soon as last weekend was over, everyone had their minds now set to this Saturday as it's another shot at winning some silver- ware," said the Northern Ireland under-21 international.
"But yes, I think Saturday had to be the biggest downer of my career, even though last year's cup final defeat hurt a lot too.
The chance of a league and cup double has narrowed now to one afternoon on which success or failure this season, in the strictest sense of winning silverware, will be judged.
But while the destiny of the title was ultimately out of their hands, the same can't be said of their no-show in the Irish Cup showpiece this time 12 months ago.
Put bluntly, the Bannsiders choked, crashing 3-0 to the Blues in a one-sided final, and McGonigle insists he has no intentions of revisiting that feeling.
"You could say it [the Irish Cup] is more significant for us now but it's football and people don't always get what they deserve," said the 20-goal striker, who was nominated for the much-coveted Ulster footballer of the year prize.
"We know we have to be on top of our game to beat a side as good as Cliftonville, but we'll be up for it.
"Everyone will be excited as it's the best day out of the year, [cup final] suits and all the things that go with it, but we got caught up in it last year – we'll not make that mistake this year.
Of course to characterise Coleraine's season as a failure, irrespective of this Saturday's result, would be a crass misreading of the season as a whole, not to mention the efforts of McGonigle and co.
They were one half of one of the most memorable and pulsating climaxes to a two-horse race in recent Irish League history, and but for the might of the Hatchetmen, would have cantered to the title.
And for that reason, McGonigle insists he and his team-mates can have no regrets.
"I'm very proud of the team for what we've done this year and to get into another cup final as we've unfinished business in the competition," said the 22-year-old striker.
Like many of his Coleraine colleagues, McGonigle was recruited from the lower leagues, invited to the club by reserve team manager Johnny Law (circled) after impressing for his hometown club Dungiven.
He smashed more than 30 goals in a prolific first season with the seconds, and then three in three starts for the first team after making his debut against Institute in February 2015.
Recognised as the best finisher at the club and one of the most clinical in the Premiership, McGonigle says it is his ultimate ambition to follow the likes of Paul Smyth and Stuarty Dallas who all cut their teeth in their native top flight before flying the nest for the big leagues across the water.
"Short term, I want to lift silverware with Coleraine, that would be a great achievement," said the Coleraine No 19, nicknamed Bongo by his teammates.


Goddamn, ask for a doggy bag!
My aim with this post is to make you feel uncomfortable. And to rally you to a cause.
For reasons I can't comprehend, much of the planet (America aside) gets weirded out by the idea of asking a waiter for uneaten food to be put in a container to be consumed later. So much so they've got it into their heads that they're illegal or unsafe.
But you know what? It ain't any of this. It's vanity. We think walking out of a restaurant with a little bag is a crook look. We think leaving food on our plate is a mark of sophisticated restraint. We think scraping together food for seconds is scabby.
My response? Get over it, get real and get responsible.
Australians toss $8 billion worth of edible food every year.
Food waste is a bigger pollutant than cars and industry.
Consumers are the biggest contributors to food waste. Because we're vain. This is unfathomable and unforgiveable.
Worse yet, apparently less and less of us are asking for doggy bags, with Gen Y tagged as the biggest food wasters – 26 per cent say it's too embarrassing to ever ask for a doggy bag.
Most people I know don't even save their leftovers at home. It's easier to scrape them into a bin than to get creative and re-purpose for lunch the next day. All the while, they'll complain they don't have time to make their lunch! The lack of logic astounds me.
I'm anticipating some backlash. So, here's my ready-to-go responses. I'd apologise for being so blunt. But I'm feeling the topic warrants a sharp edge.
But aren't doggy bags illegal?
In Australia, absolutely not, as outlined in the various state and territory Food Acts. If you want to nerd up, you can click to the respective Acts for Western Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Victoria and South Australia.
1. In the UK, it's totally legal to ask for a doggy bag, but almost never done. A survey by the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) showed 25 per cent of diners were too embarrassed to ask, with 24 per cent wrongly believing the practice was against health and safety policies.
3. In much of Europe, like the UK, asking for doggy bags is frowned upon. Again, it's not illegal, but Europeans do expect you to eat everything that's on your plate at that particular meal. Also, serving sizes don't tend to be as enormous. In Stockholm, Sweden, in an effort to get more people asking for doggy bags (surveys showed 80 per cent were reluctant to ask), the Stockholm Consumer Cooperative Society (Konsumentföreningen Stockholm-KfS) made an informational video offering tips on how to make food last longer and to cut waste, featuring Swedish rap star Dogge Doggelito. Read more here.
4. In America, it's legal and happens all the time. Stats from 2002 show 91 per cent of Americans take leftovers home at least occasionally, and 32 per cent do it on a regular basis. Mostly because serving sizes are too big and people know they can get two meals from one.
5. In China, home to about 20 per cent of the world's population, taking home and reusing leftovers is very common. Readers tell me there's even a special term for a "leftovers stirfry".
Seriously? Four words: Americans do doggy bags. Americans are the most hygiene-phobic (and litigious) folk I've met. If they deem the practice safe, then I reckon the rest of us can sleep easy with a gullet full of day-old lasagne.
Food poisoning bacteria grows at between 5-60 C. If you've gone home from the restaurant and stored your leftovers correctly in the fridge you won't have a problem.
Eat the leftovers within 24 hours.
But my restaurant down the road won't allow it!
OK, in Australia, individual businesses can choose (ditto in the UK) to deny a doggy bag. They'll claim it's because they fear getting sued for food poisoning. Some allow them, after making the consumer sign a form, protecting the company legally. But know this: once you've paid for the food, it's legally yours and you have every right to take it. The restaurant may refuse to package up your leftovers for you – which they are within their rights to do – in which case you'd need to provide your own doggy bag. I know regular eater-outerers who always take a container to restaurants for this purpose (to save on plastic!).
OK, you can simply reheat and eat. But don't reheat in the plastic container – transfer to a BPA-free dish (the ceramic bowl or plate you'll be eating from is best, saving washing up).
Or you can chop the entire meal coarsely, heat in a pan and toss through an egg and cheese to create bubble and squeak.
Or tear up the heated meat and toss through some steamed veggies or over a salad.
Can I ask for your help? I'm thinking about starting a campaign to educate restaurants on the matter, so that they encourage doggy bags. Feel free to share your thoughts – what hinderences do you see, what do restaurateurs need to know, what positive initiatives have you spotted? And would you support me if I did put the effort in?
Absolutely! Absolutely! As I started to read your great post, I was thinking why don't restaurants offer the remaining food to "get around the embarrassment." Such a logical, hospitable, generous, way of interacting with the "people" who prepared and cooked your food.
Now there's a concept for a campaign. I like it.
I think this is so important. I was so disappointed earlier this year when a restaurant denied us a container to put leftovers into. Equally I was so impressed when the local pub I went to last night offered a container for leftover food. I think education is key, for both restaurants and guests.
so true…when it's offered you feel good.
I live in Canada. Most of the time the waitstaff will ask if you want your leftovers 'wrapped up'. Also, there is no shame involved in asking for a container. From my side of the doggie-bag-culture-fence, I find it a bit odd that people would pay for a good meal and then throw some of it out 🙂 My mother-in-law carries small ziplock bags in her purse for this purpose. She is an odd one though, generally speaking! All that said, I don't 'always' take my left overs home, say when it is summer and I won't be going straight home.
Pazar in Canterbury, Sydney is fantastic. Both times I have been there, they have offered a container to package up leftovers before we could ask.
Good to know!! I live around the corner and have driven past a few times wanting to try it!!! Is food good?
I suspect it would be difficult in a traditional German restaurant to have the rest of your meal packed up as they do not have the right boxes etc. I don't think I would dare to bring my own Tupperware (and either ask for them to fill it or fill it myself). To be honest, this is one of the reasons I rarely go to these restaurants – I know I cannot eat their hugh portions but I don't want to waste the rest. If I have to go there I try to find something on the menu I can share with someone (in combination with a side-order salad or so).
It would be great if in Germany doggy bags were as "normal" as in the U.S. – in all restaurants!
THanks for the German update.
To add to the German update: even in "traditional German restaurants" you won't have any problems (as a rule) when asking for a doggy bag. Well, maybe in those places where you only get defrozen stuff full of additives – but who would want to eat there anyway?!
Many places offer smaller versions of their regular dishes, too (officially for senior citizens, hence called Seniorenteller). I don't see doggy bags as often here as in North America, but I've often been asked whether I would like to take the leftovers home, and I don't think it's frowned upon.
I used to work at a farmer's market (where we sold the most wonderful antipasti, various kinds of olives, dips, feta, etc), and many of the regular customers brought their own containers. My boss was very strict about health regulations (and rightly so!), but he totally supported this and often actively encouraged people to bring their own containers.
I feel a little embarrassed doing this (particularly due to the looks from my table companions) but am doing it more and more. I had a great experience recently at chiswick. We ordered the beautiful slow road lamb and there was quite a bit left over. I decided I'd pluck up the courage to ask for a take away, but before I could the waitress asked if I would like it packaged to take home as it was such a shame to waste food! She packed it in a little takeaway container with the sides and sauces left over AND put it into a calico chiswick bag. I thought it was such a great attitude and I didn't feel self conscious at all. Made a great lunch the next day too.
I have taken that lamb home and there is NO WAY I would have left it behind: it was so freakin' big and delicious. No shame. My friends and I negotiated who would take what. It was win-win.
Yes! 'Doggy bag' is an awful American term. I hate it. Surely most Australians say 'can I get the rest to take away'?
It's more common nowadays in the US to ask something like "could I have a box?" – or if a significant amount of food is still on the plate, waitstaff will often independently ask something like, "do you want this boxed up?". I haven't heard the term "doggy bag" used in a very very long time, and it is extremely rarely a bag. It is certainly ok in all restaurants, except maybe the fanciest.
Go for it. A very worthy cause. Usually nothing left at our table. I have to squirrel away some lunch for the next day when I dish up or my two pre teen boys inhale the lot..
In France my hubby and I would ask to share the set menu between the two of us. They never said no, even though they were slightly surprised! Great article..anyone who is trying to take the embarrassment out of trying not to waste food gets my vote..we have also tried sharing mains and starters here in Oz and the restaurants have been pretty cool about it!
I've asked before and been denied on the whole "legality" argument!! I live in Victoria & noted you don't have a link to the Acts for that state – is it a different deal for Victoria? Would love to know and "nerd up" for future debates with wait-staff who pull the whole it's "against the food safety laws" argument on me.
There are no laws in Victoria that prevent restaurants and cafes from giving customers doggy bags.
I LOVE ordering the pork knckle at places like the Bavarien Bier Caffee, I can never finish it in one sitting … I take the leftovers home and have lunch for 2 days after.
My local restaurant/pub won't allow doggy bags so I've heard one guy made a plate out of drink coasters and took his huge pasta home.
I have no problem asking to "have this to takeaway"…. but I HATE the word "doggy bag"….!
American here too! My husband and I have made a habit of sharing our meals when we go out, as do our daughters. I never realized that sharing and take home containers were such a "no, no" in the rest of the world. Glad to know we do something right once in a while!
Doggy Bag or just order smaller meals, or share, nothing wrong with Entrees as a main meal. The shame is in wasting food.
LUUUUUUURV doggy bags! Get them whenever I can – in fact had one from my bought lunch for a 3 hour train trip the other night – sure beat the Vicrail canteen options!! So many good reasons to do this. I don't give a bugger what people think!
I grew up in South Africa so I'm used to taking home doggy bags; and I even pluck up the courage to sometimes ask for one in Australia too. Great idea to educate restaurants about making this practice more socially acceptable/encouraged. I agree with Jane that a better name than doggy bags would help.
I completely agree. I went out to breakfast the other day, to an inner city cafe in Brisbane, and asked to take home half of my omelette and they were totally fine with it. It's the first time I've done that at breakfast, it does feel a bit stranger than with dinner. I used to work in a cafe that had little stickers to put on doggy bags, with the date written in, and advice to refrigerate everything straight away and eat within 24 hours. Maybe more places need these stickers to avoid the whole food safety argument?
do you know the name of the cafe Kim?
The cafe where I used to work with the stickers was The Coffee Club, as far as I know they all have them. And the cafe that was so lovely about boxing up my omelette was Merriweather in South Brisbane.
Last year I travelled to my mum's seaside village in Greece on my own. I usually ate the same beach restaurant every day and I always had food left over. Traditionally, eating is very sociable in Greece so there are always several people in a group who can finish off the dish, but when you're on your own, it's impossible to finish a massive plate of wild greens, calimari, moussaka etc. The waiters would always ask me if I wanted the leftovers "paketo" and they would store it in the fridge for me while I continued swimming. At the end of the day, I'd pick up my 'paketo' and head home with my dinner for the night before heading out again. It was awesome. Saved me money and it also respected the cook. The veggies were always locally picked and I couldn't stand the thought of throwing out food that was so lovingly prepared by the local people.
I usually ask for my uneaten portion of my order to take with me. Back in the day I remember respectable restaurants offered to wrap your leftovers as they cleared your table. Campaign away Sarah Wilson, somebody worked had to prepare that meal and somebody else paid good money to support that effort and to enjoy that meal… the whole meal, not just what was consumed in the eaterie.
I also live in Germany and the traditional Bavarian restaurants will nearly always offer to pack up leftovers.
Great article. I'm all for taking home leftovers but the latest trend of restaurants bringing the container to the table so the customer has to scrape the leftovers in themselves and risk spilling it all over themselves and the table is appalling. I've had this happen in QLD and NSW. The excuse is that it transfers the liability to the customer but if you ask me it's to shame the customers into not asking.
I was surprised to learn that the Vegie bar in Melbourne doesn't let you take half eaten food home (the last time I asked was like a year and a half ago, so things may have changed). Seems to go against the environmental ethos of being a vegetarian (which I am), and seems a shame as their portions are huge. I actually think they probably say no because it's so busy there and they don't want to create extra work.
Great overview and campaign idea Sarah! I live in the UK. Afternoon tea was something I did as a treat before I quit sugar (understand: sandwiches, scones, crumpets, patisseries, cakes… and tea). I once went to the Ritz where there was loads of food left on the table when we were done because the portions were ridiculous. All cakes so super limited food poisoning risk, but they refused to give us a doggy bag for health and safety reasons. There was a homeless man just outside the Ritz which was a sharp reminder of how much food we throw away when so many go hungry. It badly tainted the whole experience for me, which was meant to be a celebration with my parents.
Yep, definitely nothing wrong with taking away your leftovers and any restaurant refusing to package it should then be expected to reimburse you portion equating to portion not consumed!!! That's what I say…and simply don't understand how some would consider this poor social etiquette when millions are starving with some being right at your own doorstep! Sarah, as you write, people need to come to their senses and get a grip of todays' food reality. Aside from 'all you can eat buffets' there should be no restaurant denying you your leftovers!!! That in itself should be illegal from a consumer's point of view! I also cringe at people (they exist!!!) who adamantly refuse to have leftover for dinner one night, be reused for dinner the next night!! Again, pull your finger out of your backside, get off your high steed and ENJOY your food.
You have totally hit the nail on the head. Us Brits are far too stuck up for our own good and get all coy and embarrassed about asking to take the leftovers home. Blunt is best and as a nation we need to pull our heads out of our backsides and get over it. Restaurant food is expensive so why not make the most of it and it prevents stuffing your face until you feel sick just to make sure the food is eaten. I really hope this campaign gets traction!
There's usually nothing left on the plate when we eat out, but earlier this week there was – reading this makes me so glad I did buck up and ask to take the leftovers home!
I hate seeing people waste food and I rarely ever throw food out of my fridge. There's always a way to use up leftovers.
I think it's completely normal to ask for a doggy bag for leftovers and I do it all the time when I'm out with family and friends.
Absolutely sensational post. I am a small person who does not eat very much. I will generally only eat half of a normal size meal. Not only does it irritate me when I cant get an entree size of a main meal, when they then say that I can't have a doggy to take home what I was unable to eat – phhhtttt!!! Such a good idea to take a container with me when I next eat out!
I always take a doggy bag when I do not finish my food (and excuse it with being reasonable), if I do not finish. I love leftovers! I actually sometimes find it embarrassing to order only as much as I eat, especially in Indian/Pakistani restaurants ("No starter, thanks, no extra naan bread, thanks, no sharing platter, thanks, I am unable to eat that much, and no dessert, thanks, I am full"), but as I hate throwing food away, I stick to my principles.
Absolutely! As an American living here I've been shocked & saddened by the wasteful (& illogical) refusal to offer doggy bags – let's find a way to make them the done thing!!
I'm in with supporting you 100%. I also think we should be encouraging restaurants and cafes to offer half-size meals. I hate seeing leftover food on a plate but so many places do huge "100kg-man-sized" meals and my 50kg self can naturally only eat half of it! Sure, the man who eats there is super happy, but for the rest of us we end up wasting food or grossly overeating. I was so impressed when I was in the UK last year and a menu had a notice saying "we do all our meals half size if you want a smaller portion". I thoroughly enjoyed every bite of my 150gm steak instead of 300gm steak!
One of the biggest reasons I don't eat out is because of the large portion sizes that I feel terrible about wasting.
As for doggy bags – it would be incredible for Australia to adopt the American way. I noticed in the US they never actually refer to them as 'doggy bags' either. Let's make "Do you want the rest of that to go?"part of every waiters vocabulary in Aus.
PS – the other week in Melbourne I rode home with half a pork roast from a beautiful restaurant in Fitzroy wrapped in alfoil and sitting in my basket! There was so much left on it I got lunch and dinner the next day from it.
Doggy bags are the best! I asked for one the other day in Melbourne and the restaurant had to put a big sticker on the front to say "not for human consumption" Plus once, also in Melbourne I asked for my gnocchi to be put in a bag to go and they had clearly never been asked because they gave me an actual hard plastic Tupperware container! Hilarious & ridiculous! I would totally support your cause Sarah! I can't stand people leaving so much (or even little) food to go nowhere.
In Western Australia most restaurants will not allow you to take food home due to OHS laws. If someone gets food poisoning from food they've taken home and not properly stored, the restaurant can be sued. I'm sure it's the same elsewhere too. Makes things difficult.
This is a fabulous idea. I generally don't eat out and when I do I try to order small meals to prevent food wastage. BUT when I get one of those enormous meals that seem to be happening in more restaurants and eateries, I would love to take the leftovers home.
I have not done so because I was one of those people who thought it was not allowed in my state (due to working on mine sites and being told by the chefs that it was against WA food hygiene and safety laws for people to take hot food away from the dining room as it could cause food poisoning) so thank you for the education. I think it would be great for the education to be targeted at restaurants and other catering services to offer the leftovers be bagged or boxed up.
I agree consumers need to be educated too but to make this less daunting, maybe restaurants could put on the menu that leftovers can be taken away if you asked the wait staff.
Nup. Nope. Never cared about how it looks walking out of a restaurant with a takeaway tub. I've even brought already-opened bottles of wine to a BYO restaurant, rather than buy a full one I might not get through! (But I'd ask for the cap/cork in that case…) I'm Gen X and my parents made us comfortable with the idea.
At home, our dogs help us use up leftovers – or we compost what we can.
Perhaps more restaurants can offer 2 serving sizes of certain dishes, to avoid waste.
It's preposterous that people would put their perceived social standing above preventing waste. And I don't think your post is harsh or blunt at all. Those who do really need to take the blinkers off!
That's no problem in Germany, as far as I know. Some places even ask you if you'd like to have a "doggy bag". Like you mentioned already the fact is that you paid for the food already.
I totally support your idea in creating a campaign to change it in Australia!
I didn't know that this is even a problem in some cultures/restaurants. Im from America and the portions are always way too large, and they always offer a box. Olive Garden has even had a special that they do, where you buy a meal and get to take a 2nd plate of the meal home for the next day. I never knew people were emabarrased to have a doggie bag.
Wow. I had no idea this was embarassing for people!! I feel way more uncomfortable at the thought of wasting the food! Heck, I've been known to cart a doggy bag from Sydney to Melbourne, after freezing it overnight in the hotel bar fridge/freezer! Definitely think more people should be made to feel comfortable to take home the food they've paid for. Bringing your own containers is a great idea – I come up across many restaurants who are against packaging up leftovers. Absolutely, I would support this!!
An after thought, maybe the name 'doggy-bag' puts many people off. The concept might need a makeover!!
As an American I actually laughed aloud at the "Four words: Americans do doggy bags" part. Americans can be a pain in a lot of ways but I must say I feel a tiny bit of pride in setting a good example in this regard. Of course I personally toss way too many foods from overspending at the grocery store which I think is less of an issue in Europe and UK with smaller kitchens and whatnot. Currently I would guess the waste balances out, but I am with you Sarah, we can always do more to lessen our waste. I promise I'm working on being more mindful while shopping!
Interesting, i've had restaurants give you a container (but they won't put it in the container themselves "so they're not responsible" maybe?) other restaurants say "its illegal – Food Health & Safety blah blah blah" and I've had others OK with it. Whats the regs for Victoria though, you gave links to the others but not Victoria?
Totally agree! I'm all for re-using leftovers, often ask for doggy bags and NEVER throw out food! I would totally support your campaign to increase doggy bag use in Australia: well done!!
Most people you know don't save their leftovers from home… really? Wow.. that floors me! I went to a fancy restaurant and had a slight argument with my boyfriend coz i couldn't finish the huge pile of pasta i had on my plate. I asked for a doggy bag (I think i probably called it something else) and they were fine with it. My boyrfriend found it embarrassing for some reason. Weird!
picture. I wish people would realise the impact of their action or inaction, its their own children that will be swimming in putrefied water and breathing toxic air.
Eventually it will affect their back pocket too.
I think cafes should make doggy (recycled paper) bags available for customers to pick up themselves from a stack near the counter, for instance like cafes that provide glasses and a water fountain. I personally have no shame and have no problem asking but it would help the people who are embarrassed.
Also, can we please campaign against food wastage by the said cafes and restaraunts themselves?! I have had many hospitality jobs where I am disgusted by the wastage at the end of each day. Hundreds of giant muffins going in the bin at the end of the day when they could be donated to the soup kitchens or given to pigs and chickens!
Well said Anna. Oz Harvest is one of many who do a great job servicing those in need in the community with left over food. I have witnessed the smiles on the young homeless people being the recipients of this food and being so grateful. It really puts things into perspective. We could do so much more and conversations hubs like this really help.
I will support you wholeheartedly! When dining, simply witnessing others leave food on their plates makes me uncomfortable. I agree with Cheryl, removing the awkwardness would make many I know who are too embarrassed feel better about it.
Love the sharp edge! Let's continue to name and promote the restaurants doing great work and the staff helping pave the wave by anticipating a doggy bag is the new normal. An option maybe to voice those leading the way on Trip Advisor.
My husband and I just travelled in Canada and they were so happy to give you a doggy bag, even offering at the end of the meal! Leftovers are the best often tasting better the next day! Our family has leftover nights where we use up all the odd bits and pieces from the week that aren't enough for a meal. We call it 'if it's' as in if it's there you can eat it!
I'd support it, and thanks for the article – change starts with the conversations we'll hopefully now have with fellow diners about the issue.
I think restaurants should offer the leftovers so the customer only need say "yes", rather than feel awkward about asking.
To allay concerns of food poisoning/litigation, perhaps restaurants could attach a little note to the container suggesting how soon it should be refrigerated, to eat within 24 hours, etc.
Might be time to coin a more attractive term than 'doggy bag' too, something that makes the diner and chef feel good about perfectly good food not going to waste and excited about an easy and delicious lunch the next day.
I usually eat all the food! Otherwise I do this but sometimes feel embarrassed or awkward like I'm so stingy/cheap even though I know it's crazy to waste the food. I'd love you to publicize it so there is less stigma.
thankyou, thankyou, thankyou! … I love your blog sarah! … always working for a good and worthwhile cause! … good on you!
it's about litigation with food poisoning! I'm thinking is the major problem!
the last time I asked for a doggy bag, we were on a road trip and it was pizza, but they were still hesitant and reluctantly said ok!!! but I had to handle it and pack it into a foil container! … all good! pizza for breaky!
Hi Sarah, I recall being shocked at being asked – by children – for my leftovers when I was eating al fresco in Mexico. Then I had the epiphany of the insanity of throwing away completely edible food. it made no sense to them and now makes none to me.
I've tried to share food with people in bars and restaurants but people are so suspicious. You know the deal: you order a bowl of hot chips and it's way more than you can ever eat, coming in a fashionable bucket size serve. Strangers won't partake though – they think they have to buy their own. Two half bowls of chips hit the bin. It's a sin.
I would 100% support this idea. It needs to happen. Just like your canteen initiative.
Great post! I'm American and live in Melbourne and the first time I asked for a doggy bag I was shocked when they told me they couldn't pack it up. In American when servers see food left on a plate they automatically ask if you'd like to wrap it up. I find it more embarrassing saying no to a doggy bag as it implies you didn't enjoy the food!
Culture does have a lot to do with 'permission' for dealing with leftovers; I grew up in Canada, it's just the done thing that you take food home with you. Last year, I had an argument in Canberra when I was not allowed to take home quite a bit of duck ragout pasta, it was to do with hygene- rubbish (Bicicletta- try offering smaller portions so people waste less) Big contrast to growing up in a Jewish family; everyone shows up at holiday dinners with their own Tupperware as left overs are assumed!
I'd 100% support a campaign.
Am with you all the way with this. I also think that it is snobbery for some who are more concerned about how they may be perceived for asking for a doggy bag. I always ask politely and most places are happy to oblige – perhaps it is because we don't frequent Michelin rated restaurants?
On another note, our family have been using glass jars as water bottles when we go out (the Pasata ones are particularly good). I always have a tall skinny jam one in my handbag, often empty and fill up whenever I pass the water fountain. The other day I used it for my cup of tea at a seminar (bit hot so I must think of something to hold it. Also my son just wrote his last uni exam on Thursday and had a 600ml glass jar as his water bottle. When he left, he heard a girl exclaim to her friend that she just saw the most "bizarro thing eva" – and it was this guy with a "like jar for his water". Matt actually smiled and showed them (strangers) the offensive bizarro thing – and the girls were so embarrassed. He explained the health traps/wastage/pollution of purchasing bottled water to them. Proud of him even though they probably thought he was weird.
now. One time I did ask and they said no without a good enough reason, so now I don't bother asking. I probably look a bit naff doing it but hey, better that then wasting food, my money, the hard work of the chefs that prepared my food and the farmers that grew it.
It's not so black and white – all for it (and have done it plenty of times) but doesn't work for everyone – I'm pregnant and I can't even eat my OWN house leftovers (after 1 day), let alone something I haven't cooked.
This has been such a bugbear of mine for SO LONG – thank you for writing a piece about it.
Every time I have requested to take away the leftovers, (in various cafes/restaurants in Australia and NZ), I've been refused with the reason 'it's against policy'. Such a waste.
Just spent over $500 for a lunch meal in a lovely restaurant that is on the central coast. We were polite diners with well behaved children that sat quietly in their seats despite waiting up to 45 minutes between courses. By the time the main meals were served we were full and pretty over it. The entire restaurant had left except for us due to the slow service of our main meals and I felt quite justified asking for a plate of 6 sublime rib eye beef fillets to be bagged up for us to take them home. This is a restaurant that prides themselves on their sustainable food, bills themselves as eco friendly and green yet had no problem arguing with me at the table in front of the children for over 10 minutes about the need to throw away the just cooked incredible beef. I explained that I did not want to see such food thrown away and that there was no one around to see me walk away with some leftovers. I also didn't ask for the whole barramundi to be taken home due to their strict "prospective food poisoning" policy, ie I negotiated around their point and tried to be fair. To civilised diners its disgusting to be treated as though we don't understand proper food hygiene and particularly when you are local and frequent a restaurant regularly you should be given some respect that this is not just an opportunity to sue someone. I'm actually disgusted and it ruined for me an otherwise lovely meal with my wonderful family.
5 star dining is about service and if they cant get that right then they may as well hang up their aprons particularly in an off season coastal small town environment that is relying on local patronage.
Next time Bells I'll spend 500 on food I can eat after Ive paid for it.
I'm 43 and years ago it was a regular occurrence to not to be asked if you would like a doggy bag but I found in a lot of cases they would automatically do it without having to ask. I don't often leave food on my plate and if I have I will ask to take it home. So far I have not been met with resistance but I can understand why people would feel awkward asking. I feel we have become so judgemental over the past years we are afraid of being judged. I feel it's a huge compliment to the kitchen if you have enjoyed you meal so much but are unable to finish it that you want to take it home. Please these are just my thoughts only.
I know I am going to be pelted with restaurant leftovers for this point of view but here goes….
I suggest that doggy bags are a horrible idea!
I have heard people, in particular Americans, say "If I'm leaving a plate full of food I want to take it home because I've paid for it".
– you have arrived at the restaurant having recently eaten and are not hungry, which is disrespectful to the restaurant and its staff. Learn to stop eating between meals!
-you have been greedy and ordered far too much food which, again, is unnecessary and crass. Many restaurants now offer the option of a smaller portion. Jamie Oliver's Italian restaurants do this which is a fine idea. I found plates in American restaurants dauntingly overloaded which is far less common in Europe.
– you are penny-pinchers and want to get your 'money's worth' which is also bad form. Would you go to dinner at someone's house and ask to bring home your half-eaten meat? I should hope not.
I would argue that, no, you haven't just paid for the food otherwise you would buy it and cook it at home.
What you have done is buy the whole dining experience – the pleasant surroundings, the nicely laid table, the personnel to serve it to you, the beautiful presentation of the meal and most importantly the skills of the chef who has the food delivered to you at the optimum temperature, perfectly cooked, not hanging around in a cardboard box ! You have bought a service, an experience.
To want your half eaten, cold food, scraped off your plate and jumbled into a cardboard box sounds horrible. Order less, arrive hungry and enjoy the experience without showing yourself up at the end of it…. Just my opinion! Let the food flinging in my general direction commence!
i did this up in hervey bay alot when living or visitind the pears there in the past. You have paid for your meal so it is yours to take, and what a bloody waste to leave it for the trash. I am pretty sure the staff on a couple of occasions even offered this service. Pretty cool stuff. Yea we need to stop giving a damn how others perceive us. The little steps all add up.


1994-06-29 Assigned to MICROSOFT CORPORATION reassignment MICROSOFT CORPORATION ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: HANSON, ERIC W., HENDERSON, PAUL E., JR., KIMMICH, JON B., ANDREWS, JAMES A., BREWER, TIMOTHY T., HELLINGS, CARL T., MCCAMBRIDGE, LORA K., VAN FLANDERN, MICHAEL W.
A routine allows a user to move a cursor in only mutually perpendicular, horizontal or vertical directions on a computer screen, despite erratic or wavy movement of a pointing device. The routine, once enabled, receives mouse movement signals produced when the user moves the pointing device, the mouse movement signals having x and y position components. The routine uses the greater of the change in the x and y components to initially move the cursor in either horizontal or vertical directions, respectively. The routine continues to move the cursor along the initially established direction, even if the change in mouse movement signals in the other perpendicular direction become greater during continued mouse movement. Only when the change in mouse movement signals in the perpendicular direction become much greater (e.g., ten times greater) will the routine switch to moving the cursor along the perpendicular direction.
The present invention relates to moving a cursor or other displayed object on a visual display device such as a computer screen.
As is known in the art, a cursor on a computer screen can be used to input commands into a computer. The cursor contains a hot point that indicates the location of the cursor itself. A user can input commands to move the cursor on the screen, thus moving the hot point, by using keyboard arrow keys or a pointing device such as a mouse or trackball.
By moving the cursor and placing the hot point on a particular portion of the screen, commands can be entered into the computer. For example, a computer may have a software program which includes pull-down menus. By placing the hot point of the cursor on a pull-down menu and actuating or "clicking" a switch or button, a menu is displayed on the screen from which a user may enter commands. Similarly, by placing the hot point of the cursor on an icon, file name, menu selection, or other object on the screen and clicking the button, a command can be entered to open or act upon a file or application program that is represented by the icon, file name, menu selection or other object. This method of command selection is commonly known as "point and click," and is commonly performed using computer pointing devices such as mice or trackballs. Overall, the point and click method of command selection allows users to more easily operate computers.
Often, pull-down menu selections are placed in a menu bar in a narrow horizontal row across the screen. If a user wishes to move from one menu selection to another, the user must navigate the hot point of the cursor horizontally within this row. Once the user navigates the cursor to the desired menu selection, a list of options is often displayed in a column running vertically on the computer screen. A user must then navigate the hot point of the cursor through this column if the user wishes to move from option to option. Often, many users, including young and handicapped users, have difficulty in navigating the cursor within narrow rows or columns on the screen. These users often move the mouse or ball of the trackball unevenly, causing the cursor to move waveringly or along arcuate or diagonal paths.
In certain software applications, users desire to move a cursor continuously along horizontal and vertical paths. For example, in a large spreadsheet, a user may wish to move a cursor horizontally along a given row or vertically through a given column, without moving the cursor into adjacent rows or columns. In many drawing or painting programs, a user will often wish to draw straight horizontal or vertical lines, thus requiring the cursor to move along straight horizontal and vertical paths. Overall, many users have difficulty navigating a cursor continuously along straight horizontal or vertical paths, even though such cursor movement is desirable.
According to principles of the present invention, a method restricts movement of a cursor on a computer screen in response to movement signals. The movement signals have coordinates corresponding to a position with respect to x and y axes. The method includes the steps of: (i) storing a first position of the cursor on the computer screen, the first position having first and second coordinates corresponding to a position with respect to the x and y axes, respectively; (ii) storing a previous direction which the cursor has moved on the computer screen; (iii) receiving a movement signal having third and fourth coordinates corresponding to positions with respect to the x and y axes, respectively; (iv)comparing the first and third coordinates to produce a first value, and the second and fourth components to produce a second value; (v) linearly moving the cursor along the first axis if the first value is greater than a factor multiplied by the second value; (vi) linearly moving the cursor along the second axis if the second value is greater than the factor multiplied by the first value; and (vii) linearly moving the cursor in another direction only if the first value is not greater than the factor multiplied by the second value or the second value is not greater than the factor multiplied by the first value.
FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a computer showing a cursor displayed on a computer screen.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are flowcharts illustrating a method according to general principles of the present invention.
FIG. 3 shows an example of movement of a mouse along x and y axes to produce movement of a cursor on the computer screen under the present invention.
FIG. 4 shows movement of the cursor on the computer screen using the inventive method of FIGS. 2A and 2B in response to the mouse movement of FIG. 3.
FIG. 5 is a schematic drawing of a computer screen illustrating an alternative embodiment of the present invention.
As described more fully below, the present invention allows a user to move a cursor in only mutually perpendicular, horizontal or vertical directions on a computer screen, despite erratic or wavy movement of a pointing device. The routine, once enabled, receives mouse movement signals produced when the user moves the pointing device, the mouse movement signals having x and y axis direction components. The routine uses the greater of the change in the x and y components to initially move the cursor in either horizontal or vertical directions, respectively. The routine continues to move the cursor in a straight path along the initially established direction, even if the user moves the cursor slightly in another direction, thus changing the components in the mouse movement signal corresponding to the other direction. Furthermore, the routine will continue to move the cursor in the initial direction even if the components in the mouse movement signal corresponding to the other direction become greater than the components in the initial direction as the user continues to move the mouse. Only when the change in the components corresponding to the perpendicular direction become much greater (e.g., ten times greater), will the routine switch to moving the cursor along the perpendicular direction.
FIG. 1 illustrates a computer 10 having a visual display device or screen 11, a keyboard 12, and a mouse 13 or any other type of pointing device, such as a trackball, all of which are coupled to the computer. The computer 10 includes a central processing unit ("CPU"), memory and other hardware and software features (not shown) that are associated with most currently available computers. The keyboard 12 includes cursor movement keys 14 that provide signals to the computer 10 for moving a cursor 16 displayed on the screen 11. Similarly, the mouse 13 provides commands to the computer 10, including commands for moving the cursor 16 on the screen 11. While the cursor movement keys 14 may generally provide signals to move the cursor 16 along only horizontal or vertical directions, the mouse 13 provides commands to freely move the cursor on the screen 11.
The computer 10 converts commands from the mouse 13 into cursor :movement messages or signals. Each mouse movement signal includes components or x and y position coordinates that indicates a position to which the cursor 16 is to be moved on the screen 11 based on movement of the mouse 13. The computer 10, under the direction of converter means or an operating system running on the computer, such as the MICROSOFT® WINDOWS™ operating system manufactured by Microsoft Corporation, converts the mouse movement signals into movement of the cursor on the screen 11. Mouse movement signals are typically generated at a rate of 60 signals per second.
The cursor 16, shown on the screen 11, includes a hot point 18. The hot point 18 is the active portion of the cursor 16 for entering commands into the computer 10. The screen 11 shows several pull-down menus 20 and icons 22 upon which the user may place the hot point 18 of the cursor 16 and enter commands into the computer 10. While the cursor 16 is shown as an arrow and the hot point 18 as the point of the arrow, various other types of cursors particular to a given computer software application may be employed. For example, in a given drawing application, the cursor 16 may take the shape of a pencil, and the hot point 18 may be the point of the pencil.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are flowchart diagrams illustrating the main steps carried out under a routine 100 of the present invention for performing a "Line Lock" function that causes the cursor 16 to selectively move in only straight horizontal or vertical directions on the screen 11, essentially ignoring or filtering any change in direction of the cursor from the selected direction. The routine 100 preferably runs in connection with the operating system running on the computer 10 and receives mouse movement signals at interrupt intervals, e.g., at the rate of about 60 mouse movement signals per second. The routine 100 preferably starts in step 102 during initiation or startup of the operating system running on the computer 10. Alternatively, the routine 100 could start in step 102 by means of another routine in the computer 10 that controls operation of the mouse 13, such as a mouse manager or control program. Furthermore, the routine 100 could start in step 102 by means of selection of an appropriate menu option displayed on the screen 11, such as an option provided by a pull-down menu or a toolbar.
In step 104, the computer 10 determines if the Line Lock function of the routine 100 has been activated, and if not, the routine 100 proceeds to step 106 where the computer waits for a message. While the routine 100 may be automatically initiated when the computer 10 boots up and loads its operating system software, the Line Lock function of the routine 100 is user-selectable. A user may activate the Line Lock function by selecting an appropriate check box option in the mouse manager program or from a button in a toolbar in a particular software application. When the computer 10 receives such a command message to initiate the Line Lock function in step 106, or if the Line Lock function has previously been activated before step 104, the routine 100 proceeds to step 108.
When the computer 10 generates mouse movement signals, these signals are passed to the routine 100 during step 106. Upon receipt of mouse movement signals in step 106, the routine 100 proceeds to step 110 where the computer 10 determines if the Line Lock function is active. If the Line Lock function is not active, the routine 100 loops back to step 106 to wait for the user to activate the Line Lock function as noted above.
In step 108, the computer 10 has received the command to activate the Line Lock function and therefore the computer turns on a flag, stores a current position of the cursor 16 as an initial position in memory, and sets a last direction to which the cursor has been moved to unknown. The flag indicates the status of the Line Lock function; if the flag is on, the Line Lock function is activated, and if the flag is off, the Line Lock function is not activated. After step 108, the routine 100 proceeds to step 106 to await mouse movement signals or messages.
The computer 10, under the routine 100, determines whether the Line Lock function is active in step 110 by checking the status of the flag, and if the function is activated, then the computer proceeds to step 112 where it determines if the direction last moved by the cursor 16 is unknown. If the Line Lock function had just recently been activated, and thus the last direction in which the cursor 16 has moved is unknown, then in step 114, the computer 10 sets the direction in which the cursor is to move by comparing the initial cursor position stored in step 108 to a current position of the cursor, as indicated by a recently received mouse movement signal. The user will generate the recently received mouse movement signal by moving the mouse 13 in an initially desired or selected direction after having initiated the Line Lock function in step 108. In step 114, the computer 10 determines the change in position, preferably in pixels, of the cursor 16 along the x axis by subtracting the current x position coordinate in the recently received mouse movement signal from the previous x position coordinate stored in step 108, and then taking the absolute value of the result. Similarly, the computer 10 determines the change in position of the cursor 16 along the y axis by subtracting the current y position coordinate in the recently received mouse movement signal from the previous y position coordinate stored in step 108, and then taking the absolute value of the result.
Thereafter, the computer 10 under step 114 limits movement of the cursor 16 to movement along only straight lines parallel to the axis selected by the user when the Line Lock function was activated under step 108. The computer 10 selects (i) the sole axis along which the cursor 16 is to move to be the axis that has the greatest calculated change in position, and (ii)the direction along that axis depending upon whether the calculated change in position along the selected axis is positive or :negative (i.e., the computer sets the direction to be either up, down, left or right along axes y, -y, -x, or x, respectively). If the changes in the x and y direction are equal, the routine 100 defaults to move the cursor 16 horizontally in the x direction (to the left if the change in the x direction is negative, and to the right if the change is positive).
In step 116, the computer 10 (i)moves the cursor 16 on the screen 11 in only the horizontal or vertical direction set in step 114, for a distance, in pixels, equal to the previously calculated change in position in that direction, (ii) saves the new position of the cursor, and (iii) saves the direction in which the cursor has moved. In a first example, if the initial cursor position stored in step 108 has the Cartesian coordinates (70, 90) and the current cursor position has the coordinates (80, 95), then the change in the x direction is ten pixels, while the change in the y direction is only five pixels. The absolute value of the changes in the x and y directions is also 10 and 5, respectively. Thus, in step 114, the computer 10 determines that the greatest change in distance over which the cursor 16 is to be moved on the screen 11 is along the x axis, and the direction in which the cursor is to be moved is rightward since the change is positive. The computer 10, in step 116, ignores or filters any change in the coordinates for the y axis as it moves the cursor 16, and thus ignores any change in the y direction in this example. In this first example, the computer 10 moves the cursor 16 ten pixels rightward along a straight line parallel to the x axis from the cursor's current position in step 116. After moving the cursor 16, the computer 10 saves the new position of the cursor (i.e., (80, 90)) and the direction in which the cursor moved (i.e., rightward) under step 116.
In a second example, if the initial position of the cursor has the coordinates (70, 90) and the current position of the cursor is to be (65, 80), the change in the x direction is -5, while the change in the y direction is -10. The absolute value of the changes in the x and y direction are 5 and 10, respectively. Thus, in step 114, the computer 10 determines that the greatest change in distance over which the cursor 16 is to be moved on the screen 11 is along the y axis; and the direction is upward since the change is negative. In this second example, the computer 10 moves the cursor 16 ten pixels up along a straight line parallel to the y axis from the cursor's current position in step 116, ignoring the change in the x direction. After moving the cursor 16, the computer 10 saves the new position of the cursor (i.e., (70, 80)) and the direction in which the cursor moved (i.e., upward).
Following step 116, the routine 100 loops back to step 106 where the computer 10 waits for additional mouse movement signals. After receiving a new mouse movement signal, indicating a new position to which the cursor 16 is to be moved based on the user's movement of the mouse 13, the routine determines that the Line Lock function is active in step 110, and that the last direction moved is not unknown in step 112. The computer 10 next calculates the change in x and y directions in step 118. As explained above with respect to step 114, the computer 10 in step 118 calculates the change in cursor position by comparing the absolute value of the change in the x and y position coordinates between the cursor coordinates in the new mouse movement signal and the cursor coordinates previously stored in step 116.
In step 120, the computer 10 compares the absolute value of the change in the x direction to the absolute value of the change in the y direction multiplied by a selected factor. The selected factor is preferably a large value, such as ten mickeys or pixels. If the absolute value of the change in the x direction computed in step 118 is greater than or equal to ten times the absolute value of the change in the y direction in step 120, then in step 122, the computer 10 determines that the cursor 16 is to be moved horizontally (i.e., parallel to the x axis). If the change in the x direction is less than zero, then the cursor 16 is to be moved to the left, and if the change in the x direction is greater than zero, the cursor is to be moved to the right. Thereafter, in step 116, the computer 10 moves the cursor 16 in a straight line left or right by a number of pixels equal to the absolute value of the change in the x direction. The new position of the cursor 16 and the direction in which the cursor moved is also stored in step 116.
If the absolute value of the change in the x direction is less than the selected factor multiplied by the absolute value of the change in the y direction, then in step 124, the computer 10 determines if the absolute value of the change in the y direction is greater than or equal to the factor multiplied by the absolute value of the change in the x direction. If it is, then in step 126, the computer 10 determines that the cursor 216 is to be moved vertically (i.e., parallel to the y axis): upward if the change in the y direction is less than zero, and downward if the change in the y direction is greater than zero. Following step 126, the computer 10 moves the cursor 16 in a straight line vertically up or down in step 116 by a number of pixels equal to the absolute value of the change in the y direction, and the new position of the cursor and the direction in which the cursor moved are stored.
If the computer 10 determines in step 124 that the absolute value of the change in y is less than the factor times the absolute value of the change in x, then in step 128, the computer 10 determines that the cursor 16 is to be moved in the same direction as previously saved in step 116. The direction in which the cursor 16 is moved in this same direction is determined by the change in x or y directions. Following steps 122, 126 or 128, the computer 10 moves the cursor 16 in step 116, saves the new position of the cursor and the direction in which the cursor moved, and then loops back to step 106.
As an example of the steps 122 through 128, if the coordinates of the previous cursor position are (70, 90) and the current cursor position coordinates are (65, 80), and the previous direction in which the cursor 16 moved was leftward or in the -x direction, then the absolute value of the change in the x or y direction is less than ten times the absolute value of the change in the y or x direction, respectively. Therefore, the routine 100 proceeds through steps 120 and 124, to step 128, and moves the cursor in step 116 five pixels to the left, even though the change in the y direction is greater than the change in the x direction. However, if the current position coordinates are instead (65, 140), then the change in the x direction is still -5, while the change in the y direction is 50, which is equal to ten times the change in the x direction. Therefore, in step 124, the computer 10 determines that the absolute value of the change in the y direction is greater than or equal to ten times the absolute value of the change in the x direction. Thereafter, in step 126, the computer 10 determines that the cursor 16 is to be moved vertically, and downward, since the change in the y direction is positive.
FIGS. 3 and 4 show how movement of the mouse 13 is converted to movement of the cursor 16 on the screen 11. As shown in FIG. 3, as the mouse 13 is moved by the hand of a user from point A to point B on a surface, the mouse moves generally in a rightward and upward direction. The computer 10, under the routine 100 of the present invention, converts the mouse movement signals generated by movement of the mouse 13 from point A to point B into movement of the cursor 16 in only a horizontally rightward direction, as the routine 100 proceeds through the steps 106, 110, 112, 118, 120, 124, 128, and 116. The resultant movement of the cursor 16 (produced by moving the mouse 13 from point A to point B) is represented by the dashed vector A shown in FIG. 3. When the mouse 13 reaches point B, the absolute value of the change in the y direction (or in the y axis coordinates) exceeds the absolute value of change in the x direction (or in the x axis coordinates) by at least tenfold, and thus the computer 10 begins to move the cursor 16 vertically from point B as the routine 100 proceeds through the steps 106, 110, 112, 118, 120, 124, 126, and 116.
Following point B, the mouse 13 moves from point B to point C in a generally upward direction, and moves increasingly rightward as the mouse approaches point C. As the mouse 13 moves from point B to point C, the routine 100 proceeds through steps 106, 110, 112, 118, 120, 124, 128 and 116, causing the cursor 16 to move vertically upward. The resultant movement of the cursor 16 (produced by moving the mouse 13 from point B to point C) is represented by the dashed vector B shown in FIG. 3. At point C, the absolute value of the change in the x direction is greater than or equal to ten times the absolute value of the change in the y direction. Consequently, the routine 100 proceeds through the steps 106, 110, 112, 118, 120, 122 and 116 as the computer 10 changes the direction in which the cursor 16 moves from upward to rightward.
As the mouse 13 moves from point C to point D, the routine 100 proceeds through the steps 106, 110, 112, 118, 120, 124, 128, and 116, causing the cursor 16 to move horizontally rightward. The resultant movement of the cursor 16 (produced by moving the mouse 13 from point C to point D) is represented by the dashed vector C. The resultant or combined movement of the cursor 16 on the screen 11 is shown in FIG. 4, as the sequential movement of the cursor along the paths represented by the vectors A', B' and C'.
In an alternative embodiment, the routine 100 sets or establishes a zone within which the cursor may linearly move based upon the direction set in step 114. The zone defines a narrow vertical column parallel with the y axis or horizontal row parallel with the x axis within which the cursor may move. For example, the row could be defined as two or three rows in a spreadsheet. Mouse movement signals indicating movement of the cursor 16 in a direction perpendicular to the established zone are ignored. Only when the received mouse movement signals indicate that the cursor 16 is to be moved beyond the zone by the selected factor (e.g., 10) will a new zone be established in the perpendicular direction.
For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the cursor 16 is initially moved horizontally, and the computer 10 establishes a narrow horizontal row 30 in which the cursor will only move horizontally. If current mouse movement signals, multiplied by the factor (i.e., by ten), indicate that the cursor 16 is to be moved beyond this row (either up or down), then the computer 10 establishes a vertical column in which the cursor 16 will move vertically despite minor deviations within this column. If the cursor 16 in FIG. 5 is moved to the position indicated by a dashed cursor 16', outside of the horizontal path 30, the computer 10 establishes a narrow vertical column 32 within which the cursor may linearly move, despite small movements of the mouse 13 perpendicular to the vertical y axis.
Those skilled in the art will recognize that the above-described invention provides a method of moving a cursor or other object displayed on a computer display device along defined paths on the display device. Although specific embodiments of, and examples for, the present invention have been described for purposes of illustration, various equivalent modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, while the present invention has generally been described above as comparing the change in position of a cursor, the present invention could instead compare changes in velocity of the cursor. Additionally, while the present invention is described as moving a cursor in a two-dimensional plane defined by x and y axes, the present invention may be readily adapted by those skilled in the art based on the description provided herein to restrict movement of a cursor to linear paths in three-dimensional space defined by x, y and z axes. Accordingly, the present invention is not limited by the disclosure, but instead its scope is to be determined entirely by reference to the following claims.
(k) linearly moving the cursor on the display device in a changed direction if the current direction is in the x direction and the second indicated change in position in the y direction is greater than the second indicated change in position in the x direction multiplied by the first selected value, or if the current direction is in the y direction and second indicated change in position in the x direction is greater than the second indicated change in position in the y direction multiplied by the first selected value, movement to the changed direction occurring without additional and simultaneous user input.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step (c) of comparing compares the absolute value of the difference between the second x position coordinate and the first x position coordinate to the absolute value of the difference between the second y position coordinate and the first y position coordinate.
wherein the step of steps of (i) and (k) linearly move the cursor to another new position after the steps of (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f) and (g) are once performed.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the first selected value is about 10.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step (a) of storing the first set of x and y position coordinates includes the step of setting the previous direction in which the cursor has moved as being unknown.
linearly moving the cursor in the previous direction if the first value is not greater than the factor multiplied by the second value or the second value is not greater than the factor multiplied by the first value.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the steps of repeating the steps of storing a first position, storing a previous direction, receiving a movement signal, comparing, linearly moving the cursor parallel to the x axis, linearly moving the cursor parallel to the y axis, and linearly moving the cursor in the previous direction.
8. The method of claim 6 wherein the x and y axes are mutually perpendicular and aligned with edges of the computer screen, and wherein the step of receiving the movement signal receives third and fourth coordinates corresponding to positions with respect to the x and y mutually perpendicular axes.
9. The method of claim 7 wherein the step of comparing includes the steps of producing a first value from the difference between the third coordinate and the first coordinate, producing the second value from the difference between the fourth coordinate and the second coordinate, and comparing the absolute value of the first value to the absolute value of the second value.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of linearly moving the cursor parallel to the x axis moves the cursor in a first direction along the x axis if the first value is positive, and moves the cursor in a second direction along the x axis if the first value is negative.
11. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of linearly moving the cursor parallel to the y axis moves the cursor in a first direction along the y axis if the second value is positive, and moves the cursor in a second direction along the y axis if the second value is negative.
moving the object in only the initial direction on the screen unless a change between the first and second movement signals is greater than a selected amount, and then moving the object in the another direction on the screen, movement to the another direction capable of occurring without simultaneous and additional user input.
determining an initial direction as corresponding to a one of the first and second components having the greater change.
linearly moving the cursor in the another direction on the screen only if the component result corresponds to one of the first and second components that is different from the one of first and second components that had the greater change in the step of establishing.
15. The method of claim 12 wherein the first and second components are velocity components.
16. The method of claim 12 wherein the first and second directions are mutually perpendicular.
the computer being programmed to initially, linearly move the cursor on the screen in an initial direction corresponding to one of first and second directions based on a greater of the first and second components in the first cursor movement signal, and only changing the direction of the cursor to another direction when the first and second components of the second cursor movement signal are greater than the first and second components of the first cursor movement signal multiplied by a factor, and without additional and simultaneous user input.
moving the cursor only within the first zone unless the first and second components of the second movement signal differ by an amount greater than a selected amount from the first and first components of the second movement signal, and then establishing a second zone in which the cursor may move without requiring simultaneous and additional user input, the second zone being substantially perpendicular to the first zone.
Crawford, Dale K., and Lana K. Bryan, Designer Reference Guide, Micrografx, Inc., Texas, 1990, pp. 1-10-1-11.
Microsoft Draw User's Guide, Version 1.0, Microsoft Corporation, Washington, 1991, p. 21.