You can slide or just touch the sliding control and it will adjust it. You don't have to slide your finger. I have had a learning curve with mine because if you have more than one burner on and you touch the sliding control, it will adjust the last burner you were messing with--which may not be the one you wanted to turn up or down. You have to touch that burner's control and then the slide control. It's not a big deal, but for me--it's a learning curve. Even with this, I absolutely LOVE this stove. It's easy to clean and I love how quickly it cooks.