I'm really not that impressed either to be honest. I'll definitely be making my iPad purchase when available to develop for it but the iPad 1.0 is just a larger version of the iPhone to me. Put that webcam in there, give me some multitasking and I will be impressed. I have a ton of Apple equipment, love Apple but iPad 1.0 is just lacking imho.
The tech nerds look at the iPad's tech specs, not at the whole device. They go down the spec sheet and see a bunch of components and features that are already available in other products (though not necessarily all in the same product, which is kind of the point), and so they are not impressed. They can't see the whole thing and they can't see how other non-tech geeks will see it. They really are tone deaf on this.
Wow, Blastdoor, you REALLY nailed it. Excellent observations. You pass the test.
Bill Gates says that some mix of keyboard, pen, and touchscreen are the key. I tend to agree.
And, indeed, so does Apple, minus the stylus. They have touchscreen, and an add-on keyboard. So what are they missing? A stylus.
My Newton (Apple's last tablet) had one. My Mac has a Wacom tablet hooked to it. So Apple has is no stranger to stylii. I think the iPad would benefit from a stylus.
If the resolution of the iPad's sensors could handle finer detail than "finger painting," that would lead to a few cool applications for paint and writing. Draw directly on an image in Photoshop - sketchpad. I think there is an ultra expensive Wacom tablet that does this today. It would be a very intuitive way to work. Write directly in the word processor - like your favorite legal pad. Again, intuitive, like Apple.
What makes more sense: Drawing with a pencil, or with your finger? Writing by typing on a sheet of glass or by using a pen?
I saw the finger paint program in Steve's demo. Not bad. But think how much better it would be with a stylus. The stylus would be your pencil, pen, chalk, airbrush - things every artist already understands. The stylus would use Apple's "ink" technology (built in to OS X) to do handwriting recognition. (A natural process every writer understands.)
I'm not sure if this lack of a stylus is what Gates meant, and I certainly understand the knee-jerk hatred and rejection of all things Windows, but perhaps he was right. Where's the obvious input device Apple left out? Where's the stylus and its cool apps?
But I'd wager that the really groundbreaking thing is not as much the iPad itself, but the way it will change the way we interact with the web.
I don't know about groundbreaking, but the thing changing that is the iPad itself. The real revolution here is that it's the first large touchscreen device that's actually useable by average people, and thus when used by a lot of people this device will have many apps that enable the iPad to become different things in a way a laptop never could be.
I agree, which is one of the reasons I am so disappointed that the iTouch interface was shoehorned into the new form factor.
I was expecting something innovative.
Your need for 'newness' makes you miss the bigger picture (as usual). Carrying the new interface over from the iPhone / Touch guarantees that millions of users are already familiar with the device. When launching an entirely new device that is bound to meet with a certain degree of resistance (cough cough). Besides, the interface must be one of the most successful ever so why change it?
At this point I have to agree. Of course the iPad isn't released and there's probably some things that haven't come to life yet but I was really expecting something groundbreaking. Or at least that was my criteria for me to be interested in buying one. I have an iPhone, I have a MacBook so the iPad would have to do something that these devices can't or can't with ease. I just don't see it.
I guess I could be completely wrong. I wasn't too impressed with the iPod either and that certainly changed the game.
I agree too that I wasn't impressed with the iPod and thought to myself what the heck Jobs and Apple were doing, as I vented and rant on the old "As the Apple Turns" website as I impatiently waited for an OS revision. Good thing, I'm not running Apple... Even better, since I bought the stock in the 70's range!
Regarding the iPad... it gives people a choice. What kind of people? People who don't own laptops. People who don't own iPhones or iPod Touches and don't want to view something with a screen that small! People who have a choice that I didn't have up until now, well the end of March anyway...
See, I don't have a laptop. I'm not looking for something that can be used as a mobile computer and that can do everything my 2006 iMac, that is, my 2006 Matte Screen, thank you very much, iMac can do regarding having certain applications installed for on the road productivity. I'm not on the road and I'd rather be in my home / office surroundings when doing my productivity... However, I wouldn't mind the iPad to have and to be able to check my e-mail, type back a reply or two and visit the web. It is what I would be doing if I had a more expensive laptop. Couldn't I do this with an iPod Touch or iPhone? If I had one, yeah probably, however, over the years, rotting in front of my Apple, hence my ID name, and getting older by the minute and things not working as well as they used to and I'm talking about EYE's! The last thing I'd want is using something small and compact that the iPad can accomplish in a more comfortable, inexpensive and less eye squinting way! It is nice to see after all this time when Jobs would come out with the iPod Classic, the iPod mini, the iPod minimalist (I'm joking) but every iPod announcement was a thinner iPod with a smaller screen and higher storage capacity. It's just nice to see Apple enlarging a product for a change. My eyes can definitely use the break!
Oh, I am plenty grown up, thanks. For instance, I am able to tolerate your rants rather well. At least, you (occasionally) have something to say. Tek, otoh, is a stuck record, and it just gets tiresome after a while.
It is just that I think it affects AI and its quality, that's all. I could care less.
But its the internet. Being a moderator myself on another forum its very hard to moderate the entire internet. I am sure the Mods do the best they can here but its next to impossible to make a forum a perfect experience.
I have also found that dong things like banning members just makes the situation worse because its very hard to truly ban a member. There is always a way around a ban. The ignore function is by far the best defense.
You will also be hard pressed to find a forum or moderators that are willing to give someone a lifetime ban. Its just look at as being too extreme.
I think that Gates represents a big segment of the tech nerd set but a small segment of the overall population. The tech nerds look at the iPad's tech specs, not at the whole device. They go down the spec sheet and see a bunch of components and features that are already available in other products and so they are not impressed.
Very true.
There are people out there that will argue that camera A is better than camera B because "it has more megapixels". For them, that number is the defining aspect of quality. And the bigger the number the better the camera. They say such things with complete sincerity. They believe this to be true.
And there are people that will compare cameras simply by comparing photographs.
For some people, the inputs really matter. What's under the hood, what are the stats. Geeks are really prone to making this mistake.
For others it is all about the outputs. What is the experience? Never mind what goes into it, what comes out of it? What does it feel like?
If you reduce things to components, you don't really experience them at all.
is this the same bill gates who was so impressed with steve ballmer?
Also, John C. Dvorak has lashed out at the iPad, calling it "useless". After reading what he had to say about the iPhone when it was released, this MUST mean that the iPad will be a roaring success.
Would he be more impressed if the iPad had two keyboards? Oh, wait. It does. The virtual keyboard and a physical (dock or Bluetooth) keyboard.
I genuinely believe he's not impressed, but I think he's missing what this device is for. Average Joe and up! It's a super-fast couch computer and the timing is just right.
What is the point of deleting a user's account if they are allowed to come back with another name? It makes things worse because longtime posters won't be aware of the new alias they previously had ignored and new posters won't be able to read their posting history to get a sense of the their thread derailing habits. It's a clean slate that hurts everyone but the offender.
I don't know about groundbreaking, but the thing changing that is the iPad itself. The real revolution here is that it's the first large touchscreen device that's actually useable by average people, and thus when used by a lot of people this device will have many apps that enable the iPad to become different things in a way a laptop never could be.
Exactly. Groundbreaking may be using the wrong term but much as the iPhone has changed how we interact with the great ether I think the iPad will continue this trend. The specific functionality provided by apps will make this thing super useful as a media centre / controller, educational text book, kitchen utility (with wall mount), in work shops, in the living room, laptop replacement (for many), industry (factory floor to warehouse), sports (watch the functionaries at sports events) etc etc. Sure, many of these things have been done with laptops, netbooks or tablet pc's or other dedicated devices but not as gracefully and not as multifunctional. The groundbreaking shift may be that we no longer conceive of the thing as a computer with its archaic files structure etc.
For all the noise the critics make it is just that - noise. There are issues and it won't suit everybody as we know, but I cannot understand how apple enthusiasts, and in particular, stockholders, can fail to see its potential and be excited.
Most consumers are not impressed with it either. Although the little fanboys here will try to claim it is the best thing since swiss cheese....too dumb to realize it is nothing more than an iPod Touch.
What is the point of deleting a user's account if they are allowed to come back with another name? It makes things worse because longtime posters won't be aware of the new alias they previously had ignored and new posters won't be able to read their posting history to get a sense of the their thread derailing habits. It's a clean slate that hurts everyone but the offender.
Comments
T
The tech nerds look at the iPad's tech specs, not at the whole device. They go down the spec sheet and see a bunch of components and features that are already available in other products (though not necessarily all in the same product, which is kind of the point), and so they are not impressed. They can't see the whole thing and they can't see how other non-tech geeks will see it. They really are tone deaf on this.
Wow, Blastdoor, you REALLY nailed it. Excellent observations. You pass the test.
And, indeed, so does Apple, minus the stylus. They have touchscreen, and an add-on keyboard. So what are they missing? A stylus.
My Newton (Apple's last tablet) had one. My Mac has a Wacom tablet hooked to it. So Apple has is no stranger to stylii. I think the iPad would benefit from a stylus.
If the resolution of the iPad's sensors could handle finer detail than "finger painting," that would lead to a few cool applications for paint and writing. Draw directly on an image in Photoshop - sketchpad. I think there is an ultra expensive Wacom tablet that does this today. It would be a very intuitive way to work. Write directly in the word processor - like your favorite legal pad. Again, intuitive, like Apple.
What makes more sense: Drawing with a pencil, or with your finger? Writing by typing on a sheet of glass or by using a pen?
I saw the finger paint program in Steve's demo. Not bad. But think how much better it would be with a stylus. The stylus would be your pencil, pen, chalk, airbrush - things every artist already understands. The stylus would use Apple's "ink" technology (built in to OS X) to do handwriting recognition. (A natural process every writer understands.)
I'm not sure if this lack of a stylus is what Gates meant, and I certainly understand the knee-jerk hatred and rejection of all things Windows, but perhaps he was right. Where's the obvious input device Apple left out? Where's the stylus and its cool apps?
But I'd wager that the really groundbreaking thing is not as much the iPad itself, but the way it will change the way we interact with the web.
I don't know about groundbreaking, but the thing changing that is the iPad itself. The real revolution here is that it's the first large touchscreen device that's actually useable by average people, and thus when used by a lot of people this device will have many apps that enable the iPad to become different things in a way a laptop never could be.
I agree, which is one of the reasons I am so disappointed that the iTouch interface was shoehorned into the new form factor.
I was expecting something innovative.
Your need for 'newness' makes you miss the bigger picture (as usual). Carrying the new interface over from the iPhone / Touch guarantees that millions of users are already familiar with the device. When launching an entirely new device that is bound to meet with a certain degree of resistance (cough cough). Besides, the interface must be one of the most successful ever so why change it?
At this point I have to agree. Of course the iPad isn't released and there's probably some things that haven't come to life yet but I was really expecting something groundbreaking. Or at least that was my criteria for me to be interested in buying one. I have an iPhone, I have a MacBook so the iPad would have to do something that these devices can't or can't with ease. I just don't see it.
I guess I could be completely wrong. I wasn't too impressed with the iPod either and that certainly changed the game.
I agree too that I wasn't impressed with the iPod and thought to myself what the heck Jobs and Apple were doing, as I vented and rant on the old "As the Apple Turns" website as I impatiently waited for an OS revision. Good thing, I'm not running Apple... Even better, since I bought the stock in the 70's range!
Regarding the iPad... it gives people a choice. What kind of people? People who don't own laptops. People who don't own iPhones or iPod Touches and don't want to view something with a screen that small! People who have a choice that I didn't have up until now, well the end of March anyway...
See, I don't have a laptop. I'm not looking for something that can be used as a mobile computer and that can do everything my 2006 iMac, that is, my 2006 Matte Screen, thank you very much, iMac can do regarding having certain applications installed for on the road productivity. I'm not on the road and I'd rather be in my home / office surroundings when doing my productivity... However, I wouldn't mind the iPad to have and to be able to check my e-mail, type back a reply or two and visit the web. It is what I would be doing if I had a more expensive laptop. Couldn't I do this with an iPod Touch or iPhone? If I had one, yeah probably, however, over the years, rotting in front of my Apple, hence my ID name, and getting older by the minute and things not working as well as they used to and I'm talking about EYE's! The last thing I'd want is using something small and compact that the iPad can accomplish in a more comfortable, inexpensive and less eye squinting way!
if so, it now becomes necessary to take bill gate's opinions with a larger grain of salt.
I'm really not that impressed either to be honest. I'll definitely be making my iPad purchase when available to develop for it...
So how many should someone buy who is impressed?
Oh, I am plenty grown up, thanks. For instance, I am able to tolerate your rants rather well. At least, you (occasionally) have something to say. Tek, otoh, is a stuck record, and it just gets tiresome after a while.
It is just that I think it affects AI and its quality, that's all. I could care less.
But its the internet. Being a moderator myself on another forum its very hard to moderate the entire internet. I am sure the Mods do the best they can here but its next to impossible to make a forum a perfect experience.
I have also found that dong things like banning members just makes the situation worse because its very hard to truly ban a member. There is always a way around a ban. The ignore function is by far the best defense.
You will also be hard pressed to find a forum or moderators that are willing to give someone a lifetime ban. Its just look at as being too extreme.
I think that Gates represents a big segment of the tech nerd set but a small segment of the overall population. The tech nerds look at the iPad's tech specs, not at the whole device. They go down the spec sheet and see a bunch of components and features that are already available in other products and so they are not impressed.
Very true.
There are people out there that will argue that camera A is better than camera B because "it has more megapixels". For them, that number is the defining aspect of quality. And the bigger the number the better the camera. They say such things with complete sincerity. They believe this to be true.
And there are people that will compare cameras simply by comparing photographs.
For some people, the inputs really matter. What's under the hood, what are the stats. Geeks are really prone to making this mistake.
For others it is all about the outputs. What is the experience? Never mind what goes into it, what comes out of it? What does it feel like?
If you reduce things to components, you don't really experience them at all.
C.
is this the same bill gates who was so impressed with steve ballmer?
Also, John C. Dvorak has lashed out at the iPad, calling it "useless". After reading what he had to say about the iPhone when it was released, this MUST mean that the iPad will be a roaring success.
Would he be more impressed if the iPad had two keyboards? Oh, wait. It does. The virtual keyboard and a physical (dock or Bluetooth) keyboard.
I genuinely believe he's not impressed, but I think he's missing what this device is for. Average Joe and up! It's a super-fast couch computer and the timing is just right.
"4 Reasons why people need to chill out and give the iPad a break" - http://bit.ly/cfuRWY
What are your thoughts?
Dear Mods,
What is the point of deleting a user's account if they are allowed to come back with another name? It makes things worse because longtime posters won't be aware of the new alias they previously had ignored and new posters won't be able to read their posting history to get a sense of the their thread derailing habits. It's a clean slate that hurts everyone but the offender.
Sincerely,
Concerned AI Posters.
+1 from me.
I don't know about groundbreaking, but the thing changing that is the iPad itself. The real revolution here is that it's the first large touchscreen device that's actually useable by average people, and thus when used by a lot of people this device will have many apps that enable the iPad to become different things in a way a laptop never could be.
Exactly. Groundbreaking may be using the wrong term but much as the iPhone has changed how we interact with the great ether I think the iPad will continue this trend. The specific functionality provided by apps will make this thing super useful as a media centre / controller, educational text book, kitchen utility (with wall mount), in work shops, in the living room, laptop replacement (for many), industry (factory floor to warehouse), sports (watch the functionaries at sports events) etc etc. Sure, many of these things have been done with laptops, netbooks or tablet pc's or other dedicated devices but not as gracefully and not as multifunctional. The groundbreaking shift may be that we no longer conceive of the thing as a computer with its archaic files structure etc.
For all the noise the critics make it is just that - noise. There are issues and it won't suit everybody as we know, but I cannot understand how apple enthusiasts, and in particular, stockholders, can fail to see its potential and be excited.
Dear Mods,
What is the point of deleting a user's account if they are allowed to come back with another name? It makes things worse because longtime posters won't be aware of the new alias they previously had ignored and new posters won't be able to read their posting history to get a sense of the their thread derailing habits. It's a clean slate that hurts everyone but the offender.
Sincerely,
Concerned AI Posters.
Agree.