"We fought hard for iPad," a pilot working for the airline told AppleInsider.
Its possible *this* pilot felt strongly about using iPads instead of Surfaces but I doubt most pilots even care. If it works whats the issue? If the IT folks decide its a better solution because it fits their Microsoft centric ecosystem then deal with it. This specific use case is particularly locked down with only one or two apps are installed - there's no real advantage of using iPads instead. With Surfaces you'll get the benefits of proper device management for thousands of users. That's significant.
There are real advantages to using iPads - platform maturity, quality, reliability, touch response (whereas 'surface' rates poorly), etc.
Proper device management? Oh, you mean all the stuff you can do through group policy in Windows to make the devices on the domain basically unusable? Or you could have proper device management (of your choice) that works: http://www.apple.com/ipad/business/it/management.html A good MDM product example: http://www.mobileiron.com/
A couple of things: First, how is choosing Surface over the iPad putting "public safety at risk"? The FCC/NTSB will make the determination on Surface's viability as an EFB...and I'm fairly certain they understand the requirements better than you. I would think that a company that pinches pennies in every area that doesn't affect the customer experience would be a good one to fly. After all, it's our fares that are paying for this stuff. I'm not suggesting that the cost savings between Surface and iPad are going to show up in the price of a ticket, but if it points to a larger practice of being a thrifty corporate entity, then I'm all for it. Did you miss the part of the article that said Delta rolled iPads in their airport restaurants? They understand the desire to use an ipad, no doubt. They simply decided to put those ipads in the most visible place...where their customers could use them.
And as for your "Under the Dome" reference...we're talking about a show about a town stuck under an impenetrable glass dome, whose secrets are somehow connected to butterflies, but you [COLOR=000“We’ve been fighting for our customers on this issue for years — testing an airplane packed full of Kindles, working with the F.A.A., and serving as the device manufacturer on this committee,” Drew Herdener, a spokesman for Amazon, which makes the Kindle. “This is a big win for customers and, frankly, it’s about time.”000]felt the use of MS Mobile products by so many people was unrealistic[/COLOR]?
Oh please, give us a break. Anyone that follows tech closely knows that the surface RT is crap running a crappy OS and is a huge failure in every respect. (The Surface 2 is nothing more than a rebranded RT.) Further to your comment about the TV show, yes indeed, it is totally unrealistic to be using all that MSFT mobile crap, under any circumstance!
But that's exactly what everyone said was so great about Windows during the 90s: commodity hardware! Cheap parts! Vendor drivers!
Now it's all about the advantages of Apple-style vertical integration between hardware and software.
Hmmpf. And there you are, giving Microsoft credit for finally doing what Apple has been doing since 1984.
Alternatively you could argue that Apple was wrong for two decades 1984-2004. Microsoft's model ruled the roost for over 20 years.. But nothing lasts forever so now that times have changed Microsoft is attempting to adapt. That's what good companies do. Apple was forced to adapt after nearly going out of business in 1999 - It was the iPod / iTunes combination that pulled them from the brink.
"We fought hard for iPad," a pilot working for the airline told AppleInsider.
Its possible *this* pilot felt strongly about using iPads instead of Surfaces but I doubt most pilots even care. If it works whats the issue? If the IT folks decide its a better solution because it fits their Microsoft centric ecosystem then deal with it. This specific use case is particularly locked down with only one or two apps are installed - there's no real advantage of using iPads instead. With Surfaces you'll get the benefits of proper device management for thousands of users. That's significant.
It's also easy to properly manage devices for thousands of iPads. Please learn something about topics before blabbing.
As for pilots not caring, that would be rather odd. The iPad is overwhelmingly preferred by the public in general, so why would pilots have greater preference for the clunky, inefficient Windows interface?
There are real advantages to using iPads - platform maturity, quality, reliability, touch response (whereas 'surface' rates poorly), etc.
Proper device management? Oh, you mean all the stuff you can do through group policy in Windows to make the devices on the domain basically unusable? Or you could have proper device management (of your choice) that works: http://www.apple.com/ipad/business/it/management.html A good MDM product example: http://www.mobileiron.com/
Again this is a locked down specific use case. Touch response is associated with Surface RT and its underpowered CPU. Surface 2 does not have these problems. The Apple device management solution is clearly not as attractive to an organization already managing thousands of devices in Windows. It doesn't fit as nicely. I'm not saying it isn't riskier going with Surface 2 instead of the more "mature" platform - but it is obviously a risk they are willing to take for all the other benefits. If Surface 2 doesn't perform as expected they'll surely drop it next time around .. but if it does then it's a big win for Microsoft.
It's also easy to properly manage devices for thousands of iPads. Please learn something about topics before blabbing.
As for pilots not caring, that would be rather odd. The iPad is overwhelmingly preferred by the public in general, so why would pilots have greater preference for the clunky, inefficient Windows interface?
They've selected a product which is not even approved for in-flight use. Sounds pretty risky.
I should've said it is easier to manage Windows devices in a Microsoft centric environment. That's likely where Delta is.
They'll surely go through the required acceptance testing before this goes live. And besides - if it fails this will be awesome fodder for Apple fans. So if you're confident it will fail - then just give it time so you can say "i told you so". But if it works then good for Microsoft - competition is great for consumers
Again this is a locked down specific use case. Touch response is associated with Surface RT and its underpowered CPU. Surface 2 does not have these problems. The Apple device management solution is clearly not as attractive to an organization already managing thousands of devices in Windows. It doesn't fit as nicely. I'm not saying it isn't riskier going with Surface 2 instead of the more "mature" platform - but it is obviously a risk they are willing to take for all the other benefits. If Surface 2 doesn't perform as expected they'll surely drop it next time around .. but if it does then it's a big win for Microsoft.
Given that the surface 2 has not been released, how can you possibly make the claim that it has solved the responsiveness issue?
Nobody in their right mind actually believes that this decision was made by sitting down and thinking realistically about the pros and cons of each device. This was Microsoft throwing Delta some crazy deal in return for publicity, and it will most likely end up burning Delta when Microsoft finally decides to stop flushing money down the toilet and pulls the RT (or the entire Surface product line).
I should've said it is easier to manage Windows devices in a Microsoft centric environment. That's likely where Delta is.
You couldn't be more wrong. RT, even with the new Workplace Join bit they're adding for Surface 2, cannot be managed directly via Active Directory. Your choices are leading MDM providers such as MobileIron (who manage Apple devices amongst others) or Windows Intune, Microsoft's cloud based MDM that doesn't scale to over 500 users. So there is no incentive to use Surface for Delta from a device management POV.
You couldn't be more wrong. RT, even with the new Workplace Join bit they're adding for Surface 2, cannot be managed directly via Active Directory. Your choices are leading MDM providers such as MobileIron (who manage Apple devices amongst others) or Windows Intune, Microsoft's cloud based MDM that doesn't scale to over 500 users. So there is no incentive to use Surface for Delta from a device management POV.
OK here are couple more reasons straight from Delta:
One reason Delta picked a Microsoft device was that it's easier to give pilots separate sections for company and personal use, said Steve Dickson, Delta's senior vice president for flight operations.
Pilots will be able to install personal software and keep their own items such as photos on the personal section of the devices, while another portion will be dedicated to Delta's software, Dickson said.
"We trust them to manage that side of the device," Dickson said.
Another reason for picking the Surface tablet is that Delta's training software also runs on the same Windows operating system as the tablets, reducing the need to redo that software for another device, Dickson said.
The Delta press release explains how some of the unique aspects of Windows 8.1 influenced the decision to go with Surface 2: “With the Windows RT 8.1 operating system, pilots will be able to open two applications side-by-side, offering, for example, the opportunity to assess weather information alongside proposed flight paths.”
I disagree. Somehow I feel more secure when knowing they care deeply about all equipments. It's easy to say that it's not related but airplane had been crashed with stranger thing before.
how about they care enough to keep pilots from sleeping or drinking on the job? Tapping once or twice has ZERO value within safety, ZERO!
Enhanced manageability: Open and expanded Mobile Device Management (MDM) support is now built into the operating system (leveraged by Windows Intune as well as third-party MDM tools). Responding to customer feedback, Windows 8.1 Enterprise and Windows RT 8.1 also support a new policy setting called Start Screen Control that allows IT to control the layout of the Start Screen on company-issued devices and prevent users from customizing the layout if needed. This is especially useful for shared computers, multi-purpose kiosks running multiple apps, and other fixed-use scenarios.
It would have been great to say what features the pilots liked. There must have been something really glaringly wrong with the iPad for the delay. Google doesn't seem to have anything for poor Surface touch reviews. $900 Million write down is nothing compared to the combined $29 Billion worth of unsold iPhones with Verizon and Sprint.
The expensive 2-year wait would not be expensive if you take into account of other benefits offered by MSFT, just the travel contract would yield tens of million to Delta. Good thing is MSFT cannot give travel contract to all the airlines
BSODs were by and large caused by poorly written third-party hardware drivers running in XP and earlier. The 2008 opening ceremony used XP, and given the rampant windows piracy in China, who knows if it was supported by microsoft? At any rate, by designing the Surface in-house MS avoids the very problem of obscure third-party drivers.
Yeah, because Microsoft's own FireWire driver is so obscure. I guess, to them, it is: They didn't bother updating it for several OS releases.
It's a rather high-risk, high-visibility announcement.
Surface 2 has only just launched so there hasn't been any trial. And no-one knows for sure if it will be certified by FAA, or how long that will take. If it fails, Delta will be looking very stupid.
Even if the Delta folks wanted to do SUrface 2, it would have been prudent to do some testing first. But I bet that Microsoft pushed them *very* hard for the announcement to be made now, to help with Surface rollout.
It would not surprise me to find that the devices are free and that Microsoft writes off the cost as marketing expense. It would be a drop in the bucket compared to the write-off they just took on the original models.
Don't worry. Microsoft will just lobby the FAA to authorize the Surface 2, regardless of actual performance. This is all Microsoft really does. Their products would be nowhere without their politicking.
Don't worry. Microsoft will just lobby the FAA to authorize the Surface 2, regardless of actual performance. This is all Microsoft really does. Their products would be nowhere without their politicking.
Have any facts or examples to back that statment up? ... or are you just making up crap as it suits you?
Sometimes you have to admit that another product can be chosen over the iPad. In this case it probably makes sense for Delta to choose Microsoft over Apple as they have a significant investment in Microsoft technologies. Since we don't know the parameters of the decision process we cannot assume they made the choice for anything beyond a good fit with their current technology deployment.
Unfortunately this article makes many erroneous assumptions, which makes this small loss for Apple look petty. Try not to be so bitter when a competitor wins. Competition is what makes great products!
Comments
"We fought hard for iPad," a pilot working for the airline told AppleInsider.
Its possible *this* pilot felt strongly about using iPads instead of Surfaces but I doubt most pilots even care. If it works whats the issue? If the IT folks decide its a better solution because it fits their Microsoft centric ecosystem then deal with it. This specific use case is particularly locked down with only one or two apps are installed - there's no real advantage of using iPads instead. With Surfaces you'll get the benefits of proper device management for thousands of users. That's significant.
There are real advantages to using iPads - platform maturity, quality, reliability, touch response (whereas 'surface' rates poorly), etc.
Proper device management? Oh, you mean all the stuff you can do through group policy in Windows to make the devices on the domain basically unusable? Or you could have proper device management (of your choice) that works: http://www.apple.com/ipad/business/it/management.html A good MDM product example: http://www.mobileiron.com/
Oh please, give us a break. Anyone that follows tech closely knows that the surface RT is crap running a crappy OS and is a huge failure in every respect. (The Surface 2 is nothing more than a rebranded RT.) Further to your comment about the TV show, yes indeed, it is totally unrealistic to be using all that MSFT mobile crap, under any circumstance!
But that's exactly what everyone said was so great about Windows during the 90s: commodity hardware! Cheap parts! Vendor drivers!
Now it's all about the advantages of Apple-style vertical integration between hardware and software.
Hmmpf. And there you are, giving Microsoft credit for finally doing what Apple has been doing since 1984.
Alternatively you could argue that Apple was wrong for two decades 1984-2004. Microsoft's model ruled the roost for over 20 years.. But nothing lasts forever so now that times have changed Microsoft is attempting to adapt. That's what good companies do. Apple was forced to adapt after nearly going out of business in 1999 - It was the iPod / iTunes combination that pulled them from the brink.
It's also easy to properly manage devices for thousands of iPads. Please learn something about topics before blabbing.
As for pilots not caring, that would be rather odd. The iPad is overwhelmingly preferred by the public in general, so why would pilots have greater preference for the clunky, inefficient Windows interface?
They've selected a product which is not even approved for in-flight use. Sounds pretty risky.
There are real advantages to using iPads - platform maturity, quality, reliability, touch response (whereas 'surface' rates poorly), etc.
Proper device management? Oh, you mean all the stuff you can do through group policy in Windows to make the devices on the domain basically unusable? Or you could have proper device management (of your choice) that works: http://www.apple.com/ipad/business/it/management.html A good MDM product example: http://www.mobileiron.com/
Again this is a locked down specific use case. Touch response is associated with Surface RT and its underpowered CPU. Surface 2 does not have these problems. The Apple device management solution is clearly not as attractive to an organization already managing thousands of devices in Windows. It doesn't fit as nicely. I'm not saying it isn't riskier going with Surface 2 instead of the more "mature" platform - but it is obviously a risk they are willing to take for all the other benefits. If Surface 2 doesn't perform as expected they'll surely drop it next time around .. but if it does then it's a big win for Microsoft.
It's also easy to properly manage devices for thousands of iPads. Please learn something about topics before blabbing.
As for pilots not caring, that would be rather odd. The iPad is overwhelmingly preferred by the public in general, so why would pilots have greater preference for the clunky, inefficient Windows interface?
They've selected a product which is not even approved for in-flight use. Sounds pretty risky.
I should've said it is easier to manage Windows devices in a Microsoft centric environment. That's likely where Delta is.
They'll surely go through the required acceptance testing before this goes live. And besides - if it fails this will be awesome fodder for Apple fans. So if you're confident it will fail - then just give it time so you can say "i told you so". But if it works then good for Microsoft - competition is great for consumers
Given that the surface 2 has not been released, how can you possibly make the claim that it has solved the responsiveness issue?
Nobody in their right mind actually believes that this decision was made by sitting down and thinking realistically about the pros and cons of each device. This was Microsoft throwing Delta some crazy deal in return for publicity, and it will most likely end up burning Delta when Microsoft finally decides to stop flushing money down the toilet and pulls the RT (or the entire Surface product line).
I should've said it is easier to manage Windows devices in a Microsoft centric environment. That's likely where Delta is.
You couldn't be more wrong. RT, even with the new Workplace Join bit they're adding for Surface 2, cannot be managed directly via Active Directory. Your choices are leading MDM providers such as MobileIron (who manage Apple devices amongst others) or Windows Intune, Microsoft's cloud based MDM that doesn't scale to over 500 users. So there is no incentive to use Surface for Delta from a device management POV.
You couldn't be more wrong. RT, even with the new Workplace Join bit they're adding for Surface 2, cannot be managed directly via Active Directory. Your choices are leading MDM providers such as MobileIron (who manage Apple devices amongst others) or Windows Intune, Microsoft's cloud based MDM that doesn't scale to over 500 users. So there is no incentive to use Surface for Delta from a device management POV.
OK here are couple more reasons straight from Delta:
http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2013/10/01/delta-pilots-getting-microsoft-surface-instead-ipad/
One reason Delta picked a Microsoft device was that it's easier to give pilots separate sections for company and personal use, said Steve Dickson, Delta's senior vice president for flight operations.
Pilots will be able to install personal software and keep their own items such as photos on the personal section of the devices, while another portion will be dedicated to Delta's software, Dickson said.
"We trust them to manage that side of the device," Dickson said.
Another reason for picking the Surface tablet is that Delta's training software also runs on the same Windows operating system as the tablets, reducing the need to redo that software for another device, Dickson said.
Here's another reason:
I disagree. Somehow I feel more secure when knowing they care deeply about all equipments. It's easy to say that it's not related but airplane had been crashed with stranger thing before.
how about they care enough to keep pilots from sleeping or drinking on the job? Tapping once or twice has ZERO value within safety, ZERO!
Regarding Windows 8.1 device management benefits:
Yeah, because Microsoft's own FireWire driver is so obscure. I guess, to them, it is: They didn't bother updating it for several OS releases.
Don't worry. Microsoft will just lobby the FAA to authorize the Surface 2, regardless of actual performance. This is all Microsoft really does. Their products would be nowhere without their politicking.
Don't worry. Microsoft will just lobby the FAA to authorize the Surface 2, regardless of actual performance. This is all Microsoft really does. Their products would be nowhere without their politicking.
Have any facts or examples to back that statment up? ... or are you just making up crap as it suits you?
Unfortunately this article makes many erroneous assumptions, which makes this small loss for Apple look petty. Try not to be so bitter when a competitor wins. Competition is what makes great products!