[BuonRotto]

I'm not saying people *here* are saying it in a derogatory way, but it's being said out *there* by skeptics, and repeating it, even innocuously kind of reinforces the thought to some extent. It's why I object to calling the iPad a "toy" because of the connotations of Macs being "toys" in days gone by.

[Kickaha]

Originally Posted by scratt I didn't for a minute think you had (at the point you wrote yours). Was just ribbing you, but also found it cool to see how you'd both hit those same points so clearly.

Aw, thanks.

[psmith2.0]

Originally Posted by BuonRotto I'm not saying people *here* are saying it in a derogatory way, but it's being said out *there* by skeptics, and repeating it, even innocuously kind of reinforces the thought to some extent. It's why I object to calling the iPad a "toy" because of the connotations of Macs being "toys" in days gone by.

Hmmm. I guess I just don't worry about geeks and skeptics, or their take on things. It is what it is. People like that - the true hardcore tech hounds - will never be fully happy with, or impressed by, anything. Nothing's ever big/fast/smart/powerful enough for some.

They're wired differently from most, and their expectations are tied in to all the things they know. Which is impressive, sure. But simply doesn't represent the majority of users and customers out there (grandma or otherwise).

The true measure in something like this will be the sales and adoption. 6-12 months from now, if we're seeing iPads all over the damn place (as opposed to $300 netbooks), who cares what naysayers and hardheads say? 50% of it will be strictly out of jealousy anyway (which, of course, they could never cop to)...

[torifile]

I think the iPod and then the iPhone have shown people that it's really ok to have (and enjoy having) something easy enough for grandma to use. I'm so over tinkering with my CE devices. I just want them to work. I *know* that there are more versatile devices out there. And I don't care. I think that most people are on agreement with me.

[onlyafterdark]

Originally Posted by torifile I think the iPod and then the iPhone have shown people that it's really ok to have (and enjoy having) something easy enough for grandma to use. I'm so over tinkering with my CE devices. I just want them to work. I *know* that there are more versatile devices out there. And I don't care. I think that most people are on agreement with me.

Yup Im right there with you. The only tinkering I really want to do is with my gaming rig. Other than that, I want everything else to just work.

[scratt]

Originally Posted by torifile I'm so over tinkering with my CE devices. I just want them to work.

I hear you on this, and to some degree agree with you. But just wanted to say that my original iPhone has been tinkered with from day one; out of curiosity as well as necessity. During all of that time I've never had a single problem using it as my day to day mobile phone. I develop on it daily as well as take it with me everywhere as it has all my source code backups on it, and use it to check email, surf the web etc.

This is one of the stunning things about what Apple have done with mobile OS X. It's rock solid, and with it's Unix base it *can* be tinkered with without everything crapping out... unlike CE devices and their ilk.

[psmith2.0]

Someone in the original "Apple iPad" thread (the one that got locked and split into all these other, more focused threads) mentioned/asked about Omni Group and the iPad.

Seems like they're looking to put all five of their apps on it, and have already been at work on two of them - OmniGraffle and OmniFocus - since Wednesday (when the iPad SDK was made available).

So there's another set of "real" apps, work/productivity type stuff lots of people use to "get things done".

$5 says Adobe announces some sort of Photoshop for iPad version before the end of June.

[ezkcdude]

Wow, that is cool. Thanks for the heads up.

[torifile]

Those omni apps will work very well on the increased screen space of the iPad. As I mentioned before, omnifocus would also benefit from some background processes for reminders. Oh well.

Edit: one of the things that I think will make the iPad successful is the fact that Apple introduces a new UI metaphor with it and we all instantly see how well it'll work in a variety of capacities. I already know that there will be 2 views in omnifocus depending on the orientation of the screen. I can imagine how they're going to work out the UI in omnigraffle. It'll be different but familiar. What we get with all the windows adaptations for the tablet is a stylus in your hand rather than a mouse.

[psmith2.0]

Here's another really good article about all this stuff, and how things might wind up over time. An interesting read, which I agree with for the most part.

[joveblue]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Here's another really good article about all this stuff, and how things might wind up over time. An interesting read, which I agree with for the most part.

My favourite quote from which was:

The entire industry shit its pants so loudly and forcefully that you probably could have heard it from outer space.

[scratt]

And this one...
http://www.suntimes.com/technology/i...012810.article

Like this bit:

They’ll walk into the store with a cheap notebook or a good netbook in mind. But then they’ll think of the times they were in a conference room and saw a couple of people with iPads in front of them. Or they’ll think of that six-hour flight last month in which the guy across the aisle was on his iPad for as long as the flight crew would allow him. And then they’ll give the iPad a try. Then and only< then, after a half an hour of tapping and dragging and tilting and reading, will a consumer really know what the right choice will be.

[ezkcdude]

Stephen Colbert has an iPad.

[psmith2.0]

Well, that's neat. And it's real. I guess Apple made some sort of arrangement here?

[scratt]

I too was shocked it was real. I expected a cardboard cut out.
I came straight over here to post the link but was beaten to it.

That is very cool. I wonder how many Apple minders were in the wings waiting to take it back off him as he came off stage?

@Jason eat your heart out you sad loser. That's who you'd like to be.

[joveblue]

Originally Posted by ezkcdude Stephen Colbert has an iPad.

Bah, Flash, can't view it on my iPhone!

Oh, the vague irony

[torifile]

Originally Posted by ezkcdude Stephen Colbert has an iPad.

I wonder if the irony of that clip being in flash is lost on anyone. I'll have to watch it when i'm using a "real" computer. Or just watch it on YouTube if I can find it.

[torifile]

Originally Posted by joveblue Bah, Flash, can't view it on my iPhone! Oh, the vague irony

YouTube

[Brad]

Originally Posted by torifile YouTube

Truest YouTube comment if ever there was one:

COLBERT BUMP! iPAD WILL PWN NOW

[curiousuburb]

Charlie Brooker has a swing via the Guardian

It's an iPhone for people who can't be arsed holding an iPhone up to their face. A slightly-further-away iPhone that keeps your lap warm. A weird combination of portable and cumbersome: too small to replace your desktop, too big to fit in your pocket, unless you're a clown. It can play video, but really – do you want to spend hours staring at a movie in your lap? Sit through Lord of the Rings and you'd need an osteopath to punch the crick out of your neck afterwards. It can also be used as an ebook, something newspapers are understandably keen to play up, but because it's got an illuminated display rather than a fancy non-backlight "digital ink" ebook screen, it'll probably leave your eyes feeling strained, as though your pupils are wearing tight shoes. The iPad falls between two stools – not quite a laptop, not quite a smartphone. In other words, it's the spork of the electronic consumer goods world. ... Some people are complaining because it doesn't have a camera in it. Spoiled techno-babies, all of them. Just because something is technically possible, it doesn't mean it has to be done. It's technically possible to build an egg whisk that makes phonecalls, an MP3 player that dispenses capers or a car with a bread windscreen. Humankind will continue to prosper in their absence. Not everything needs a 15-megapixel lens stuck on the back, like a little glass anus. Give these ingrates a camera and they'd whine that it didn't have a second camera built into it. What are you taking photographs of anyway? Your camera collection? ... Personally, I'm not sure whether I'll buy an iPad, although I think – I think – I'm about to buy a MacBook. Yes, I was a dyed-in-the-wool Mac sceptic for years. Yes, I've written screeds bemoaning the infuriating breed of smug Apple monks who treat all PC owners with condescending pity. But being chained to a Sony Vaio for the last few weeks has convinced me that I'd rather use a laptop that just works, rather than one that's so ponderous, stuttering and irritating I find myself perpetually on the verge of running outside and hurling it into traffic. ... continues ...

I think he knows it'll be a hit.

[Miko]

Originally Posted by ezkcdude Stephen Colbert has an iPad.

The whole Grammys had am Apple iTunes/Quicktime look and feel to the nominees screen. But yes I was shocked to see they let him use an actual iPad. Noticed how when he asked his daughter if he was cool now she shook her head in embarrassment no.

people at work are like i'm clownin' the first people I see walking around with those.

[Brad]

Not everything needs a 15-megapixel lens stuck on the back, like a little glass anus. Give these ingrates a camera and they'd whine that it didn't have a second camera built into it. What are you taking photographs of anyway? Your camera collection?

My favorite part. Oh god that's hilarious!

[Wrao]

It needs a horn here, here, here and here. You can never find a horn when you're mad.

[psmith2.0]

Here's a neat little piece at AppleInsider, talking about iPads being eyed by hospitals and HMOs (oh, and that Colbert Grammy thing too).

According to The Sacramento Bee, some hospitals are experimenting with tablet-style computers, and Apple's iPad is now on their radar. It quoted an official with nonprofit managed care organization Kaiser Permanente who said tablet computers could help doctors and nurses spend more time with patients. In a San Francisco-based program dubbed "Destination Bedside," officials hope to provide superior care by giving hospital workers tablets that would provide X-rays, charts, prescriptions and notes all on one device at the tap of the finger. The company expects to settle on one tablet for company-wide distribution later this year. ... Dr. Javeed Siddiqui, associate medical director for the Center for Health and Technology at UC Davis Medical Center, told the Bee he's excited by the potential the iPad offers for the medical industry. "It's portable and it's lightweight," he said. "It has touch screen, a Web browser -- and all those features can be utilized as a way to integrate technology in patient care." The real potential for the iPad in the medical field will lie in the ability to write custom applications for the hardware. In addition to a number of bundled applications, the iPad will have access to Apple's App Store, which now offers more than 140,000 different options.

So there's that.



I imagine that would have to be more convenient - and easier to manage - than laptops? And with the third-party software options available, why not? I would imagine database/records/charting stuff being most at play here? That seems to lend itself well to touch input and light, simple typing? Or maybe no typing at all, if numeric input (dosage info, etc.) is "flicked" into place via those odometer style controls on the iPhone (where you set your alarm clock or timer), or lots of pre-set entries already keyed-in, like you see on Urbanspoon? If a lot of info is already entered into the software, then it's just a matter of choosing pre-set options (and not a lot of actual typing).

And I'm telling you...some third-party accessory company really needs to think about the potential in stands/arms/holders/mounts for this thing. There will be situations - kitchens, hospital rooms, warehouses, etc.) where holding the iPad won't always be practical (or possible)...if a doctor has to check something on a patient and needs both hands, it would be nice if there was a sturdy, convenient stand (or even an adjustable attachment arm anchored to the monitoring gear or bed) where the iPad could safely be placed...still visible, still ready-for-use and at convenient chest-level. The doctor/nurse could check the patient, then easily access the iPad to enter/edit any necessary info. Then grab it and leave when you're done.

Just like the iPod and iPhone, the third-party accessory market for this thing stands (no pun ) to be huge.

Some outfit (or individual) designs and builds a sturdy, adjustable swing-arm holder for this, and lands a contract with Kaiser Permanente or whoever to supply all their facilities? Wow!

[Luca]

The shop where I take my car to get worked on has tablet PCs that work really well. The nice thing about them is they have pen input so you can write on them and sign your name.

In fact, I'm not even sure the iPad should be considered a tablet PC. It's not a PC (can't run a full OS) and it doesn't have handwriting recognition or any ability to write on it at all, unlike (almost?) all tablets. I would think, in a hospital setting, they'd want something more than a virtual keyboard to write things. On the other hand, doctors have such bad handwriting maybe it's better they aren't allowed to scrawl on the screen.

[psmith2.0]

True, but who's to say that ability won't come to the iPad? Apple could - and should - make it so, for those very reasons. You've got the potential for remote point-of-purchase transactions (I'm sure the iPad will be seen in Apple Stores before it's all over).

If they thought they could make a dent in those areas, they'll probably open that up.

We're not even one week in to this thing, and I think there will be more to it than what we saw Wednesday. If not at launch, then certainly via updates to come. Apple hasn't fully tapped into it, but, as Kraetos said a few days ago, it's smarter to start small and simple, and add on over time. It's much easier to do that than to "start big" and have to remove features or functions because they're not working as expected.

I think the iPad of 2011-2012 stands to be an unholy ass-kicking piece of gadgetry.

And does a tablet need to run a "full OS" for specialized, dedicated tasks like above (in the medical field, in an oil change garage, etc.)? So the guy at Jiffy Lube has Windows XP on his tab. So what? Is he using it to its fullest? And, if not, is he battling gremlins or all the associated problems that could arise with a more-complex-than-needed product?

I have to think that "signing one's name" (should that function never make it to the iPad) could be replaced by something just as official or useful? When I sign for a UPS package or at the little screen at Target, my handwriting looks like shit anyway - and it's nowhere close to how I really sign my name - so I'm not so sure that's the end-all, be-all best way to go about it anyway. When I write my name on that UPS pad, it looks like a three-year-old with a broken hand wrote it. While blindfolded.

"Did I write that?!"



In any case, I see this stuff as a great opportunity for some companies to streamline and simplify, should they choose. Besides, not all the companies or businesses (or products) have been created yet, so in those "from the ground floor" situations, where a company is just starting out and isn't locked-into a decade or so of doing things a certain way (or having already made a huge investment in hardware/software), it would be easy for them to consider other options like the iPad. Especially a year or so from now, when things have shaken out a bit and we've got a bigger, more complete picture about what all is possible.

[Brad]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 And does a tablet need to run a "full OS" for specialized, dedicated tasks like above? So the guy at Jiffy Lube has Windows XP on his tab. So what? Is he using it to its fullest? And, if not, is he battling gremlins or all the associated problems that could arise with a more-complex-than-needed product? I see this stuff as a great opportunity for companies to streamline and simplify, should they choose.

Exactly.

Just as Jiffy Lube guy is using a customized app on top of Windows and rarely (never?) interacting with the rest of the OS, a point-of-sales user with an iPad would have a customized app and wouldn't need access to a "full OS".

[Luca]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 True, but who's to say that ability won't come to the iPad? Apple could - and should - make it so, for those very reasons. You've got the potential for remote point-of-purchase transactions (I'm sure the iPad will be seen in Apple Stores before it's all over). If they thought they could make a dent in those areas, they'll probably open that up. And does a tablet need to run a "full OS" for specialized, dedicated tasks like above? So the guy at Jiffy Lube has Windows XP on his tab. So what? Is he using it to its fullest? And, if not, is he battling gremlins or all the associated problems that could arise with a more-complex-than-needed product? I have to think that "signing one's name" (should that function never make it to the iPad) could be replaced by something just as official or useful? When I sign for a UPS package or at the little screen at Target, my handwriting looks like shit anyway - and it's nowhere close to how I really sign my name - so I'm not so sure that's the end-all, be-all best way to go about it anyway. When I write my name on that UPS pad, it looks like a three-year-old with a broken hand wrote it. While blindfolded. "Did I write that?!" In any case, I see this stuff as a great opportunity for some companies to streamline and simplify, should they choose.

Well, two things. First off, I didn't mean to imply that running a full OS and having handwriting recognition or pen support should necessarily be related. That tends to be the case with most tablet PCs but both aren't required for every task. On the other hand, it reflects the very different philosophies of Apple vs. other companies. Tablet PCs tend to have a lot of features and are expensive, so they're good for businesses. The iPad is very feature-limited so it's better for individuals with fewer needs.

The other thing was that the tablet PC I sign my name on at the car shop is really nice. Looks like I signed my name with a brand new felt-tip pen on glossy paper. Nothing like those UPS things.

[psmith2.0]

Yeah, I understand. And I'm just speaking that way too, to counter anyone who would float that as an argument (they're lurking here, I'm sure).

I got my ear bent by someone last night, pointing out how the iPad, not being a "real computer" was destined to "fail big-time". Needless to say, we made a friendly little wager involving car-washing...let's just say I hope he doesn't scuff my mirrors.



And UPS needs to buy whatever your car place uses, because I can't even read my own name. The delay is what does it...no instant feedback. I'm already writing the "e" in "Scates" with the "au" of "Paul" is just appearing.

I guess I could slow down, but where's the fun in that?

[Miko]

I know we have seen the Sports Illustrated eMag concept and this TUAW article really hit on some key points that I thought SJ would touch on. Why stop at iBooks when iMags seem so logical?

I was telling my friend when she asked about the iPad, imagine browsing thru your 200 pg "VOGUE" magazine mostly full page images on this, with interactive editorial content. I don't know about you, but I hate when magazines start to pile up, I can deal with books, but magazines have to go by nature.