5 ms·

I wonder, how many people were sad when gearbox in their car went from stick to auto, when choke control disappeared, when you could no longer tinker with carbu

I wonder, how many people were sad when gearbox in their car went from stick to auto, when choke control disappeared, when you could no longer tinker with carburetor, because it was gone. There will always be two groups of people, one group of those wanting to hack things, and another, much much larger group of those who want just use them. For every one John who wants to chip his car engine there will be five millions Joes who just want to get from the point A to the point B with the least hassle possible. As it happens Apples iProducts are aimed at the second group—deal with it. Just like ITMS and App Store may be the fastest and most hassle-free way to get what you want on your device. I've spent some time thinking, do I want iPad. The answer is: I do. I like to read when in bed, iPad is perfect for this. I cannot take my iMac to bed, and reading with notebook is not as convenient as it can be with iPad: that damn keyboard gets in a way, event when I barely use it. iPad is very well suited for what it is intended for: surfing the web, reading the books, some email. Let's not forget it has UI specifically tailored for the device and multitouch use. It should be great for tasks it was meant to do, and not so great for all others. It is time to stop thinking about anything with CPU inside as the computer.

Goronmon 17y ago
I think you are mistakingly comparing a closed system like the iPad to things like automatic transmissions. Of course not everyone wants to do lots of personal maintenance on their stuff or have lots of customizable features. But that's not how software development works. Everyone doesn't have to make their own software. A small subset of people create software that the rest use.
- swernli 17y ago
  That's a good point that goes a long way to proving Apple right. Yes, a small subset of people create software that the rest use. And every day, that small subset desides what that software can and can't do. Apple decided what their software AND hardware can and can't do, because they make both. Apple never promised the world that all their hardware would be able to run arbitrary software. At the end of the day, for the layman, non-techie user (ie: most of the population of the world), whether they are buying Windows, or an iPad, or using a Web app, they see it as something that enables them to do certain things and not others. They don't see the same restrictions we see as developers, and most of the time, they either don't understand them or don't care. At the end of the day, they got the product they paid for and use for what they wanted. If you want something different, buy something different.
  - jacquesm 17y ago
    Apples hardware can already do more than they allow you to, apparently you can not make voicecalls with this 'high resolution iphone'.
- Retric 17y ago
  Which is why Apple has an App store.
Timothee 17y ago
Let's not forget it has UI specifically tailored for the device and multitouch use Exactly. And that's what made tablet-PC unsuccessful for the most part. Because what you ended up doing was interacting with basically the same OS with a stylus instead of a mouse. The iPad is removing the cursor altogether.
jwhitlark 17y ago
Wrong analogy, I think. There is an important difference between desire to tinker and desire to control. I don't tinker with my car, but I'm not going to allow the manufacturer to dictate who must repair it, where I must buy gas, which roads I can use... Apple reminds me of homeland security, but prettier!
- mechanical_fish 17y ago
  I'm not sure you've killed the metaphor yet. Because, in fact, the sale of gas is subject to a great deal of regulation. That's to prevent someone from selling you adulterated gas that destroys your car's emission system. Or from selling you leaded gas that pollutes the air that our kids have to breathe. And the reason the manufacturer doesn't need to enforce your use of the roads is that it's already being enforced by a higher authority. We have cops for that. And they very much do dictate that you keep your car on public roads, and not go driving off across someone else's lawn, or the National Mall. If you think these extensions to the metaphor make no sense, you're missing the elephant in the room: Personal computers are insecure, and the average web surfer is more likely (probably, alas, by an order of magnitude) to have their computer steal their credit card numbers or grind to a halt under a flood of malware than they are to crack open the box or write a single line of code. An enormous number of people don't want the freedom I want, any more than they want to own an acetylene torch.
  - jwhitlark 17y ago
    Well, like all metaphors, it's only an approximation. However, the laws don't dictate that I keep my car on public roads, they dictate what I do with my car when I'm not on my property. And while those laws are enforced by a higher authority, if you follow the chain up in a democracy, you come to me again, in theory. To your other point, Windows is insecure, not personal computers. A true personal computer is/would be owned by me, not a corporation, not a hacker. Hmmm... Seems to me I've seen this freedom vs. security argument elsewhere...
    - Locke1689 17y ago
wildjim 17y ago
What's wierd about what you've just said is that you obviously don't have a web tablet -- a Nokia N810, a Samsung Q1, a Viliv S5, a UMID mbook... ? What really makes the iPad any more special, especially considering the price? Please don't say the UI, as it's not so well loved by everyone...
- sofal 17y ago
  What really makes the [Apple product] any more special, especially considering the price? Please don't say the UI, as it's not so well loved by everyone... I don't know what to say to that if you don't already know by now. What answer are you looking for? That Apple customers are brainless sheep? Who's "everyone"? Everyone whose opinions you like to read on the Internet?

Goronmon 17y ago

I think you are mistakingly comparing a closed system like the iPad to things like automatic transmissions. Of course not everyone wants to do lots of personal maintenance on their stuff or have lots of customizable features. But that's not how software development works. Everyone doesn't have to make their own software. A small subset of people create software that the rest use.

swernli 17y ago
That's a good point that goes a long way to proving Apple right. Yes, a small subset of people create software that the rest use. And every day, that small subset desides what that software can and can't do. Apple decided what their software AND hardware can and can't do, because they make both. Apple never promised the world that all their hardware would be able to run arbitrary software. At the end of the day, for the layman, non-techie user (ie: most of the population of the world), whether they are buying Windows, or an iPad, or using a Web app, they see it as something that enables them to do certain things and not others. They don't see the same restrictions we see as developers, and most of the time, they either don't understand them or don't care. At the end of the day, they got the product they paid for and use for what they wanted. If you want something different, buy something different.
- jacquesm 17y ago
  Apples hardware can already do more than they allow you to, apparently you can not make voicecalls with this 'high resolution iphone'.
Retric 17y ago
Which is why Apple has an App store.

Timothee 17y ago

Let's not forget it has UI specifically tailored for the device and multitouch use Exactly. And that's what made tablet-PC unsuccessful for the most part. Because what you ended up doing was interacting with basically the same OS with a stylus instead of a mouse. The iPad is removing the cursor altogether.

jwhitlark 17y ago

Wrong analogy, I think. There is an important difference between desire to tinker and desire to control. I don't tinker with my car, but I'm not going to allow the manufacturer to dictate who must repair it, where I must buy gas, which roads I can use... Apple reminds me of homeland security, but prettier!

mechanical_fish 17y ago
I'm not sure you've killed the metaphor yet. Because, in fact, the sale of gas is subject to a great deal of regulation. That's to prevent someone from selling you adulterated gas that destroys your car's emission system. Or from selling you leaded gas that pollutes the air that our kids have to breathe. And the reason the manufacturer doesn't need to enforce your use of the roads is that it's already being enforced by a higher authority. We have cops for that. And they very much do dictate that you keep your car on public roads, and not go driving off across someone else's lawn, or the National Mall. If you think these extensions to the metaphor make no sense, you're missing the elephant in the room: Personal computers are insecure, and the average web surfer is more likely (probably, alas, by an order of magnitude) to have their computer steal their credit card numbers or grind to a halt under a flood of malware than they are to crack open the box or write a single line of code. An enormous number of people don't want the freedom I want, any more than they want to own an acetylene torch.
- jwhitlark 17y ago
  Well, like all metaphors, it's only an approximation. However, the laws don't dictate that I keep my car on public roads, they dictate what I do with my car when I'm not on my property. And while those laws are enforced by a higher authority, if you follow the chain up in a democracy, you come to me again, in theory. To your other point, Windows is insecure, not personal computers. A true personal computer is/would be owned by me, not a corporation, not a hacker. Hmmm... Seems to me I've seen this freedom vs. security argument elsewhere...
  - Locke1689 17y ago

wildjim 17y ago

What's wierd about what you've just said is that you obviously don't have a web tablet -- a Nokia N810, a Samsung Q1, a Viliv S5, a UMID mbook... ? What really makes the iPad any more special, especially considering the price? Please don't say the UI, as it's not so well loved by everyone...

sofal 17y ago
What really makes the [Apple product] any more special, especially considering the price? Please don't say the UI, as it's not so well loved by everyone... I don't know what to say to that if you don't already know by now. What answer are you looking for? That Apple customers are brainless sheep? Who's "everyone"? Everyone whose opinions you like to read on the Internet?