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The potential is there to re-ignite a new closed source era, and that's definitely not revolutionary. Just because the app runs on the iPhone or iPad doesn't m

by Zev 17y ago

The potential is there to re-ignite a new closed source era, and that's definitely not revolutionary. Just because the app runs on the iPhone or iPad doesn't mean it has to be closed source. I can see how that would be useful if you only have a relatively small number of files. But here on my collective drives there are literally 10's of millions of files... I think the point is that the iPad manages this for you. You just have to remember that you made a document in Pages and the name of it. You don't need to worry about folders or where it was saved to. That doesn't mean a single, flat directory. Just that users don't have to manage files. FWIW, while I personally think that the iPad will be an extraordinary change in how the average person uses a computer, I would agree with you that the future isn't set in stone and the only way to know for sure is to wait and see.

thwarted 17y ago
I think the point is that the iPad manages this for you. You just have to remember that you made a document in Pages and the name of it. You don't need to worry about folders or where it was saved to. ... That doesn't mean a single, flat directory. Just that users don't have to manage files. I have had the following conversation multiple times in my career: "I can not find the file I worked on yesterday. It was right here before." "What did you name it?" "I don't know." "You don't know what you named the file? Okay, then where did you put it?" "I didn't put it anywhere, I saved it where all my files are saved." "Okay, then what program did you use to create it?" "I don't remember." Based on my experience, just needing to remember which application the file is for and the name of a file isn't enough. And then this "feature" would negate the majority of the reason to use computers: the ability to share files, both between users and between programs. If you need to use Excel to even find the spreadsheet you want to insert into your Word document, with the divergent interfaces that multiple programs would have for this ability, it would get even more confusing. Rather than a single "attach a file" functionality in an email program, you need to provide email functionality to each program. Now admittedly, Android does offer something like that, many applications have a "share" function that lets you select how you want to share something with users, but you can still browse for files when attaching, but the base is still files that can be individually manipulated without the original program.

by Zev 17y ago

thwarted 17y ago

I think the point is that the iPad manages this for you. You just have to remember that you made a document in Pages and the name of it. You don't need to worry about folders or where it was saved to. ... That doesn't mean a single, flat directory. Just that users don't have to manage files. I have had the following conversation multiple times in my career: "I can not find the file I worked on yesterday. It was right here before." "What did you name it?" "I don't know." "You don't know what you named the file? Okay, then where did you put it?" "I didn't put it anywhere, I saved it where all my files are saved." "Okay, then what program did you use to create it?" "I don't remember." Based on my experience, just needing to remember which application the file is for and the name of a file isn't enough. And then this "feature" would negate the majority of the reason to use computers: the ability to share files, both between users and between programs. If you need to use Excel to even find the spreadsheet you want to insert into your Word document, with the divergent interfaces that multiple programs would have for this ability, it would get even more confusing. Rather than a single "attach a file" functionality in an email program, you need to provide email functionality to each program. Now admittedly, Android does offer something like that, many applications have a "share" function that lets you select how you want to share something with users, but you can still browse for files when attaching, but the base is still files that can be individually manipulated without the original program.