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If Apple really believe that they can replace MacBook Pros with iPads, I think they will be sorely disappointed. Apart from vim/emacs hackers and sysops that ca

by manmal 10y ago

If Apple really believe that they can replace MacBook Pros with iPads, I think they will be sorely disappointed. Apart from vim/emacs hackers and sysops that can get by with just a shell and keyboard, just about everybody needs a touch pad or a mouse to be productive, and more importantly, a proper desktop OS. Yes, app/context switching will become even faster, iPad screens can be made bigger, and long battery life is alluring; but how am I supposed to mix music without proper peripheral support, edit pro video without external storage mechanisms (or even file system access), or manipulate pictures without fine mouse/touchpad control? How will I develop apps without XCode or Android Studio, debug IE CSS bugs without a VM, or write actually useful scripts without a fully blown unix shell or rubygems etc?

lloeki 10y ago
> I think they will be sorely disappointed. Apart from vim/emacs hackers and sysops that can get by with just a shell and keyboard Hell what? Not even that works. Apart from the curios* I've seen no live use of anyone using an iPad instead of a MacBook. From custom window management to the simple fact that a hinge between the screen and the keyboard is just the perfect HID with a TUI. * yes it does work and some people seem to like it (to each his own) but every attempt I've seen just ends up turning an iPad into a frankenlaptop just to end up claiming "hey I work on an iPad, iPads are fine!", which they are, but I'd rather jack a car up with a jack rather than with a beam and a log.
- Spooky23 10y ago
  It all depends on what you do. Executive and field workforce people love the ipad. When I stood up our mobile team, a group of field auditors literally sent us cookies and brownies when we trashed their corporate crapbooks with iPads and VDI -- despite significant UI issues. As SSO has become better with iOS, people have gotten even happier. The instant ok and lower friction (yet secure) connectivity experience is huge. The biggest issue is legacy windows apps. But people come up with solutions for that as well. In one case, a guy wrote an access front end for a Windows workflow with giant buttons that were easy to click. Ugly as sin? Yes. But it worked.
  - lloeki 10y ago
    Sorry I was not clear (I phrased it badly and rereadingit in light of your comment shows how ambiguous mine was), I was solely talking about development tasks and such, notably on the terminal. I fully appreciate how an iPad (or the tablet form factor in general, including Surface) can be useful and appreciated in various use cases.
mnm1 10y ago
"or even file system access" That right there tells you the iPad will never be a pro machine or replacement for a laptop or anything but a toy. I bought my sister one a couple years back. I still have no idea how to play movies on it in non Apple-approved formats. Yes, I could research it. But this "it just works" machine is one now that requires research to play a movie. From what I could tell, each app will do it differently. Yeah, that's progress all right. Progress on a toy, a toy that by design (of its OS) will never be anything more.
- comex 10y ago
  > I still have no idea how to play movies on it in non Apple-approved formats. You download VLC from the App Store and use that. Not much different from Mac or Windows, both of which require you to download VLC or another third party application to get a wider range of video formats. (And iOS does have what amounts to an accessible filesystem these days; it's called iCloud Drive.)
  - mnm1 10y ago
    iCloud Drive is a filesystem? As in, it can be used without an iCloud account, without Internet access, and without copying anything off the device to a remote server? Because if not, it's not a filesystem.

by manmal 10y ago

lloeki 10y ago

> I think they will be sorely disappointed. Apart from vim/emacs hackers and sysops that can get by with just a shell and keyboard Hell what? Not even that works. Apart from the curios* I've seen no live use of anyone using an iPad instead of a MacBook. From custom window management to the simple fact that a hinge between the screen and the keyboard is just the perfect HID with a TUI. * yes it does work and some people seem to like it (to each his own) but every attempt I've seen just ends up turning an iPad into a frankenlaptop just to end up claiming "hey I work on an iPad, iPads are fine!", which they are, but I'd rather jack a car up with a jack rather than with a beam and a log.

Spooky23 10y ago
It all depends on what you do. Executive and field workforce people love the ipad. When I stood up our mobile team, a group of field auditors literally sent us cookies and brownies when we trashed their corporate crapbooks with iPads and VDI -- despite significant UI issues. As SSO has become better with iOS, people have gotten even happier. The instant ok and lower friction (yet secure) connectivity experience is huge. The biggest issue is legacy windows apps. But people come up with solutions for that as well. In one case, a guy wrote an access front end for a Windows workflow with giant buttons that were easy to click. Ugly as sin? Yes. But it worked.
- lloeki 10y ago
  Sorry I was not clear (I phrased it badly and rereadingit in light of your comment shows how ambiguous mine was), I was solely talking about development tasks and such, notably on the terminal. I fully appreciate how an iPad (or the tablet form factor in general, including Surface) can be useful and appreciated in various use cases.

mnm1 10y ago

"or even file system access" That right there tells you the iPad will never be a pro machine or replacement for a laptop or anything but a toy. I bought my sister one a couple years back. I still have no idea how to play movies on it in non Apple-approved formats. Yes, I could research it. But this "it just works" machine is one now that requires research to play a movie. From what I could tell, each app will do it differently. Yeah, that's progress all right. Progress on a toy, a toy that by design (of its OS) will never be anything more.

comex 10y ago
> I still have no idea how to play movies on it in non Apple-approved formats. You download VLC from the App Store and use that. Not much different from Mac or Windows, both of which require you to download VLC or another third party application to get a wider range of video formats. (And iOS does have what amounts to an accessible filesystem these days; it's called iCloud Drive.)
- mnm1 10y ago
  iCloud Drive is a filesystem? As in, it can be used without an iCloud account, without Internet access, and without copying anything off the device to a remote server? Because if not, it's not a filesystem.