4 ms·

A lot of folks are definitely hitting on the note about not having a keyboard being a major ding, especially considering they're trying to compete at the same p

by adpirz 9y ago

A lot of folks are definitely hitting on the note about not having a keyboard being a major ding, especially considering they're trying to compete at the same price point a Chromebooks. But as someone whose worked with classroom deployment of tech, what makes Google so amazing is not just the form factor, but how easy it is to manage and deploy multiple devices. Google makes it easy to create and manage accounts, push apps out, restrict with all sorts of granularity, and none of it is tied to a device. It seems from today's event that Apple is just starting to develop that functionality, but they have a ways to catch up before they get there. And I haven't even gotten to how useful the G Suite of apps are as well as Google Classroom. I highly doubt today's event will do much if anything to change the tech landscape of the classroom. I would love to see Microsoft throw into the ring, though, and am surprised they haven't stepped up.

remir 9y ago
Microsoft tried to compete against Chromebooks with their Windows S version that could only install UWP apps. I don't know how the market has responded, but from what I can see UWP is pretty much a flop.
- akmittal 9y ago
  Failure of Windows Mobile is big reason of UWP failure. UWP make less sense on Desktop as it is mostly less featured/Buggy version of perfectly good normal Windows app.
  - yakz 9y ago
    Also, unless you can get your users to work their way through enabling side-loading, you'll be forking over a third of your sales to Microsoft.
    - Kipters 9y ago
      Sideloading is enabled by default since TH2 (November Update) that came out more than two years ago. You just need to sign the package using a valid codesign certificate.
- Kipters 9y ago
  Minor correction: 10 S (or "10 in S Mode") can only install apps from the Microsoft Store. This means you can install traditional desktop apps packaged as Centennial apps (or HWA/PWA apps).
JKCalhoun 9y ago
> Google makes it easy to create and manage accounts, push apps out, restrict with all sorts of granularity, and none of it is tied to a device. Apple has Managed Apple IDs to do the same. I believe Apple's Classroom manages the apps, etc. Google definitely had the early lead but Apple has not been idle.
- geerlingguy 9y ago
  There was a section of the presentation on this; ipads can now have multiple accounts (showed a pic with all the students in the classroom; tap on student picture and log into any iPad), now 200 GB iCloud storage per account (up from 5 GB), new tools to batch create Apple IDs (1000/second with the management tools), etc. Apple’s definitely working on these aspects.
  - joezydeco 9y ago
    Which all works great as long as you're on an iPad inside the school network ecosystem. What happens when you want to do homework at home? My kids are all on gApps and they can work anywhere on practically anything that runs a browser. They'd never go back to an iOS ecosystem.
    - Someone 9y ago
      Pages, Numbers and KeyNote run on Macintoshes and in the browser (I would guess a more limited set than Google’s offering, but I rarely use either, so don’t trust me), too. (they cut out a few features from the desktop version a few years ago to accomplish that)
    - varunteja 9y ago
      If iPad works best only with school network (I don't know about this till now), then there no point of Flipped Classroom there. Chrome has a very good ecosystem with extensions. Not sure what apple is gonna provide in Classroom kit for the developers
  - dbbk 9y ago
    iPads have had multi-user support for schools since 2016.
jt2190 9y ago
My strong opinion is that Apple's vision of the world is that devices are extensions of brains. Sharing devices runs counter to that ideal. (In addition, there's a financial incentive for Apple to drag their feet with multi-user support.) I read today's announcement as a mix of we haven't forgotten traditional educators balanced by features that work equally well with on-demand, lifelong learning. (edit: I expect that Apple will leave this as the status quo for the next five years.)
limeblack 9y ago
I actually got to use the Chromebooks my last year in high school and they worked well enough(except when the internet went down at school). Unless their file manager has changed it needed some work and made us prefer the old Windows Desktops in rural areas.

by adpirz 9y ago

remir 9y ago

Microsoft tried to compete against Chromebooks with their Windows S version that could only install UWP apps. I don't know how the market has responded, but from what I can see UWP is pretty much a flop.

akmittal 9y ago
Failure of Windows Mobile is big reason of UWP failure. UWP make less sense on Desktop as it is mostly less featured/Buggy version of perfectly good normal Windows app.
- yakz 9y ago
  Also, unless you can get your users to work their way through enabling side-loading, you'll be forking over a third of your sales to Microsoft.
  - Kipters 9y ago
    Sideloading is enabled by default since TH2 (November Update) that came out more than two years ago. You just need to sign the package using a valid codesign certificate.
Kipters 9y ago
Minor correction: 10 S (or "10 in S Mode") can only install apps from the Microsoft Store. This means you can install traditional desktop apps packaged as Centennial apps (or HWA/PWA apps).

JKCalhoun 9y ago

> Google makes it easy to create and manage accounts, push apps out, restrict with all sorts of granularity, and none of it is tied to a device. Apple has Managed Apple IDs to do the same. I believe Apple's Classroom manages the apps, etc. Google definitely had the early lead but Apple has not been idle.

geerlingguy 9y ago
There was a section of the presentation on this; ipads can now have multiple accounts (showed a pic with all the students in the classroom; tap on student picture and log into any iPad), now 200 GB iCloud storage per account (up from 5 GB), new tools to batch create Apple IDs (1000/second with the management tools), etc. Apple’s definitely working on these aspects.
- joezydeco 9y ago
  Which all works great as long as you're on an iPad inside the school network ecosystem. What happens when you want to do homework at home? My kids are all on gApps and they can work anywhere on practically anything that runs a browser. They'd never go back to an iOS ecosystem.
  - Someone 9y ago
    Pages, Numbers and KeyNote run on Macintoshes and in the browser (I would guess a more limited set than Google’s offering, but I rarely use either, so don’t trust me), too. (they cut out a few features from the desktop version a few years ago to accomplish that)
  - varunteja 9y ago
    If iPad works best only with school network (I don't know about this till now), then there no point of Flipped Classroom there. Chrome has a very good ecosystem with extensions. Not sure what apple is gonna provide in Classroom kit for the developers
- dbbk 9y ago
  iPads have had multi-user support for schools since 2016.

jt2190 9y ago

My strong opinion is that Apple's vision of the world is that devices are extensions of brains. Sharing devices runs counter to that ideal. (In addition, there's a financial incentive for Apple to drag their feet with multi-user support.) I read today's announcement as a mix of we haven't forgotten traditional educators balanced by features that work equally well with on-demand, lifelong learning. (edit: I expect that Apple will leave this as the status quo for the next five years.)

limeblack 9y ago

I actually got to use the Chromebooks my last year in high school and they worked well enough(except when the internet went down at school). Unless their file manager has changed it needed some work and made us prefer the old Windows Desktops in rural areas.