5 ms·

This falls under fetish category. Steve Jobs' Post PC world analogy was off in that PCs are the cars, trucks, convertibles etc. and tablets are the scooter. Ye

This falls under fetish category. Steve Jobs' Post PC world analogy was off in that PCs are the cars, trucks, convertibles etc. and tablets are the scooter. Yes you can do all your grocery shopping on the scooter given the groceries fit, the shop isn't too far away, it's not raining, the mileage will be good etc - you making that one successful grocery trip doesn't mean scooter is a car replacement.

unsignedint 8y ago
Back when I was helping people quite a bit about general computing support, I actually got frustrated by someone making bad judgement in this regard. Essentially, people get frustrated for things that iPad is just not fit for their job, in your analogy, complaining that their scooter won't work well over unpaved roads. It's one thing if that user choose to make a wrong choice but they can service it themselves, but it becomes a nightmare story if someone's forced to support that.
nightfly 8y ago
That analogy works pretty good: For many people a scooter is all they need for day-to-day life, and when they need car they borrow/rent one.
- sebazzz 8y ago
  OP probably wrote it from point of view of a typical American who lives in a neighbourhood outside a city. In general, if you don't have the shops close by, a car is more practical.
- blinkingled 8y ago
  The 'many' part is questionable - some sure. But yes scooter analogy works better than the original! (9.5 million scooters and motorcycles sold in 2017 in ASEAN region where they are most popular - vs 80M cars globally.)
- vonseel 8y ago
  Your comment reminds me that (AFAIK) there aren’t really great rental sources for many pieces of gear. I have often wished something like this existed, and not even for computers (considering I am a dev and have a MBP). But, it would be nice to be able to rent a high end tool that you may only need for one small project, or a high end piece of music gear - like a $2,000 microphone, or guitar amp, etc. - from a well-known and trusted supplier with simple shipping techniques and easy return process (ship back in original packaging with included label, etc). I suppose enough people use Amazon like this, but they will eventually ban you for abusing their return process.
  - bdefore 8y ago
    There have been a few companies trying to fill the need you speak of. Two that I'm aware of https://fatllama.com https://fatllama.com and https://www.beomni.com https://www.beomni.com. I believe the latter is currently only in San Francisco.
opportune 8y ago
I'd say your own analogy is a little off too. PCs are more of the commercial vehicles: semi trucks, tractors, and industrial equipment. They're mostly used by professionals doing work in some way (also in education and gaming). Mobile phones are the cars - for the average person, most of their interaction with technology is through their smartphone, and for most people, other computing devices aren't really necessary to do what they want to do. I think it's getting pretty common now for people to forgo desktops and laptops not because they can't afford them, but because they don't need them.
- solarkraft 8y ago
  And servers are trains and planes :)
hopler 8y ago
I'm a scooter owner, and your comment made me fill my one gallon gas tank with tears.

unsignedint 8y ago

Back when I was helping people quite a bit about general computing support, I actually got frustrated by someone making bad judgement in this regard. Essentially, people get frustrated for things that iPad is just not fit for their job, in your analogy, complaining that their scooter won't work well over unpaved roads. It's one thing if that user choose to make a wrong choice but they can service it themselves, but it becomes a nightmare story if someone's forced to support that.

nightfly 8y ago

That analogy works pretty good: For many people a scooter is all they need for day-to-day life, and when they need car they borrow/rent one.

sebazzz 8y ago
OP probably wrote it from point of view of a typical American who lives in a neighbourhood outside a city. In general, if you don't have the shops close by, a car is more practical.
blinkingled 8y ago
The 'many' part is questionable - some sure. But yes scooter analogy works better than the original! (9.5 million scooters and motorcycles sold in 2017 in ASEAN region where they are most popular - vs 80M cars globally.)
vonseel 8y ago
Your comment reminds me that (AFAIK) there aren’t really great rental sources for many pieces of gear. I have often wished something like this existed, and not even for computers (considering I am a dev and have a MBP). But, it would be nice to be able to rent a high end tool that you may only need for one small project, or a high end piece of music gear - like a $2,000 microphone, or guitar amp, etc. - from a well-known and trusted supplier with simple shipping techniques and easy return process (ship back in original packaging with included label, etc). I suppose enough people use Amazon like this, but they will eventually ban you for abusing their return process.
- bdefore 8y ago
  There have been a few companies trying to fill the need you speak of. Two that I'm aware of https://fatllama.com https://fatllama.com and https://www.beomni.com https://www.beomni.com. I believe the latter is currently only in San Francisco.

opportune 8y ago

I'd say your own analogy is a little off too. PCs are more of the commercial vehicles: semi trucks, tractors, and industrial equipment. They're mostly used by professionals doing work in some way (also in education and gaming). Mobile phones are the cars - for the average person, most of their interaction with technology is through their smartphone, and for most people, other computing devices aren't really necessary to do what they want to do. I think it's getting pretty common now for people to forgo desktops and laptops not because they can't afford them, but because they don't need them.

solarkraft 8y ago
And servers are trains and planes :)

hopler 8y ago

I'm a scooter owner, and your comment made me fill my one gallon gas tank with tears.