4 ms·

I'll chime in on the "Post-PC Era" buzzword ... but only with a disclaimer: I don't buy it. Intel wants to grow their market, so they're investing in UMPCs and

by sounds 15y ago

I'll chime in on the "Post-PC Era" buzzword ... but only with a disclaimer: I don't buy it. Intel wants to grow their market, so they're investing in UMPCs and MIDs. I think it's pretty telling they aren't in any phones (yet). They're going to try that in 2012. Ok. "Post PC?" I don't buy it. PCs may change to ARM, but there will always be IT, science, engineering, data visualization, education, ... -- stuff that might work on a phone or a tablet, but the keyboard is a "killer app." I actually see the two markets as symbiotic. Only in corner cases can you find people who prefer a smartphone over a PC, or vice versa. It looks like mainstream applications benefit from having both.

InclinedPlane 15y ago
The "Post PC" era is coming, have little doubt of that. However, it'll be more of a phase transition than a cataclysm. Mostly it'll come down to different form factors, different operating systems, and different UIs. And yes, ultimately the markets will be even more symbiotic than they are today.
- sounds 15y ago
  If symbiotic, then not "Post PC." I don't buy it. Maybe I need to phrase it as a question: Why would you get rid of your PC once you have more form factors, more OS's, and more UIs? Especially, why would you get rid of your _keyboard_?
  - InclinedPlane 15y ago
    See my other reply. I don't take "post PC" to mean "no keyboard ever", it has a different meaning for me, mostly about the difference in default (though not exclusive) form-factor and especially in the OS and UI. But beyond that there's still plenty of flexibility. Also, I don't think the PC as we know it will die per se, it'll just fill a different niche than it does today.
- tsotha 15y ago
  >The "Post PC" era is coming, have little doubt of that. I see a lot of people saying this, but I don't see much evidence for it. Anybody who has tried to edit a document or spreadsheet on a tablet knows PCs aren't going anywhere.
  - InclinedPlane 15y ago
    People in, say, 2030 won't stop using keyboards, and they won't stop using devices which have a lot of similarities to what we would call a PC today, even down to the metal chassis with PCBs inside connected to a monitor and keyboard in some cases. However, there are a lot of other very fundamental elements to the computing experience which pretty much every computer system will have which will be inherited from non-PCs (specifically tablets and smartphones). To be clear: the tablet is the first hint of the post-PC era we have, but it does not and will not define the entire extent of the post-PC phenomenon.
    - sounds 15y ago
      Cool, I can agree with that. New input methods will take on a greater role. E.g. Kinect (time of flight sensors), Multi-touch, Voice, Light fields.
  - SoftwareMaven 15y ago
    Do you agree we are in the post-mainframe and post-mini eras? Yet you can still buy mainframes and (probably) mini computers. The end of the era does not mean the end of the type of computing, just that the focus of new technology development won't focus around it. We are in the post-PC era.
    - tsotha 15y ago
      Mainframes and minis were replaced by PCs. Tablets and mobiles may complement PCs, but they won't replace PCs. Like I said, I don't see any actual evidence there's a "post-PC" era. It's more like a "Post-DS" era.
      - 15y ago

by sounds 15y ago

InclinedPlane 15y ago

The "Post PC" era is coming, have little doubt of that. However, it'll be more of a phase transition than a cataclysm. Mostly it'll come down to different form factors, different operating systems, and different UIs. And yes, ultimately the markets will be even more symbiotic than they are today.

sounds 15y ago
If symbiotic, then not "Post PC." I don't buy it. Maybe I need to phrase it as a question: Why would you get rid of your PC once you have more form factors, more OS's, and more UIs? Especially, why would you get rid of your _keyboard_?
- InclinedPlane 15y ago
  See my other reply. I don't take "post PC" to mean "no keyboard ever", it has a different meaning for me, mostly about the difference in default (though not exclusive) form-factor and especially in the OS and UI. But beyond that there's still plenty of flexibility. Also, I don't think the PC as we know it will die per se, it'll just fill a different niche than it does today.
tsotha 15y ago
>The "Post PC" era is coming, have little doubt of that. I see a lot of people saying this, but I don't see much evidence for it. Anybody who has tried to edit a document or spreadsheet on a tablet knows PCs aren't going anywhere.
- InclinedPlane 15y ago
  People in, say, 2030 won't stop using keyboards, and they won't stop using devices which have a lot of similarities to what we would call a PC today, even down to the metal chassis with PCBs inside connected to a monitor and keyboard in some cases. However, there are a lot of other very fundamental elements to the computing experience which pretty much every computer system will have which will be inherited from non-PCs (specifically tablets and smartphones). To be clear: the tablet is the first hint of the post-PC era we have, but it does not and will not define the entire extent of the post-PC phenomenon.
  - sounds 15y ago
    Cool, I can agree with that. New input methods will take on a greater role. E.g. Kinect (time of flight sensors), Multi-touch, Voice, Light fields.
- SoftwareMaven 15y ago
  Do you agree we are in the post-mainframe and post-mini eras? Yet you can still buy mainframes and (probably) mini computers. The end of the era does not mean the end of the type of computing, just that the focus of new technology development won't focus around it. We are in the post-PC era.
  - tsotha 15y ago
    Mainframes and minis were replaced by PCs. Tablets and mobiles may complement PCs, but they won't replace PCs. Like I said, I don't see any actual evidence there's a "post-PC" era. It's more like a "Post-DS" era.
    - 15y ago