3 ms·

Maybe the author is confusing computers with consumer devices... I subscribe to the notion that the iPad is a consumer device (i.e. family of the Walkman), not

• slowpoke 14y ago
  Exactly my first thought when reading the first paragraph. I find it almost laughable to cite Apple as an example of "making a computer smarter". Apple has done the exact opposite: dumbing it down to fit the lowest common denominator, then putting it into shiny aluminum cases to sell to the unwashed masses. A smart computer is one that empowers the user, that teaches them, and expands their knowledge. Not lock them into a walled garden with some highly limited tools which give them the dangerous illusion of empowerment. This is fundamentally incompatible with how Apple makes their products. In the perfect world of Apple, users are idiots who unquestioningly buy the newest iWhatever, and never do anything remotely clever with their devices.
  • shadesandcolour 14y ago
    Depends on how you define smarter. Apple has made the computer smarter because you no longer need to be smart to use one. By "dumbing down the computer" from our point of view, the computer itself is actually smarter. The operating system and the programs that apple has written don't necessarily anticipate the user, but they handle some things in the background so the user doesn't have to. Or at least that's the idea behind it anyways.