It’s (not) a big iPod touch →
David Kaneda:
Instead of focussing on adding a camera or dishwasher, Apple put all of its effort into software, by redefining the UI iPod, Mail, Calendar, Contacts, and every other default app. They then went a step further and ported all of the iWork apps, including Pages, Keynote, and Numbers to function on the iPad. They did this to set a bar, a standard. To show that it does things that the iPod Touch will never be able to do.
The iWork part of the keynote is what got me hooked on to this device—well, more so than with just the earlier part. Apple took what was on the desktop, and took that exact same functionality—or so say those who have used it—and ported it to this mobile device. More importantly, they did so by simplifying, de-cluttering, and humanising the user interface. And with those three apps they broke iPhone-tainted mindsets about the kind of applications that are possible on such a device. It’s not about having a navigation bar at the top and toolbar at the bottom anymore. It’s a wide canvas, with the freedom to really tailor cut every application to suit its exact behaviour, without sacrificing on quality.
Treading close on what David’s article, I’m definite we’ll see more professional tools like Espresso, Coda, Pixelmator, Garageband, and others slowly make it into the iPad, while existing apps like RSS readers, twitter clients, finance apps turn into full grown counterparts providing a way better experience than on the desktop. It’s the future folks.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
The article you reference talks about a student writing papers on the iPad. I can only imagine frustration at such a task.
So you’ve got your iPad docked and you’re typing away with a bluetooth keyboard. You need to look up a definition, a reference, some data. You press the home button, quit out of Pages. Go to a dictionary app. Quit out. Go to a Wikipedia app. Quit. Go to Safari. You undock the iPad to hold it for better browsing. Find some info. Quit. Open up Pages, hopefully going to right where you left off. Hmm. What did that web page say again? Quit. Open Safari. Ok, got it. Quit. Pages again. Dock. Type. Damn. Forgot again. Etc etc.
At what point have you pulled out a pad of paper to jot down notes.
You’re still basing this on current applications—not what’s possible on this platform. What if a developer realises that research paper writing is huge on this device and starts developing the perfect app? The developer could incorporate a webkit view on one side (or maybe one of those drop downs) for quick referencing. I’m just saying. With a device this size, “think outside the iPhone”.
Not sure you are right Bud. Isn’t this device really made for cloud computing,(very little hard drive space) and I understand you can have any number of pages open of one application, eg safari. ( not sure where I got that information)
So use online word processing, online dictionary, online everything – problem solved? I think we have to get out of our preconceived ways of doing things with this device. Of course I may change my mind when I actually hold one and try it out, but from what Stephen Fry says, I doubt it.
I get we need to rethink how we do stuff on it – but code editors like coda and espresso? Writing code relies on touch typing. Not sure how the iPad will work with that without the extra physical keboard and then your back to maybe just buying a cheap macbook. I can see Photoshop and a less precise Illustrator on it but they can rely on your fingers more.