Why I’m Excited About the iPad: A Developer’s Perspective
By David Barnard (6:00 am, Jan. 29, 2010)
The iPad's iBooks library view. CC-licensed photo by Glenn Fleishman.
Guest commentary by David Barnard, owner of App Cubby, publisher of the popular Gas Cubby and Trip Cubby apps.
Much has been written about all the iPad surprises, disappointments, features, missing features, hype, expectations, future, etc. adnauseam. But not much has been written about what the iPad says about Apple. I’m excited about the iPad because of the many ways it demonstrates that Apple just gets it.
Palm almost gets it, Microsoft may be on it’s way to getting it with the Zune platform, Blackberry doesn’t have to get it, and Google just doesn’t get it.
What’s this “it” I’m referring to? Humans.
Andy Ihnatko wrote a masterful review of Google’s Nexus One smartphone a few weeks ago for the Chicago Sun Times. Referring to some frustrations with the device, Andy said: “These are not difficult problems to spot, if you allow Humans to test a design before you start building hundreds of thousands of them.”
But wait, Google has a very thorough “dogfood” program. Google employees and other testers spent months using the Nexus One prior to launch. But that’s not what Andy meant by Human. Sure Google employees are human beings, but in relation to technology, they are not Humans.
Let’s face it—developers, engineers, the tech press, geeks, and even power users are not mere mortals, we are the gods of technology. We create it. We bend it to our will. We know all. We see all. And if we need something, we can access and parse the collective consciousness.
We do have various things in common with Humans and can appreciate much of what has been built for Humans, but at the end of the day it’s much easier for us to gloss over design flaws, see past ambiguity, and even make excuses for complexity.
When we design things for ourselves, it’s AWESOME! We incorporate every possible feature, make it fully customizable, and incorporate every related cutting edge technology (and a few unrelated cutting edge technologies just for good measure).
But the things we build for ourselves are completely indecipherable by Humans. And we don’t have the time or patience to sit down and explain it to every friend, colleague, and family member. Then our grandparents buy it our lives devolve into a series of “Who’s on first” style conversations.
The iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and whatever comes down the road is not about us, it’s about the Humans among us. And that excites me. There are far more Humans in the world than there are gods of technology.
Posted by David Barnard in Apple, Apple Tablet, Opinions, iPad | Comment on this article
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You just got it! Congrats
Alex, on January 29th, 2010 at 6:05 am
Couldn’t agree more.
I have used many tablets and reading the whiners’ remarks clearly show they never used one before. A multitouch 10″ general purpose computer with a fast power efficient CPU at $499, with that build quality and user interface, is a miracle.
User interface is the last thing engineers do generally “get” . Generally they are those who think a bout user experience as “eye candy”. If nobody motivates a dev. team into perfecting the overall UI and make it fit with the industrial design you get incoherences. And unnecessary user support. Google Wave’s UI comes to mind or the lack of polish in Android’s UI.
Ultranote, on January 29th, 2010 at 6:29 am
Thanks for a sensible perspective at last. I’m tired of reading the rubbish in the blogosphere about missing features etc. Apple have done a good job of identifying the needs and wants of their chosen target market. They designed a machine and UI and content to match those needs and wants at the price that the target market would tolerate. All the other stuff that geeks want cost money. It was clearly positioned by Apple between the netbook (in its modern bloat form) and the laptop for users, who do not want to pay a fortune for features they will never use or spend their time learning how to use it or maintain it. Hey, it is easy and intuitive, just like a TV or an iphone.
Brian, on January 29th, 2010 at 6:33 am
Indeed, this is a serious problem. Also one reason why it APPEARS that the iPad has been receiving so much criticism. We, the Gods, are generally those who post articles, criticise and overall crack down on ANY new product, the SECOND it’s released, because our demands are far higher. The iPad is not intended for you to meddle around with, hence the locked hardware, for example. It is intended for the Humans, and they NEED Apple to approve the apps that can be installed, for if Apple didn’t enforce this limit amateurs would be installing apps left and right without really knowing what it would do to their device.
I really appreciated this article, because it makes a vital point. Apple’s $15.8 billion revenue last fiscal quarter did not come from the Gods of technology buying more stuff than necessary. It came from Human over-consumption of awesome, fun technology that is easy to use. Because let’s face it, Apple does make awesome products, that are both fun and easy to use. As a result of this, they have to adapt more to the general public, a.k.a. humans, than they do to us, the Gods. We posses very little influence over Apple in comparison to the rest of the Humans, and therein lies the Problem. People don’t seem to realise this, and the geeks, developers and overall power-users go on whining sprees because they have to jailbreak their iPad.
So thank you once again for this article. For many who read it, I think it will be an eye-opener. As someone said, you’ve totally gotten it!
Thingo, on January 29th, 2010 at 6:45 am
AMEN.
Carlos, on January 29th, 2010 at 6:52 am
The real legacy machine after the iPad is not the underappreciated though expensive Air – which is more powerful and hardly if at all heavier, or even thicker, than the iPad (those were guesses) – but the Pro, which is built like a 1938 Messerschmidt washing machine.
David Derrick, on January 29th, 2010 at 7:13 am
Hallelujah. Someone finally gets it.
Let me also add, that Apple is in the iPhone OS business for the long haul.
DO expect Apple to refine the 1st gen iPad.
DO expect Apple to refine the iPhone OS.
DO expect Apple to stick with a closed system.
DO NOT expect Apple to allow every geek out there to format their iPad and install Linux. If you’re good enough to do that you simply do not need the iPad, or Apple for that matter.
DO NOT expect Apple to EVER go feature-mad. Software reliability and ease-of-use will always come first for them.
cookeecut, on January 29th, 2010 at 7:46 am
BOOM! Nail hit on the head.
martin_tf, on January 29th, 2010 at 8:00 am
A fantastic article that hits the nail in the head completely. There have been some heated discussions over the last few days with colleagues regarding the iPad and its missing features and shortcomings, but as i’ve been saying these missing features simply don’t apply to the target market.
This technology is the type of product I could place in my mothers IT illiterate hands and have her surfing and emailing within no time, all without her stressing out about breaking it or doing something wrong.
Davidk, on January 29th, 2010 at 8:33 am
Finally! I was beginning to think I was in the minority on the iPad.
The iPad isn’t for me, I’ve an iPhone, a MacBook Pro and an iMac.
The iPad isn’t for the people who spend their life reading engadget, gizmondo, appleinsider etc etc
The iPad isn’t for anyone who has an interest in Steve Jobs’ keynote
The iPad, like has been mentioned, is for the mere mortals, the ones who use computers but don’t know how they work, the ones that have mobile phones but don’t know all the features
The iPad is for the 95% of the market. Everyone that has expressed an opinion about the iPad that it will be a failure have totally missed the point.
Like I said, I probably won’t get one, but It’d be perfect for my wife.
Lee, on January 29th, 2010 at 8:41 am
I think what we’re talking about is the ‘intuitiveness’ of a product. Take an iPhone or touch, for example. You walk up to it, push a few easily decipherable icons and you’re being productive, all without having touched the device before or RTFM. Brilliant. They won’t stop and rest on their laurels, because they know if they do that’s when the competition takes the lead and they lose their edge.
Apple has managed to nurture and develop a hard to replicate delicate balance between clever engineering and a polished & appealing UI. They make products that are technically blow your mind awesome and cutting-edge, but more importantly for the larger majority of non-geeks and success of the company, are fun and simple to use products. Apple gets it.
fred edison, on January 29th, 2010 at 8:48 am
You are right , and that’s why Steve Jobs is a Genius and Apple an Institution for Design.
Geeks and Tech Pundits are just looking for Nerd Dreams HW specs.
Dave, on January 29th, 2010 at 8:54 am
and they still make great computers if you want them.
the only slightly flawed product they make now is their 30″ monitor
ged, on January 29th, 2010 at 8:58 am
Spot on. Totally agree. And for us, the minority, hopefully we’ll see a jailbreak soon after the release.
TheBrew, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:08 am
My mom doesn’t know how to forward email from Hotmail or the difference between a link and an attachment. The iPad is a device my mom could use.
That’s the genius of Apple.
Don Pope, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:11 am
Much as I agree with some of the comment here, my concern is that people seem to have been so caught-up by the cult of Apple, they have forgotten that Apple are just a business.
Steve, who presided at his temple service, his worshiping congregation applauding in worship as he tantalizingly revealed the new truth, does have some great ideas and he is most certainly a master of marketing.
However, his motive is not the greater good of melding man and machine or the revelation of the perfect user interface! It’s all about extracting money and all about doing it in a way that makes the cleverness of his machines seem completely dumb in comparison.
Apple’s primary aim, to develop a mystique – a religious aura around the Apple symbol has produced a world where, to question Steve is considered heretical. Furthermore, to stop giving on a regular basis to the church of Steve will have fellow cult members looking down on you with shame and almost as much disdain as they reserve for those non-Appleites with their dirty, sinful PC’s!
As an Apple user, I do not subscribe to his church or enjoy the nauseating spectacle of his product launches.
Good products are products we simply use because they’re just better – like the Dyson vacuum cleaner. We don’t need to be told about it, it speaks for itself. If Dyson were Apple and they told us we only needed a 12″ mains cord… we’d all have sockets fitted every few feet and think it was fantastic!
Grow some backbone and start dictating what works instead of pretending it’s just what you really wanted because the school bully tells you…
Apple, breeder of the sycophant!
G Lucas, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:23 am
@Don Pope
My mom has problems opening msn (she uses win7) or finding her documents folder! And she uses our computer for about 1-2 years. iPad is definitely for my mom.
Celso Dantas, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:29 am
Recently, I convinced at 75 year old friend to buy a Mac. He and his wife were having virus problems with their PC and were getting extremely frustrated. Now that they have had it for about a week, I’m wondering if they will ever be able to adequately learn the OS. He had to call support to get his e-mail account going. Oh, how they would benefit from the ipad in-place of OSX!
This article is right on! Thank you.
P.S. – The one point of disagreeing is that I predict that ALL OF TECHIES will still eventually get an ipad. Not because they want or can justify a purchase, but because they want one deep down. Gods always get what they want.
pezdave, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:44 am
Nailed it!!!
About time someone spoke the hard truth. It may not be all that we wanted and hoped for, but Apple doesn’t just pump out products. This was a long time in the making and they know what they are doing.
Steve Wanless, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:54 am
I would say that the ATV also falls in this category… I do not know any non-geek that does not love his/her ATV.
Cheers
Mariano, on January 29th, 2010 at 9:56 am
Well, as a fellow developer, I take your point about knowing too much about technology making it hard to design good interfaces for those who don’t.
I don’t think, however, that the mere ‘Humans’ that you imagine queuing to get an iPad are likely to turn up.. nor do I believe that the iPad is designed for them.
The ‘Humans’ that you are talking about must have fairly basic text entry and pointing device requirements and have no great need for creating any kind of content themselves except for photos and videos; that’s okay if you just want to shop online and stay in touch with your friends and family. Most people fit neatly into that category some of the time, but very few all of the time.
Young people have to hand in essays and homework, which they prefer typing. Older people who have missed the PC and Mac bandwagon so far are unlikely to buy a cool new device. Professionals usually need to type a lot and in the case of creative professionals precise pointer control is essential too.
All this means that the iPad cannot replace a laptop for anybody who’s currently got one.
The trouble is that if you can’t leave your laptop at home, you’ll need to take your iPhone, your laptop and the iPad.. which you won’t do. You might make do with just the iPhone and leave the laptop in the car or at home, but you’ll never pack your iPhone and your iPad just in case that you need a bigger screen.
Until Apple really ‘get it’ and make the iPad more capable by giving it a more computer-like and less smart-phone-like operating system and figure out a decent way of doing text entry on it, the iPad will remain home bound and not be a mobile device at all.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing. I look forward to surfing the web in the lounge or showing my photos off. The thing is that I don’t think that many people (‘humans’ included) are likely to use it for anything else.. not for now anyway.
In my humble opinion, the iPad is too limited to replace a laptop even for ‘humans’ and too close to the iPhone to justify lugging it around with you all day.
There is a reason why tablets haven’t caught on so far and while Apple’s attempt is different from Microsoft’s I don’t think they “got it” either..
Frank, on January 29th, 2010 at 10:14 am
Agree completely!
Understanding a “Tech God’s” design is like understanding an Excel God’s spreadsheet (or any other person’s for that matter)…
Cheers,
Jeroen
Jeroen, on January 29th, 2010 at 10:26 am
LOL! What a fanboi post. Any article ripping the Nexus One is a “good article”. Must have missed it amongst the universal kudos for the best phone out there. Enjoy your iMaxiPad…
Bob, on January 29th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Well written and as many have already said, hits the nail squarely on the head.
Two people I can immediately think of who would love this device are my 74 year old mother who has a netbook but struggles with the OS’s complexity when all she wants to do is surf the web and send emails. The other one is my older brother who is technologically illiterate but would love something simple for emails, the web and some basic office productivity tools.
The iPad is aimed at people who want to use technology but don’t want to think about the underlying OS. I would love one to play with but don’t really need one in a house which already has a Mac, a MacBook Pro and three PC’s – besides, the kids would never let me near it!!
Douglas, on January 29th, 2010 at 4:18 pm
I often feel like we aren’t humans; rather we are domesticated for use by humans as translators and guides.
My father in law was born in 1922 on an island with no electricity. That he uses a computer at all – and that he used a Windows 98 machine until recently – speaks volumes about his work ethic. At Christmas I set up a Mac Mini for him and made sure all the plumbing was in place for desktop sharing via iChat. We live 5 hours away and too many visits involve hours of digging him out of computer hell of one kind or another. I reasoned that by logging in remotely in good Sys-Admin fashion I could head off any larger issues and live visits could involve more eating and drinking and so on.
Last Sunday their power went out for an hour. On Monday morning he tried to get on his computer and had no success. Black screen, silence, nothing. After some fruitless stabs and pokes, he had to admit it was truly dead.
He traced the wire back and unplugged the mouse, and then he got in the car and drove to Radio Shack with the mouse to get a new one. Because – and I really can’t fault his logic – if the red light was out on the mouse, then that must be the place to start.
It was Tuesday before I heard he was having trouble. It took two minutes on the phone to help him locate the power button on the Mini and an hour to help him find the power button on the Samsung monitor, because it of course isn’t a button but rather it’s an actuator under some sort of “skin” the same color and texture as everything around it and all the labels are dark grey on a black background, etc etc.
Logged in today and helped him find a lost icon or two and threw out 17 empty folders on his desktop. 10 minutes.
He thinks I’m Harry Potter but I know I’m just younger and less surprised at how confusing and unfinished everything is.
Marcu, on January 29th, 2010 at 4:58 pm
I agree mostly with the article; however, Apple missed a couple of key features if they are targeting this device at my Mom. First and foremost, it requires a computer for several key things and that is a mistake. It’s easy to use but you still need a “real” computer in order to use it. In order to back it up, you have to have a “real” computer to sync it to. That should not be required. You should be able to connect a USB hard drive and it should back itself up automatically. In order to do that, it needs a standard USB port built-in (no optional dongle). With that standard USB port, you could also load your photos from a camera as well as copy photos back to a USB stick to take them to Walgreens, CVS, etc for printing. The USB port could also allow you to load your existing music collection. Currently, that requires a separate computer to get your music collection on the device. It also needs a the ability to print directly from Tablet to a printer (via USB and wifi).
I just can’t believe that Apple failed to build in a USB port. It is required to address so many of these common use cases that everyone needs to do, but especially people who want to use it as their sole computer. And if it requires you to have a “real” computer in addition to the iPad, then it defeats the purpose of targeting to people like Mom because it simply becomes too complicated again… because she has to use a “real” computer too.
Joshua, on January 30th, 2010 at 9:49 am
Spot on!
I am a technically minded person but still get frustrated by techy people’s lack of awareness that the rest of the world is not populated by programmers. So many developers go to so much effort deveoping some great thing only to completely fail by not providing instructions on how to use it, thereby rendering it useless.
My brother and many like him won’t touch a computer becuase it has a typewriter interface. Finally there is now a device that doesn’t require a prior knowledge of the clunky, out-dated keyboard interface.
The seperation of the computer from the typewriter should have occurred decades ago. FInaly Apple has now done it – a computer for the rest of us!
Max, on January 31st, 2010 at 8:03 pm
@Joshua:
I was about to agree with you on the usb thing, but I looked at your list again and realized it could all be accomplished via wireless.
- If Apple can implement Time Machine into it, that takes care of backups.
- Photos can be sent directly to photo developers with a simple app or link.
- Cameras are becoming wireless more and more. Apple could detect their presence and download the photos to the tablet.
- Anyone with an existing music collection already has another computer, so this doesn’t really make sense.
- I’m sure Brother, HP, and all the rest will address the printer shortcomings soon enough.
These solutions aren’t immediate, but time goes by pretty fast and I believe the tablet will be a success.
NewJohnny, on February 1st, 2010 at 3:29 am
> A multitouch 10\u2033 general purpose computer with a fast power efficient CPU at> > $499, with that build quality and user interface, is a miracle.
Except it’s not a general purpose computer, it’s an overgrown iPod. The difference is that I (as one of those tech gods) can change a general purpose computer to fit *my* needs. As an overgrown iPod, I have to break it to do that. Thanks, but no thanks. If it had been a Mac, I’d be all over it.
The saddest thing about the Apple tablet is that it’s not a tablet Mac.
Mike, on February 10th, 2010 at 12:18 pm