The new iPad is a gutsy device that only Apple could make. Apple is known for going out on the limb and bringing the future to the present. Every time they do this the initial reaction is split. Some are filled with awe and wonder. Some with doubt and even fear (fear for how they think computers should be).
Every single innovative product, wither successful or not, has received this treatment. The Apple I, the Macintosh, the Newton, the iMac, the iBook, the Cube, the iPod, the iTunes and App store, the iPhone, the Apple TV, and now the iPad. I would say 3 to 5 of those have been revolutionary devices that changed the way we thought about personal computers, media devices, and mobile phones. Apple is now attempting to revolutionize the personal computer again. They just are not directly saying it.
John Gruber at Daringfireball.net has some great posts on the iPad. His latest has inspired this post. So do yourself a favor and read his posts on the iPad. Actually do yourself an even bigger favor and subscribe to his RSS feed or follow him on Twitter. @daringfireball and @gruber. I’m serious. Do it.
So how is the iPad redefining the personal computer? First, let’s see where the iPad can fit into your life. Apple says somewhere in between your iPhone, a powerful mobile computing device that fits in your pocket and your MacBook, a serious mobile computing device when you need flexibility and power. These fit into our mindset of a personal computer pretty easily.
So how does the iPad fit in to that mindset? For most tech geeks our expectations are always to the ceiling. Geeks were hoping for a glorious Minority Report style interface. (Does anyone remember the plot and characters of this movie or just the tech?) Although it would be cool, it’s not practical in any way for most of our current computing applications. A complex interface like this would appeal to the geeks and confuse the average Joe. And guess what? It’s the average Joe that Apple truly cares about with the iPad. It’s the average Joe that goes into an Apple Store and walks out with an Apple product that they didn’t know would enrich and enhance their lives. The average Joe is the mind share Apple wants. Apple set out to make a device that simplifies computing and hides all it’s complexities. You know, the things that geeks love but your average user doesn’t care about and despises.
I work with low and high level computer users everyday in my business. Even on a Mac people still have a hard time understanding the Finder and where their documents are saved. For example, the initial expectation when creating a document in Word or Pages is that the document is saved in the Word or Pages application itself. Not some documents folder that is in a user’s folder that’s on their hard drive. This was especially confusing to those using Office 2004. When you launched Word, by default it would take you to a list of recently used documents. No matter where the files were actually saved. So many had the belief that their files were in the Word application. Trying to explain that they were not was a real task. And looking back, why isn’t it this way? Why doesn’t it work like so many new users think it should?
Many Mac apps do a great job of hiding where they store the users files. iPhoto and iMovie are a great example. You import media into these two applications and you never once have to go through a save dialog menu and choose where to save your work. You can also share that media between iLife and iWork apps and never touch a file in the Finder. Even though iPhoto saves a packaged photo library in your pictures folder and iMovie saves it’s various files in the movies folder. The user can get away with never knowing or even caring where their files are saved. But on the flip side there are those that by all means must know where everything is saved. It’s like being obsessed about filing cabinets and folders.
These users got themselves in trouble at times. For example, I believe it was iPhoto 6 and prior, the iPhoto library was simply a folder in pictures where all the photos, thumbnails, originals, databases, and more were saved. It was very easy to completely fudge up iPhoto if you went into those folders and began moving or deleting stuff. The iPhoto database wouldn’t see the changes you made outside of iPhoto and therefore begin to bork your precious photo library with the wrong thumbnails and what not. So Apple “locked down” the library into a package. This prevented a user from messing with iPhoto’s complex folder system. You don’t know how many people who upgraded to the new iPhoto screamed bloody murder that they couldn’t access there photos. Mostly for uploading photos to websites. Those on Tiger 10.4 didn’t have a way to access their photo’s in the open dialog box. Once Leopard came out it give easy access to your media in the open dialog box and people settled down.
This is one area where the iPad will change our definition of what a personal computer is today. If you think about it. Apple has always done this. Adding a graphical user interface and a pointing device to the Macintosh suddenly brought computers into our homes and made them personal. No longer was a computer just used for number crunching and data entry in business. It allowed you to learn and create.
Over the next 25 years the personal computer began to take on more and more roles. From productivity, creativity, learning, and gaming. To an internet powered communication device and digital media hub. The personal computer keeps getting more and more loaded on it. But the basic management of the computer has not really changed. We still have a hierarchy of files and folders. Heck, we still have a terminal and command prompt! Computers were supposed to make life simpler, do the work for us,give us more free time. Now we spend more time than ever in front of the computer and a good portion of that time is managing the computer itself.
John Gruber puts it’s best:
That’s where Apple is taking computing. A car with an automatic transmission still shifts gears; the driver just doesn’t need to know about it. A computer running iPhone OS still has a hierarchical file system; the user just never sees it.
The iPad suddenly takes all the complexities that the personal computer has compiled and takes the essential tasks the user needs and puts it in front of them in a simple and easy to use device. Leo Laporte describes it as an appliance. Just like your toaster or microwave. There’s no learning curve. You know how it works and what to expect out of it.
When the original iPhone came out I had been working at the Apple retail store in Oklahoma City for less than a month. I got maybe 10 minutes of play time before we had to open the doors to the customers. The first time I unlocked the screen with the swipe of my finger and went to the photos app to pinch and zoom. It was magical. Of course we had training on how it worked but I watched thousands of people pick it up and begin to navigate around. There was no need for much explanation. Beyond what they could and couldn’t use it for. Many Palm Pilot nerds wanted to see a folder structure so they could store and arrange files. And of course they wanted to use a stylus. Some didn’t believe us when we said it wouldn’t work but they proceeded to try them anyway. Having the opportunity to watch and teach the world how to use a new device was really amazing. But mostly because it was fun. Doing a demo wasn’t a chore like demoing an iLife or iWork app. Although now on the iPad that would be really fun. Unlike teaching someone how to use a mouse the iPhone was fun.
I’ve spent many hours training elderly customers who’s grandkids got them a Mac. It was there first computer ever. Try explaining single click, double click, right click (especially on a Might Mouse), click through, drag and drop to a 90 year old who can not read any font less than 30 point and who has a hard time keeping their hands steady enough to click a tiny, red, close button.
More proof of how Apple’s multi-touch user interface is changing how we interact with computers. Hand an iPhone to a 2 year old and they will have it down in less than 20 minutes. There is nothing more natural than touching a item to interact with it. I mean, that’s how our Creator designed us.
The iPad will be successful because it’s reshaping the personal computer. It’s dropping the learning curve significantly. People who have resisted the need for a laptop computer and need to replace their desktop will seriously look at this device.(Trust me, there are millions out there who still have tower PC’s.) As long as they can surf the web, view various media types, and share with their friends and family, they will be more than satisfied. Especially when they don’t need to worry about losing files, managing computer resources and a biggie, not running crap anti-virus software. I’ll save that explanation for a later post.
For the more than average user the iPad will entice them because of the 3rd party apps. Developers are going to make amazing apps for this device. Just like how the iPhone was born again with the App Store and OS 2.0. The iPad will constantly be evolving with every break through app released. It’s a blank slate (pun intended) with countless possibilities.
