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This is my first post, but I have been lurking for some time researching which reader to buy. I decided on the Nook wifi for many reasons which I will not go into now but I decided to weigh in in the discussion of the new update 1.5.
As a software engineer I can tell you that many times users have requests that seem extremely obvious or simple and yet there are many technical hurdles to achieving them. I will certainly not pass judgment on the new update until I see it but I do find it fascinating that there is an impression making software and hardware work together is easy because it has been done before. I am here to tell you it is not easy and many tens of thousands of decisions go into the software that runs on a custom hardware platform such as an eReader.
Page Turns – A big point of comparison from all Kindle owners, from a marketing standpoint this needed to be answered. I personally feel it is phony issue, the page turns are plenty fast and barley slower than a kindle. But once it is in the heads of the users it needs to be addressed.
Interaction between pc/mac apps, phone apps and the Nook - a big Kindle feature that also gets a lot of attention. B&N needs to compete on those platforms, everyone will not buy an eReader and those that do get the benefit of being able pass the time reading on their cell phone when their nook is at home.
Organization – Clearly the biggest complaint about the nook and I agree not getting it right will anger nook owners but having the feature at any level closes another gap with Kindle.
To me these are marketing features that the developers were given by the business to complete. These are Gap closers with the Kindle. We all hope they move the platform forward, but we all know B&N has some catching up to do in the software side.
I for one would not throw out my device because the marketing team at B&N did not consider my list of requests. B&N needs to be careful not to alienate Nook owners but they must also be working to eliminate the differentiators between themselves and the competition.
Okay let the bashing begin, I am new so be gentle – just kidding – have at me!
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