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Old 02-17-2008, 03:42 AM   #14
Gideon
Wearer of Pants
Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.Gideon knows the square root of minus one.
 
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Posts: 1,050
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Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Norman, OK
Device: Amazon Kindle DX / iPhone
I think the "Apple is all about fashion, an the last thing I need is a fashion ebook..." is such a straw man it isn't even funny.

I won't deny there are apple fan boys. There are. But a lot of us who are very enthusiastic about our Apple products are enthusiastic not because it is stylish or cool but because it works intuitively and well. I ignored Apple for over a decade as a PC user, it simply wasn't an option. But last year I got a Macbook, and after a few months, picked up an iMac as well and they were the best decisions I ever made regarding how I deal with technology. Not because they were pretty (in fact, I liked how my PC's looked more) but because it was so damn usable and what's more, a pleasant experience to use.

The same goes with the iPhone. My Windows Mobile phone did just about everything an iPhone can do, but it was a giant pain in the butt to do it, ever.

Apple is good at UI. And UI is a very, very important part of how we deal with tech... dismissing what they do as just pretty is insulting. It's not about being pretty, it's about being USABLE. I swear, everytime I hear this stuff it's like listening to Linux fanboys complain... People don't seem to get it, it doesn't MATTER how "powerful" your product is, what matters is "do people want/like to use it." Linux is not user friendly (though it is slowly getting better) and so people don't use it.

The moment someone makes a computer that is more usable and intuitive than my Mac, I'll be right there. Apple and their high prices and arrogant attitudes be damned... but until then, whenever I use a PC it's like experiencing a computer with gloves on - awkward and irritating. And that may not be for everyone, but I was certainly surprised after about a month of using it how great it was.

So, that being said.... I don't think we'll see an ebook reader from Apple. As far as media device - probably not either. I think we'll see the SDK and that's about it. At best, and I hope it is true, we'll see a tablet. But I HIGHLY doubt it. Even Apple is only willing to put so much on the line at once.
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