Just ordered the EXOPC Slate

[Graham]

Originally Posted by wodin

I've had an Asus eeePC T91MT with Win7 Home Premium for a several months now, and I love it, warts and all. But there are still times that I have to turn the screen around to use the keyboard and mouse pad. It's not that the touch extensions/overlay of the OS are the problem, they're not.

It's when I open an application, and it's not as well integrated with the touch screen as I'd like. Like when the buttons are smaller than my fingers, and I end up closing the app instead of minimizing it. Or when the virtual keyboard overlays the application, and I can't see what I'm typing.

Is part of that issue due to the T91MT having a 9" screen? Would the buttons displayed on the ExoPC 12" screen be bigger?

Presumably the keyboard issue would be much less of a problem with the added screen real estate.

I've got quite slim fingers, which might also make a difference.

Graham

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by harryE123

What's all it's glory flash? How about tapping twice to get a proper page width view of the sentence? How about all the glorious flash that wont function because it can't understand touch?


Enjoy your tablets, but let's be real.

i cannot read websites in my native language because there is no way to install third party fonts. what do you say to that? iBooks is not the PDF saviour either. You still cannot reflow even for properly formatted pdf.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by volwrath

Lets be honest. The resolution of the ipad is marginal. The app store has been successful, but good luck finding the app you want due to all the copycat apps. Flash (video and all) runs awesomely on my Android Froyo phone. The competition is forcing apple to relax restrictions.

There are tons of apps in the appstore. 98% or said apps are crap. The majority of authors do not make alot of money, but a relative few make alot. I used to think the app store was the worst thing around but then I met the android market hehe.

Windows makes alot of sense for a tablet. For instance, slingbox costs $30 on the ipad, but is free on the PC. Also its not a true ipad app (as many apps are not) and so it looks like crap. Windows has a lot of freeware which would add up on the ipad. Windows doesnt need a PC to register itself. Windows multitasks (as do certain ipads). You talk about piracy on the PC, but iPad/iphones are rampant with piracy. installous anyone? Also atomic is better than icab

I hate the draconian measures that Jobs takes, and how he markets stupid crap such as the retina display. In fact one could say the retina display was stolen from WinMo and Android, because they had beautiful hi-res screens before Apple did.

Disclaimer: I have an ipad. Its great for what it does.

same here (have an iPad too). with the slate, i don't need a VNC sw to do stuff. See? It is one of the top grossing apps on the ipad store. what does it all mean? people still need pcs (please don't add the word mac here; my mbp is still a PC)

[harryE123]

Originally Posted by eswarjj

i cannot read websites in my native language because there is no way to install third party fonts. what do you say to that? iBooks is not the PDF saviour either. You still cannot reflow even for properly formatted pdf.

I 'd say you 've come to the right guy for advice on these.

Goodreads amongst tons of other apps is a great reader that does reflow pdfs, auto cuts margins, searches, etc. etc., with really a wealth of options as well as interfacing with servers, wifi networks and the cloud. There are plenty of other options to read in your language too, I am sure there should be an app from that? Are you asian? I 've seen quite a few asian reading apps.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by montsnmags

Please note that this is a discussion-based community and as such everyone is entitled to share his or her opinion politely. Even if you personally consider another person's opinion useless, please let's all remain civil and polite to each other.

Cheers,
Marc
Moderator

I am really glad you said that. Was worried where this was headed.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by harryE123

I 'd say you 've come to the right guy for advice on these.

Goodreads amongst tons of other apps is a great reader that does reflow pdfs, auto cuts margins, searches, etc. etc., with really a wealth of options as well as interfacing with servers, wifi networks and the cloud. There are plenty of other options to read in your language too, I am sure there should be an app from that? Are you asian? I 've seen quite a few asian reading apps.

Yes, GoodReader may have started doing this recently. Have not opened this app in a while. Looks like an experimental feature (still appreciate their work).
Yes, I am Indian. There is font support for Tamil (not your obscure language; a national language in a more than one country). But the problem is this is one of those fonts that messes things up (default tamil font in iOS). And, I am not able to use another font.
And NO. I don't want another app just to be able to read the web. This is getting ridiculous. I just need to read unicode formatted text on a webpage. All your arguments for apps instead of doing webapps has been towards better experience (reading the web is reading the web; don't see it getting better with an app). I do not want the browser replaced. I do not want to have to open up an app just for this purpose. And, importantly I do not want to remember which app to open up to read this; pay for it separately when the web is free; or have to copy paste the link from Mail etc just because I cannot choose my preferred application for a job.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by Graham

Is part of that issue due to the T91MT having a 9" screen? Would the buttons displayed on the ExoPC 12" screen be bigger?

Presumably the keyboard issue would be much less of a problem with the added screen real estate.

I've got quite slim fingers, which might also make a difference.

Graham

Presently, they'll be using the crappy MS keyboard but are in talks with Swype etc + community devs to get something decent. So, it will not extend across the screen as we'd expect (knowledge from videos). They are also promising a firmware update to their UI in Jan next. So, I am pretty hopeful.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by harryE123

I 'd say you 've come to the right guy for advice on these.

Goodreads amongst tons of other apps is a great reader that does reflow pdfs, auto cuts margins, searches, etc. etc., with really a wealth of options as well as interfacing with servers, wifi networks and the cloud. There are plenty of other options to read in your language too, I am sure there should be an app from that? Are you asian? I 've seen quite a few asian reading apps.

My question, boils down to this. If I have to circumvent so many things just because flash sucks and I need to play games on a tablet; why not just get something where you' have to adjust to only one thing?
I am not looking forward to flash games; I want to be able to watch anime etc on websites like dailymotion, megavideo, metacafe etc. If I were to keep using my iPad, when such links pop up, I am having to move back to my pc. And I have a lot of youtube videos that won't play because of some API appendages that the default app does not recognize. I am having to copy-paste and modify the url with that silly magnifier all the time. May be your browsing pattern does not call for any of this. Once upon a time, there were no good tablet and the iPad ruled. Not anymore, not after android (which sucks worse than iOS imho) started saying openly that they are not shunning adobe.

Of the top 10 most grossing apps on the iPad, 5 are office suites related, and another that is a VNC. I don't think there is any explanation to that other than the fact that people still want everything that they are used to on a desktop when the form factor is any bigger than a standard smartphone. I rest my case here.

[weateallthepies]

Originally Posted by eswarjj

Presently, they'll be using the crappy MS keyboard but are in talks with Swype etc + community devs to get something decent. So, it will not extend across the screen as we'd expect (knowledge from videos). They are also promising a firmware update to their UI in Jan next. So, I am pretty hopeful.

There are already a number of alternative on screen keyboards. I've been trying out Touch-It with the UMPC thumb style keyboard which is quite nice.

[harryE123]

Originally Posted by eswarjj

My question, boils down to this. If I have to circumvent so many things just because flash sucks and I need to play games on a tablet; why not just get something where you' have to adjust to only one thing?
I am not looking forward to flash games; I want to be able to watch anime etc on websites like dailymotion, megavideo, metacafe etc. If I were to keep using my iPad, when such links pop up, I am having to move back to my pc. And I have a lot of youtube videos that won't play because of some API appendages that the default app does not recognize. I am having to copy-paste and modify the url with that silly magnifier all the time. May be your browsing pattern does not call for any of this. Once upon a time, there were no good tablet and the iPad ruled. Not anymore, not after android (which sucks worse than iOS imho) started saying openly that they are not shunning adobe.

Of the top 10 most grossing apps on the iPad, 5 are office suites related, and another that is a VNC. I don't think there is any explanation to that other than the fact that people still want everything that they are used to on a desktop when the form factor is any bigger than a standard smartphone. I rest my case here.

I don't know why you don't download the daily motion app...even youporn I hear has switched to html5 so very soon you won't even need an app and you ll work within the browser. You also don't have to switch to the youtube app, go to youtube and google opt in for html 5 for youtube and you ll get all your videos in html5 within youtube, and from within the browser. Of course you might get a 5% of incompatibility because html5 switch for youtube is not yet complete, but that's really no big deal. You really, really want the atrocious flash, then get http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cloud...346618309?mt=8 , cloud browse app let's use. And there are tons of others to let you play divx, flv, mkv and all that jazz.

Your argument wrt top grossing apps is flawed, because exactly these are the most expensive apps that are the top grossing more usually, you should be thus looking at the highest selling amongst the free and paid ones. Moreover office apps and vnc apps are there exactly because people DO NOT want to use the pc any more with an ipad and prefer to remotely log in to it to control it and have their office apps on their ipad instead.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by harryE123

I don't know why you don't download the daily motion app...even youporn I hear has switched to html5 so very soon you won't even need an app and you ll work within the browser. You also don't have to switch to the youtube app, go to youtube and google opt in for html 5 for youtube and you ll get all your videos in html5 within youtube, and from within the browser. Of course you might get a 5% of incompatibility because html5 switch for youtube is not yet complete, but that's really no big deal. You really, really want the atrocious flash, then get http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cloud...346618309?mt=8 , cloud browse app let's use. And there are tons of others to let you play divx, flv, mkv and all that jazz.

Your argument wrt top grossing apps is flawed, because exactly these are the most expensive apps that are the top grossing more usually, you should be thus looking at the highest selling amongst the free and paid ones. Moreover office apps and vnc apps are there exactly because people DO NOT want to use the pc any more with an ipad and prefer to remotely log in to it to control it and have their office apps on their ipad instead.

1. haven't answered by font related question
2. yes (in fact obvious) for the most expensive. meaning people don't mind spending to get the functionality they want. i am just stopping at the 'desire' part. they would want to use everything from the ipad. yes, but it clearly is not working well for them is it?
3. youtube: that 5% does frustrate a lot of people
4. omg, have you ever used cloudbrowse?
5. all other examples you have given me are alternatives or more like hacks. say i want to view a dailymotion video from a link i find online (let me stress it again - iOS does not allow customizable file association). I need to copy paste in to dailymotion (assuming the easiest of feasible processes). It sure would work. But it is an alternative. You were discussing why the app model is better. I have only a few cases of better (even there the desktop model is not bad).
Good luck with your app evangelism.

[harryE123]

I am not evangelising apps. You soon will be very able to use both your fonts as the ipad expands to more locales (but you can already do so in an app...) and browsers almost completely for video in the ipad as most of the major players abandon flash and switch to html5. In the meantime youtube and loads of others can do that already almost perfectly. As for apps lots of people love and actually PREFER them to constant browsing, they are a good paradigm that combines web interfacing apps and apps as we came to know them on the mac (later copied on the wintels). I don't think apps are the holy grail of course, but they are a good shift in terms of interface for tablets for sure.

What is more I like the way the cut the horrific middleman and cash cow that is google by diverting google ad dollars off them. No more will google say pimp imdb and others with their ads (which make dollars in the ranges of tens of hundreds of billions by snooping on users and pimping ads to everyone using the internet - google unlike what they would like you to think is the biggest ad agency on the globe and that's the ONLY way they make money). Instead the owner of the app will manage their ads or get paid via subscription.

[eswarjj]

Originally Posted by harryE123

I am not evangelising apps. You soon will be very able to use both your fonts as the ipad expands to more locales (but you can already do so in an app...) and browsers almost completely for video in the ipad as most of the major players abandon flash and switch to html5. In the meantime youtube and loads of others can do that already almost perfectly. As for apps lots of people love and actually PREFER them to constant browsing, they are a good paradigm that combines web interfacing apps and apps as we came to know them on the mac (later copied on the wintels). I don't think apps are the holy grail of course, but they are a good shift in terms of interface for tablets for sure.

What is more I like the way the cut the horrific middleman and cash cow that is google by diverting google ad dollars off them. No more will google say pimp imdb and others with their ads (which make dollars in the ranges of tens of hundreds of billions by snooping on users and pimping ads to everyone using the internet - google unlike what they would like you to think is the biggest ad agency on the globe and that's the ONLY way they make money). Instead the owner of the app will manage their ads or get paid via subscription.

I do agree that apps that are using a good touch api are better than non-touch built ones. No questions about it. What I am saying is the power of the mobile OSs are totally ridiculous. Your assumption of the HTML5 thing is yet to be seen. Especially after the control the mafia has over the encoding licensing. My problem time and again is apple's control on even the most basic of customization. Can you install a custom font (even an english font)? NO, and how are you starting to expect that expanding to more locales will solve that. the iPhone has been around for 3 yrs now. Have they allowed expansion to this? File association will solve a lot of problems I have with the iPad but that will not be allowed in the name of keeping things uncomplicated to those bat-ass eating computer illiterates. If you want such a device make another range for the dummies.
Yes, Google is bad. I am a bigger hater of google than most people you know. But apple is also a pimp. In apps, now in ads. While touting their ad remover extension in Safari on the PCs, they ignore their own words in the apps. Moreover, it is the developer that puts the ads in there and he decides about it. If the user does not want to see ads, let him get a version that does not include ads or just not get the apps
Your assumption that apple will keep improving may be true. But so do other mobile OSs. There are some fundamental flaws in approaches and that is what I want to point out here. I am in favour of mobile OSs if they allow customization to at least the level most power users expect. Mind you, I am not crazy enough to tout registry and stuff. Apple's control is the problem here. And you know what the worst form of problem is? Ceding control. The only cringes I have about getting the Slate are having to pay for the windows7 copy AND the battery life. When I do get the Slate, I promise to give out a fair review. You don't know me. I return stuff for the most trivial of things even if it costs me restocking fee. I care about what I want out of a product. In this case, it so happens that a lot of people are on my side.
Try typing this on a touch screen device that does not recognize scroll bars that are written in an unsupported language.
Case in point, don't reinvent the wheel where you are not improving the experience.

[CyGuy]

I have ordered an ExoPC as well. I am also planning on getting two of the docking stations (one for work and one for home), a stylus, a portable stand, a nice carry bag, and probably an extra charger. I still need to get a bluetooth keyboard and mouse too. I may also get a car mount once I get the GPS module installed. I already have several 32GB SDHC cards, a couple of 32GB USB thumb drives, an external DVD burner that is USB powered, and two 500GB HDD's that are also USB powered.
October 15th is too far away!

[volwrath]

Originally Posted by harryE123

I don't know why you don't download the daily motion app...even youporn I hear has switched to html5 so very soon you won't even need an app and you ll work within the browser. You also don't have to switch to the youtube app, go to youtube and google opt in for html 5 for youtube and you ll get all your videos in html5 within youtube, and from within the browser. Of course you might get a 5% of incompatibility because html5 switch for youtube is not yet complete, but that's really no big deal. You really, really want the atrocious flash, then get http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cloud...346618309?mt=8 , cloud browse app let's use. And there are tons of others to let you play divx, flv, mkv and all that jazz.

Your argument wrt top grossing apps is flawed, because exactly these are the most expensive apps that are the top grossing more usually, you should be thus looking at the highest selling amongst the free and paid ones. Moreover office apps and vnc apps are there exactly because people DO NOT want to use the pc any more with an ipad and prefer to remotely log in to it to control it and have their office apps on their ipad instead.

Flash is not atrocious. It works great on my Android phone. You are just quoting Jobs, but you are offbase. Frankly I think Apple will have Flash again very soon, and Jobs will come out and proclaim that adobe fixed flash to apple standards and its the consumers that win, and you can thank me, steve jobs. And millions of apple fans will proclaim this as truth.

The #1 top grossing apps in app store is Angry Birds. It comes in with a hefty $0.99 price. 10 out of 12 of those apps are less than $5.00. People want to VNC from ipad because they are remote, not because people dont want to use their computer.

Originally Posted by harryE123

What is more I like the way the cut the horrific middleman and cash cow that is google by diverting google ad dollars off them. No more will google say pimp imdb and others with their ads (which make dollars in the ranges of tens of hundreds of billions by snooping on users and pimping ads to everyone using the internet - google unlike what they would like you to think is the biggest ad agency on the globe and that's the ONLY way they make money). Instead the owner of the app will manage their ads or get paid via subscription.

Hah you cut the middleman known as google, yet added the middleman known as apple. iAds is much more of a ripoff than traditional google ads