Google's Android is Eating Apple's Lunch

[shalym]

Originally Posted by Sil_liS

Is this average business user capable of reading? Because even if you hide the toolbar there is still the very clear menu. Also people should have noticed that you can select text and then right click and get full options on what you can do to the text.

Ok--so you right-click and get a context menu. There is no explicit option on that context menu to make text bold. There is a menu item named "font" but most people would have no idea that they should select that item to make the text bold. I deal with people trying to use computers every day, and I can tell you that for most of them, if anything changes the slightest bit about what they do, it takes weeks to learn the new way of doing things. That's weeks of things taking twice as long as they should to get done. These are not "idiots"--for the most part they're very smart. Please don't assume that just because you like to play with technology and try every option on a menu just to see what it does, that most people are like you. Most people do what they have to do to get their stuff done so that they can move on to what they like to do...which for the most part, isn't play with/learn about computers.

Shari

[elcreative]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

That report must be quite old -- iphone 4s and ipad3 are not the current models. And I guess you are the last person in the world who doesn't know that. Not to mention that back then the S3 apparently wasn't even out yet. In other words, back in the stone age.

That's precisely the point... older, earlier models (original ipad and iPhone 4S) were still happily being activated at a rate greater than all Android devices bar the Galaxy IIS and Droid Razr... and only 4months ago.

Originally Posted by HansTWN

Well, since then Apple lost about 10% of the tablet market and who knows how much of the phone market (Samsung's S3 outselling the iphone in Q3).

And the shrinkage in percentage represents a GROWING market as Apple's unit sales increased from 11 million to 14 million... and far more profitable, yup, another serious loss of business...

[elcreative]

Originally Posted by shalym

Ok--so you right-click and get a context menu. There is no explicit option on that context menu to make text bold. There is a menu item named "font" but most people would have no idea that they should select that item to make the text bold. I deal with people trying to use computers every day, and I can tell you that for most of them, if anything changes the slightest bit about what they do, it takes weeks to learn the new way of doing things. That's weeks of things taking twice as long as they should to get done. These are not "idiots"--for the most part they're very smart. Please don't assume that just because you like to play with technology and try every option on a menu just to see what it does, that most people are like you. Most people do what they have to do to get their stuff done so that they can move on to what they like to do...which for the most part, isn't play with/learn about computers.

Shari

Definitely this... there are people around who have been using PCs for a decade or more and still don't know/use right-click context menus... they've always got their work done without needing it and certainly don't want to play/wade through computers to discover such things, they want to get their work done and then get on with their lives.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by elcreative

.... they've always got their work done without needing it and certainly don't want to play/wade through computers to discover such things, they want to get their work done and then get on with their lives.

Then they need to learn how to do their jobs. One must know how to use one's tools. No wonder the friggin' country is falling apart!

[Sil_liS]

Originally Posted by shalym

Ok--so you right-click and get a context menu. There is no explicit option on that context menu to make text bold. There is a menu item named "font" but most people would have no idea that they should select that item to make the text bold. I deal with people trying to use computers every day, and I can tell you that for most of them, if anything changes the slightest bit about what they do, it takes weeks to learn the new way of doing things. That's weeks of things taking twice as long as they should to get done. These are not "idiots"--for the most part they're very smart. Please don't assume that just because you like to play with technology and try every option on a menu just to see what it does, that most people are like you. Most people do what they have to do to get their stuff done so that they can move on to what they like to do...which for the most part, isn't play with/learn about computers.

That's just the thing, it's not a new way of doing things. Right-click gives you the menu. The toolbar is supposed to make things more convenient, but even when the way it was organized changed so much from Office 2003 to Office 2007, and even if the user needs some time adjusting to the new locations, the menu can still be accessed with right-click. You don't have to try every option in the menu to know that if the option exists, you can find it there.

It's not just in Office, it's in all the other programs. This is why I had absolutely no problem using Android. Instead of right click there is the menu button, but the concept remains the same.

[Beryl]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I am slowly finding myself won over by Apple. I like that there are very few virus. I like how easily the products work. I like the ease of the genuis bar. The reality is that I do not need a computer that does a ton at home, I barely use word and excel. I use my home computer for games, videos, and surfing the web. Heck, I can do 90% of what I do on my IPad.

I so agree and I was a PC person having worked for IBM for decades. I started with the original iPad in 2010 and then got a free iPod Touch followed by an iPhone 4S. iOS is elegant and relatively trouble-free. The apps are well designed and the support is comparatively unrivaled. Resale value is comparatively high. I was able to sell my original iPad for over $200 and the new owner is loving it.

That said, I recently got a Nexus 7 and learning to appreciate the Android market. My favorite apps are not as well designed on this platform, however. I'm giving it time because I suspect that Android will have features that I will prefer over iOS. The hardware price is an obvious plus. By the time the iPad Mini with retina is released, I may be won over to Android. We'll see.

[elcreative]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Then they need to learn how to do their jobs. One must know how to use one's tools. No wonder the friggin' country is falling apart!

Rubbish, they are doing their work but their work doesn't involve becoming expert on a computer merely using a computer as an adjunct to their work and many people get their work done without knowing much about the computer at all, after all their jobs are NOT computing...

And one reason your (not THE) country is falling apart is wasting time learning to do things the machine way instead of using some of that amazing computer power to let people do things the people way. The old analogy still applies... driving a car doesn't require you to know about anything under the hood, you can employ a garage for that... you may not get the best deal but you don't have to waste a more precious asset - time - on something you don't have to know to get the job done...

[holymadness]

The hate from the IT crowd in this thread is unbelievable. No wonder so many people don't like their computers.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by elcreative

Rubbish, they are doing their work but their work doesn't involve becoming expert on a computer ...

No one said anything about becoming a computer expert. What I said was one must learn to use the tools necessary to do their job. Simple concept.

[5thWiggle]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Then they need to learn how to do their jobs. One must know how to use one's tools. No wonder the friggin' country is falling apart!

A carpenter knows their tools and could cut through a piece of wood with a handsaw in a short period time. Now take the saw away and give them a Dozuki (japanese style saw). Now see how long it takes and how many times they bend the blade...

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by 5thWiggle

A carpenter knows their tools and could cut through a piece of wood with a handsaw in a short period time. Now take the saw away and give them a Dozuki (japanese style saw). Now see how long it takes and how many times they bend the blade...

As I said, first one much know how to use one's tools.

Android is more flexible, that's why it's eating Apples for lunch.

[Sil_liS]

Originally Posted by holymadness

The hate from the IT crowd in this thread is unbelievable. No wonder so many people don't like their computers.

I'm not in IT. The whole "right-click gives you the menu" is something that I learned when I first started using computers as a kid and as long as you know this you can basically use any software in windows. No need for training, no need to read the manual, just dive in directly because even if the menu options are different, you can always get to the menu.

[5thWiggle]

True, but they did know their tools. Now they have to re-learn them and fight against learned behavior.

A western saw cuts on the push stroke, and has a handle perpendicular to the blade. A Dozuki cuts on the pull stroke, has a much thinner blade and a handle parallel the the blade. Both do the same job, but you've changed the interface. Do that abruptly and now the person not only has to learn the again, but also fight against ingrained behavior.

(And no, don't ask me how many dozukis I've bent. Suffice to say it was too many, and I'm not even a carpenter...)

[holymadness]

Originally Posted by Sil_liS

I'm not in IT. The whole "right-click gives you the menu" is something that I learned when I first started using computers as a kid and as long as you know this you can basically use any software in windows. No need for training, no need to read the manual, just dive in directly because even if the menu options are different, you can always get to the menu.

So did I. I don't go around calling people who don't know that idiots and blaming the stagnant economy on them.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by 5thWiggle

True, but they did know their tools. Now they have to re-learn them and fight against learned behavior.

...

And that's exactly the point. New tools require new learning. Simple.

If you want to do your job whether it's a being a carpenter, a taxi driver, or a secretary you must learn to use the tools available to accomplish the job.

In this age of increasingly rapid change one cannot expect to learn one way of doing something and expect it to last a lifetime. We live in a time of change. Embrace it.