OT: Apple Announcement

[FunkKeysStuff]

I think there's a market for what is essentially a bigger iPod Touch with a few significant additions.

 

You may be right, but what significant additions did they make exactly?

 

Well, they got the two I was most hoping for: word processing (not to mention the other iWork programs), and an ebook reader.

[mate stubb]

The whole platform is locked down tighter than a drum. No apps unless apple approved. DRM city, baby.

 

No thanks.

[Floyd Tatum]

The whole platform is locked down tighter than a drum. No apps unless apple approved. DRM city, baby. No thanks.

DRM city, exactly. This is discussed at the anti-DRM web page Defective By Design.org: Sign the petition: iPad DRM is iBad for our freedoms

 

[BillWelcome Home Studios]

I've been thinking about a device to have lyrics, charts etc on screen instead of paper. ...

 

 

If you don't -have- to have the score in notation, there are several pieces of software that allow you to load in songs and chords, save as set lists, search, and basically keep your music in a usable and accessible fashion on your laptop. One was suggested on this forum which I downloaded a fooled around with for a while, and it would have suited me perfectly when I was gigging out. Much cheaper than buying a dedicated device.

[richwhite9]

The iPad came in at a lower price and with fewer features than rumored by some pundits.

 

Apple left room for a bigger brother or second generation that operates more like a netbook tha a mobile device.

 

The general impression is this device was designed to be an exension of ITunes first, a consumer of Touch applications second, and a web browser third. No new ground except the form factor and eBook/eMag distribution angle for iTunes. Remains to be seen if the Asian game buying public takes to it the way they did the Touch. I'd guess no, it's not a gameboy competitor and it's not a purse freindly as some other mobile devices.

 

Downloading a DVD over ATT? Good luck with streaming on demand video in larger cities.

[DanS]

The whole platform is locked down tighter than a drum. No apps unless apple approved. DRM city, baby. No thanks.

DRM city, exactly. This is discussed at the anti-DRM web page Defective By Design.org: Sign the petition: iPad DRM is iBad for our freedoms

 

I got this off their site: All media in the iTunes store (with the one exception of music) is wrapped in Apple's DRM. That means films, TV shows, movies and audiobooks are locked to Apple's platform, taking away your right to share.

 

Am I missing something? Is the free music generation upset that they can't have free movies, TV shows & audiobooks?

Someone please enlighten me.

[zephonic]

There is some reason for concern over the DRM issue, but I guess someone will have to provide a better solution. The alternative is bit torrents etc. so for those who do not want to get in on Apple's business model there's still plenty of options.

 

I am at least glad that Apple has demonstrated that digital distribution can be economically viable and I think that the success of iTunes and App store has swayed many content publishers who may have been afraid to take the plunge before.

 

And don't forget that it was Apple who convinced the recording industry to drop DRM from the mp3's on iTunes. Who knows, maybe they will convince the film and TV studios as well.

 

http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2009/01/06itunes.html

 

As for the apps, if you read EULA's on boxed software, it really is not that different. Everybody's covering their backs, you would too.

 

 

[Joe Muscara]

This is a really good (but slightly assertive) article on Apple's positioning of this product.

 

http://www.rinich.com/post/357307070/this-is-why-its-worth-learning-about-advertising

 

I like his point about iTunes LPs. Think about how cool using this device as an "iPod" is when you add the immersive experience of iTunes LPs.

 

Theyre going to reintroduce the part of music that went away when the LP died because theyre offering a special music format with artwork and special footage and just unbelievable immersion in an album, and that entire format is so minimal to their plans that they dont see fit to mention it on the iPad site.

[Aidan]

I'm mildly interested at this stage in this product, mostly as a replacement for a MusicPad. Two problems:

 

* Nobody has yet built an app which matches the handiest aspect of the MusicPad - building "playlists" from your database, so that when one song is done you move automatically on to the next one. That doesn't mean that it can't, and won't be done.

 

* The iPad will be a thief magnet in a way that the MusicPad will never be. Of course, the relatively small size does mean you could take it with you when the set ends.

 

I think pricing will be key on this. HP et al have their own compact tablets (is that a term?) coming out soon. We know they won't be as cool, but that may not matter so much for a gigging pro if they're significantly cheaper and you can get similar software. And I say that as both an iMac and iPhone user.

 

The on-screen keyboard thing - well, it'll probably do for light work. But I find it the most horrid thing about the iPhone and (along with the longer battery life) it's about the only thing I miss from having had a Crackberry previously. So you're not going to be writing a novel on it.

[Bill H.]

The on-screen keyboard thing - well, it'll probably do for light work. But I find it the most horrid thing about the iPhone and (along with the longer battery life) it's about the only thing I miss from having had a Crackberry previously. So you're not going to be writing a novel on it.

 

I can always tell when someone is texting me on an iPhone. It'll be riddled with typos

 

I can usually figure out what they're saying but sometimes I'm thrown for a loop. A few days ago an iPhone user figured out a novel way to spell the word "switch" and for the life of me I couldn't make sense of the text.

 

I'm a heavy texter and use a Samsung with a Blackberry-like keyboard. It's what works for me. I'm sure that some of you can text well on an iPhone though, so I'm not really condemning them. We keyboard players do happen to be pretty good with our fingers.

[DanS]

 

* The iPad will be a thief magnet in a way that the MusicPad will never be. Of course, the relatively small size does mean you could take it with you when the set ends.

 

+1. I was thinking about this as well. You'd have to guard the thing with your life at a gig, and anywhere else really.

Can't leave this sucker on a chair at the beach either, people don't usually steal books....

[richwhite9]

 

Am I missing something? Is the free music generation upset that they can't have free movies, TV shows & audiobooks?

Someone please enlighten me.

 

Creative works should be free . That's the new mantra.

 

I'm sure Jobs will be lobbying to remove the DRM on other products as soon as he's a big enough player to have the same clout he did in music.

 

Apple has no respect for DRM and proprietary creative rights unless it's something they stole.

 

[Bridog6996]

I think pricing will be key on this. HP et al have their own compact tablets (is that a term?) coming out soon. We know they won't be as cool, but that may not matter so much for a gigging pro if they're significantly cheaper and you can get similar software. And I say that as both an iMac and iPhone user.

 

HP's Slate will be a different beast altogether than the iPad, because it will basically be a full-fledged computer, running Windows 7, and capable of running desktop level applications. So in that light I think it will be a LOT cooler. Maybe not as trendy, but infinitely more versatile. You won't need any special "apps" for music notation. You can go ahead and run Sibelius or Finale. Of course, it will almost certainly cost more, but I think will be more worth having.

 

They announced the Slate about a month ago, but there's no release date as of yet. I think they're letting Apple go ahead and test the waters before they dive in.

[FunkKeysStuff]

I can usually figure out what they're saying but sometimes I'm thrown for a loop. A few days ago an iPhone user figured out a novel way to spell the word "switch" and for the life of me I couldn't make sense of the text.

 

Probably an auto-correct casualty.

 

(BTW, I have a reputation as being something of an oddball for sending texts that are not only typo-free, but also written in complete, correct sentences, with capital letters and punctuation and everything. And I do it from my iPhone.)

 

And yeah, I think the Rinich article is pretty much dead-on. It's similar to the "I'm a PC" commercials in response to the Mac ads. IMHO, once you start quoting your competition's catch phrases in your own ads (even if only to point out that they're wrong), you've pretty much conceded defeat. At that point you're living in their world and playing their game, instead of defining your own.

 

Same thing with whatever phone it was that had the commercial with a claymation iPhone on the Island of Misfit Toys. What phone was it actually a commercial for? I have absolutely no idea. In fact I don't even know if it was for a specific phone, or a carrier, or what. All I remember is, it was the Misfit Toys (a deeply ingrained, happy image from my childhood), and hey, there was a claymation iPhone right there with them! In other words they successfully linked their competition's product to my happy magical childhood memories. What's more, they did a really good job of it. Companies spend millions, probably billions of dollars to do that with their own products, and these clowns did it for the product they were trying to beat. For my money, that makes it the best iPhone commercial yet, and the Worst Ever Commercial In Human History in terms of effectively promoting its own product (whatever it was).

 

Sorry, off-topic rant over...

[Joe Muscara]

The whole platform is locked down tighter than a drum. No apps unless apple approved. DRM city, baby.

I'm sure Jobs will be lobbying to remove the DRM on other products as soon as he's a big enough player to have the same clout he did in music.

 

Apple has no respect for DRM and proprietary creative rights unless it's something they stole.

Which one of you is right?

[Bridog6996]

Same thing with whatever phone it was that had the commercial with a claymation iPhone on the Island of Misfit Toys.

 

That commercial wasn't by any competition. It was by Verzion promoting their new iPhone service. So yeah, mission accomplished apparently.

[video:youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O30bXECD36I

[Bill H.]

I can usually figure out what they're saying but sometimes I'm thrown for a loop. A few days ago an iPhone user figured out a novel way to spell the word "switch" and for the life of me I couldn't make sense of the text.

Probably an auto-correct casualty.

Maybe that was it. The conversation went something like this-

 

iPhone texter: "Maybe you need a new swish"

Me: "I need a WHAT?!?!

[Mr.E]

You may like it, you may not like it, but Apple shares dropped almost 10% since iPad announcment. I think that is the answer that Stevie J. only cares about.

 

Cheers,

Ed

[GovernorSilver]

You may like it, you may not like it, but Apple shares dropped almost 10% since iPad announcment. I think that is the answer that Stevie J. only cares about.

 

Cheers,

Ed

 

Incorrect.

 

There are more powerful economic forces at work than Apple's latest consumer appliance. Powerful enough to affect the entire stock market, not just one company:

 

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/economy-watch/2010/01/stocks_down_following_dim_jobs.html

 

"New jobless claims filed last week dropped by a less-than-expected 8,000 to 470,000. Forecasters were expecting the number to come in at 450,000, which illustrates the grinding nature of this recovery: slow, uneven, clunky.

 

Elsewhere, orders to factories for big-ticket items in December rose 0.3 percent. That sounds like good news, but it was far less than the 2 percent rise forecasters had been expecting.

 

For all of 2009, orders for big-ticket durable goods dropped 20.2 percent, the steepest plunge on record dating back to 1992. That means consumers are holding off on buying items such as refrigerators and businesses are holding off on buying airplanes, and the like."

 

 

[Joe Muscara]

Steven P. Jobs cares not for stock price!

[GovernorSilver]

The Dow was up by around 100 points this morning. Would the iPad get credit there? Or maybe it was because the news was released this morning that the US GDP had grown 1.1 percentage points higher than estimated?

 

Now it is down again. Right, it's because of the iPad.

 

If your financial advisor is basing everything on one Apple product, fire him immediately before you lose all your money.

[Bridog6996]

I hear the iPad is the cause of this whole health care mess.

[FunkKeysStuff]

I hear the iPad is the cause of this whole health care mess.

 

Not only that, I heard it can't do the Herbie Rhodes sound.

[GovernorSilver]

I hear the iPad is the cause of this whole health care mess.

 

I heard the Vikings lost to the Saints because of the iPad.

[mate stubb]

The iPad came in at a lower price and with fewer features than rumored by some pundits.

 

Apple left room for a bigger brother or second generation that operates more like a netbook tha a mobile device.

 

And that will be called...

 

 

 

 

 

the iMaxiPad!

[kanker.]

The whole platform is locked down tighter than a drum. No apps unless apple approved. DRM city, baby.

I'm sure Jobs will be lobbying to remove the DRM on other products as soon as he's a big enough player to have the same clout he did in music.

 

Apple has no respect for DRM and proprietary creative rights unless it's something they stole.

Which one of you is right?

Both are. Apple will look to get DRM loosened on all content but their own closed systems.

[Joe Muscara]

Really, I was going after Rich's apparent point that Apple/Jobs want to give away creative content. I seriously do not think that removing DRM shows a lack of respect for content creators. Fer chrissake, Jobs is a major player in one of the huge creators in Disney.

[burningbusch]

Upon further review, I don't know that the iPad is going to cut it for me as a Netbook replacement, which was how I originally viewed it.

 

Issues:

 

A) Multiple browser windows/tabs. Does the iPhone Safari browser support this? I use this all the time. The idea that you have to close out of a website to view something else would be really cumbersome.

 

B) Printing. Can you print to a network printer? I don't think so. Can you even transfer an iWork document to your Mac via WiFi or do you have to plug it in USB?

 

C) No support for web plugins. I was aware of Flash but there are others that I use. I can imagine bumping into this issue on a regular basis. It's not going to give you the full web experience.

 

D) No multitasking. Again, I was aware of this limitation initially but it's a big deal, IMO.

 

E) Moving around the touch screen will probably be more of a pain than pleasure. The mouse/keyboard are very precise, fingers alone are not. I've had enough experience with my iPod Touch to know this is probably going to be an issue.

 

I was at Best Buy the other day and they had a bunch of Netbooks on display, most around $350 or less with full laptops only about $100 more. These have none of the above limitations and in the end offer a lot more capabilities for less money. I like Apple products and own a number of them. They are an option for me, but not my only option.

 

Busch.

[Bill Heins]

Jobs heads Pixar which cut the Disney connection not too long ago...funny thing is they use all Intel PCs running Linux and have for a few years since their switch from Windows based PCs. They generally use Maya for 3d creation and then their own Renderman for shading and rendering.

 

Bill

[Joe Muscara]

A) Multiple browser windows/tabs. Does the iPhone Safari browser support this? I use this all the time. The idea that you have to close out of a website to view something else would be really cumbersome.

Yes, it does. There aren't tabs, but there's a button to switch between browser windows or whatever they call them. I don't know if the iPad will use that or actual tabs since it's bigger. I think the iPhone does it the way it does because of the smaller interface.

 

E) Moving around the touch screen will probably be more of a pain than pleasure. The mouse/keyboard are very precise, fingers alone are not. I've had enough experience with my iPod Touch to know this is probably going to be an issue.

I don't think so. I think the larger size will eliminate the issues that the smaller interface does, such as accidentally hitting links.

 

Jobs heads Pixar which cut the Disney connection not too long ago

You missed the end of that story, didn't you? After all the back and forth,

 

Disney announced on January 24, 2006 that it had agreed to buy Pixar for approximately $7.4 billion in an all-stock deal. Following Pixar shareholder approval, the acquisition was completed May 5, 2006. The transaction catapulted Steve Jobs, who was the majority shareholder of Pixar with 50.1%, to Disney's largest individual shareholder with 7% and a new seat on its board of directors. Jobs' new Disney holdings exceed holdings belonging to ex-CEO Michael Eisner, the previous top shareholder, who still held 1.7%; and Disney Director Emeritus Roy E. Disney, who held almost 1% of the corporation's shares.

 

As part of the deal, Pixar co-founder John Lasseter, by then Executive Vice President, became Chief Creative Officer (reporting to President and CEO Robert Iger and consulting with Disney Director Roy Disney) of both Pixar and the Walt Disney Animation Studios, as well as the Principal Creative Adviser at Walt Disney Imagineering, which designs and builds the company's theme parks. Catmull retained his position as President of Pixar, while also becoming President of Walt Disney Animation Studios, reporting to Bob Iger and Dick Cook, chairman of Walt Disney Studio Entertainment. Steve Jobs' position as Pixar's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer was also removed, and instead he took a place on the Disney board of directors.

 

Lasseter and Catmull's oversight of both the Disney and Pixar studios did not mean that the two studios were merging, however. In fact, additional conditions were laid out as part of the deal to ensure that Pixar remained a separate entity, a concern that analysts had had about the Disney deal Some of those conditions were that Pixar HR policies would remain intact, including the lack of employment contracts. Also, the Pixar name was guaranteed to continue, and the studio would remain in its current Emeryville, California location with the "Pixar" sign. Finally, branding of films made post-merger would be "DisneyPixar" (beginning with Cars).

 

Jim Morris, producer of WALLE, has been named general manager of Pixar. In this new position, Morris is in charge of the day-to-day running of the studio facilities and products.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pixar#Acquisition_by_Disney