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The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

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Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#101

Post by rsynnott »

flixic wrote: post #69
Slartie wrote: post #42

The iPad has failed as a general purpose computing device, sure. But it has succeeded (along with other tablet devices of similar form factor) as a basis for a large and growing number of single-purpose use cases in various industries: - iPad POS are popular in smaller coffee shops and similar outlets - iPad-based document viewing solutions are used by pilots to replace large bags with manuals for planes that they us…

The issue with each of these examples is that hardware advancements barely matter. $200 Android tablet with a simple enough design works just as well. Apple doesn't want to participate in such markets. That's why they try to push creativity narrative, "what's a computer" and so on. iPad can only succeed as a premium enough product, and that requires software differentiation.

> . $200 Android tablet with a simple enough design works just as well.

I mean, the normal (and I assume best selling) iPad is about 300, and will likely be supported for a lot longer than the Android one (my Air 2 is getting on for 6 years old).

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#102

Post by jleach82 »

perilunar wrote: post #48
Maakuth wrote: post #14

> How would anyone ever figure out how to split-screen multitask on the iPad if they didn’t already know how to do it? I actually recently got my first personal iOS (okay, iPadOS) device and this is how I feel about many of the UI features. Touching some side of the screen triggers this or that surprising feature and I'm struggling to undo what I did to get back to the business. Maybe what's needed is good old RTFM,…

There is a manual of sorts: Tips.app There’s also an iPad User Guide you can download in the Books.app.

Last year I got an iPad, my first Apple device (I needed ForeFlight for flying, and it's only available for iPad). I downloaded a few manuals for ForeFlight, which apparently went to Books. I pulled one up in Books, spent a few minutes glancing and things, and spent the next 15 minutes trying to figure out how to get out of the current book back to my list of books. Finally took it to my wife (a long-time Apple fan), and it took her about 3 minutes of tapping and dragging various places. In the end, neither of us knew how we did it.

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#103

Post by mtgx »

arethuza wrote: post #100
devxpy wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. If it were not for the OS, the hardware seems to be a lot more capable than casual entertainment. These use cases simply don't push the hardware to its limits.

My iPad must be 4 or 5 years old and seems perfectly capable of pretty much everything I use it for (videos from various sources), lightweight web browsing, looking at pictures, browsing Ordnance Survey maps... Only reason I would upgrade is if I break it (unlikely as I don't take it outside very often) or when iOS upgrades stop (which is what happened to two previous iPads I have in a drawer somewhere).

He meant UX and feature-wise capable, not hardware-wise.

He's right, if the OS itself was more advanced, than even if the same people who own iPads now wouldn't be interested in using those features other than their regular media consumption, it would still open up a new market for the iPad (new target audience). But with its current limitations, it can't do that.

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#104

Post by thoughtsimple »

acqq wrote: post #36
jwr wrote: post #20

This is a very good take on the subject. I love the iPad, I use it all the time. It's an unbelievably good piece of hardware with a number of really good software applications. It is a surprisingly good thinking and note-taking tool, it's the best tool (period) for reading datasheets (or any large PDF documents), it is a great music workstation if you connect a MIDI keyboard and/or an external USB audio interface. Bu…

> The worst thing is that the forced over-simplification of the UI features did not make it easier to use for beginners. I believe Gruber argues completely the opposite: that the recent changes to add features like split screen make it more confusing (e.g. the example of his mother getting stuck in the split screen and calling him). He continues in the very article we comment here (emphasis mine): "if I could go back…

"if I could go back to the pre-split-screen, pre-drag-and-drop interface I would. Which is to say, now that iPadOS has its own name, I wish I could install the iPhone’s one-app-on-screen-at-a-time, no-drag-and-drop iOS on my iPad Pro. I’d do it in a heartbeat and be much happier for it."

Weirdly there is just a setting and it is strange that Gruber doesn’t know about it.

Settings->HomeScreen & Dock->Multitasking->Allow Multiple Apps

“Drag applications from the Dock or Home screen to create Split View and Slide Over apps. Swipe from the right edge to reveal your last Slide Over app.”

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#105

Post by jxdxbx »

Slide Over is one of the best features out there. And it’s as simple as can be. You get what amounts to a mini iPhone available on command. And split screen is not only very useful, I think it’s a fundamentally better multitasking model that the traditional desktop OS for screens under 23” or so.

I agree that adding apps to multitasking seems to baffle people. But this seems like it can

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#106

Post by majewsky »

Phenix88be wrote: post #90
acqq wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The worst thing is that the forced over-simplification of the UI features did not make it easier to use for beginners. I believe Gruber argues completely the opposite: that the recent changes to add features like split screen make it more confusing (e.g. the example of his mother getting stuck in the split screen and calling him). He continues in the very article we comment here (emphasis mine): "if I could go back…

> And Steve Jobs was old enough to learn that much earlier: that the "modes" are bad and that good UI doesn't require one to do some magic to switch between them, as it can be summarized in the joke: "How to Quit Vim and Exit the VI Editor — the most popular Stack Overflow question -- and I'm using vi last two years because I can't figure out how to exit it." The more a software do, the less it's user friendly... You…

I would argue that vi(m) is more user-friendly by being more upfront about its learning curve.

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#108

Post by ghaff »

gherkinnn wrote: post #92
ghaff wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The iPad arguably succeeded because it wasn’t a convertible. However, now, especially given big phones, it feels as if some sort of tablet/laptop convergence will eventually be the future.

I’d argue that the iPad is an excellent chance to downgrade to a less capable phone. Get an iPhone ~8 — no need for an 11 in combination with an iPad.

Mostly disagree. The camera progression on newer iPhones is a big differentiator [for many]. Also I don’t more or less always have an iPad in a pocket like I do a phone.

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#109

Post by TrickyRick »

Aissen wrote: post #82
bronco21016 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If all of them disappeared into thin air one night then nearly the entire global aviation system would come to a screeching halt. It’s the device of choice among air carriers for navigation charts. Paper backup isn’t even carried anymore. We just carry extra iPads and batteries. I’m not sure any of the charting apps used by air carriers are even available on another OS at this point. I’ve never been aware of JeppFD P…

Why couldn't you put the app on an iPhone or iPod touch ? Or in a simulator on MAC ? It's not like the device is essential. It might be more practical for some purposes, but not essential.

Because of the form factor. iPad is close in size to the papers used before. iPhone is way too small and a Mac is way too big and clumsy. Also a Mac has a clamshell design as opposed to being just a tablet that fits nicely in front of the pilot.

Re: The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10

#110

Post by TrickyRick »

e_proxus wrote: post #91
cm2187 wrote: post #4

Text selection is the most broken thing to me on an ipad. It makes any kind of editing pretty much unusable. Great device to browse the web from my bathtub and watch movies on a plane, but haven’t found any other usage.

My favorite pet peeve is trying to edit URLs in the address bar in Safari. Just trying to get the cursor to the end of the address field a an error prone chore. Often the text is select and there’s no way to unselect it. Then of course it doesn’t help when you want to remove some components of the URL that Safari helpfully autocompletes back to the URL you jus visited.

Force touching on the keyboard gives your finger control over the cursor more like a touch pad on a computer. It works really well on the iPhone, not sure if it's available on iPad. But yet again, one of those feature you just have to know about to use.
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