That's some serious retcon you've got going on there!
The Fire is many things, but an ebook reader with some extra little features is not one of them. Apps, video, music, web browsing... These are all prominent selling points of the Fire. Just look at the image on Amazon's site. It prominently features Mad Men, Angry Birds, a Facebook app, music, two magazines, and if you look closely, you can tell there's *one* book.
Perhaps you are thinking of just the regular Kindle? Those all feature ebooks as their primary function. And for good reason, as they are designed around exactly that usage, unlike the Fire.
And since no one has said it can't be done, I'm not sure why you are basing your post on this idea. Of course it *can* be done, but expecting it to be done doesn't fit the pattern.
Clearly the update will improve things, but it would be extremely naive to expect it to bridge the gap between it and the iPad to any meaningful extent, even considering the price difference.
Apparently you don't recall their launch event. Of course, Amazon probably never used the term "iPad killer", but it's obvious that's the exact market it's targeted at.
And it wasn't only the media. It was countless individuals, like poster here on Slashdot, Gizmodo, Engadget, and any other tech/nerd site, who proclaimed this would kill the iPad this Christmas, due to the fact that it's $200 and (the funniest recurring theme of them all) that it's "open".
This was bolstered by the fact that the Fire was heavily modified, so it shed the stigma of being "just another Android tablet", and became "an Android tablet, redesigned around the user experience".
As usual, the focus has shifted after yet another failure. This time it's about the software update that Amazon is working on. As though somehow this will play out different than every other time we've seen this pattern.
The Fire is awesome at what it was designed for, consuming media at a budget.
Maybe you should have actually read the story that you are so sick of seeing, and you'd notice that, no, it *isn't* good at that. And that's not what it was designed for.
Its design is two-fold. Internally, it's designed to sell you Amazon books, music, video, and apps. Externally (i.e., how it's marketed), it's designed to be used as a general purpose tablet. A task at which it also sucks at.
But don't worry, Amazon is going to roll out a fix in a few weeks that will *totally* take care of all the problems!
Apple has sold over 100 million apps on the Mac App Store in less than a year, so clearly people find value in the store.
The point isn't all the apps you don't want (what are you expecting? To want every single app you see? How would that even make any sense?), it's the 3 or 4 apps that you do want.
For example, iLife, iWork, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Plants vs Zombies, Peggle, Photoshop Express, Pixelmator, Trillian, Angry Birds, GeekTool...
And these are all in one place, with one login, with one billing system, so it's very simple to find, purchase, install, and update your apps, instead of having an assortment of individual store logins and passwords and licensing schemes, etc.
Right, because six monitors is *totally* normal...
And the rest of your rant has absolutely nothing to do with my post, but I'll bite.
On Windows, you can send keystrokes to background windows? There is a focus-follows-mouse mode in OS X, but just like on Linux, it's absurd. And AppleScript covers sending commands to other apps, even on other computers.
The notion that Macs have only one button mice is false, and has been for many years. It's a software option.
Page animations show you what the fuck just happened.
You're just handwaving here to justify your particular version of form over function.
"Um, Android is open, so, something, something, better!"
There are at least three fundamental flaws with this.
1. "something, something" doesn't exist. It's possible to exist, but it doesn't. When it exists, then let's talk. Until then, it's of absolutely no value. 2. The false notion that teachers are Matrix Hacker Gurus who want nerdlike power over classroom iPads. 3. You're still talking about a secondary aspect. Even if "something, something" existed, and teachers were wanting to micromanage classroom tablets in realtime, that doesn't address the fundamental reason for the class in the first place, which is to educate.
iPads are highly capable quality products that everyone is familiar with, that people want and enjoy using, and that has primary developer focus providing for an abundance of first-class classroom apps. They require very little administration overhead. Ok, so they don't let you customize the shit out of them. That's fine on a personal level, where you might prefer customization over all those other aspects, or even in some specialized organizational uses, where you might want to deploy a fleet of highly tailored tablets. But what value is that in a classroom?
You're going to have to provide more than "something, something" if you want to overcome some very real benefits, that actually exist right now, which significantly favor the iPad.
Frankly, if you have to ask this question you aren't really serious about succeeding.
What kind of bullshit is this? I'd say, the fact that he's seeking an answer to a question he doesn't know the answer to points to the fact that he is serious.
No, what they need is a system that gets out of their way and lets them focus on the classwork at hand. Apparently the iPad is more suitable for this than the competition.
If you're focusing on root access, then you are focusing on a secondary aspect that really has very little impact on the primary needs being addressed. I thought geeks were supposed to be against form over function? Isn't this a somewhat fundamentalist version of that?
The problem is that the ribbon interface has given up the advantages to the true power users in order to make undertrained desk jockeys marginally more efficient.
And which is going to have a greater overall impact? Making "undertrained desk jockeys" (what elitist tripe!) more efficient, or making "true power users" (more tripe) marginally (two can play at this game) less efficient?
I'm terms of greater impact overall to more people, you're on the wrong side of the equation on this one.
Are you also amazed that the Mac doesn't boot into a text mode by default, or that it doesn't require a reboot if you move the mouse to a different USB port?
Seriously, the menubar at the top is a key aspect of the Mac. You say "have to go all the way to the top", but the top is an infinite target. Just a flick gets you there, and you can't overshoot it.
Yes they have. I had Siri on my iPhone4 (not iPhone4 S) and it remained on my phone until i had to restore. I chose to restore from iCloud. An error appeared when it came time to restore Siri. They wouldn't re-install it from iCloud.
Sounds like remotely killing to me.
Then you need your ears checked. Remote killing an app means removing a currently installed app from a handset remotely. Apple has never done this, Google has. And Amazon has remotely killed books.
It's also a misleading summary. The guy isn't truly using a tablet as his primary computer, because the first thing he does is get a Bluetooth keyboard.
Yes, a bluetooth keyboard... for his tablet.
What he likes is super-long battery life, built-in mobile broadband, and a clean user interface.
You left out his like of the simplicity of the UI and the lack of maintenance of the OS.
Everything tablet-specific -- the touchscreen, the apps, the screen size -- he describes as worse than a laptop.
How so?
"Worse" implies suitability for a certain task or relative to a specific metric. How is any of this worse? Because the screen is smaller, it's worse? So, a 24" screen would be unarguably better? Or apps with cluttered UIs would be better? (in fact, he pointed out that that would be worse for him)
Funny your sig should mention not seeing the world in black and white, but in shades of gray, but your post is a gross mischaracterization that polarizes the issue of the utility of an iPad. It's not as simplistic as your Slashdot-friendly sarcasm states, not even close.
Slashdot Mirror
You're right, it's *not* a general tablet, but that is how it's marketed by Amazon.
That's some serious retcon you've got going on there!
The Fire is many things, but an ebook reader with some extra little features is not one of them. Apps, video, music, web browsing... These are all prominent selling points of the Fire. Just look at the image on Amazon's site. It prominently features Mad Men, Angry Birds, a Facebook app, music, two magazines, and if you look closely, you can tell there's *one* book.
Perhaps you are thinking of just the regular Kindle? Those all feature ebooks as their primary function. And for good reason, as they are designed around exactly that usage, unlike the Fire.
The issue isn't that it can't be done
And since no one has said it can't be done, I'm not sure why you are basing your post on this idea. Of course it *can* be done, but expecting it to be done doesn't fit the pattern.
Clearly the update will improve things, but it would be extremely naive to expect it to bridge the gap between it and the iPad to any meaningful extent, even considering the price difference.
Apparently you don't recall their launch event. Of course, Amazon probably never used the term "iPad killer", but it's obvious that's the exact market it's targeted at.
And it wasn't only the media. It was countless individuals, like poster here on Slashdot, Gizmodo, Engadget, and any other tech/nerd site, who proclaimed this would kill the iPad this Christmas, due to the fact that it's $200 and (the funniest recurring theme of them all) that it's "open".
This was bolstered by the fact that the Fire was heavily modified, so it shed the stigma of being "just another Android tablet", and became "an Android tablet, redesigned around the user experience".
As usual, the focus has shifted after yet another failure. This time it's about the software update that Amazon is working on. As though somehow this will play out different than every other time we've seen this pattern.
The Fire is awesome at what it was designed for, consuming media at a budget.
Maybe you should have actually read the story that you are so sick of seeing, and you'd notice that, no, it *isn't* good at that. And that's not what it was designed for.
Its design is two-fold. Internally, it's designed to sell you Amazon books, music, video, and apps. Externally (i.e., how it's marketed), it's designed to be used as a general purpose tablet. A task at which it also sucks at.
But don't worry, Amazon is going to roll out a fix in a few weeks that will *totally* take care of all the problems!
It's no iPad killer, but anyone who thinks they're going to get a 200 dollar product to replace a 500 dollar+ one is delusional.
You've just indicted 90% of contributors here on Slashdot...
and got modded +5, Insightful. Congrats!
There's very little wrong with the Kindle fire that can't be fixed with software.
You state that as though good software is so easy to write, it can be treated as an afterthought.
Sadly, many hardware makers share your view, which is one of the major reasons why every. single. iPad "killer" has failed miserably.
And what usage is the Fire intended for?
Answer: general tablet usage.
At which it fails, as shown by numerous examples, including this article.
The eInk Kindles, however, are fantastic ereaders, and also fit your analogy better.
Apple has sold over 100 million apps on the Mac App Store in less than a year, so clearly people find value in the store.
The point isn't all the apps you don't want (what are you expecting? To want every single app you see? How would that even make any sense?), it's the 3 or 4 apps that you do want.
For example, iLife, iWork, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Plants vs Zombies, Peggle, Photoshop Express, Pixelmator, Trillian, Angry Birds, GeekTool...
And these are all in one place, with one login, with one billing system, so it's very simple to find, purchase, install, and update your apps, instead of having an assortment of individual store logins and passwords and licensing schemes, etc.
That's some pretty convoluted logic. You've just passed your test. Congratulations, you are now a level 80 slashdot nerd!
Right, because six monitors is *totally* normal...
And the rest of your rant has absolutely nothing to do with my post, but I'll bite.
On Windows, you can send keystrokes to background windows? There is a focus-follows-mouse mode in OS X, but just like on Linux, it's absurd. And AppleScript covers sending commands to other apps, even on other computers.
The notion that Macs have only one button mice is false, and has been for many years. It's a software option.
Page animations show you what the fuck just happened.
You're just handwaving here to justify your particular version of form over function.
"Um, Android is open, so, something, something, better!"
There are at least three fundamental flaws with this.
1. "something, something" doesn't exist. It's possible to exist, but it doesn't. When it exists, then let's talk. Until then, it's of absolutely no value.
2. The false notion that teachers are Matrix Hacker Gurus who want nerdlike power over classroom iPads.
3. You're still talking about a secondary aspect. Even if "something, something" existed, and teachers were wanting to micromanage classroom tablets in realtime, that doesn't address the fundamental reason for the class in the first place, which is to educate.
iPads are highly capable quality products that everyone is familiar with, that people want and enjoy using, and that has primary developer focus providing for an abundance of first-class classroom apps. They require very little administration overhead. Ok, so they don't let you customize the shit out of them. That's fine on a personal level, where you might prefer customization over all those other aspects, or even in some specialized organizational uses, where you might want to deploy a fleet of highly tailored tablets. But what value is that in a classroom?
You're going to have to provide more than "something, something" if you want to overcome some very real benefits, that actually exist right now, which significantly favor the iPad.
Frankly, if you have to ask this question you aren't really serious about succeeding.
What kind of bullshit is this? I'd say, the fact that he's seeking an answer to a question he doesn't know the answer to points to the fact that he is serious.
No, what they need is a system that gets out of their way and lets them focus on the classwork at hand. Apparently the iPad is more suitable for this than the competition.
If you're focusing on root access, then you are focusing on a secondary aspect that really has very little impact on the primary needs being addressed. I thought geeks were supposed to be against form over function? Isn't this a somewhat fundamentalist version of that?
Which is pretty sad. They're presenting text and maybe some images, the "textbooks" should be platform agnostic.
Why? Why, instead of "platform agnostic", why not use the best platform? Isn't "the right tool for the job" the geek mantra?
Although, what "the right tool" really tends to mean is "whatever happens to be my tool of choice".
The problem is that the ribbon interface has given up the advantages to the true power users in order to make undertrained desk jockeys marginally more efficient.
And which is going to have a greater overall impact? Making "undertrained desk jockeys" (what elitist tripe!) more efficient, or making "true power users" (more tripe) marginally (two can play at this game) less efficient?
I'm terms of greater impact overall to more people, you're on the wrong side of the equation on this one.
Sorry, disregard my previous reply. I didn't notice your "one button mouse" quip at the end. I didn't realize you were just being ironic.
Are you also amazed that the Mac doesn't boot into a text mode by default, or that it doesn't require a reboot if you move the mouse to a different USB port?
Seriously, the menubar at the top is a key aspect of the Mac. You say "have to go all the way to the top", but the top is an infinite target. Just a flick gets you there, and you can't overshoot it.
Posted anon since I'm not pulling the /. party-line of hating on FF and evangelizing chrome.
Watch out, we got a bad ass over here.
An iPad with a keyboard is still an iPad.
You don't say PCs aren't good for artwork because they need Wacom tablets before you can do certain types of work more ably.
It's Apple's fault MS is doing this?
Once given you can rest assured any power will be abused.
That is demonstrably false.
Yes they have. I had Siri on my iPhone4 (not iPhone4 S) and it remained on my phone until i had to restore. I chose to restore from iCloud. An error appeared when it came time to restore Siri. They wouldn't re-install it from iCloud.
Sounds like remotely killing to me.
Then you need your ears checked. Remote killing an app means removing a currently installed app from a handset remotely. Apple has never done this, Google has. And Amazon has remotely killed books.
It's also a misleading summary. The guy isn't truly using a tablet as his primary computer, because the first thing he does is get a Bluetooth keyboard.
Yes, a bluetooth keyboard... for his tablet.
What he likes is super-long battery life, built-in mobile broadband, and a clean user interface.
You left out his like of the simplicity of the UI and the lack of maintenance of the OS.
Everything tablet-specific -- the touchscreen, the apps, the screen size -- he describes as worse than a laptop.
How so?
"Worse" implies suitability for a certain task or relative to a specific metric. How is any of this worse? Because the screen is smaller, it's worse? So, a 24" screen would be unarguably better? Or apps with cluttered UIs would be better? (in fact, he pointed out that that would be worse for him)
Funny your sig should mention not seeing the world in black and white, but in shades of gray, but your post is a gross mischaracterization that polarizes the issue of the utility of an iPad. It's not as simplistic as your Slashdot-friendly sarcasm states, not even close.