Steve Speak

iPad image from Apple

That is a question I have been considering not too long after the announcement of Apple’s new iPad product-line. Initially, I had been in the camp hoping the new tablet would be some kind of OSX device. While I would still love to see such a device, it is also apparent that one would sacrifice battery life even if it were considerably slower than my current laptop. Slower I could deal with, less battery life I can not. iPhone OS was clearly the way to go for a device of this size/weight.

First a bit of a review:

The iPad has some distinct advantages. First, it leads to much longer battery life. Apple is stating 10 hours of Web surfing or watching video. I’m guessing that if you’re doing less intensive stuff it will go considerably longer. However, 10 hours is enough for most people to be able to charge over-night and not have to worry about lugging a power-brick and cord (like laptop users must). That saves more weight.

Second, this thing is small and light:

• Height: 9.56 inches (242.8 mm)
• Width: 7.47 inches (189.7 mm)
• Depth: 0.5 inch (13.4 mm)
• Weight: 1.5 pounds (0.68 kg)

I probably don’t need to say much more about this. We all want to lug less weight around with us. My current laptop (2006 MacBook Pro) weighs in at like 6.7 pounds when I include the power-brick (that’s the smaller one now available,the original would push it over 7 pounds) and cord. Even if I add an external Bluetooth keyboard for the iPad (about 14 ounces), I’d still be under 2.5 pounds (which is still less than a MacBook Air).

Then there is stuff like instant on/off. You push the power button… it’s ready to go, push it again, it’s ready to be put away. Believe it or not, this makes a big difference when you’re on the go and want to just take down a quick note or look something up. Similar is not having to open it up and find a place to set it down. Imagine trying to look something up on your laptop while standing on a train or bus, hanging onto the bar with one hand. I can easily do this with my iPod Touch, and I’d guess I could with the iPad without too much more trouble. It would require some gymnastics with a laptop. But these things are also handy when in a more casual meeting where everyone doesn’t have the laptops out and setup, and then you need some info or to jot a note down. A laptop is much more hassle and disruptive to the flow of things. I also like having the ability to use a virtual keyboard or real one (and when I say real one, I’m not talking about an undersized one you’d find on a netbook). The touch interface is excellent for these situations as well.

There are a few downsides:

- CPU power – Obviously, it doesn’t have the computing power of a laptop.

- Interface – It doesn’t have all the connectors like USB and ethernet (though it has WiFi and optional cellular data).

- Storage – It doesn’t have the storage capacity of a laptop with a hard-drive.

- Camera – They left the web-cam off which would be nice for video-conferencing. (I’m going to guess the 2nd generation will, if you can wait that long.)

- Multi-tasking – It doesn’t have full OSX-like (or Windows-like) multi-tasking…. yet. But, even so, really think about what you need that for when doing mobile type stuff. I mainly want to have IM open while doing something else… it can do that. Or, listen to music while I work on other stuff… it can do that. Have a VoIP call open while I look something up… can’t do, yet. I’m hoping they will open up the multi-tasking a bit to allow this to happen, and I think Jobs has already alluded to their doing so. But, that isn’t a deal-killer for me.

Other reported downsides (or disappointments) and my responses:

- No hand-writing recognition – I just don’t get this one. I assume these people have never used it and just think it would be cool or useful. I suppose for a few it could, but to the rest… learn to type! There is no way a person could handwrite such that it could be recognized at a rate anywhere near what someone could type… even on a virtual keyboard, let alone a real one.

- lack of 4G – I guess this is valid, though I’m thinking of taking that external anyway with something like a MiFi or Overdrive unless the plan is VERY cheap (in Canada). I also don’t want a plan for each device, and with MiFi, I could use any device (as well as others with me) on one plan. I also save the additional cost of the 3G model then.

- lack of Flash – I don’t want to get into this one too much. There is a big political aspect to it, and I think Apple is trying to push web standards over stuff like Flash (which I agree with them on). However, there is also a very practical side. Flash sucks! Battery, but also in its instability.

But, can it replace a laptop?

First, I need to make it clear that for most people, this will be a ‘second computer’. It isn’t going to replace the OSX or Windows desktop, for example. I’m talking about laptops for mobile work here.

The real answer to this question is going to be different for everyone. If you need to do things like Photoshop, CAD, etc. while you’re mobile, than obviously not very likely (though there will undoubtedly be those kinds of apps eventually… but unlikely for serious work). I suspect, though, that most people will be able to cover the kinds of things they do with the iPad. What does a typical person do anyway? Check their calendar and make appointments, address book, surf, e-mail, instant message, maybe VoIP. They use word processing, take notes (in class or meetings), spreadsheet, and presentations. The iPad can do all these things. I know when I learned that it has video out, and the ability to present Keynote presentations, I was pretty sold!

What I recommend is that you start making a list of things you do while you’re mobile, and especially note things you ever find yourself doing that you wouldn’t be able to do on the iPad, or things which would be difficult to do on it. Maybe rank them as to how important it is, or if it was something you think you’d seldom have to do or have to do a lot. This way you can make a clear decision when it is released. You may well find some show-stopper, but I have not yet.

The iPad also has some other benefits, even around home. Have you ever tried to use a laptop while laying in bed? This thing will allows me to read books or surf the Web in very relaxed locations a laptop just won’t. A laptop isn’t that nice at the park or a beach… though it will remain to be seen how the screen does in those environments (that might be the one big Kindle advantage for e-books). This is really geeky, but I was thinking it would even fit into our recipe holder on the kitchen counter… try that with a laptop!

I also think it would be nice for families that currently have more than one computer. You could have a desktop with multiple accounts for the heavy-lifting, and then iPads (which are cheaper than laptops) for individual use so desktop-time isn’t always being fought over.

Ultimately, it might be harder to decide what to do with your iPhone or iPod Touch than your laptop. I think I would still need to take my iPod touch along, as the iPad won’t make a good iPod in a lot of ways. It won’t just fit into my pocket and be easily accessible for my music playing like the iPod is. I take my iPod to the grocery store, for example, and the iPad would be just too much for that. But, it also seems a bit silly and redundant to have both.

You probably are aware of this scam concerning wifi, as it is not new. But for OSX users, I just wanted to post a visual of it. I took this screen-shot on a recent trip while I was at the airport. As you can see, you should be looking for a network to join up where it says TELUS. If you look under ‘Computer-to-Computer Networks’ you will see ‘Free Public WiFi’ and ‘tmobile’. Both of these are scams. They are probably people sitting in the airport with their personal sharing turned on, waiting for someone to connect to the Internet through them. They can then capture packets of data, and look for people logging into services. Many services an average user might connect to are not all that secure (ie: properly encrypted passwords, etc.). They snag this info and then can use it.

Even if you connect to an actual router… such as ‘TELUS’, it could still be a scam. However, it is certainly more complicated to to setup that scam. Also, if you are somewhere such as an airport, there are usually advertisements as to what the name of the service is you should be seeing.

Also, just to be safe, whenever you are in a place using a Internet connection other than your own, be aware of what kind of services and things you sign into. The big problem is that many people check their e-mail, which is not a super-secure thing to do. While you can’t ever make yourself totally safe, you can prevent a lot of problems with just a bit of care.

Those of you who read my blog know that I often pick on Microsoft. I must confess that this is because I am both busy and lazy. It takes a lot of time to research and write commentary on things like Global Warming, Intelligent Design, or the Impact of the Reformation on Seventeenth century life. M$ just makes it so easy to knock off a quick blog with all their crazy antics.

But today I thought…. “hmm, I still don’t have time to write a ‘real’ article…. and I pick on M$ too much… maybe I can find some something nice to say about them…” I mean, they did delay the release of Vista for a long time to ensure product quality. That’s positive, right?

So, I fire up Safari to peruse the typical news sites looking at what Microsoft has been up to lately.

In the recent article “Microsoft: We’re not Google, and we’re proud of it” it is clear that M$ has decided to start upholding the law rather than breaking it. In a move to protect content providers, they believe the ‘fingerprinting’ technology in their Soapbox video-sharing site will be much more responsible than Google’s YouTube. It is refreshing to see such a drastic change after the drama and lies during the anti-trust trials and their long history of patent infringement.

But it is not just lawyers and corporations… Microsoft looks out for its user base as well. Another recent “news article” makes me aware of another great M$ technology called WGA. Coming from the Macintosh world, I was not aware of this technology. Will those innovators at M$ never stop? WGA is an acronym for Windows Genuine Advantage. This incredibly cool feature of Windows XP and Vista keeps you securely tethered to the the M$ mother-ship. Let’s say that you accidently installed Windows on some computer. WGA protects you from the legal hassles you might face if you were caught. As the article points out, the system still has a few bugs and hiccups. It recently prevented hundreds of legitimate users from using their computers for 19 hours or so (possibly for days or weeks if they were traveling)… but this is really a small price to pay to keep a few disorganized people out of jail, don’t you think?

Even the family lives of the leaders of this great company are not forgotten. For example, current CEO Steve Ballmer has apparently read about the danger of things children might find using search engines on the Internet, as well as incidents of assault and theft of iPods recently. He says, “My children–in many dimensions they’re as poorly behaved as many other children, but at least on this dimension I’ve got my kids brainwashed: You don’t use Google, and you don’t use an iPod.” It is great to see parents concerned for their children’s welfare in this age of ‘hands off’ parenting.

And, despite all the success, leaders at M$ remain completely humble. Gates says, “At Microsoft there are lots of brilliant ideas but the image is that they all come from the top – I’m afraid that’s not quite right.” Indeed, how could one person possibly take credit for vast innovation such as Microsoft BOB or the Paper Clip Assistant. How do they do it?

But what is Microsoft truly most gifted at? Marketing. Who else could come up with such a creative, positive name for Software Copy Protection as ‘Windows Genuine Advantage’. This is the true innovation going on at M$, and it leaves me, well…. speechless.

Ryan Block, writing this article at Engadget.com in November. I guess it is usually safe to bet on Apple, but this was a great commentary on the goofy statement by Palm CEO Ed Colligan. I’d have loved to be a fly on the wall when Ed saw the news from Steve Job’s keynote. I wonder if he is still smiling?

Here is a photo of the article, preserved for posterity (I love the ad for the iPhone now on the page too… kind of adds something special, dontcha think?):

I love the statement by Ed (Palm CEO): “We’ve learned and struggled for a few years here figuring out how to make a decent phone,” and “PC guys are not going to just figure this out. They’re not going to just walk in.”

Enter Apple… LOL (If you don’t understand what I mean… go to Apple’s web site and watch the part of the keynote on the iPhone.)

The original article can be found at:
http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/21/palms-ed-colligan-laughs-off-iphone/

Well, I guess it’s morning officially. In a few hours, Apple will be pulling the covers off whatever they have been teasing us about. The interesting thing is that I’m really not sure what to expect this year. In years past, I had been waiting on various products to be released…. especially on the computer front. This year, Apple already has the best computers on the market across the board. There really isn’t anything for them to do in that category. So, speculation seems to be that most of the announcements will be in the home theatre / phone category. I’m sure we’ll also see a bunch of nifty software released, as we usually do at January MacWorld. I’ll be roving the floor at the show later this week… maybe I’ll post some pics from it.

You never can be too safe living in the on-line world of today. If you read the ‘tech’ web sites, you are assured to find some article about a new exploit endangering your cyber existence. Even if you don’t follow the tech news, you would pretty much have to live in isolation of the media in order to be unaware of the dangers of the wiley wide web.

Heck, even us Mac users have been perking up and paying attention… over the last year security firms have found spots in OSX where a skillful hacker *could* potentially have caused us some problems. We’ve not seen a virus yet, so it’s not like panic has set in or anything… but one always has to be on guard. Some Mac users even go so far as to install anti-virus software, just in case!

But, while I was perusing some of those ‘tech’ sites this morning, I ran across a totally new approach. Duh! It seems M$’s Windows co-president, Jim Allchin, found a MUCH more simple way to avoid all these problems.

WARNING: Don’t read further if you are not sitting down….

It seems that Jim has actually unleashed his 7-year-old son…. to surf the net…. on a Windows machine…. WITHOUT anti-virus software! GASP!

OK… if you’re still with me… before you go into a state of shock, read on…

http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=193700656

“Honestly, he doesn’t have an antivirus system on his machine. His machine is locked down with parental controls, he can’t download things unless it’s to the places that I’ve said that he could do, and I’m feeling totally confident about that,” Allchin said. “That is quite a statement. I couldn’t say that in Windows XP SP2.”

Man, I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. All you have to do is lock down your computer with parental controls, so you can only go to a few known good web locations…. and you’re safe. How amazing is that?! Maybe he should patent the idea.

However, what I find even more amazing is that last sentence. Apparently, to get this safety, you’ll have to buy Vista (oh, and probably a new computer which can run Vista). I guess previous versions of Windows can catch a virus just by thinking about the Internet.

Well folks… there you have it. A simple solution from the great minds at M$. All you have to do is give them a couple hundred bucks…. buy a new computer… and lock down your parental controls for a 7-year-old… and you’re safe.

Oh, I guess the only thing I need to figure out now is how you determine the ‘safe list’ of web sites. Maybe Jim will be distributing this? Or, I guess you can call one of your friends with Mac.

But Jim, I have an even more simple solution…. why not just get a Mac and save yourself several hundred $.

(OK… I promise to write about something besides picking on M$ soon. But, they just make it so easy… ‘like shooting fish in a barrel’ I think the saying goes.)

ComputerWeekly just named Steve Jobs the greatest IT person of all times. He even beat out Bill Gates, who came in 3rd. Many will think this is just silly, but really… read the article. I think it is a well deserved honor. While he had a LOT of help… without his vision and drive, much of what we now know in the the IT world would not exist, or probably be greatly delayed.

ComputerWeekly article

My only question… where is my name?

I just ran across this article on Apple’s security problems. From the press lately, you’d think the sky was falling. Thankfully, John Welch has written this excellent article on what this really means, and some tips to help protect yourself. To sum it up, no, the sky isn’t falling chicken little. I especially liked the idiots who added a 3rd party wifi card to a MacBook, and then hacked it (so that makes what? one MacBook like this in the entire universe?… what dorks.)

http://www.informationweek.com/hardware/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=193001536

This week, I was a bit bummed about some issues Apple has been experiencing with their new MacBook Pro and MacBook models. It turns out that some manufacturing problems have lead to CPUs running hot (due to thermal paste application issues), and some problems with fan bearings. In one case, some plastic was left covering the back vents.

It became personal when I ran into the fan issue on the MacBook Pro that was issued to me at my job (YAY!). I ended up having to take it into the Apple Store to be repaired, and am currently awaiting its return. It’s not a big issue, mind you. Though, any day away from a new Mac can be quite traumatic (as any Mac user can attest).

However, I found that things could certainly be a lot worse. Sure, Apple has a problem now and then, but they are generally very good about fixing problems. And even with the problems, their products are still on par, or superior in quality to just about anything else on the market.

Case in point… I wonder how much press Dell will get compared to Apple on this one?

This photo is from the following article:
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=32550

The laptop was apparently set up at a conference table, when it ‘exploded’ into flames. Good thing it wasn’t on someone’s lap. Think about that the next time you’re sitting on the couch surfing the web! Yikes!

Now I’m certainly not saying that non-Apple laptops explode or burst in flames on a regular basis (not counting the Windows OS in a figurative sense, which happens VERY often). But, the types of issues Apple users tend to see are not uncommon at all with other higher end vendors, and very mild compared to the lower priced brands PC users are quick to refer to when comparing to Apple.

So, I’ll not complain too much about a bit of bearing noise in a fan… and a week away from the new little Mac… sniff, sniff. And even though Apple is getting quite a bit of press on ‘issues’ with their new laptop line… we just have to put it all into perspective.

It has been about a week now since Apple released the new MacBook. Apple has now almost completed the transition of its entire computer line over to Intel CPUs. I have now been an Apple user for two major chip architecture changes, and one complete OS transition. I have friends who could add a tick to both columns, though I joined the Apple fan club with the Macintosh. Meanwhile, my Wintel friends have endured maybe 1 such transitions (if they are old enough to have used DOS extensively.)

Sure, Apple has a way to go yet until some of the foundational applications are once again transitioned to what is called Universal Binary this time. But, as I said… we Apple faithful have been through this one before. Things are coming together quickly.

However, in reading some of the articles and forums the last month or so, it is very clear to me that many people just do not understand Apple’s position or what is going on in the industry. I have read so many comments that I will summarize into the following comment…

“Wow, Apple finally woke up and switched to Intel. They started using USB instead of FireWire and have even created Boot Camp to run Windows. Why don’t they just give up, dump OSX too, and go Windows like the rest of the world.”

Considering such attitudes or variations there of abound… (sometimes something similar even from Mac users!… sans dump OSX of course)… I thought maybe a bit of a history lesson and dose of reality is in order.

First, and most importantly, we need to put this transition to Intel into perspective. This is MUCH more a case of Intel finally waking up, than it is Apple. However, it really is a win-win situation, and there are some very good reasons why Apple has done this. However, despite popular opinion, performance is not the main thing Apple gains.

To put the performance issue to rest, I’ll share some Cinebench scores I collected from various web sites around the Internet of different processors. I’m using Cinebench as it is a real-world type of benchmark that truly pushes the CPU. It is also able to use multiple CPUs and is fairly well optimized to each hardware platform it runs on. I personally use ElectricImage Animation System, and have seen similar results there as well for rendering, but no such ‘benchmark’ type application exists for it.

Anyway… on to the data:

G5 MP 2.7 – 701

G5 MP 2.5 – 656

Xeon MP 3.4 – 643

MacBook Pro 2.16 – 626

MacBook Pro 2.0 – 575

MacBook 2.0 – 550

Pentium4 3.0 GHz – 347

As you can see, I have arranged them in order from fastest to slowest (ie: higher number is better). You can see that the G5 processor is king of the hill. IBM has really done a great job with this chip. That, of course, is why Apple went that direction several years back.

We can also guess that if we had a dual P4 system, that we might get close to the G5 systems… as 2×347 = 694. However, you can’t generally just double the single to get the dual, as some efficiency is lost in the process. I would guess a dual P4 wouldn’t be that much different than the dual xeon.

Apple had said Intel was going the wrong direction with the P4 architecture, and Intel has finally realized this. They have gone back more in the direction of the Pentium Pro, and introduced multiple cores and some other great stuff for the Duo Core line.

Now, yes, there ARE some AMD and Intel systems out there that have been custom built up and tweaked to perfection which will score higher than these two G5 systems. However, Apple has a Quad 2.5 GHz G5 system that will take out all but 1 or 2 very extreme AMD based systems on any of the benchmark sites I have seen.

My point being, that Apple didn’t mainly make the transition to Intel for performance. Then why did they switch? The following is somewhat speculation, but I’m pretty sure it is sound speculation.

The biggest reason is likely the supply chain and that Intel is dedicated to CPUs. In the past, Apple has always picked the BEST technology, but often at the expense of what is best in an overall business picture. If you are following the news, Apple was looking at some other processor options that might have been even better than the Intel move technologically… but could they deliver… on time, and in quantity? This is something Intel is very good at. Apple wanted to be certain that if they went through all this trouble to change architectures, they would be in the most solid place possible.

Second, this puts Apple lock-step in line with the Wintel market. Never again will the Wintel market be able to get goofed up over thinking their boxes are faster because they only know how to read the MHz label. If the machines use the same processors… then it comes down to who has the better OS and hardware design… something Apple has always been best at.

Apple is also very good at implementing new technology quickly. This means that Apple will probably have the very latest and best of what Intel produces into their systems and to market before many of the PC makers. The Duo Core chips are an example. Apple beat many of the Wintel makers to market by quite some time with their machines based on these CPUs.

Lower power was another huge factor for Apple. It has been no secret that while Apple has the best laptops on the market, they were starting to lag behind on raw CPU power by a bit. OSX kind of helps make up for this (as I’m sometimes amazed at all the things I have running on my 1.33 GHz Powerbook at one time, and it is still silky smooth), but at some point, they needed faster chips. IBM just didn’t seem to be motivated to make a low power G5.

Compatibility? Well, I suppose this might be kind of an ‘icing on the cake’ type factor. It certainly doesn’t hurt. Now PC users can confidently buy the Apple hardware they have been drooling over for years… and even run Windows on it if they want to do so. Also, Apple users can run Windows full speed when their companies write stupid apps that only run on Windows. And, by this, Apple gains somewhat of a Trojan Horse. No, not the virus kind… but more of a real one. If Windows users leave Mac OSX on their machines, they might use it some. Once they do for a bit… there ain’t no way they are going back.

So, I submit that these folks claiming Apple has finally woken up just don’t know what they are talking about. Just like all the folks who have been saying Apple will go out of business any day now… or those who have said Apple stock isn’t worth buying, etc.

Apple has always pioneered technology. Just consider this list of technologies that Apple has either pioneered, or has been a very early adopter:

GUI (yep… I’m old enough to have been laughed at by DOS users for my ‘pretty’ computer)
Mouse (yep… was laughed at for that too… the DOS folks though no one would ever be using those)
Laser Printer
PDA (remember the Newton anyone?)
Digital Camera
Wireless (at least made popular – Airport)
On-line music purchase

Got rid of floppy (well… I guess the Wintel crowd is having some trouble with this one…)
Made USB popular (yep… PCs might have had them first, but no one was really using them until Apple started.)

Oh, and BTW… Apple has not switched from Firewire to USB. All the Macs I know still have FireWire on them. FireWire is a vastly superior technology to USB for moving data, and is considerably faster. I use my FireWire port just as much as I use my USB ports for peripherals.

Apple has been QUITE awake all these years. Hopefully the Wintel users will start waking up one of these days and get with the program.