Skipping the Context and drowning in the Past

Much as we are resistant to the tide, so the tide continues to wash over us. We build barriers, dykes and dams to hold the sea back, but its continual pounding on the shoreline eventually wears all barriers down, even the modern constructions we feel are so resistant to change.

The beauty of the seas constant bombardment of our shores has meant those of us over the millennia who have lived close to them have had to figure out ways of managing the changes brought about by the tide washing over us. Adapting to those changes, realising the changes they bring does not necessarily affect they way we live in the longer term, but can help us live better.

Putting up barriers, walls may keep people happy in their preservation. For a time. However, sooner or later, either those barriers break down or people move on.

Somehow, it seems the same applies to technology.

Kindle, the future is medium

I’ve just read another piece lionising the Kindle as the device to end all Book Buying.

I appreciate there is a large minority of the population, and probably not just ‘early adopters’ who think Kindle is the best thing they have ever used. And Amazon’s sales numbers, seem to further that point. Though as Amazon don’t release specific numbers for Kindle, there is no way of comparing them to say, iPod touch or even iPhone.

For me the fundamental failure of this article, as appears regularly in the majority of the commentariat, is that it ignores the biggest downside of Kindle as a hardware platform. And really, I probably wouldn’t mind so much this detraction was missed if it wasn’t that this downside does seem reasonably obvious to Amazon themselves.

The future of Kindle isn’t in a single function device. This is why there are Kindle apps for iPhone, Android etc. Kindle, the piece of kit, is already and will continue to affect the traditional book publishing system in the short term

Apple’s Paint Splatters

Update: How wrong was I? I still think they went too soon, and should’ve heeded my advice!

The second still-outstanding claim from Mac4Ever relates to Apple’s much-rumored tablet, which has recently been reported to be delayed until the second half of 2010, although the veracity of the claim is unknown. Mac4Ever’s claim, however, provides only a vague suggestion that the tablet will be unlike any concept designs or renditions that have been floating around in recent months.

Concerning MacTablet, it will indeed be produced, but it will be far different from the concepts that have been announced so far on rumor sites.

via macrumors.com

The Mac4Ever suggestion as reported last November in MacRumours seems more apt now in light of Apple’s Invite to it’s 27th January 2010 Launch.