Hi Billy, On Jul 17, 2013, at 1:13 PM, [email protected] wrote:
> The real question is why iPads caught on and why the PC response > was inadequate. My answer: Instead of making PCs easier to use > feature creep became an all-consuming passion.The fact is, a lot of geeks > are in love with "geekism," speaking only to other geeks, out-geeking > other geeks, with almost no interest in non-geek needs and desires. > Which is true of ALL electronic devices, not just computers. > If you are a non-geek consumer, in other words, screw you. That's only half-true. The flip-side of feature creep is a refusal to remove features. As someone who last I checked was still using AOL 9 (in Spanish?!?), that's an attitude you have more sympathy with. -- Ernie P. > > > No interest in the fundamentals of education, how to teach people anything, > just assume that they are all geeks. > > Apple knew better. Microsoft did not. And so XP, for many people, remains > the superior product and Vista, Windows 7, and now # 8 are orphans. > > Its the feature creep, stupid. > > > My humble opinion > Billy > > > ------------------------------------------------------------- > > > ZD Net > The one event that destroyed the PC industry > > Summary: While many factors played a part in the implosion of PC sales, > there's no doubt as to what catalyzed the catastrophe – the launch of the > iPad. > > By Adrian Kingsley-Hughes for Hardware 2.0 | July 17, 2013 > > Just as with the demise of the dinosaurs, many theories have been put forward > as to why the PC industry ground to a sudden halt the way it did. Some blamed > consumer boredom with Windows, while other pointed the finger at an overall > flaccid economy, while pointed to the ethereal 'post-PC' shift. Others weaved > more elaborate models revolving around Moore's law or even changing > aesthetics. > > While these factors may have played a part in the implosion of PC sales, a > chart published by analyst firm Asymco leaves us with no doubt as to what > catalyzed the catastrophe – the iPad. > > Since its launch in April 2010, worldwide PC shipments have been in freefall, > with year-on-year percentage growth that was once in strong double-digit > territory now having nosedived quite alarmingly into negative double-digit > terrain. > > > (Source: Asymco) > So, while there's little doubt that we've shifted from an era dominated by > the PC to one ruled by post-PC devices, this shift clearly coincides with the > introduction of the iPad. > > Tablets have, in one form or another, been around for decades. Microsoft has > tried – and failed – on several occasions to take them mainstream. But it was > Apple's iPad – with that name that many thought would doom it to failure – > which took the idea of a tablet computer and transformed it into a > marketable, successful product. > > This, in turn, paved the way for Android-powered slates, and then devices > powered by Windows RT and Windows 8. > > What didn't help following the launch of the iPad was the way that Microsoft, > along with its hardware partners, started furiously churning out expansive, > poor quality tablets that OEMs could only convince consumers to buy by > offering them at firesale prices. This confusion allowed the iPad to gain > ground on the PC, and cemented its position as a game changer. > > What's interesting are the suggestions that the post-PC industry could also > be headed for stagnation, as the high-end smartphone market becomes crowded. > If this turns out to be the case, then beleaguered PC firms scrabbling for > new markets could find themselves leaping headlong into another imploding > market. > > > -- > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > -- -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
