Bill Gates: iPad Users 'Frustrated'
http://www.informationweek.com/hardware/handheld/bill-gates-ipad-users-frustrated/240154235?google_editors_picks=trueBill Gates took to CNBC today to pitch Microsoft's line of Surface tablets, and he had some choice words for Apple's iPad and similar tablets. "A lot of those users are frustrated," said Gates. "They can't type, they can't create documents, they don't have Office there."
Gates pegged current tablets' lack of physical keyboards as their biggest detractor. There's no arguing that it's easier, quicker, and more accurate to pound out text with a physical keyboard. Today's mobile professionals grew up using typewriters, word processors, desktops and laptops -- all of which include real keyboards. There's something to be said for the muscle memory that comes from beating on keys for a decade or two.
The iPad and other tablets use virtual keyboards that appear on the display and come and go as needed when you need to enter text. They work, but they don't offer the same tactile response that comes with a real keyboard.
Gates then pointed out that the Surface RT and Surface Pro, Microsoft's two tablets, have keyboard options that make them more productive. Further, the Surface Pro runs a full version of Windows, which includes Microsoft Office, Outlook, and tons of productivity apps. The Surface, said Gates, offers the "portability of the tablet, but the richness of a PC."
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Yes, Bill, you are a very fair, objective and impartial observer.
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But I use mine for pretty much all. It really depends on the aps. I even have image manipulation on it, and yes...research dbases.
These are not the aps you see on adds though.
Maybe this century scrivener will go t the Ipad. If you got no idea go to literature and late and take a look...makes research that much easier and comes in Win and Mac flavors. For the momemt using Ilaro on the Ipad...and finally tamed those notes.
At 18" it's a little big for a "tablet", but it's really a full ultrabook PC in a tablet format. I've been running everything from Visual Studio to Photoshop to Eclipse on it and have no complaints. i5 processor, 8Gb RAM, 500GB HDD, USB 3...it has everything you'd find on any modern ultralight laptop, and about 5 hours of battery life.
It's very light and I've had no problems carrying it around the house and office with me, but I really do think that a slightly smaller version (15" or so) would be perfect. 18" is big enough that it's awkward to use one handed while standing, a problem that would be solved with a few less inches of screen space. Still, if you want a "tablet style" computer, it's worth taking a look at. I think it's the first PC with that form factor to really get it right.
And I'm happy to report that it dual boots Linux Mint just fine, so you're not even stuck with Windows 8 
Tablets are still 'relatively' new. I'm sure there's an army of geeks sweating in the early morning hours trying to cram it all in. They'll get it...eventually.
Until then, you're stuck with a laptop. Unless you switch careers. iPads are great for Real Estate agents! 
But it does kick me out of apps with annoying frequency. Maybe I'm just unlucky. 
I have not given up my laptop. It is, as you say, exactly what I want for heavy-duty word processing, something with a keyboard and cover. But when I'm done writing up a book and want to read it through...um, well I usually convert to PDF and read it on the iPad
I just watched Macheads yesterday. iSnob. Thats just perfect. 
...the moment I saw it and everyone was all "it's just a big phone..." Well, it was. Which meant everyone who had an iPhone knew how to use it. Genius. And it wasn't just the ease of that hardware--it was the Apps system. I got that right away, too. Here was a way to transform one device into many--each to satisfy the user's needs.
A medical device for a doctor, a sales device for merchants, a sketchbooks for artists, instruments for musicians.
But what is most "genius" about it, is that it can be what each person needs it to be at a given moment: I use it to show me the recipe I'm cooking with books--there's the right cookbook--listen to music with another app as I mix up the ingredients, adjust measurements with another app, then set the timer with another app. Then I rest back and read the newspaper or stream a tv show till dinner time. And then, if I really want to get silly, I set the iPad on the table with an app featuring flickering lit candles for a romantic meal. 
I like that, too. That Apple didn't create its tablet and think "tool for serious stuff!"--it allowed for silliness and fun.
I believe Apple got it in "one." They got it. I think the only other that came close prior was Amazon's Kindle, actually--limited as it was. But Apple took that Kindle to where it logically ought to go, and that's why everyone other tablet maker is now copying them. I love my iPad, and I'm not the least frustrated with it.
It goes against everything he has ever stood for. 
