It occurred to me that many people might not believe we ever landed on the moon because we cannot do it today - and if we were ever able to do this, why would we be so stupid as to throw the ability away?. I wonder what else falls into that category? What other things have we achieved as a nation that we could no longer do without some serious rethinking and lead time?

The absolute best job I ever had was a codebreaker at NSA in the mid 70's when I was with the Army Security Agency. Critical mission, challenging brain-straining job, and the most advanced computers on the planet to play with. Have never been to the museum but imagine it would bring back some memories. Most people immediately think "Oh boy, Enigma!", but that is only the most public of the items, and not necessarily the most interesting. My proudest possession is the Dundee Orange Marmalade jar that I still keep on my desk. You either know what that means, or you don't.

All societies need a certain number of intentionally stupid people (they specifically elect to be so), in order to ensure that the manual labor jobs are adequately covered - i.e. janitors, vegetable pickers, etc. They might as well be from LA. If you elect to raise your children in an atmosphere of superstition rather than teach them how to think, then you must obviously not want them to think for a living, and manual labor is what is left. I'm sure my children will eventually need their septic tank pumped or their house painted, and would be perfectly willing to hire Louisiana residents to do those tasks. Think about it this way - every creationist janitor that is born today will mean a bigger paycheck for your rational, gene-splicing daughter tomorrow.

"For the record, I personally think Apple makes decent products, they just aren't for me."

That comes real close to sounding like "they're OK, I just wouldn't let my daughter marry one" :-)

[Jobs comes out on stage, walks to the front, and immediately falls to his knees, hands held clasped in front of him]

SJ[with tears streaming down his face]: Oh Heavenly Pundits, we do beseech thee in this our hour of need. Deliver us from the taint of Bad Publicity that has afflicted us and bring us once more into the light of your divine Good Graces and Four-star Reviews. [bows head in abject shame]

Droid-lovers: Stone Him!

SJ: I humbly beg thy indulgence that I might offer unto thee a most inadequate but heartfelt explanation of The Antenna Curse of Doom.

DLs: You but delay the inevitable, sinner. But we grant thee leave to offer your confession.

SJ: Tis' true, Oh Pundits, that mine device doth exhibit the ACOD, and for this I most humbly apologize to any who have been afflicted.

DLs: All are afflicted when in your vile presence, devil. But continue. We are amused.

SJ: We wouldst offer up the results of our Most Extensive Testing that shows all other devices of like manufacture doth exhibit the same ACOD when fondled in proper fashion.

DLs: Have a care blasphemer, that our patience not run too thin. Dost thou accuse OUR devices of such abominations? [many sidelong glances amidst hefting of stones for proper weight]

SJ: Twas likely an error in the data, your Droidness. Speaking for our abjectly substandard device alone, we most humbly offer a Worthless Placating Solution.

DLs: And what might this worthless solution consist of, worm?

SJ: We propose to wall up the Antenna Curse of Doom behind a Permeable Barrier of Cheap Plastic, oh sage one.

DLs: Well, we would much prefer that you be stoned and simply go away, that we might rule the earth in peace, as the great God Google intended.

SJ: Again, we would beseech thy awesomeness to allow us to distribute our PBCP solution, that we might Dodge The Issue and continue to develop devices that you can cop...er...make fun of.

DLs: Very well. You shall be allowed to Mask The Problem by giving away free crap.

SJ: Oh thank you, thank you!

DLs: Drool not on our cloak, worm. Begone. Next time we bring the rocks.

SJ: [slinks away]

[end conference]

Whenever Apple comes out with a product that becomes a commercial success, commentary breaks down into two main groups:

1. Apple products are crap - the reason they are a success is that there is a rabid fanboy base that eagerly sucks up Apple's substandard stuff.

2. Apple products are revolutionary - the reason they are a success is that Apple has managed to combine usability and features in exactly the right mix to create a product everyone wants.

At this point in the history of technology, it doesn't much matter which viewpoint is correct - Apple's products get enormous play in the market - whether that is the result of fanboy pressure or because the stuff is insanely great. The result is that they sell millions of whatever they release. And because of that, they are in the drivers seat when it comes to defining the shape of things to come, whether it's what an MP3 player should look like and how it should operate, what a real smartphone should look like and how it should operate, or what a real tablet should look like and how it should operate.

Until Apple stumbles and falls on their face with a bad product (the external antenna goof probably won't make that happen), or some other manufacturer manages to create a revolutionary product that catches the public eye, or create a fanbase to rival Apple's, they will continue to define the future of portable consumer computing.

I agree that there were tablets way before Apple's iPad. My point was that I was tired of hearing yet another vaporware announcement of an upcoming tablet that doesn't yet exist. I define "exist" as available for purchase. Seems to me that once Apple managed to create a tablet that was commercially successful, that a bunch of wannabe tablet competitors are coming out of the woodwork with advance announcements that really amount to trial balloons. In my opinion it isn't really news - i.e. deserving of posting on Slashdot - until its reality, not illusion.

The Dell will suddenly die for no reason. That will teach 'em.

This certainly isn't news. Apple comes out with a popular device, so everyone else thinks they have to come out with one, too. Everybody makes future vaporware announcements to see what the reaction might be, but until they are actually on the market and you can buy one, they are just PR fluff.

Forthcoming....in develpment...soon to be released...in beta testing...

Why do we even pay attention to any of this crap? I can make up specs that stack up well against the iPad, but unless the hardware and OS and apps are actually available for purchase from a variety of retailers *right now*, it's all just vaporware and a monumental waste of time.

Time will tell, but I still see the overall trend as less freedom for the user. Back in the wild, woolly S-100 days, there were actually a ton of guys making systems and boards and a number of different OS's for a variety of processors (8080, Z-80, 6800, etc). Then came the PC, which reduced my choice to a single processor vendor but still allowed me to add boards. Today's laptops are typically configured at the factory when ordered, with users adding little to the internals afterwards, and now comes the smart phones and tablets which are locked down, with the exception of a blessed set of apps you can load (or non-blessed but remotely removable for you droid types).

Somewhere I think I've seen studies on new industries where - at the start - you have a bunch of eager beaver startups and lots of new innovation. Venture cap flows like water and there's fun, pioneering jobs for all. Later, a few successful ones emerge and a period of market consolidation occurs where the small guys get eaten. Finally, you end up with a mature industry with a set of known players, into which it is very hard for new guys to break in (think Tesla Motors here against GM, Ford, Toyota, etc).

Of course my original post was meant to be purely philosophical - I believe I am seeing a trend towards highly managed closed computing devices. May not happen, but I certainly see it as a possible scenario for a mature personal computing industry, rather than a continued focus on self-managed and self-configurable devices. I just don't see the bulk of users out there caring about App Store freedoms like we do in here. Sort of like the difference between your average car buyer and the weekend hotrodder that has his engine bored out and a high-end tranny put in. Room for both of course.

They are using white-out to cover up the bad words on screen.

You've got to hide it from the kids, koo-koo-a-choo!