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Apr 12, 2001
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While reading through Steve Jobs' biography, we discovered a number of interesting behind-the-scenes facts related to the development of the iPad.

ipad_2_oblique.jpg



When Steve Jobs was first hammering out the concept for the iPad, Jonathan Ive created a large number of mockup designs in order to figure out the right size and aspect ratio. Apple ultimately decided to go with a 9.7" screen at a 4:3 aspect ratio, but not without trying many other variations:
The process began with Jobs and Ive figuring out the right screen size. They had twenty models -- all rounded rectangles, of course -- in slightly varying sizes and aspect ratios. Ive laid them out on a table in the design studio, and in the afternoon they would lift the velvet cloth hiding them and play with them. That's how we nailed what the screen size was," Ive said
There have been persistent rumors that Apple had been developing a 7" iPad. It seems possible that that size was a runner-up choice that made it to late prototypes before Apple ultimately decided on the 9.7" model.

As for the processor being an ARM chip, Jobs had initially planned on using Intel's low-voltage Atom chip, even though the iPhone used an ARM chip. Tony Fadell successfully argued for ARM, even threatening to resign over the issue.

Much of the initial press reaction to the iPad was negative, which both "annoyed and depressed" Steve Jobs on the evening after the launch. Jobs says he received 800 emails that day -- many of them complaints.



As usual, Jobs was intimately involved in the television advertising for the iPad, but he wasn't happy with initial options so the ad agency came back with a number of others. One of the proposed TV ads for the iPad used actor Michael Cera "wandering through a fake house making funny comments about the way people could use iPads."

Finally, Jobs thought the iPad could revolutionize the textbook industry, and had considered a plan to include textbooks as a feature on the iPad.
"His idea was to hire great textbook writers to create digital versions, and make them a feature of the iPad. In addition, he held meetings with major publishers, such as Pearson Education, about partnering with Apple."
He specifically wanted to make textbooks free and bundled with the iPad, and such a system would give states the opportunity to save money during the slow economy.


Article Link: Steve Jobs Biography: On the Development and Launch of iPad
 

miles01110

macrumors Core
Jul 24, 2006
19,260
36
The Ivory Tower (I'm not coming down)
His textbook plan wasn't (yet) put into place.
The textbook industry thrives on a more or less inelastic demand curve due to professors forcing students to use one book or another with few (if any) substitutes. While this would be perfect for Apple (because they're all about single-source providers... namely themselves) it's going to be virtually impossible to convince textbook publishers to take a major risk and jump on board Apple's ship. "If it's not broken, don't fix it."
 

happydude

macrumors 65816
Sep 2, 2006
1,196
794
a gasping dying planet
Man, I'm having problems seeing all these stories and reading them and spoiling the book before it arrives. Common, Amazon, get that thing in the mail!!! So many fascinating details, I can't wait.
 

NebulaClash

macrumors 68000
Feb 4, 2010
1,810
0
. One of the proposed TV ads for the iPad used actor Michael Cera "wandering through a fake house making funny comments about the way people could use iPads."

Sounds like a Microsoft commercial, and it would have been just as lame.

Much smarter to let the device star while showing what it does. Apple dodged a bullet that Microsoft keeps insisting on firing into its foot.
 

alent1234

macrumors 603
Jun 19, 2009
5,688
170
the biggest problem with the shipping ipad was no multi tasking. the iCult bought it but the real surge only came after iOS 4 came to it
 

ArtOfWarfare

macrumors G3
Nov 26, 2007
9,545
6,042
I'd love it if textbooks were available on the iPad for free.

Seriously, that'd probably shave a few $K off of my school bills.

One of my textbooks I was fortunate enough to get as a digital download for just $5 (one of the professors at my school wrote it, thus the huge discount from a normal price of $100+)
 

Gamoe

macrumors regular
Sep 19, 2006
246
0
Will the next year of MacRumors consist of "tidbits" picked out from Isaacson's book?
 

gschumsky

macrumors member
Jul 16, 2002
91
0
San Diego (Jamul), Ca
The textbook thing is actually a very good idea with the money Apple has. The company I work for is trying to do the same thing, with in-house writers editing and re-writing textbook content that is needed for specific courses at the colleges owned by the company, and are presented as ePub, so they can be accessed by an iPad, iPhone, or online with full copy, paste and highlighting.

So, Apple gets rights to a whole textbook, then creates pieced together versions (not rewritten), of the original text based on what different colleges require for their courses. Since a whole textbook is never used by a professor for their course (do any of you ever remember using the whole textbook when you took a college class?), iPad texts can be sold for less than the typical cost of a whole textbook.

Apple would kill Amazon, since Amazon is trying to go directly to the writers outside of the publishers. I think it would be smart for Apple to offer a partnership with publishers, like they did essentially with music publishers for iTunes. It would be a win for Apple (access to tons of high school and college texts), and for the publishers (not losing revenue to Amazon sidestepping them).
 

kingtj

macrumors 68030
Oct 23, 2003
2,606
749
Brunswick, MD
re: textbook industry

Yeah, except the entire publishing industry is slowly slipping down the same hole the major record labels fell into, and the movie industry is now sliding down as well.

The public is starting to reject the idea of buying physical media with fixed content placed on it, when a digital equivalent is more flexible and portable.

Jobs probably would have succeeded with this if he had more time on his side. Already, Amazon is starting to pay authors directly to e-publish on their site, bypassing the publisher as an unneeded "middle man". This, of course, causes friction for established authors with existing contracts with those publishing houses -- but as time goes on, that will be the way forward.

If there's one place where digital versions of books most clearly makes sense, it has to be in the classroom! Digital textbooks can easily be searched for content, bookmarked, annotated without ruining the original, and are FAR easier to carry around from class to class (no more worries of forgetting a specific book that you took home the night before either).


The textbook industry thrives on a more or less inelastic demand curve due to professors forcing students to use one book or another with few (if any) substitutes. While this would be perfect for Apple (because they're all about single-source providers... namely themselves) it's going to be virtually impossible to convince textbook publishers to take a major risk and jump on board Apple's ship. "If it's not broken, don't fix it."
 

3goldens

macrumors 68000
Feb 26, 2008
1,878
253
Born NYC Living in CT
Perhaps we should consider not publishing "spoilers" from the Jobs biography on the front page of the site.

Some may actually enjoy reading the book and discovering the contents on our own.

Post it in another thread and mark is Jobs Biography Spoilers.

Please don't continue to ruin the reading experience by blasting it on the front page of the site!

Thanks for your consideration!
 

Number 41

macrumors 6502a
Jun 15, 2009
745
970
the biggest problem with the shipping ipad was no multi tasking. the iCult bought it but the real surge only came after iOS 4 came to it

Disagree completely.

Apps made the iPad what it is. Multi-tasking, as it's currently implemented on iOS, is pretty much a joke. But really, that's OK -- because tablet / phone based computing is all about focusing on one thing at a time and doing it very well.
 

Elijahg

macrumors 6502
May 23, 2005
269
174
Bath, UK
Geez, can't we go one day without MacRumors feeling the need to publish yet more interesting portions of Steve Jobs' biography? People want to read the book themselves, not have all the best bits blared at them on a site desperate for clicks. With a bit of luck, the book's publishers will soon tell MacRumors to stop violating their copyright. :mad:
 

pgwalsh

macrumors 68000
Jun 21, 2002
1,639
218
New Zealand
Man, I'm having problems seeing all these stories and reading them and spoiling the book before it arrives. Common, Amazon, get that thing in the mail!!! So many fascinating details, I can't wait.
Strange that you don't have it. I was in Newark airport yesterday and the book was on shelves. I didn't buy it, but usually Amazon is ahead of the curve.
 

arn

macrumors god
Staff member
Apr 9, 2001
16,362
5,795
Perhaps we should consider not publishing "spoilers" from the Jobs biography on the front page of the site.

The story is clearly titled. Maybe don't read the story?

arn
 

DrDanH

macrumors newbie
Oct 5, 2008
23
0
Textbooks on iPad

Textbooks on iPad would be great!

What a terrific idea for students of all ages to have access to their textbooks- with more detail, sound clips, movie clips, etc.- readily accessible wherever they go. It would be even better if the material was updated as revisions are released.

I would much rather have an iPad full of textbooks as a resource. It would be much more useful than the boxes of textbooks I have in the attic.
 

newdeal

macrumors 68030
Oct 21, 2009
2,509
1,769
thank god they didnt do atom in the ipad. the battery life is the killer feature and that would have destroyed it
 
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