mpw said:
Well the hardware has started to mature but Windows just plain sucks for a tablet PC OS. Do a Google search on memory leak and Tablet PC. There is a known bug that eats up almost all of the systems RAM and MS has not even acknowledged the issue yet. Why? Maybe its because MS hasn't even remotely dented the market yet with the Tablet PC.
Beyond that they simply don't get it. Microsoft's implementation treats all written text as written text. By default it doesn't convert your handwriting into typed text. So when you send an e-mail out it stays in handwritten text. Now maybe its just me but if I'm getting a quote from lets say Joe Blow at Aon Insurance to insure the MN Vikings I sure as hell don't want to misinterpret a 9 as a 7 because someone has sloppy handwriting. Instead of focusing on converting all those handwritten notes to typed text they are devolving the platform into something unlegible. Way to progress the platform you dumb*** idiots.
There are currently two Tablet PC formats out there.
Slate: This is a tablet PC without a keyboard or with an attachable keyboard. The only interface is through the pen. This is cumbersome and pretty crappy for one reason. Tablet PC's will never be a jack of all trades. e.g. they will never be able to suit everyone in ever solution. If you have a lot of text to input the Tablet PC is "non-optimal" I use the term bandwidth limiting. You can't enter text nearly as fast as on a keyboard. So by and large a keyboard is mandatory
convertible: This brings us to type two of the Tablet PC. A convertible is just as it sounds. It converts from a slate to a standard notebook. Specifically a standard notebook is shaped like an L. The lid at a 90* angle from the base. With a convertible the display/lid is on a pivot. That can spin the display 180* and then can be laid flat against the keyboard. This method gives you the best of both worlds. Its a brilliant design and if MS doesn't totally kill the platform I expect ALL laptops will someday have this design. You aren't losing anything by having such a design and are actually gaining functionality. But there is the crux of the issue. A platform has to become dominant, prevalent, and its parts have to become dirt cheap to become standard across the board. MS is doing everything they can to kill the platform. Why? My best guess is that Billy boy is not good at real time strategy games. Because I'm guessing in the game of Microsoft vs. the World they bit off more then they could chew with the X-Box, Pocket PC, Longhorn Client, Longhorn Server, Windows XP SP2, patches patches patches. Something had to give and I'm guessing that something is the Tablet PC. Stupid Bill. Don't you know how to manage your resources? I should buy you a copy of Civ III to practice on.
As for why a tablet computer is a good idea. Simple. First off it makes the computing environment more personal. I've used a Compaq/HP tablet for a week. Other then Transmeta CPU being dog slow the feeling of being more closely tied to the computer was alluring. Second is that there are instances where a tablet just works better then a notebook. Have you ever taken a class and the lecturer has drawn diagrams on the board. I know there have been a few cases I REALLY wish I could have simply drawn on my laptop. (That's part of the reason I love my Pocket PC.) In class settings a Tablet PC would work well, as long as its well implemented. Another example. Business meetings. Tell me. How rude is it to be sitting across from a client with a flipped open laptop taking notes? How about a tablet PC where its no different then a tablet of paper but in this case you don't have to transcribe it later. There is power and flexibility behind the idea of the tablet PC. Don't knock it because its a Microsoft thing.
Apple could do a Tablet computer. But not in a slate format. Imagine a 17" PowerBook convertible. If I was chained to a wall and Steve was taunting me with one across the room I would gnaw off my foot to get it. Unlike Microsoft I KNOW Apple could do it right. Oh god. I think I need to go take a cold shower now.
