Steve Jobs Inspired by 9-Year-Old's iPad Story

[Digital Skunk]

The real purpose of tech

When it comes down to it this is the authentic and original purpose of trchnology. Not to show off to someone or to destroy cultures and nations, it to help level the playing field and fight back against the natural weaknesses we have and have developed.

 

[glynhughes]

"The iPad is nice but it's just a giant iPod."
"Tablets are still toys, you can't do anything serious."
"Apple's iPad is too simple. Not enough buttons and flashing lights."

And yet it still manages to change lives. Amazing.

Pass the sick-bag!

It's a very nice story, I agree. But it's only a month since some poor Chinese kid was so desperate to own an iPad that he sold one of his own kidneys.

Changes lives indeed.

 

[firewood]

He said 'displace' not 'replace'. Quite a difference.

Exactly. PCs and Macs haven't replaced mainframe computers. IBM still sells them to big companies. But most people and small businesses buy the smaller more consumer friendly alternatives for running software applications. Mainframes have been displaced to the point that very few people will mention one when asked about the last computer they used. That's what will continue to happen.

 

[Blondie :)]

Pass the sick-bag!

It's a very nice story, I agree. But it's only a month since some poor Chinese kid was so desperate to own an iPad that he sold one of his own kidneys.

Changes lives indeed.

Say what? Damn that's a little excessive don't ya think? Anyways, the story itself is really nice. As many others have said, it's also nice to know that Apple's devices can indeed help people through their disabilities

 

[Eddyisgreat]

It's a very nice story, I agree. But it's only a month since some poor Chinese kid was so desperate to own an iPad that he sold one of his own kidneys.

Hey I think that kid was nuts too.

 

[glynhughes]

Hey I think that kid was nuts too.

I'm inclined to agree with you in as much as he clearly had issues getting his priorities right.

The broader point I was trying to make is one of balance; this thread is full of posts that take a nice, positive story about triumph over adversity, that just happens to feature a rather expensive tablet computer, and have focussed almost exclusively on a perceived 'halo effect' on the iPad itself over and above the real meat of the story - the ingenuity and application of the mother and child.

It was interesting to me to note that a negative and very sad story about an impoverished child overcome by desire for a material object (that just happened to be a rather expensive tablet computer) seemed not to have any effect people's perception of the iPad and its marketing, detrimental or otherwise. With this story we just labelled the kid a mental and the iPad gets away scott free. Interesting.

 

[Digital Skunk]

"The iPad is nice but it's just a giant iPod."
"Tablets are still toys, you can't do anything serious."
"Apple's iPad is too simple. Not enough buttons and flashing lights."

And yet it still manages to change lives. Amazing.

iPods, Galaxy tabs, tablets with flashy lights, and devices of all kinds still manage to change lives as well.

 

[DaffyDuck]

Wrong. He already has more money than anyone can spend. Call it 'power' if you like, but changing the world, causing seismic shifts in the way we live, is what motivates Steve.

Completely agree. Have you seen the house he's lived in the past few years? It's not really all that impressive considering his wealth. He's not interested in material things, he's interested in leaving a positive mark on the world.

 

[no.1 Apple Fan]

The post PC era is a lie. iPads are PC's too. (Well they are computers now and will be PC's once they cut the cord with iOS 5).

A PC could be defined as:
Running heavy, clunky operating systems
Interaction restricted by a keyboard
Portability Limited
Expensive applications
Hard to use, especially for an inexperienced user of technology

A Post-PC device (iPad, iPhone) could be defined as:
Running a light and fast operating system
Unlimited interaction by using gestures, games multiple people can touch at the same time
Portability is what these devices are built for—no 6 lb. laptop, which is a huge hassle in itself.
Super-cheap, if not free applications which have specialized purposes and can be downloaded and accessed anytime
Post-PC devices are incredibly easy to use, people who are totally foreign to technology could be working one of these devices in 10 minutes.
Lightweight, fun, cheap, simple, and fast applications which serve their purpose—playing a game, buying movie tickets, or listening to music

 

[Digital Skunk]

A PC could be defined as:
Running heavy, clunky operating systems
Interaction restricted by a keyboard
Portability Limited
Expensive applications
Hard to use, especially for an inexperienced user of technology

A Post-PC device (iPad, iPhone) could be defined as:
Running a light and fast operating system
Unlimited interaction by using gestures, games multiple people can touch at the same time
Portability is what these devices are built for—no 6 lb. laptop, which is a huge hassle in itself.
Super-cheap, if not free applications which have specialized purposes and can be downloaded and accessed anytime
Post-PC devices are incredibly easy to use, people who are totally foreign to technology could be working one of these devices in 10 minutes.
Lightweight, fun, cheap, simple, and fast applications which serve their purpose—playing a game, buying movie tickets, or listening to music

The problem with that is that there are many traditional PCs that do what you describe in a Post-PC device, especially when running open-source or web-based software.