First: I haven't actually used one, so my opinion is based on reading others' thoughts and impressions.

My first take, like a lot of other people's, was that it's "just an oversized iPod touch." I've read a lot about it since then (and found similarities with other emerging devices) and come to agreement with a few observations, of which this post is largely a synthesis.

(Keep in mind, of course, that neither I nor most people who have written about it have actually held an iPad in their hands yet!)

• Size matters. It's not just more screen space; the increased quantity of screen/touch area means a qualitatively different experience. On the iPhone, drawing/painting apps are still pretty much toys; on a bigger screen, they become a whole new thing.
• It's a new category of device: it's not being marketed as a computer -- of course technically it is a computer at it's core, but so are your cell phone and the Wii; but you wouldn't call either of those things computers. This is a new category of device for people who are not technically savvy, don't want extensibility, but just want to get simple task done, like email, calendar, manage addresses, games, etc.
• Technical point of view. A lot of the criticisms aimed at the iPad so far are from technically oriented types who are used to being able to tweak every aspect of their systems, and bemoan the closed nature of the iPad/iPod/iPhone and the App Store, lack of memory expandability, no removable battery, etc, etc. But it's not geared toward them.

Something like the iPad would be the perfect er, "computer" for my father-in-law, who is overwhelmed by the high-maintenance nature of computers (and who can blame him?). Because it's not a computer in the traditional sense, he doesn't have to wrestle with the file system, or worry about how to install apps, or any of that stuff, in the same sense that we more knowledgeable computer users no longer think about replacing the vacuum tubes or feeding punch cards...

The iPad is one of a small number of new devices that are targeting a non-techie market, rethinking the experience from the ground up, and not bugging the user with details of the operating system. Others in this category include:

• The litl webbook, a small laptop-like device that functions as a sort of smart internet kiosk/television, stores all data in the cloud, and takes care of all OS/application updating while you sleep.
• Something along the same lines, though not quite as simplified, is the 10GUI concept, where you don't manage windows in X & Y dimensions; you manage them in the X & Z dimensions (efficient switching & zooming instead of tedious dragging and resizing).
• Machines running Google's ChromeOS (when it's released). Chrome OS seems to employ a similar X & Z window management idea as the 10GUI system. And all applications run on the web.

It's an exciting time right now: we are witnessing a schism in personal computing, where the "personal" part is going to get a lot less dreadful and a lot more fun, and the "computing" part will virtually disappear, but remain the platform of choice for developers, designers, and deep content creators.

Tanglesome One (Lushier) by tomorrowsman

Tomorrow's Man - Synths, Keys, Arrangement, Twiddling
Transfixion - Guitar, Bass, etc.
Charlie Hoistman - Rotaters, Orbiters and Slowscapes, initial constructions

Bleakscape by Hoist

Ptpar(({|i|[i*8,Pbind(\scale,[0,2,4,7,9],\degree,Pseq(32.fib.fold(0,10),4)+(2*i+i)-10,\dur,1+2**i%2/6)]}!4).flat).play // #supercollider

Go have a listen. The entire collection is free to download.

We never keep to the present. We ... anticipate the future as if we found it too slow in coming and were trying to hurry it up, or we recall the past as if to stay its too rapid flight. We are so unwise that we wander about in times that do not belong to us and do not think of the only one that does; so vain that we dream of times that are not and blindly flee the only one that is... [We] think of how we are going to arrange things over which we have no control for a time we can never be sure of reaching... Thus we never actually live, but hope to live, and since we are always planning how to be happy, it is inevitable that we should never be so.

-- Blaise Pascal

"The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way, and most of the user experience takes place on the web...The software architecture is simple -- Google Chrome running within a new windowing system on top of a Linux kernel."

All/most apps are therefore web-based. There need be no rush to get application developers on board: all web-based applications will already work (assuming they run properly in Chrome).

The name now makes a lot more sense. The "Chrome" actually does refer to Chrome, the browser, so it's not a branding conflict.

"We hear a lot from our users and their message is clear -- computers need to get better."

One major issue as I see it will be the fact that web apps are very inconsistent in behavior, way more so than desktop apps. The fact that all apps will be web-based means that from day one there will be almost no consistency between applications. One way Google can address this is by pushing their own apps, or better, advocating some kind of "Chrome Human Interface Guidelines."

Sounds like things are going to (continue to) get interesting...

My take: Firstly, I think the concept behind it is a really neat idea. Democratizing the sharing of information on the web by giving everyone a web server embedded in their browser is inspirational, to say the least.

But when you look more closely, here is what Opera expects you to do:

• Adopt a new social networking platform (theirs).
• Oh, and it only runs in one browser (unless you want read-only).
• And that browser is one you've likely never heard of.
• And you need to convince all your friends & contacts to do the same.
• And instead of having one password, you (potentially) have a different password for each of your friends.
• And leave your computer and browser running and online all the time if you want your friends to be able to see your stuff.
• But it's all about freedom!