Oh Dave! Now

Last night I touched another man’s iPad for the first time, and today I am consumed with a mix of envy and lust. It sure is a sexy toy. I say toy because it’s primarily for recreation, as opposed to a tool for pro(fessional) creation. He had a $5 app (that’s short for application in case you’re out of the loop) that showed the constellations and as you move the iPad it changes to show the sky in whatever direction the iPad is facing—and we were indoors. Stargazing without the barriers of cold air, clouds, or city lights.

He demonstrated the free book, Winnie the Pooh, which comes with the book reader application. Not only are the original drawings on the page in color, but when you brush your finger on the touch screen from right to left to turn the page, the page curls and stays in place as you move or stop your finger—the pages are even see-through with the previous page’s text shown in reverse through the back of the turning page. That’s creative and inspired engineering.

I have been following the newspaper accounts of the release of the iPad, the sales figures, the positive reviews, and it certainly got my interest but I didn’t rush out to be the first in line for several reasons with which I am struggling today. First is the cost, $500 to $800 depending on the amount of memory and type of Wi-Fi connectivity. Second, the iPad is essentially an oversized iPhone, minus phone calling features and I haven’t gotten an iPhone because I couldn’t justify it. I hardly use my cell phone except in the car, I do not text much, and while the iPhone has a cool interface and features, I don’t have a lot of free time where I’m sitting around on a train or a bus and could utilize the features. In short, for me an iPhone would not be a must-have useful tool—it would be a toy that I would have to set aside time to enjoy, like a set of golf clubs, a deck of cards, or a board game.

I was one of the first to get a Macintosh computer back in 1986 and for several years I got swept up by manic upgrade fever. It was an exciting time with the beginning of PageMaker and desktop publishing, email and the world wide web as they called it then. I was one of the first to thrill at digital scanning and the first version of PhotoShop. I kept upgrading my operating system and applications, added more memory, subscribed to magazines, attended Mac user meetings, and attended MacWorld to feed the addiction for the latest and the greatest. Eventually the passion faded, a business went belly up, and I grew tired of spending money on upgrades that didn’t have a lot of wow factor. At the end of last year I contemplated upgrading my slow and outdated iMac but for half the price I did what was once unthinkable—I got a powerful Gateway PC with Windows 7 and a 21” high-definition letterbox flat-screen monitor that can easily double as a TV. I’m very happy with the non-Macintosh computer I have now.

But now out of the blue the iPad comes along to sweep me off my feet when I wasn’t even looking for it–I haven’t had this feeling and passion for a piece of hardware for many years. The iPad beckons me to return to the Apple way of computing canoodling. Why not give in to the temptation? I don’t have a personal laptop, just the one issued by my employer and they block all the fun stuff and have it set up so they can monitor your usage whenever you turn it on and connect to the internet, even outside of the office and the corporate network. But do I really need a new technology love in my life? Is that how I want to spend my leisure time? I have so many entertainment choices already via technology. It’s no longer as simple as sitting down in front of the TV at 7:00 p.m. to watch Jeopardy and if you’re not there on time you’ll miss something. I don’t miss any programs because I didn’t get to the TV in time or miss a movie because it has already left the theatre—now I miss entertainment opportunities because there are too many to choose from and I don’t have time to enjoy them all. When I want to unwind and read, watch TV, see a movie or listen to music, these are some of the choices I know that I have without an iPad:

Current TV

1. Live Comcast Cable (with commercials—usually only during the Super Bowl or Oscars)
2. Digital Video Recorder (DVR) recorded programs (I bought one of the first DVRs in 2000, ReplayTV which is now part of DirectTV satellite service and not as well known as TIVO, its only initial competitor—but I always liked Replay’s interface better than TIVO’s.)
3. Comcast On-Demand (box)
4. Comcast Fancast Xfinity (on-demand online)
5. Hulu.com (online)
6. iTunes.com (download to PC)

Movies

1. DVD Collection
2. Netflix DVDs (we have the two-at-a-time plan and they frequently sit on the coffee table for weeks)
3. Netflix Instant Play (streaming over the internet, on a PC but usually through our blu-ray DVD player, which is connected to the internet, to our 61” TV)
4. Vudu Rental or Purchase (through our blu-ray player—movie service like in hotels)
5. CinemaNow Rental or Purchase (through our blu-ray player—movie service like in hotels)
6. Live TV
7. Recorded to DVR from cable movie stations like HBO or Turner Classic Movies
8. Comcast On-Demand (box)
9. Comcast Fancast Xfinity (on-demand online)
10. YouTube Movies (on PC and through blu-ray player)
11. iTunes (download to PC)
12. Movie Theatre (I almost forgot to put it on the list!)

Recorded Music

1. Vinyl LPs
2. CDs
3. Cassette Tapes
4. Digitized music collection—Windows Media Player
5. Digitized music collection—iTunes Player (picky about what formats it plays)
6. Digitized music—iRiver MP3 player (was never drawn to clunkier iPods)
7. Internet music/videos—lastFM.com
8. Internet music/videos—lala.com
9. Internet music/videos—YouTube
10. AM/FM Radio
11. Internet Radio—AOL
12. Internet Radio—iTunes
13. Sirius XM Satellite Radio (car)
14. Sirius XM Satellite Radio (online)
15. Music Choice (Comcast cable)

That’s a lot of choices. If I didn’t list them all, I would forget about some of them. These are just the ones I’ve identified for myself—I know there are others (including pirated music and movies) that I’m not tuned into or don’t have the time or need to investigate. The above list also doesn’t go in to detail about TV programs, movies, and music I have read about and am interested in seeing—my Netflix queue of movies currently numbers 142 and some have been there for a couple of years. When am I going to watch all of those? On my deathbed?

As I’ve mentioned in the past, I have a stack of books and magazines on my nightstand waiting and waiting for me to read. There are more in bookcases, even more in bookstores and libraries, new ones are coming out every day. When am I ever going to read them?

Whenever I have a free moment, on my new iPad, is what I’m thinking. Last week I had an acupuncture session and after inserting the needles, my acupuncturist asked if I’d like an eye pillow and an iPad? I raised my head and cried out, “Yes, both!” at the same moment he corrected his Freudian slip and replaced iPad with iPod (to listen to meditative music while the needles and I rest for a half hour). He smiled and said “make that two iPads.” For once he and I appear to be lusting after the same thing. How can I not take his slip as an omen that I should satisfy my desire?  I may have to forego a few acupuncture treatments so I can pay for it, but I think he’ll understand. I wouldn’t be surprised if the iPad has an acupuncture app to take the place of the missed treatments.