This started as a comment response to Darryn's blog post here, but I then (as usual) began to ramble...so I'm going to post this as a blog post. Darryn, sorry if this offends, but I continue to be staggered by your selective logic...and this from someone who deals with computers every day! There are three sections of your post that I want to deal with....Multitasking, Camera and Flash.

Multitasking
You begin by stating a definition of multitasking..."the simultaneous execution of more than one program or task by a single computer processor". I've added my emphasis into that definition. Multitasking can simply mean the running or more than one task, but as the definition also shows, it can also mean the running of more than one program....and it is the latter that the "pundits" are referring to when they express disappointment over the iPad. I said in an email to you that I felt you needed to read what was being said by people. I don't think you have. Please don't focus on the word "multitask"...read what people are saying.

You then go on to state a fact and opinion...."the fact that they can't run more than one application at one time" and "to perform two tasks at once doesn't make sense for low power devices".

In ten years of Microsoft trying to push the tablet as a computer the tablet just hasn't ever taken off. The one thing the naysayers of the iPad have never asked themselves is why has tablet computing failed up until this point?

The answer is simple... they're too under powered to do the work people think they should be doing. Essentially what is happening is people expect to work on a tablet the same way they do on a laptop but the specs of a tablet and the ridiculous price of these tablets make them useless for a computer replacement. In fact the idea that the tablet is meant to replace the computer is actually proof that no one really understands the concept of the tablet.

A tablet computer is not designed to replace computers but to act as a compliment to computers. It's best to think of it as a compliment to a desktop rather than a compliment to a laptop because as soon as you introduce a laptop into the equation people will think it makes no sense to replace the laptop with something so under powered. And to a lesser extent they would be right. That being said though a tablet does make a pretty good alternative to a laptop when conjoined with a desktop.

I have to stress that I'm writing this as I see the news come in about the iPad. Some of the things I might comment on may be due to the fact that I haven't researched enough. I'm really impressed by the iPad, disappointed also...and a bit surprised. I'll start with the disappointment. Adobe Flash. It's evident Apple's out to make sure that Flash isn't part of their platforms these days. Regardless of what sort of processor this thing has, it could, I speculate, handle Flash easily.

Surprise? No forward facing camera (oh, and no multitasking). I was sure a camera was a certainty. Why? Well this thing is going to be an absolute gem for the education sector, and a forward facing camera would make a superb device to give to kids to go off and hold video conferences...or heck, call back to the teacher whilst they are out and about surveying students in school, etc. I could have even seen myself telling my folks to ditch their Mac mini in favour of an iPad, but not now. The second surprise...where does this leave apps versus applications? I'll expand on this a bit more later.

The good news is that it looks amazing...and Apple have yet again shown that when the produce a product they think of it holistically...the whole concept for them isn't just the iPad, but everything that surrounds it...how to buy music, how to buy books, how to view them just looks amazing...and the fact that they have tied them back into the iPhone OS is clever. Just watch how beautiful the user interface is in the Apple videos on the product.....absolutely stunning.

In my last post I surmised what the probable specs of an Apple tablet would be while also showing why Apple has a great shot at making it all work. But a tablet is only going to be as good as the software that runs on it and will only work if people see a use for it so this post is going to look at what the Apple tablet will do if it exists at all.

There are two rumours about the name of the tablet device... iSlate or Magic Slate. The latter actually is a better name in my not so humble opinion. But the name points to something bigger than just what it’s trying to name. The word “slate” conjures up the idea of a blackboard (screw you PC thugs) which of course gives the idea of writing. It’s this, mixed with the rumours about Apple’s iWork.com that provides the key as to what Apple is trying to achieve with the tablet.

Apple’s iWork application is a Mac suite in the same vain as Microsoft’s Office but it also has an online collaboration aspect since early 2009. The big problem with iWork.com was that it has been beta for the last year and also lacks many features but in its current form works well with the desktop application. iWork.com however may become more than just a collaboration tool for other iWork users. Currently you can share documents with Windows users by way of Word/Excel or PDF documents but no one can edit them online. There appears to be a move towards online editing in some form that resembles Google Docs but with a much more advanced interface a la MobileMe Mail. Throw in a mobile version of iWork for iPhone/iPod Touch/mythical tablet and you have document editing on the fly and access to documents on the fly and you’ve got a documentation system that can give you the information wherever you are whenever you need it.

Documentation on portable devices has often been poorly done with some exceptions. Documents To Go has long been a favourite of mine since the days when I had a Palm and I currently use it on my iPhone as well because it is such a nice tool to be able to edit documents on the fly and then synch back. The big problem I have with Documents To Go is that it doesn’t support the iWork format which is what I use all the time for my document editing, especially spreadsheets which I often use. It also requires a separate application to transfer those documents onto my iPhone and back again. If Apple produced a mobile version of iWork that stored everything on iWork.com then you’d eliminate the need for synching all the time because it would just work on documents stored online (a backup would be stored on the local machines though for security).

The other facet of documentation will more than likely come from Apple getting into Books. Amazon has the Kindle and Sony has the eBook Reader and there is another device called the Nook but these are single purpose devices that aren’t really that nice to use. On the iPhone there are great apps like Classics which has a beautiful interface that feels like you’re actually reading a book but there is also Stanza, BookShelf, Eucalyptus all of which have nice interfaces. I like Classics because it doesn’t feel like a computer program and that’s the problem with reading on a screen. It doesn’t move like paper it moves like a long list of text and if you’ve ever read a long list it gets tiresome and boring and you switch off. Classics however has an animation when you turn the page and the text doesn’t scroll so it really feels like you’re reading a book. Now, if Apple developed something similar and had books as purchase options from the iTunes store then Apple would have conquered the entire media sector. This isn’t a bad thing because it would force competitors to buck up their ideas instead of being stagnant in their approaches to things, especially media. Now while a device like a tablet will never replace physical books and papers and magazines it does give people more than over priced options (I mean how many books really are worth $30?) and therefore people would buy more. It happened with music and movies so there’s nothing to suggest it won’t happen with books.

But it won’t stop there. It seems to make sense that Apple will release mobile versions of the iLife suite as well. Imagine a keyboard on the screen that lets you make music in GarageBand wherever you are. Imagine being able to blog in iWeb wherever you are (handy for my site). Imagine editing your videos or keeping all your photos organised wherever you are all from a mobile device rather than carrying around a bulky laptop or being forced to do that sort of work when you get back to your desktop.

The potential for a tablet device really is huge but it needs to be done well. Apple has experience in turning sloppy technology into game changers as can be seen with the iPod, iPhone, and iPod Touch. But Apple is a software company above all else, it just happens to make the hardware that goes with it. As such Apple’s software is screaming out for a mobile outing which I think Apple will deliver on. When it delivers it will show Microsoft, Palm and Google how cloud based computing should be done. This comes not because I’m a Mac fanboi or anything like that but because of pure hard evidence. Apple has time and time again changed the way we interact with the media we have today and I can’t wait to see what this year has in store for us.

In two weeks Apple may be holding a media event that has kicked up the whole tablet storm again. I think it’s highly plausible this time but to see why I say this we need to look at why it will be Apple who remain the only hope for the future of tablets.

Apple more or less invented pen based computing with the Newton, Palm followed with the Palm Pilot, Microsoft released various pen based products including a tablet OS for tablet computing. Essentially all of these failed for one very basic reason... our brains can’t handle it.

When we write we write with two different forms of technology. We either use pen and paper or we use a computer or a typewriter. On their own these two can work quite well, often backing each other up as a writer might jot notes down on a pad and then add them to a document on a computer. The problem comes when you combine the two to try and kill two birds with one stone. What tends to happen is that the two technologies compete with each other and therefore nothing gets done.

As a computer a tablet works quite well with a keyboard and possibly a trackpad depending on the design of the tablet. But in this configuration the tablet kind of defeats itself because the whole idea is to remove the mouse and keyboard and use a stylus. As a PDA the tablet kind of works well but there’s one use of a tablet that makes sense but fails dismally.

Document editing on a Newton, a Palm Pilot, or a Windows Mobile device is both easy and difficult at the same time. Newton and Palm went the handwriting way by using a series of strokes that mimicked handwriting. The problem was that it wasn’t really proper handwriting and needed to be very very precise for it to work. In reality it meant more backspacing to correct the incorrect text that it meant productivity was more or less impossible. For short notes it was great but for longer notes it was very difficult to use and forget about documents in Word or Excel. Microsoft tried handwriting recognition but they failed worse than everyone else so they had an onscreen keyboard. This kind of made sense but Windows Mobile is very imprecise so it was literally hit and miss as to what keys you’d be pressing. Productivity was reduced even more due to incorrect key presses.

In essence tablet computing was held back from progressing because the interface sucked badly. Then in 2007 the second step to Apple’s tablet development happened... OS X. OS X is of course the operating system that drives the iPhone and the iPod Touch. It uses a technology Apple calls Multi-Touch whereby instead of having a pen you manipulated a touch screen with your fingers. This technology is old in fact I remember using systems like this back in 1996-98 when I was doing computer retail. The problems with those systems were many. First they were stupidly expensive with screen overlays (these fitted over a standard monitor) cost three times the monitor making it almost as expensive as a new computer. They were also very very hit and miss as to working. Their biggest problem though were they were mostly designed for Windows and that meant they were notoriously difficult to setup let alone use. There are some touchscreens that work on Linux such as the Lotto terminals around the country all run Linux and work pretty well but then they are really only designed for a single purpose not proper computing. So when Apple bought out the iPhone it proved that touchscreen computing had come to the point where it was cheap, reliable, and not dependant on Windows which has largely been holding back computing for the last 10 years.

So now Apple has all the pieces to produce a tablet that works. The first was the MacBook Air which was really an experiment in whether or not you can maintain decent specs with a minimal footprint. The second step was developing an OS that was powerful enough to be useable for many tasks a tablet makes sense for while at the same time being simple enough to use that doesn’t require a mouse and keyboard for making it truly portable.

But what will it look like? Well, it makes sense that the unit would be kind of a larger iPhone/iPod Touch running flash memory instead of hard drives (solid state is still far too expensive). It will probably use a more powerful version of the ARM processor that Apple has long had a long history with (they co-developed it with Acorn) and their acquisition of P.A. Semi means they have access to some great video and audio products that would make the Apple tablet a great media playback system but I’ll look at its use in my next post. It will make sense that it would have a Dock Connector because it won’t be designed to act as a standalone computer if it’s running OS X instead of Mac OS X. I surmise however that it will also have a DisplayPort allowing it to be connected to a monitor or more likely a projector given its nature. This will make the device slightly thicker than the iPhone but should in theory make in thinner than the MacBook Air still.

All in all this could be very exciting for people who don’t want a laptop but need something portable but with a larger screen than what the iPhone and iPod Touch have. Even for those with laptops it’s not always desirable to carry around so a tablet makes sense. Apple won’t be introducing a pen based computer but it will be introducing a tablet done well.

2009 for me will be forever linked to two non-Mac and non-iPhone related things, study and illness. I won't bore you with details of the latter, other than to say it's not been a fun year (nothing life threatening)....and that it impacted both on my study and my attention to NZMac.com and NZiPhone.com, which had to come last on my list of priorities. I am hopeful that as I finally conclude my Master of Education at the end of January 2010 (woohoo!!), that I might also be able to look forward to healthier times...and finally, a proper holiday!! Even more so, I'll finally be able to have my evenings study free (yes, no doctorate is planned for a looooong time!), and whilst I am intending to go to full-time at the University (I currently work 4 days a week) there should be a lot more time to devote to NZMac.com and NZiPhone.com....and I can't wait. But hey, I did manage to get a few things done, include completely relaunch NZiPhone.com this year!

With my evenings free(ish), I hope to be able to commit to things more things like regular podcasts, blogging and more reviews (it's a shame that some companies will let me review a product, but when I decline, aren't prepared to open the offer up to one of you) and generally spend more time on the content side of the sites than I have been unable to in the past 12 months.

Speaking of podcasts, I do need to give a huge shout out to Darryn Lowe (Lowededwookie) and David Duvall (DavidNZ) who not only revived the NZMac.com podcasts, but often willingly participated in a session without me. It was fantastic to know that they and other site users were willing to do this and it was absolutely amazing to receive the podcasts and have a listen to them. I hope that people might join in over the coming year and that we can have more regular sessions from now on. Thanks guys...your contribution this year has been invaluable, both in the podcasts and elsewhere.

I've spent the past week in the United States, at the Adobe Headquarters in San Jose. Having been appointed as NZ's first Adobe Higher Education Leader, it was great to be able to attend their Summer Institute for Education Leaders and meet some very talented people. It was also great to see the sharp and welcoming contrast I received from Adobe (spending 5 days in their building and meeting their staff) compared to my two attempts to visit Apple HQ in recent years...both as a writer for NZ Macguide and as the owner of this site....which has seen me do little more than stand outside and take photos.

I'm writing this at San Francisco Airport, having spent the day in San Francisco before I fly back to New Zealand. I'm pleased to report that despite any support from Apple, I've been to two separate Apple Stores on this one week trip, stood outside Mecca (Apple HQ) and purchased some goodies to give away on this site....but purchased nothing for myself.

The two stores that I visited are very different in layout and size. But at the same time, the atmosphere in both was impressive...as were the number of staff. I'm assuming these staff get paid little or that Apple makes a fortune, because at one point I actually started laughing with how often I was asked how I was doing by the same person.

As a computer technician my job mostly requires working on Windows machines. Macs are now starting to show up but due to their reliability most of the Macs we deal with will be generally nothing more than software issues.

One of the greatest tools for my ability to fix Windows machines is ironically the one thing that Windows users, especially IT "gurus", mock... my Mac. To many in either camp it seems like a travesty to use a Mac for this. To Mac users it's a travesty to use a Mac to fix Windows instead of using it to get people off Windows and in the other camp it's a travesty to use a Mac let alone fix Windows but the reality is that Windows makes it difficult to fix Windows.

The following has also been published as an audio podcast as part of the NZMac.com podcast series. Click here to subscribe in iTunes, and here to access the RSS feed.

It seems strange to view a presentation suggesting cut and paste or MMS (multimedia messaging) will only appear after two years and in the third iteration of a smartphone's operating system. But it shows that whilst the speed that Apple might work at with regards iPhone development might be questioned, the meticulousness of their approach cannot. Apple isn't a company that tends to rush with the development of new features as much as others might. Instead, each version of a piece of software sees refinement and increased functionality that we all want...and that sometimes we've waited for.

The iPhone 3.0 operating system beta is no exception. There are aspects to the new software that have been announced that we feel like we've been waiting for forever. But at the same time, there are aspects to it that only Apple could do....and that if you're one of those fortunate to own an iPhone or iPod Touch, you can't wait to see the new OS arrive in the coming months.

One of the most powerful features of Mac OS X is not a Mac OS X specific feature but one that has been around for almost as long as *NIX operating systems but is one of the most under-utilised features of Mac OS X. It's power makes for some interesting ways of forcing software to conform to your way of storing files. This magical feature is called Aliases.

In layman's terms an alias is a shortcut but it does more than just create an icon to a file or application. The best way to describe an alias is to think of a railway junction. When a train is coming to said junction it will default to a single path, however throw a switch and the train is diverted to another path. That's the function of an alias. The beauty of an alias is that if an application such as iWeb, iPhoto, Bento, etc requires a dedicated path for a file you can create an alias in that directory to point to a file in a separate directory or even external drive or network path. This way you can keep files stored in a central location and have a number of machines connecting to the same file.

The caveat is that if you try to run the applications that require that file on multiple machines at the same time you run the risk of corrupting that file. Thankfully though many applications can lock a file so that it can't be edited by more than one person at a time.