The case for various iPad cases

A reader asked me about iPad cases: "Eolake, I know you tried a few, which one did you settle on in the end please?"

Yep, I have definitely tried a few, I'm a bit of a casophile. And it's  a hard choice, many are beautiful, like the Dodo and the Bookbook and the Grove.

(These are not books, they are Bookbook cases!)

But those are not exactly cheap (Actually Amazon US is currently selling the Dodo for only $52, a good deal). One really good case is economical, though, the aCase iPad case. (Here's a UK link.) It's functionally one of the best I've tried, it's hard to believe they can sell it for sixteen dollars. It's faux leather, but looks good. It's not heavy and has different angles as a stand, so I've used it a lot.
I bought it for the iPad 1, but the iPad 2 fits perfectly also.

What's funny is that a much more expensive European case, the Jivo, is identical in design to the aCase. I mean totally, they are clearly made in the same machines. The only difference is that it's admittedly more beautiful, since it's made in real leather and a suede-like inside lining, and comes in different colors (I have a pretty red one). But the price difference! Eighty Euros, over 100 dollars. So the aCase is a great deal.
... Hmm, but here again, Amazon, this time UK, is selling it much cheaper (40 Pounds Sterling currently, about $60). I wonder if the hard times have hit the case market.

The Steve Jobs Resignation FAQ

The Steve Jobs Resignation FAQ, TidBITS article. Just the fax, mam.

And here's a good eagle's-eye view of a spectacular career, so far. From Walt Mossberg, and includes a video.

Most people are lucky if they can change the world in one important way, but Jobs, in multiple stages of his business career, changed global technology, media and lifestyles in multiple ways on multiple occasions.
He did it because he was willing to take big risks on new ideas, and not be satisfied with small innovations fed by market research. He also insisted on high quality and had the guts to leave out features others found essential ...
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When the Kindle was expensive

Kindle, schmindle...I've got your $350 e-book reader right here, article from when a Kindle cost $350. It has a good point, a $350 netbook gave you rather more for your money than the Kindle II did.

After all, for $359, you get a color screen, Wi-Fi and full-function Web browsing, video playback, 60GB of storage, and a reasonably usable keyboard.
Oh wait, you don't get any of that stuff. No, that's what $350 can get you if invested in even a low-end Netbook, such as the new 10-inch Acer Aspire One.

Actually it's a little unbelievable that I was so excited about ereaders that I bought the Kindle 3, the Kindle 2, and the Kindle 1! And the Kindle 1 couldn't even go online here in Europe!

Steve Jobs' Letter To Apple

Update: David Pogue article.
It's funny, we're all treating this as if he was dead! He is not. And who knows, he may even regain his full health.
[Ha, I had a feeling even as I was writing this sentence, that David would comment on this also, and he did.] [Yes, I linked to his article before I had read it! Nearly 20 years of being David's fan has given me an uncanny confidence in his writing.]

Steve Jobs has now resigned as CEO of Apple, due to health problems. He hopes to continue as director and Apple employee.

I find it difficult to believe that Apple will not continue strong. On the other hand it's also very hard to believe that if Steve had not been there, Apple would have come up with revolutions like the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. Devices which I don't think anybody will argue have changed computing technology radically. Who else can brag of even two or three of the dozen or more blockbusters Jobs has thrown at the world in the past 15 years? I pity the people who can’t even see that greatness, people who just see him as an overblown hype-master or whatever they do. Even if it had just been the iPad alone, that would still be an accomplishment for a lifetime, a great lifetime.

So I'm hoping that even in his lesser position, he will and can continue to influence and inspire Apple to great new products for a couple decades more. I'm hoping Steve will get happiness and more peace too.

Here's an interesting, albeit rather inconclusive, old article from Andy Hertzfeld about when Steve Jobs was first ostracized from Apple back in 1985.

Will Thingness become Access?

A very, uhm, direct article says "things" are going away.

...the thingness of things is going away. Although music via CD, movies via DVD, and books via print still predominate, the inevitable and inescapable trend is downward. Just ask all of the newspaper publishers. Look at your own life and answer this question: When was the last time you printed out a picture you took with a digital camera? ... I can’t think of an object — a “thing” — that’s more personal and valuable to anyone than a photograph. Yet the thingness of those has vanished.
So, with thingness vanishing, it’s clear that even the thingness of electronic books will disappear too.


I find it difficult to swallow, but smelling of truth. In my online business I sell many more memberships than I sold CDs. And many members don't save even their favourite files, they log on when they want to see them, and expect them to be there.

Is Thingness giving way to Access?

Will books and reading become access/rental rather than owning files?

Passtouch

Passtouch, visual passwords on the iPad.

Samsung Invokes Kubrick Defense in Apple Tablet Fight

Samsung Invokes Kubrick Defense in Apple Tablet Fight, article.

I think that's reaching a bit. I think the more logical defence for Samsung is that the overall form of the iPad is simply the logical way for a tablet to look. What is anybody going to do, make it triangular?

Gone in Sixty Seconds: The Shortest-Lived Tech Products Ever

Gone in Sixty Seconds: The Shortest-Lived Tech Products Ever, article.

Clearly I was not the only one struck by the short life of the Touchpad.

General consensus is that the Microsoft Kin phone deserved to die, but that it was a pity about the Touchpad, and especially the Web OS, which now is not very likely to survive and flower. Though some think it's a big opening for other companies to use it, and that Motorola may end up being the only company sticking with Android (Because Apple is suing Samsung for look-and-feel rip-off). That would be nice for Web OS and for variety, but changing operating system completely is not exactly cheap, or easy, or popular with consumers, so I really doubt it'll happen.