I think the idea of one company controlling what people may do with computers is pretty horrible. I hope this doesn't happen, and would rather develop or invest in something that could make the iPad fail than something complementary to it.
Last year they decided joke political apps were "not worth offending their user base" for and banned them. This year they ban all applications related to sexuality for the same reason. Web browsers and email clients are banned for money interests. It goes without saying that apps like itunes are banned.
What is next? Apps related to evolution and science? Any 3rd party apps related to music? Who knows. Maybe nothing, maybe all those things.
This sets a FAR more dangerous precedent than Microsoft's monopoly on the OS market. And as this article correctly points out, very few people outside of IT will care. For them it will be "why isn't there app X, guess IT people are just boring/uncreative/didn't think of it, oh well."
This level of control is enough for me to buy an alternative product, even if it may not be quite as good.
What is next? Apps related to evolution and science?
Any 3rd party apps related to music? Who knows. Maybe
nothing, maybe all those things.
I've built a software that allows publishers to distribute their books on many devices at once: Kindle, iPad, iPhone, Sony Reader, etc. Do you think Apple and Amazon will allow me to release such apps for their devices? I doubt it. The only way left for me is to write it as a webapp. Such control is bad for free market in general.
Apple: absolutely. There are a few such apps (based on your description) like that already :)
Do you think Apple and Amazon will allow me to releas
such apps for their devices? I doubt it. The only way
left for me is to write it as a webapp. Such control is
bad for free market in general.
BTW, I bought a kindle edition of the book yesterday on Amazon.com and was reading it on my iPhone with a free kindle app. I assume, that if I had Kindle too, I'd be able to read said book on both devices. Apple did not care much where music on you iPod came from — why should they care where do books on iPhone/iPad come from? The more content available, the more useful the device is. It is hardware that makes money for Apple, and if something helps to sell more of it it is good for Apple.
In the reverse of these arguments, how about the DRM shenanigans around music only a few years ago? Apple was at the front of removing it.
Also, I think more technical use cases where a larger touch device can be a control surface could be important as well. A few obvious applications are MIDI controllers, video application controllers and others applications where complex mechanical controllers are used.
No, they don't. Microsoft got raked over the coals in both the courts and public opinion for making it somewhat more inconvenient to use third party browsers and media players. Under Apple's policies third party browsers and media players are entirely prohibited, and that's just a side effect of their complete control. If Microsoft had that kind of power 20 years ago, the web wouldn't exist. Likewise if the iPad and similar devices take over, Apple will be in excellent position to block the next major innovations that might interfere with their established business models.
Regulation is hard.
And I highly doubt the iPad will be any more successful than the MacBook air. It's a small niche of users.