From: Joel M. Sciamma (joel_at_inventors-emporium.co.uk)
Date: Sun Apr 25 2004 - 00:05:51 PDT
David,
> So is it innovation to release FireWire to the public on Macs in 1999?
> Or since it was standardized in 1995 should they have not included it
> because it was too old to be innovated, even though no one had used it
> on a computer yet?
I'm trying to spare your blushes here because if your best example of
innovation on a platform is a comms port then it's getting scary.
The innovation was in realising the need for better connectivity and
creating FireWire which, in every possible way is superior to USB, but may
wither because USB is so ubiquitous. Damnable market share again. Peripheral
manufacturers have a very easy choice now that USB 2.0 High Speed is "good
enough" - 1 fast port for all users - simple.
When and if it's introduced is not a matter of innovation but the
availability of the HW, agreements with peripheral manufacturers, licensing
etc.
--- This is just small beer - lets turn this conversation around and see what would make Mac OS a no-brainer choice for everything from our Mums to the most hard-bitten pro. Some of the big issues are complexity, data security and interface, none of which Mac OS X makes any attempt to redress or has any ideas about. I'd start by importing some values from the Newt: 1/. Keep it simple. Too much choice is bad for mental health so hide a lot of the complexity with more intelligent code and better UI design. There is all this compute performance but little of it is being used to make good guesses about what I want. Don't have the computer whine at me for constant reassurance or confirmation - just get on with it. 2/. Dump the file system. This archaic piece of rubbish should give way to a soup-like database system. MS are going probably to do it anyway and make us look stupid, so get in there and do it properly. The full monty with roll-back, field-level locking - the works. Guarantee that users will not lose hours of work and hearts and minds will be captured. 3/. Get the UI right. The interface should scale to handle newcomers and pros. Allow customisation in the OS so the user has control over the environment. Make the Finder spatial again. Be consistent. Don't hide functionality behind glitzy or invisible controls. Seriously improve responsiveness. Don't ignore established good practice in UI design. Actually design the software before building it. Hire the right people and do the R&D to move things forward. Stop tinkering and start innovating. 4/. Stop using metal for laptops. This has to be the dumbest materials choice in the history of the company. Switch to carbon fibre composites as soon as the process is cheap enough for stiffer, lighter and more durable machines. WiFi might actually work properly and users would not feel like they were being electrocuted/frozen/cooked. And this is just for starters. What would you add? Joel. -- This is the NewtonTalk list - http://www.newtontalk.net/ for all inquiries Official Newton FAQ: http://www.chuma.org/newton/faq/ WikiWikiNewt for all kinds of articles: http://tools.unna.org/wikiwikinewt/
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Sun Apr 25 2004 - 10:00:02 PDT