Orchid Win7 v1 <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> I could continue with such anecdotes. Suffice it to say, I've always
> been good with computers, computer technology, and modern electronics in
> general. And a lot of the other people around me, particularly older
> people, haven't been. I guess I felt a certain sense of smugness about that.
>
> These days, I don't feel so smug. In fact, I'm almost beginning to feel
> that the next generation is overtaking *me*. o_O

heh, you can't wait to know how it feels when the 40's are close.

> What, in the name of God, is an "app"?
>
> Once upon a time, you had the "operating system", which runs the
> machine, and then you had various "application programs" or just
> "applications", which address real-world problem domains.
>
> Java gave us "applets", those pointless Tic-Tac-Toe example programs
> which are supposed to prove how fantastic and important Java is. But now
> the mobile revolution has given us "apps".

short for application.  It's an application program running under mobile OSes
such as iOS or Android.

Apple was the one to spread this word, part of its "App Store" which can be read
as either application or apple.

> Suppose, for example, that you are somehow so stupendously rich that you
> can not only afford to /buy/ an iPhone but also to pay the bills for it.

or you can buy a cheap Android which is still miles ahead of older dumbphones.

> Through mechanisms which I do not really understand at all [Jesus Christ
> I feel old!], it is apparently somehow possible to access the Internet
> with such a device. (Presumably that's part of why it's so damned
> expensive - along with the obvious fact that it's extremely shiny.)

they come with a minimodem requiring a 2G/3G/4G chip from cellphone carriers
companies to operate.


> Now, if you're a maths nerd like me, you might know about Wolfram Alpha,
> the website where any question, no matter how pointless, can be
> submitted to Wolfram's Mathematica software and Wolfram's huge data
> repository to try to answer your question. It's a neat idea, although
> damned if I can think of a single /useful/ purpose for it. (Especially
> since Wolfram seem to be adding more and more restrictions to what you

> full copy of Mathematica, after all...)
>
> Anyone, anywhere [except China] can visit this website and ask it
> pointless questions. So far, so good.
>
> Here's where it gets weird: For a mere $35, you can buy the "Wolfram
> Alpha app" for your iPhone, which lets you access the power of Wolfram
> Alpha. Or you could, you know, visit the website for free, like
> everybody else is already doing. WTF?

yes, most "apps" are just stupid conversions of web pages.  You heard it right:
Jobs was the man able to sell people converted web pages for a fee.

that said, there are many apps that do a lot more than just offer a better web
form.  Comics reading, games, apps dealing with maps and GPS info etc.


> That's the theory. The trouble is, as best as I can tell, netbooks /do/
> have stripped-down software, lower specification, and smaller size. They
> also have EXACTLY THE SAME PRICE as a laptop. (!)

no, they're a tad cheaper.  At least when compared to good laptops, not cheapo
breako ones.


> Dad: So what *is* Twitter then?
> Me: You know how on Facebook you can post your status?
> Dad: Yeah?
> Me: THAT'S ALL TWITTER DOES!!
> Dad: ...WTF?

would you be sad if I told you some of my coworkers think it's useful as a news
aggregator of sorts?  Yes, my IT coworkers don't know RSS aggregators.  pretty
sad indeed.



> Not only that, but the few times I've actually been on Twitter, half the
> posts are replies to other people's posts, and there is LITERALLY NO WAY
> to find out what they're replies to. (!) Seriously, the most basic, most
> immediately obvious thing, the very first thing I tried to do, Twitter
> can't do. WTF?

reading twitter is like entering a bird jailhouse full of parrots, all repeating
the same cries over and over.


> Since we're here, I might as well ask: the iPad. Sure, I mean, I know
> what it /is/, but... why? What is it /for/? Can anyone articulate a
> coherent explanation? You can't use it as a phone, you can't easily type
> stuff on it, it's too big to easily carry around... so what can you
> actually do with the thing? (I agree, it is very, VERY shiny, and that's
> cool. But there has to be a bit more than that to justify the
> astronomical price tag...)

I don't dig tablets either.  I picture them either as a big phoneless smartphone
or a keyboardless laptop, both far more useful.  Even taking pictures with it is
silly.  As it stands, it's made only for audio-visual consumption.  Even reading
isn't all that great.

I'll dig them when they come with e-ink screens and a stylus so you can actually
write and draw (and read comfortably).

Post a reply to this message