Nowadays life is somewhat simpler. I wear a jacket and carry around an iPhone and a Palm Pre, one in each pocket. My music, photos, games and internet all fit into a single device that pretty much encompasses my personal life, while the other one holds everything I need for my work. Technology is moving from devices that perform a single function to those that are multi-purpose – after all, why buy, carry and maintain several devices when one will do the job?

Yesterday Apple announced the iPad, their new tablet computer. Designed to fill the gap between a smartphone and a laptop computer, their goal was to create a new device with a small set of core strengths. These start off with web browsing and email, but head into directions such as e-books, movies and other forms of entertainment. There’s even a productivity suite in the form of iWork, providing the capability to show and edit presentations, spreadsheets and documents.

There’s also been a lot of early criticism of the device, much as there was with the launch of the original iPhone. It doesn’t handle voice calls, it doesn’t support Flash, it doesn’t have a camera and it doesn’t support multitasking. While some of those are fair, it’s worth cutting beyond the surface and looking at the strategy behind the device and how it’s likely to evolve.

The easiest one is the comparison to e-book readers like the Amazon Kindle. The latest Kindle DX is priced at $489 and is arguably designed with a primary purpose of showing books. This means that if you want to carry around your book collection, the Kindle needs to be in your bag alongside your laptop and other gadgets. The iPad starts at just ten dollars more, and yet is in full colour. Amazon are already facing competition in the marketplace from a number of competing e-ink readers like the Nook from Barnes & Noble. There’s also a huge number that were announced at CES, all competing on just that single function. From a strategic point of view, it makes more sense to bundle books with other capabilities than it does to compete directly with an established device.

It’s not designed for use as a phone. The Kindle doesn’t support it, while it remains to be seen if the upcoming Android tablets will. Besides, anyone who remembers the Nokia N-gage will recall what it feels like to hold a generously proportioned device to your head. Yes, most of us have headsets these days, but it’s the feel of the thing. Besides, wouldn’t it be annoying if you’re in mid-flow typing out a blogpost or similar, when suddenly the application minimises just because someone’s calling you? There’s already talk of VOIP applications such as Skype making their way from the iPhone to the iPad, but I see this more as a mobile internet (like the Nokia Booklet 3G) than a mobile phone.

The lack of support for Adobe Flash may well be a problem to some. There are concerns that some Flash apps can be a resource hog (Zynga’s Farmville being a typical example of an app that grabs your browser and refuses to let go), while others may represent security risks (Twitter recently disabled some Flash widgets due to a security problem). Developers also now have a range of other creative elements such as Javascript, CSS and HTML5 in order to make websites more dynamic. Don’t forget, Apple also have their own video and audio codecs, and it’s possible that the iPad and iPhone will be used to drive support of these formats.

The inclusion of iWork for just under $10 doesn’t just offer a basic productivity suite, it also doubles up as a statement of intent to developers. By showing that the iPad can be used for business related tasks, developers are encouraged to consider what other work related apps would be suitable. The demo of Brushes at yesterday’s keynote really emphasised this direction of looking at how existing tasks could be redesigned to run on a tablet. I’m hoping for a lot of interesting software to come from this, from advanced blogging software to some creative design and project management tools. Pitched properly, this could become a strong collaborative tool and replace the netbook or laptop for small client meetings. Again, it makes strategic sense – Apple have obtained a chunk of consumer apps, but really want to stimulate growth in more business oriented directions.

Probably the biggest disappointment for mass media was the absence of an out-of-the-box newspaper or magazine subscription service to sit alongside iBooks. I’ve no doubt that it’ll happen – the New York Times demonstration shows as much – but I think they’ll have to work a touch harder to get a solution that works in an integrated way. There may well be demand for subscription based services, but publishing houses may well need to rally together in order to launch a service that consumers will buy in to. The presentation mechanism is mostly there – all that remains is delivery and pricing.

Looking on, what can we expect to see in the iPad’s future? I think that sooner or later some camera management capability will arrive, either in the form of a clip-on camera or by using Bluetooth to pair with a camera and support direct image capture and manipulation. I think we’ll also see advanced collaboration tools to allow owners to cluster together and share content through simple gestures. I also think that iBooks may even open up as a self-publishing mechanism, allowing authors to produce their own books, guides and manuals for sale on the platform.

The HP Slate: Fresh interface needed?

The big losers out of this are the other tablet manufacturers. Google’s Android OS may provide great access to all of their services, but there’s still a gap when it comes to managing and providing access to a large amount of entertainment. That said, by licensing Android out to manufacturers, Google effectively minimises their own risk. Devices like the JooJoo now feel dead in the water, while the HP Slate may struggle due to the Windows 7 interface. Just like with Windows mobile phones, we may see the Slate emerge with an overlay interface to make it easy to use. Netbooks will still survive – as Steve Jobs said they’re just smaller, cheaper laptops.

The other big loser out of this is Adobe’s Flash technology. After being the mainstay of interactive and elegant applications on the Internet for a number of years and providing t he technology behind services like YouTube, it finally seems that the end may be approaching. Google are working on their own streaming video technology that will perform natively in the browser, while tools such as AJAX are encroaching on another front. Security conscious surfers and those with adblocking software routinely block Flash objects. It may well be in a few years time that Flash starts to fade from our screens in the same way that Real Media has.

One interesting trend from all of this is how devices tend to pick up more than one function as a way of adding value and becoming a more appealing product to consumers. A typical example of this is the all-in-one printer, copier and scanner that’s now become popular with home offices across the country. Similar things have occurred elsewhere, with videogame consoles now acting as a DVD player and streaming media hub. In fact, any situation in which you have more than one device in the same location becomes ripe for consolidation. It’s why nowadays we see mobile phones with built in email, internet and music player capability.

Trouble is, what happens when new single-function devices spring onto the market? Gadgets such as Amazon’s Kindle, Peek’s Twitterpeek and even items as simple as the digital photo frame are all items that do what they do very well, but only perform that single function. As a result they have a small window of opportunity until the functions they provide are swallowed up by other devices. The Twitterpeek is already a niche product, with twitter capability already being available on most smartphones. The Kindle is strongly supported by the e-ink technology that it uses, but could well drift aside once portable displays become more advanced.

The only thing that stands in the way of convergence is user experience. If it’s much more compelling to use two separate devices instead of one that does both, it’s likely that the seperate devices will remain. After all, the Apple iPod remained hugely successful even after mobile phones started being able to play music, mainly due to the user experience and ecosystem being much better than that offered by competing multifunctional devices.

So, where’s all this leading to? It’s all about understanding this middle-ground that seems to sit somewhere between a smartphone and a small laptop. Currently a device such as the Apple iPhone, Palm Pre or HTC Hero will provide a solid level of access to most of the web. This includes dedicated apps for hooking into social networks and other web services such as Google Maps, train timetables and so on. What they don’t support is the full splendour of the web such as Flash, Silverlight and other embedded technologies. They are also limited by what is possible to render on the screen – although they can be used for reading books and newspapers it’s far more comfortable to use an e-ink display such as the Kindle’s.

Meanwhile, 10-inch and up mini-laptops are trying to take the challenge from the other direction. By basically miniaturising the laptop concept, the idea is that it remains as multi-purpose as the operating system can support. These devices, typically running Windows XP or some form of Linux, either rely on some form of mouse/touchpad control, or use a touchscreen and stylus. The difficulty is, as soon as the interface gets smaller than a certain point it becomes cumbersome to use. A great example of this is the existing Windows Mobile operating system – the reliance on a stylus to use most of the features makes it unattractive relative to newer touchscreen alternatives.

So what would be the point of a in-the-middle device? Something bigger than a smartphone, but not as big as a laptop? There’s the rich web idea – run a version of linux with a simplified touch interface and provide all the rich web content that’s out there, together with regular updates and wireless networking via 3G, WiFi and so on. Build enough battery power to keep it ticking over for a few days, set it up so that when docked or charging it’ll act as a digital photo frame. Perhaps bundle in some home automation capability, like being able to control streaming media devices such as an Apple TV or XBox 360. Hell, even something as simple as an electronic TV guide would add usefulness to it. The uses for it would be in a similar way to a cordless phone, but where data is needed. Reading in bed, listening to internet radio in the garage or watching iPlayer or Hulu on the can are all things that this would be used for – things that a smartphone just isn’t suitable for, but where a laptop is just sheer overkill.

Does such a thing exist? Viewsonic’s had a rather messy stab at it by producing a 7-inch Mobile Internet Device, but it’s running Windows XP. This idea of being wedded to a full-fledged OS is something that manufacturers need to move away from – multipurpose means being able to support the rich media web and apps tailored for the touch experience, not being able to run Minesweeper and Word. O2 have been looking at it from the other end of things, with the Joggler being a mains-powered device that runs a tailored touchscreen interface and is due to have a Software Development Kit and app store released by the end of the year.

It’s clear that as we come to the end of 2009 there is demand for a device of this size to fulfil these needs. What that device will be, what needs it will fulfil and who it will be supplied by still remain to be seen. What is clear is that there are a number of ways to tackle the problem, and only by really understanding what the device is for and tailoring the experience to match will a clear winner emerge.

So as you can probably guess, Something Broke. The current culprit of choice is the power supply unit on my fiance’s computer, an unbadged and unbranded steel box that I should have replaced as soon as the collection of parts arrived about three years ago. But hindsight is wonderful in this instance, and now begins the laborious process of identifying the broken parts, ordering replacements and fitting them. It’ll be enough to keep me out of trouble, but it’s somewhat irritating all the same. Still, at least I won’t have to suffer the pain of many in my shoes by dialling some premium rate phone number to explain to someone who barely speaks my language why they should send an engineer out and what they need to replace. Be thankful for small mercies, I’m told. The fiance is currently happily using the gaming laptop we recently purchased, so at least there’s no immediate rush.

Spring cleaning has also been afoot – my own desktop has been scrubbed clean, with both XP and Vista installed and existing side by side. I’ve debated carving up a portion for Linux as well, but as my dev work is currently hosted online I’ve got no need for an Ubuntu installation. It was while doing all this work that I stumbled upon something that struck me as completely obvious, but which I’m amazed hasn’t happened. Every time I want to refresh my computer I have to back up all my user data, reformat the hard drive, reinstall the operating system and my applications, then finally reload all my user data. If I want to move from one operating system to another I usually have to install a new set of applications and hope my user data can still be read by these applications. And even so, if the drive fails all my user data is lost.

But hang on a minute, I carry around with me a device with an 8GB storage drive. Why can’t I treat the operating system as a commodity, where the PC, OS and any associated drivers are all stored in one location while my own applications, data files and so on are all retained independently of the OS on some kind of removable storage that I can carry around with me. If I want to use a different PC, why can’t I plug in a drive and just use all of my existing applications, licensed to me as an individual rather than a transient machine that may be replaced sooner or later? Why does my user data, application data and operating system need to be so closely intertwined?

This removable storage – let’s call it a Docker – I could plug it into my desktop and get my games, apps, music, documents and so on. I could unplug it and move it into my laptop and get exactly the same stuff available. If I was visiting friends, I could just take my Docker with me and plug it into their machine if I wanted to show them a game I had been playing. But more than that, because my Docker isn’t tied to an OS, I could plug it into a Linux box or a Macbook or any machine, and as long as it was compatible with my Docker it would run all the apps on it and allow me to use all my files. It makes the OS a commodity – I could pick and choose based on what I wanted rather than what ran the applications I wanted, because every OS would run the same apps.

With me so far?

So, what would the Docker look like? Would it be a solid-state-drive with a small interface, or something with a screen and Bluetooth if you wanted to exchange files on the move? Would it be something like an iPhone, giving you access to your files wherever you are? There initially sounds like a number of options on what this small device could look like and what it could offer people. After all, once you have a large storage device (I hear you can buy 512GB ones now) the possibilities are endless.

But does it have to exist at all, or could it all be “in the cloud”? Could we just hold our Docker as a virtual container on the internet, with users able to access their data anywhere they choose to go? Or would the Docker be something physical but with a synchronisation service from someone like Google, ensuring that everything on it is continually backed up. Lose your docker and you could have it locked and wiped next time it speaks to the cloud, while your replacement rebuilds your file structure from everything you have backed up.

Will it happen?

Unlikely. The OS makers like the application lock-in they get so far, as it creates a barrier to migration. If it does start to happen though, it’ll probably be in hybrid devices that double as phones, MP3 players and so on in order to keep costs down and provide users with an incentive to try. Still, if it does happen, I’d be surprised if I was the first person to come up with the idea.
Sometimes, overcoming the status quo is the biggest obstacle an idea faces.

It was with some nervousness that I reached the Apple Store in Regent Street, London. I’d heard a lot about the place from Stephen Fry’s twitterings about the place, and was hoping to find someone on-hand to take me through the various machines on offer. I’d been willing to give Apple another chance after I started using an iPhone in the middle of last year – a phone that I’m incredibly pleased with and find an absolute joy to use. I’ve tried many Nokias, Motorolas, Samsungs, Sony Ericssons and so on but find the little touchscreen device the best one I’ve ever used. I guess that my expectations had been set high from that – after all, if a firm can get something so right on a phone, surely they can manage something as simple as a retail experience?

Well, in a word, no.

The first thing that struck me was the layout of the place. On each side of a central staircase were rows of high wooden tables, each laden with Apple kit tethered so as to prevent it escaping out of the front door. Next to each item was a small card informing you of the name of the item you were looking at and how much it would cost to walk away with one, but little else besides. The biggest problem though was being able to actually use one of the machines. Although there were banks and banks of them, every single one was in use. And the users didn’t appear to be ones considering a future purchase, as almost all of them seemed to be plugged into Facebook. I briefly thought about the potential chaos that could be made from the tactical installation of keylogging software, but quickly dismissed it as I attempted to gain the attention of a turquoise clad expert to show me the ins and outs of Mac OS X. Alas, a couple of attempts to engage one of the Apple sales team resulted in abject failure. Crestfallen, I beat a hasty retreat to a nearby Starbucks where I discussed with those with me about the state of retail today. Needless to say, it’s unlikely I’ll be purchasing a Macbook this year.

My other experience with Apple this week was about the iPhone 3.0 software update that’s due to hit our phones sometime in the Summer. While I’m really glad about the inclusion of new features such as Bluetooth Stereo (finally my Motorola S705 has a purpose again) and MMS, I’m a bit concerned about the new micropayments system that’s being brought in. This new system basically means that applications will be able to allow you to make purchases from within the application. There’s a couple of uses for this, from an episodic game that allows you to buy more levels or content online, through to games like The Sims that could provide you with an in-game catalogue of items that you could pick up for a few pence. It also means that developers could release one version of a game for both trial/demo and full versions, with the user making a micropayment in order to enable the full game. But, like with anything else that requires me to fork out cash, I’ve got some concerns about the approach. I’m wondering how easy or hard it would be for an application to spoof an iTunes login page and harvest your details as well as taking a payment for the content you wish to unlock. More than that though, I’m wondering how it’ll impact the shopping experience. Currently I know how much I’ll pay for an app, as it’s all done up front. The nightmare scenario I can see coming is an app that costs a tiny amount to buy, but has some astronomical micropayment costs associated with it. In this regard, the costs need to be clearly presented up-front on the iTunes store, or it’ll be a riskier business for consumers. All that said, it may be that this can be used for subscription based services as well. If it can, this paves the way for MMOs to finally make their way onto the platform.

In both tales today, there’s a common theme: Retail is Detail. It’s an old adage that I picked up when working at an electrical goods retailer when I was young. and it’s still valid today. And although the giants of Cupertino may produce some absolutely fantastic kit, if they can’t get people to sell it then it’s a wasted effort. In the current climate, being able to convert visitors to your stores into sales is absolutely crucial. And while having an open door policy may get people in the door, it’s meaningless if all you’re doing is taking them to Facebook instead of the till.

While we’re on the subject of train travel, I’ve recently discovered that CrossCountry Trains will be removing the buffet car from all their services in the next few months. Apparently this decision has been made by “public opinion”, and that customers would prefer to have additional luggage space instead of a shop to pick up refreshments on their long-distance journeys. Now, far be it from me to fly in the face of public opinion, but it does feel like a rather short-sighted decision. With the shop, you also have an additional member of staff on hand should the situation arise. Besides, I find it difficult to imagine that there would be much space to gain by its removal. Perhaps the public will come to regret expressing an opinion in the future. Time will tell

Anyhow, time to move on to things technical, and on this the subject of projects. The World of Warcraft Model Viewer – a program that allows one to view creatures, items and so on from the game data files – is on the move once again. The machinima community rely on this program for a large amount of their video work, and have been unable to use it since the Wrath of the Lich King expansion released last month. With the original developer on an extended leave of absence, it appeared as if the project was to be stuck in limbo. Luckily, a team of coders have descended on the project and managed to get various upgrades in place, with a new version of the software to be released shortly. Crucially though, the source code will also be made available through the popular Sourceforge service, allowing other developers to provide further updates and hopefully prevent the project from stalling in the future

Next up, further community project development. Earthenring.EU, after an initial flurry of activity, seems to have died down somewhat, particularly on the content front. I’m currently thinking of ways to encourage users to generate more content, partly so that they use the site more often but also so that they feel encouraged to contribute more to the melting pot that is the realm’s backstory. I’m thinking that a Wiki Watch might be a good weekly move, highlighting a couple of new articles each week. Ideally though I want to farm the generation of this editorial or opinion based content out to other people, rather than producing my own lacklustre point of view. It seems that getting this engagement from other users is the hardest part – everyone has a thirst to consume while few have a desire to create. Not that I’m saying it’s a bad thing per se, just that it demonstrates how people behave differently in a given situation

Finally, to conclude, a bit of economics news. I read recently about how the videogames industry expects to weather the economic downturn rather better than others. Executives are currently banking on consumers purchasing videogames as “value for money” entertainment, rather than spending it on other leisure activities elsewhere. The trouble is, while I can appreciate this in the short term, I would disagree with the long term outlook. Sony are still struggling to shift the PlayStation 3 in significant numbers, while the lower-spec Wii is selling like hot cakes. I’m wondering how much gaming innovation and entertainment can be provided on a single iteration of console hardware before titles start to feel repetitive and derivative. It is possible that the industry will continue to generate new titles for a time, but will they be able to continue without new hardware to sustain their development? History is uncertain on this one. I guess the only similar industry to look to is printed media, as the form has gone through little change over the years, yet people still buy new books. But with videogames the story is just one facet of an overall experience, combined with an art direction, sound direction and musical score. Do all of these add to creating greater diversity, or will they lead to a merging mish-mash when deprived of new tech to expand on to? We’ll have to see.

Well, that’s it from me for another week or so. Till next time, thanks for reading.

So, what now? Well, I’ve been put on to some problems with WoW Model Viewer. It’s been a while since I coded in C++, but I can see several key errors that can be fixed in order to make it a successful project. Since it’s been broken since the Wrath of the Lich King expansion and the developers just not responding to communication requests, there may be an opportunity to do something here. even if I can’t debug the code, I can still build facilities for people who can fix it to collaborate with eachother.