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Microsoft Surface
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[Steve Connor] “Or any iOS or OSX device on your network. “
That’s the thing, what’s the point? It’s a conduit to your TV?
The Xbox IS the device. The old Apple TV WAS the device. With the new AppleTV you need some sort of storage device or computer.
Out of all the things that Apple has done lately, I am truly miffed about AppleTV v1. I love and still use it, but it’s EOL and all the cool shit I can do on the new and smaller AppleTV, I cannot do on the old AppleTV, but I don’t need a “server” as I do with the new Apple TV.
As long as Apps can run in the cloud, and all of your music and movies can run in the Cloud, the new AppleTV makes sense.
Jeremy
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Indeed, Jeremy. How long will apps run in the cloud? Is that covered in the EULA? How long will all my music and movies stay there? As one who just took one of my favorite movies off the shelf to watch I have to wonder if, in the not to distant future, will I have that option? Or will I be forced to pay again? For goods that I already own?
Tim
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[Phil Hoppes] “Xbox has been a disaster financially. “
If Apple had that opportunity, there’s no question they would have monitized it better.
No to mention, when the first XBOX 360 came out, it was a damn powerful computer for the time, and at $299 they were losing money on each sale.
The Xbox 360, if it had an infrastructure behind it as well as a much better designed interface (until recently, it truly was a mess, and even now it’s not the best). I think what Microsoft may not have realized is that they were selling to “kids” but those kids will grow up to play video games, buy movies, and appreciate a digital lifestyle.
They should have thought about the longer haul on that one.
They tried, they tried to connect the Zune with the Xbox, but the “eco system” simply wasn’t there like it is with Apple.
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[Jeremy Garchow] “As long as Apps can run in the cloud, and all of your music and movies can run in the Cloud, the new AppleTV makes sense.
“Yeah. It’s that “As long as Apps can run…” part that I have trouble with in regards to Apple. I love using the new AppleTV right now (I also have the Old version) but how long can I actually trust this cloud service? I’m losing my iDisk the week after next, which I have found very useful, and which a few scant years ago seemed to be part of a service that Apple was truly committed to for a very long haul. I built a career on the old FCP platform, and had to flip about with little notice; if you’d asked me a year-and-a half ago to predict that, I couldn’t have. I THINK I might be able to continue on OS X if the vague, off-the-record promises about a workstation-level computer next year are true–but I just don’t know that they are. So, even though Apple seems very committed to iCloud content delivery, how do I know they actually are? Certainly not by their track record.
This is where Apple really needs to take a lesson from Microsoft. Look at this MS FAQ about Windows EOL:
https://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/products/lifecycle
Reading it, I know that Windows 7 will be supported for another 8 years. Heck, I know that XP will be supported for another 2. If I don’t like Windows 8, I have serious options to stay with 7. It is all laid out very succinctly so that I can be comfortable with my choices.
Apple still acts like it is a little pirate ship, but that is self-delsion that it needs to recover from. When a little guy acts like an upstart, we all think its cute, daring and fun. When an 800 pound Gorilla acts that way, people tend to run.
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[TImothy Auld] “Indeed, Jeremy. How long will apps run in the cloud? Is that covered in the EULA? How long will all my music and movies stay there? As one who just took one of my favorite movies off the shelf to watch I have to wonder if, in the not to distant future, will I have that option? Or will I be forced to pay again? For goods that I already own?”
Unfortunately, it won’t matter. For the younger generation, having a physical medium simply isn’t on their radar. They want ACCESS to everything, but they don’t need to go to the shelf, they just need to type in a search. Enter: The Internet.
I’ll tell ya what, I like playing video games. Xbox 360 has an area for smaller, lighter but still really cool video games that are downloadable. It is so much better than going to a store to pay $60 for a sweet game that comes in a case, when I can buy a bunch of different, shorter, and sometimes more “clever and fun” games for less money per game, but probably the overall same cost, and as far as an Xbox user, I’m old.
Jeremy
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Well I was willing to get a 3rd party keyboard for the iPad for writing but it’s the apps that are bad, not the iPad. This is the disadvantage of iOS vs. OSX – Final Draft for instance has no version for iOS – but they have Windows and OSX versions which means the Surface Pro will be the first real usable tablet for writers! Oh and Editors 🙂
Lance Bachelder
Writer, Editor, Director
Irvine, California -
[Chris Harlan] “I love using the new AppleTV right now (I also have the Old version) but how long can I actually trust this cloud service? I’m losing my iDisk the week after next, which I have found very useful, and which a few scant years ago seemed to be part of a service that Apple was truly committed to for a very long haul. I built a career on the old FCP platform, and had to flip about with little notice; if you’d asked me a year-and-a half ago to predict that, I couldn’t have. I THINK I might be able to continue on OS X if the vague, off-the-record promises about a workstation-level computer next year are true–but I just don’t know that they are. So, even though Apple seems very committed to iCloud content delivery, how do I know they actually are?”
You don’t. But is the EOL of FCS3 mean the end if iTunes? Not really.
Besides iDisk, iCloud is a decent replacement for the majority of people. They cut a few things that were useful to a few people, but with services like Dropbox et al, iDisk is goofy, and I always hated how slow it was. They also improved some things lirk photo sharing and video sharing. I could also see (and this is getting crazy) FCPX being able auto-backup to the Cloud and actually have be worth something in terms of collaboration.
Also, I hated the AppStore at first, despised it, actually. Now, I really really like it. It makes keeping multiple computers in sync app wise so much easier, and the single point of update is nice and streamlined.
For what it’s worth, it might not look like what I thought the cloud would be, but Apple is giving the cloud a real honest go. When they get sick of it and move on to the next thing, who knows what happens, but until then, it’s working and I like it. I am also lucky in that I live and work around fast internet, so the cloud is an advantage to me. This isn’t true elsewhere in this country and the world.
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[Chris Harlan] “This is where Apple really needs to take a lesson from Microsoft. Look at this MS FAQ about Windows EOL:
https://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/products/lifecycle
Reading it, I know that Windows 7 will be supported for another 8 years. Heck, I know that XP will be supported for another 2. If I don’t like Windows 8, I have serious options to stay with 7. It is all laid out very succinctly so that I can be comfortable with my choices.
Apple still acts like it is a little pirate ship, but that is self-delsion that it needs to recover from. When a little guy acts like an upstart, we all think its cute, daring and fun. When an 800 pound Gorilla acts that way, people tend to run.”
Oh, and about this, it doesn’t matter to me. There’s nothing that I need from OS 10.2 (just for example) that I can’t do today with 10.7, in fact it’s quite the opposite.
If I was a major corporation and 1000s of deployments, yes, the support would matter.
If you know that in 8 years Windows 7 is still going to matter to you, then it’s important.
Jeremy
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[Chris Harlan] “[Lance Bachelder] “I will be able to use it to write – something that is a painful experience on the iPad”
Agreed. As clever as it is to be able to type on glass, I don’t really like it.”
Nobody who writes a lot via a keyboard probably wants to give up the full-sized tool if they can avoid it.
I just find that the freedom not to be stuck at my desk means it’s useful to add on a set of “peripheral writing options” to my desktop. Particularly since I’m constantly trying to find ways to generate less paper in my life.
I like having my iPad for quick notes. I have an Apple Bluetooth keyboard if I need to do longer work on the iPad than the virtual keyboard makes comfortable. And it works with my phone in a crisis as well.
The key enabling technology for me is MyWritingSpot in the cloud. One place to centralize my written content and sync it across all my platforms. I can write a script at my desk which syncs across all my devices – move it out of MWS into Dropbox when it’s complete. And it pops onto my iPad for the session in my VO booth.
I understand the lure of Final Draft – but I don’t do Hollywood style screenplays – it’s simply not my niche. I mostly produce from 2-column AV format scripts – and all of those are born as straight text “brain dumps” into MWS.
I suppose you could say that modern content management advances have moved me toward tools that enable me to leverage work anywhere – not just work at my desk – which I’m really enjoying.
YMMV.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
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I think MS definitely saw the long haul w/the 360 which is why the ancient device (in console years) seemingly gets more and more useful. MS has been trying to be the computer presence in the living room since the ’90s and I think the 360 is succeeding as their trojan horse. If MS could make their products ‘sexy’ like Apple it would be a whole different ballgame, IMO. Apple releases limiting products but people still buy them en masse because of the industrial design, marketing and typical easy of use.
If anyone didn’t aim long term it was Nintendo which is why they are releasing a new console this year.
There already exists a fair amount of interconnectivity between MS devices/services but MS typically does a poor job showcasing those things to the public. For example, getting my 360 to stream media from the other devices sitting on my home WiFi (Windows, Macs and home NAS) is a piece of cake. The 360 will automatically see the media on the Windows machine and NAS though my Macs need an easy to use freeware program to interact w/the 360 (thanks Apple). Take a look at the last few E3s and you’ll see a lot of MS announcements that certainly aren’t aimed at the 13yr-old gamer.
Sure, the Xboxes themselves were sold as loss leaders for a while but that’s the norm for video game consoles. IIRC, Nintendo’s Wii was the first video game console to not be sold at a loss upon launch. The Xbox unit would certainly be in a better place if they didn’t lose over $1billion from the Red Ring of Death, but the Entertainment Unit as a whole (which the Xbox is a part of) is doing well for MS.
*If* this new tablet isn’t a flop and *if* MS can get something going in the smartphone area I think MS can leverage the 360 as base to wedge itself back into the tablet and smartphone areas (not to mention how promising SmartGlass looks). Apple and Google are both struggling to get into the living room and in the living room is where MS has a lot of traction right now.
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