Yes, touch UI is the future. Unless you want to do non casual gaming, or non casual productivity, or non casual anything.
But for average joe who just wants to check his email and see if his buddy emailed him the latest toilet joke or check a few videos on youtube, touch is perfect.
I do end up checking my email on the phone most of the time now, but you better believe whenever I need to reply to something and it is going to be more than a couple sentences, I don’t use touch, I instead use a desktop.
And for people who actually think touch leads to better UI, I present you… the topic of this thread, windows 8.
Even email can work well with a tablet if you have a bluetooth keyboard handy. It’s just as easy to type a few paragraphs with that on a tablet as it is to switch to a PC.
So instead of Windows migrating to tablets, what about the idea of iOS or Android migrating to a larger desktop display that is a touchscreen? Why couldn’t I dock my Android tablet and use a 20 inch touch screen with a bluetooth keyboard instead of using a Windows PC? If I feel I don’t need Windows at home but I want a larger screen and a keyboard, is there any reason why future versions of Android and iOS couldn’t offer that? Why does that have to be the province of Windows or a Mac?
Android could absolutely be a real productivity desktop OS. IOS is far too restrictive. Future versions could change that, sure… but we all know they won’t.
Zylon
1664
Because a full-stroke keyboard and a big display is only two thirds of the desktop computing advantage. The other third is precision pointing (the means to do so and the software to take advantage of it).
wumpus
1665
I did not say “Mobile UI”. I said “Tablet”. These two things are not the same.
Although at 5"+ screens, a number of Android phablets are pushing the boundaries a bit, but it’s a far cry from 10".
Which is 90% of the planet. Trust me, these average joes are not sitting there typing out novellas every day. Ain’t happening.
The other third is precision pointing (the means to do so and the software to take advantage of it).
Android fully supports pointer (touchpad/mouse) movement out of the box, fwiw, assuming the specific device has the necessary connectivity.
Zylon
1667
If the primary mode of interaction is jabbing at a touchscreen that you’re holding in your hands, then yes, it’s a mobile UI. “Mobile” != “phone”.
Trust me, these average joes are not sitting there typing out novellas every day.
Weak strawman. Anything more than a few sentences, a person is going to be wishing for a physical keyboard.
Maybe, but that person may also wish to continue sitting on the couch in front of the TV. So what wins? The desire for the keyboard or the comfort of the couch? I think we’re already seeing that answered. Most people are opting for the couch.
Its kind of a moot point considering that both Win 8 and Android would work in either configuration. I don’t think it would be a far stretch for Apple to add pointer support either.
As a general guide though, I like the idea of this graph.
The key difference is that Apple does not see the ipad as a computer. Apple already has a traditional desktop OS in OSX. That’s why iOS is so strictly constrained, because they can offer a higher-quality user experience that way.
Google does not have a desktop OS, so Android is full-featured, flexible, and often challenging to use.
Microsoft is trying a hybrid approach, rather than offering a full-featured flexible touch OS like Android, they are putting two separate and largely non-integrated operating systems in the same box. One tightly constrained touch OS offering a high-quality user experience and a separate full-featured traditional desktop OS.
Your reaction to microsoft’s schizoid approach depends on whether you approach from the touch or desktop side. If you want a tablet, it’s pretty cool. You can get a tablet with an awesome touch-based OS, very competitive with android and iOS, that can also go to the windows desktop on occasion when you need to do work.
If you approach from the windows desktop side, and don’t have a touchscreen, all that stuff is just cruft you don’t want, that often hinders your workflow, and is more difficult to use.
Are you sure? That may have been true 2-3 years ago, but its become a lot more capable recently. There seems to be plenty of content creation/productivity apps for the iPad, many of which are made by Apple. They may not be as good as the desktop equivalents, but they becoming more and more capable over time. I’m seeing a lot more keyboard docks than I used to.
It looks to me like they are willing to do whatever people want and if iPads become the new productivity platform that they will go right along with it and adjust their development accordingly.
It does not seem like they are willing to do whatever people want. Apple insists on complete control of the ecosystem. They don’t allow users to sideload apps, choose which email or browser app to use, access the filesystem, or even plug in a USB flash drive to expand storage. They could trivially allow all these things, but they don’t, because they could potentially compromise the user experience. That’s fine, but it means iOS devices are not computers.
You can absolutely make a spreadsheet app for iOS, but that doesn’t make it a computer.
Windows = work. Tablets are for fun. I don’t want work crowding into my fun.
Zylon
1674
I think you mean “workstation”, or something similarly less wrong.
Editer
1676
ChromeOS would like a word with you.
It’s not a good choice for an OS for many people, nor does it have 1/100 of the features we’d come to expect from an OS, but it is Google’s desktop OS offering.
stusser
1677
Heh, yeah, but seriously.
Windows 8.1 Preview is out. Installed it on my system. Like the new small tiles for organizing. Feels the same, for the most part, though I’m sure there are tons of people who will finally be happy with the start button.
Editer
1679
I got the impression you have to do a full reinstall when the RTM Win 8.1 hits… So I’m waiting. Alas, it’s not spelled out in any of the FAQ pages on the Win 8.1 section, which is kind of annoying. LMN8R?
Case
1680
The page does say to create a restore USB key that will revert you to Windows 8. Which, I suppose, you can then upgrade to the release version of Windows 8.1.
Most of what I’ve heard suggests Windows 8.1 will be available as a kind or super-update. Heck, if you can upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 8, why would you need to reformat to go from Windows 8 to 8.1?
