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I think I've decided - the iPad just isn't for me. I move around too much. I'm an on-the-go type of guy, and for that I've already found my two trusty devices - my 12" netbook and my iPhone. Between the two, I have everything I need, but maybe that's the problem with all of us techies, tech writers and early adopters, us serious content creators and code-o-philes, looking at and reviewing these new devices: they're just not for us. The iPad is for that 75% to 85% of the rest of the population, the couch sitters and TV watchers, the full-time employees who don't blog, code or anything of the sort. They watch videos, read articles, send quick notes to friends and family on Facebook, play some online Scrabble and call it a day. The iPad is for the average Internet user. Sponsor This post is part of a pro/con series written with ReadWriteWeb's Marshall Kirkpatrick, who argues that he waited a year to buy an iPhone, and this time, he's going to be first in line. Click here to read his counter-point article Life's Too Short: I'm Getting an iPad Right Away . For me, the more technical, content creator type of user, the iPhone and netbook combination is where it's at. On the go, the iPhone can handle quick microblogging, photos, chatting, location-based service, video, information retrieval and even very basic content creation and interaction, with things like the Facebook app. Unlike the netbook, it's always on and readily available in my side pocket. The netbook is the perfect compliment to the iPhone. It weighs three pounds, is about an inch thick at its widest point, and it has a few of my favorite, most used features - a mouse (with both a right and left button), a keyboard (nearly full-sized, even), a web cam (though I'm not personally big for being on camera) and multitasking. If I'm going to actually sit myself down and get on the Internet, I'm going to be doing five things at once, likely typing like a madman the whole while. I'm cutting and pasting, switching from one app to another, one tab to another, and editing photos along the way. So my question becomes, where does the iPad fit into this equation? The answer for me is "nowhere". But I certainly don't think that the answer is "nowhere" for all of us. The iPad will make the perfect coffee table item, the ideal traveling media center and the great reading-on-the-train-to-work solution. It will be an always-on device that you reach for quickly, when you want to know a mid-conversation answer or you're sitting around watching TV and want to visit the website that just popped on screen. But, until it will compete with my netbook, as Steve Jobs so aptly pointed out it wasn't going to do, it won't be doing anything for me. Discuss
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iPad SchmiPad: Who Needs Another Device?
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Video platform provider Brightcove just announced the launch of a new tool for website publishers called the "Brightcove Experience Framework for HTML5." The framework allows the company's 1,300 customers create HTML5-compatible websites for delivering video content to Apple mobile devices, including the upcoming slate computer known as the iPad, as well as the iPhone and iPod Touch. There has been a lot of debate about the move to HTML5 for Web video support, an area previously dominated by Adobe Flash and its accompanying Web browser plugin. Some publishers claim making the switch is a burden while others, most notably Apple CEO Steve Jobs, say the move is "trivial." The truth, says Brightcove CEO Jeremy Allaire, is that "it depends." For some publishers using homegrown video solutions, building a new HTML5 website is indeed hard work, but for customers using platform solutions (like his, of course), the transition is much easier. Sponsor Flash and HTML5 Will Coexist, Says Allaire "Transition" might be the wrong word for describing the launch of HTML5-enabled websites like those said to be coming from NPR, the Wall St. Journal , and apparently, CBS . Companies aren't just creating a new HTML5 website and discarding the older version - they're creating a second website to complement the first. And both websites will run side-by-side for years, says Allaire. He, of anyone, should know. Now the CEO and founder of Brightcove, Allaire's background includes a stint at Macromedia as the company's CTO prior to its acquisition by Adobe. While there, he actually helped build the original Flash platform. Brightcove Aims to Close Gap Between Flash, HTML5 Feature Sets The device driving the adoption of the upcoming Web standard known as HTML5, the core markup language used to create the pages of the World Wide Web, is the Apple iPad. Like its smaller mobile siblings, the iPhone and iPod Touch, the iPad won't support the Adobe Flash plugin. Flash has long been a staple on the Web for things like video content, online ads and even casual games, but for various technological and political reasons, Apple does not support it on its mobile devices. According to Apple's CEO Steve Jobs, this isn't an issue, since creating websites using HTML5 technology is "trivial." To some extent, that's an accurate statement. Allaire confirms that at its most basic form, preparing a video and putting it on a webpage using HTML5 is not a difficult process. The problem is that video publishers have come to expect more than just a simple video player like that what's offered via HTML5 in its current state. They're used to options like branded players, analytics, social media integrations, advanced player controls and other currently Flash-only options supported by Adobe's technology. Brightcove , however, aims to catch up with Adobe's feature set over the course of the year. At launch time, its HTML5 video player will support basic playback, auto device detection and H.264 encoding. In three months, more features will be added including "robust templates" to replace the basic ones available now, viewership reporting, advertising and more. And by the close of 2010, the company will offer publishers complete analytics, advertising and engagement features. However, even when HTML5 video players reach a place where they're on par with what Adobe Flash can do, it will be years before publishers can discard their Flash-based websites. According to Allaire, the issue is that the percentage of Web browsers that support HTML5 is "tiny," and those that do so haven't yet settled on one video codec as the default. Until there's uniformity in the implementation of HTML5 video, publishers who need to reach 100% of their Web audience will offer multiple versions of their websites, dependent on what device, browser and operating system is in use by their website visitors. The HTML5 Transition: A Burden on Publishers? There is a lot of debate as to the burden created by the transition to HTML5 by media publishers. Some argue that the move is not difficult, time-consuming or expensive - and anyone claiming otherwise is spreading "FUD," (aka "fear, uncertainty and doubt"), a term used by tech geeks to deride these types of complaints as being non-substantive. Even Apple CEO Steve Jobs, reportedly trivialized publishers' concerns using, in fact, that very word ( "trivial") ) when demonstrating the iPad to Wall St. Journal staff earlier this year. On the flip side, others, including a number of media publishers who recently complained to Silicon Alley gossip and news site Gawker, say the argument has merit. Where does Brightcove , then, stand on this issue? Allaire says that it depends on the video platform the Web publishers in question currently use. If they're on Brightcove or a similar platform solution, creating sites with HTML5 video content is a "publish once" process. However, those who have developed homegrown video publishing systems over the years will face more challenges. Lest you think this group includes just small-time players, Allaire rattled off a number of big names who do just that, including Disney, ABC, CBS, Yahoo and MSN. HTML5 Solutions Abound Allaire can't say how many of the company's 1,300 customers are planning their own iPad-ready sites since the tool was only made available to its publishers today. (Time and the NYT were the only publishers involved in the pre-release tests.) However, he can confirm that there is high demand from the company's customers, even saying that "almost all of the consumer-facing brands," specifically news magazines and TV brands, wanted a tool like this in order to create iPad-ready sites. Brightcove isn't the only company to meet this growing need, either. Competitor Ooyala beat Brightcove to the punch in terms of being the first to announce iPad integration with its video platform, but Allaire said he can't compare their offering to his because the announcement on their end was "too vague." Outside of video platform solutions, projects like Jilion's Sublime Video will also allow publishers to create HTML5 video experiences while falling back to Flash for unsupported Web browsers. However, this solution doesn't - as least for now - offer all the features Brightcove says it will have in place by year-end. When the iPad launches April 3, there will undoubtedly be a number of HTML5-ready websites ready for the new computing platform. But those that don't offer the same won't be in any immediate trouble for their decision (except for perhaps receiving a bit of bad press). Although the iPad is expected to land in the hands of a solid million or so users by the end of the first quarter, that pales in comparison to the 500 million broadband PC users who visit sites on a desktop-based Web. That being said, there's no doubt that Apple's choice to forgo Flash will impact the Web and the Web publishing industry for years to come. Disclosure: The New York Times syndicates ReadWriteWeb content. Discuss
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In a recent conversation here at ReadWriteStart we were talking about what readers want most. Beyond stories about where the latest funding opportunities are found, and beyond wanting to know what startups are doing that works, we know that sometimes our startup readers just want some simple practical advice. Towards that end we've posted many a list. And now it's time for a review. Here are six of our best lists in abbreviated form. From how not to kill your startup, to public speaking, to funders to follow, we at ReadWriteStart want to help. If you have ideas for future lists, please post 'em as comments below. Sponsor 6 Approaches to Your Company Blog The Operations Blog The Veteran / Inspirational Blog The Prediction Blog The Research Blog The Community / Advocate Blog The Coolhunter Blog Kevin Rose's 10 Tips for Entrepreneurs Just Build It Iterate Hire Your Boss Demand Excellence Raising Money Hack the Press Invest in Advisors Connect With the Community Leverage Your User Base to Spread the Word Analyze Your Traffic 6 Great Approaches to Public Speaking How Not to Suck at a Group Presentation LA-based investor Mark Suster Guy Kawasaki wrote this rule for PowerPoint How to Present While People are Twittering: Presentation trainer Olivia Mitchell Uncovering Steve Jobs' Presentation Secrets: Business Week columnist Carmine Gallo The Lessig Method: :Lawyer and activist Lawrence Lessig Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces 10 Principles For Not Killing Your Startup This one's obvious - watch your cash flow. Spot a real problem and concentrate your efforts on solving it. Identify your target market(s) and collect market feedback early on. Design and develop a minimum viable solution as fast as possible. Surround yourself with dedicated, effective people. Read Crossing the Chasm. Appreciate the difference between early adopters and mainstream. Consider other sources of competitive power than just technological sophistication. Have a plan for cutting through market noise. Invest time in selecting and testing a business model. Be creative and resourceful in meeting your objectives. 5 Great Blogs For Funding Advice BOTH SIDES OF THE TABLE @msuster PAULGRAHAM.COM A VC, @fredwilson VENTURE HACKS, @venturehacks VENTURE BLOG, @ventureblog 10 Things to Be Clear About Before You Start a Company Is this your first venture? Are you really an entrepreneur? Does your venture involve something you understand really well? Can your mother understand the value proposition? Can you see the right wave? What does your startup want to be when it grows up? Starting a company is hard and filled with uncertainty. Get a partner or fly solo? Would you refuse a well-paying job to do this? Can you raise appropriate financing? Photo by Wiki Commons . Discuss
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6 ReadWriteStart Lists: Our Best Startup Advice
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