From: boosman@adobe.com (Frank Boosman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc
Subject: Re: a non-techie view of Newton
Date: 31 Jul 92 03:40:22 GMT
Organization: Adobe Systems Inc.

In article <1992Jul18.151149.14496@oswego.Oswego.EDU>, ostroff@Oswego.EDU (Boyd Ostroff) writes:
> 
> In article <BrK4qL.ME8@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> lamont@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Bradley Lamont) writes:
> >After all the discussion about how great Newton will be and how it's for the
> >non-computer people of the world, I just though I'd point out the quick
> >blurb about it in Newsweek.
> 
> I guess I'd consider myself a "techie", but I personally agree with
> this assessment.  I'll confess I know very little about this product since
> it looks like a real yawner to me.  Why would I want something that 
> recognizes my handwriting?  I'm perfectly happy typing.  This is going to
> take a lot of software and processing power to do something that a REAL
> notepad could do better.  I would rather see smaller, faster, cheaper
> keyboard-based systems.
> 
> [...]
> 
> >The quick
> >blurb summarizing it is "We are finding costly and complex ways to do what
> >was once simple and inexpensive."
> 
> Amen.

1. Note that I'm operating on the same vague information as everyone else
   here.

2. The central point of Newton is not that it can be controlled by a pen.
   Therefore, to say, "Why would I want something that recognizes my
   handwriting?" is an invalid question, because it assumes that is all
   or even most of what Newton can do.

3. I plan on buying a Newton device as soon as they're released. I don't
   anticipate using it for any writing except the shortest notes. (I'm
   a reasonably good typist, so using a pen for serious writing would be
   a humongous productivity-reducer.) I want to do things with Newton that
   you can't do with traditional media, at least not easily. For example:

   A. You're in Paris. You're lost. You look at the street signs at the
      nearest corner, but the names aren't familiar. You pull out your
      handy pocket map of the city, but at pocket map resolution, many
      street names are omitted. What you really want to do is write the
      names of the streets, feed this information to a Paris guide
      application, watch it show you your exact location on a map, then
      ask it for directions to the nearest Metro station. Once there, the
      application should show you the optimal route to your destination,
      taking into account not only the Metro map, but also the RER
      (commuter lines, faster) and even the time of day, which influences
      the frequency of trains on any given line.

   B. Same scenario as above, but now it's five years in the future. Apple
      or one of their partners is producing Newton devices with built-in
      GPS receivers--Sony already has a dedicated handheld GPS receiver
      for about $1000--and so I don't have to enter street names. Further,
      as I walk along, my guide application can tell me what is all
      around me, updating as I walk on a continuous basis.

4. These Newsweek people need to lighten up!

-- Frank Boosman
   Adobe Systems Inc.
   Mountain View, CA
   boosman@adobe.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc