Time Magazine has named iPhone 5
its Gadget of the Year for 2012. The device is “one of the most
artfully polished gadgets anyone’s ever built,” says Time’s Harry
McCracken. He highlights the new thinner design and the camera’s
“particularly well-done panorama mode.” McCracken concludes, “[W]hen it
comes to melding hardware, software and services so tightly that the
seams fade away, Apple still has no peer.” The MacBook Pro with Retina display also made it onto the list at number six. Read more: techland.time.com
Taking The Plunge Over ....
.... The Digital Cliff, not the fiscal one! That's what it probably feels like for some of us when we get a new electronic device.
About 30 years ago I used Apple IIe computers as manufacturing tools for testing products on the assembly line. In recent decades I've had iPods (Shuffle, Nano and Video). But no other fine products from, who some would call, the greatest engineering company in the world. That is until the other day.
When I started the Apple Users Group, last year about this time, it was to bring together the Apple products users in Oak Run so they could help each other learn and enjoy their toys and tools. And we've had some very talented people provide help along the way. Bob, Sandra, Michael and Richard are all very excited about and knowledgeable when it comes to Apple toys.
I've seen the rest of you express that excitement as you've learned how to use the various products and software that Apple has to offer. Most of what we did and learned over the past year centered around iPads and iPhones and their operating systems. It was great to see someone's eyes light up when a problem was solved or a method was learned.
That excitement worked on me over time. I have enjoyed providing the means for you all to meet and share your troubles and solutions. But, I was missing something. I needed a toy too. So I've taken the plunge! I've gotten an iPad, 3rd gen, 64GB, Wi-Fi, refurbished, from the Apple Store.
Happy Birthday to me!! It came a few days before my BD but I didn't wait to open it. And I've been playing with it every day since. I must admit that as a rule I love toys, especially electronic ones, and this one is no exception to that rule. For the most part it's been very intuitive, but, after using a mouse and 101-key keyboard for so many decades I'm now discovering the joys and sorrows of computing on a tablet.
I look forward to the coming year when many of you will be teaching me a thing or two about tapping and swiping. Until then, I wish every one of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
