Digital Home Thoughts: With the iPad, What's Old is New

"Although Apple is marketing the iPad as a replacement for a netbook or a laptop, Sweeting says Apple's control over the iPad makes it very different, because on most computers, you can choose any software or application you like. "This is not an open platform where you can create a lot of content, or other people can create a lot of applications and content that you can then access and use and incorporate into what you're doing," he says."

So the iPad has now been officially released in the United States for several days now, and the whole tech world has been inundated with reviews and comments about the device. As I do not have one of my own, I cannot make an honest comment about the experience it provides. However, NPR has tried to put their own spin on the slate, noting how the iPad (and Apple) are shifting things even more towards a gated community. With Apple fiercely protecting the App Store, this is no surprise. The same thing applies to the iPhone and iPod touch, and to a much lesser degree, Macs. That is part of the business model, and they are doing really well at it. However, I am reminded of another company who almost two decades ago also acted very much like a gated community. It offered custom content from large companies, and begrudgingly offered "limited" Internet access and was very openly and commonly derided for its simplistic and limited service. That company, of course, is AOL. I have to wonder how gated communities, mass promotion (I think I still have ond of their floppies, yes, that's FLOPPIES, not CDs.) and simple usage philosophy has changed in the public perception over the years. What happened?