iPad roundup: New York Times and others get HTML5 video, iPad app store demo, and more
By Thomas Ricker 
posted March 29th 2010 2:11AM
posted March 29th 2010 2:11AM
Also rumored for launch is an iBookstore filled with 30,000 free e-Books courtesy of the Gutenberg Project. See the screengrab evidence after the break in addition to a purported video walkthrough of the iPad store. The video previews several new "HD" formatted iPad apps that we've already seen as well as a few new ones like Twitterific. Sorry, still no Hulu HD. The mouse pointer in the video, however, makes it clear that this is running on desktop somewhere, not on an iPad. Still, it definitely looks the part.
@ddddd .. HTML5 versions are still in BETA. Do you know what that means ? .. the H.264 codec is rock solid, high quality and proven. The issue is around implementations which is understandable because it is all very new for most companies/people.
Can someone remind me again...why is HTML5 better than Flash? (I'm actually be somewhat serious here) Wasn't there a study that showed the performance differences negligible? So you hate flash ads. Now you'll get HTML5 ads.
@Anatidae I think Adobe is banned, because they can't provide. Are they banned from WM7 and Android? Yet we still wait for a plugin. Anyway. As you say, if in 2 years video in HTML5 is perfectly mature, it would be great. Well, how will this happen in 2 years if everybody continues using Flash?
eeeee....Adobe is scared.
@Anatidae "what I want is Flash and Silverlight installed but a click-to-activate type implementation. A still image is dropped in place until I click on it. Still sucks for advertisers, but that would solve complaints about crashing, battery, slowness or whatever as Flash wouldn't load until you wanted it to"
And this way you lose any incentive for Adobe to fix their stuff, and for developers to work on HTML5. And what do we get? Flash forever. Great. /s
Remember when Sony ruled the music space? You didn't say I have a CD player, you said I have a "Walkman".
It went over really well when they started becoming the odd man out. Sony Memory Sticks. Sony audio formats. Etc...
I think the iPhone is cool. But it is no longer unique, and some of those other phones are looking very awesome too. Microsoft wants back into the mobile space and Google is there too. Both of these companies have very deep pockets.
Now we have the netbook space owned by PCs. The iPad is a touch version of a netbook really. It is just a matter of time before the market is flooded with similar devices.
I just don't know about the whole "force the users to do it my way" attitude of Apple these days. So much for "Think Different".
I remember when no one thought Netscape would be replaced as the dominate browser.
The iPod definitely dominates the MP3 player space. The iPhone does not dominate the cell phone space - although it is true it redefined it as of late and now the competition is getting stiff. The mac is still accounts for a small percentage of computer users.
Well, Apple. HTML5 better work and work well. All this drama could end up being more problems than it is worth. MS is slow and Google is tricky. Both might just take advantage of the battle with Flash vs. HTML5 to their advantage.
@Anatidae
A walkman was the tape/cassette player not the cd player.
@Kinte Kunta Yeah it is. I don't like the growing load of misinformation about Flash. But more, I really - really - really wanted an iPad like device. I think Apple is 90% there with it. I was a Newton user and have gone through the gamut of hand-held computing devices.
I am super annoyed that I can't use it with my business because we produce projects in Flash. I wanted something I could hand to clients when visiting them and have them check out their project.
Also, I really feel as though these slate PCs are finally the right platform for super rich media websites. Right now, Flash or Silverlight. One day, HTML when it has enough features to pull it off. But I am talking about websites that feel like well designed apps you get from iTunes. I have been messing with the Flash multitouch code in beta and it really opens up some opportunities.
@ddddd "Apple will be just Palm" LMAO! Classic! You Android fanboys really are the best comedy act going. Puff, Puff, Pass my man.
@Kinte Kunta wasnt flash released in the last webOs update??
There are tons of recent tests that shows flash 10 runs 2-3 times faster than html5 on every platform and every browser excepts apples. Flash 10 uses GPU to boost performance and it does. Stupid mac doesn't allow flash to use gpu so then they can claim that html is slow
@dswatson83
Correction, Flash 10.1 uses GPU acceleration.
@Nitesh thats right, should have clarified. But 10.1 is being rolled out heavily. Biggest problem with html is that it won't be updated like flash. Flash updates every couple of months keeping up with newest formats, increasing speed, and introducing new features. Html5 may look ok now, but it will be dated for sure in 1-2 years and it may be a decade before its updated
@Kinte Kunta Or maybe us designers are sick of people telling us that HTML5 is this great replacement for Flash - yet it is a web spec that is not universal, does not support even half the features of Flash, and does not run more efficient than Flash either.
I feel like Apple is trying to sell me the idea of a jet pack while I am waiting in line to board my flight. Sounds great in theory zooming around solo from place to place - but the reality is the jetpack isn't able to replace the jetplane anytime soon.
Im sure you ipad'ers will lov3 the mac wheel too! Preorder!!!!
http://www.theonion.com/video/apple-introduces-revolutionary-new-laptop-with-no,14299/
It's funny that Jobs is bashing Flash while trying to push Quicktime. I can't view any videos on the Apple website if I don't have Quicktime installed.... doh...
Oh yaaay! I'll be able to read all the liberal news crap I want without Flash. Oh wait. . . that's none.
It's funny, because you'll hear people talk about the lack of Flash putting the iPad back into the 90's with regard to internet browsing. Internet content delivered via custom apps will make the average modern Flash website look like a complete dinosaur by comparison.
Look, I know you Apple fans are trying desperately to make this non-Flash support seem like a benevolent move from King Jobs, but, do you really think they'd get as many people to buy Canabalt on the app store if they had the option to go play it on the web for free.
It always comes down to money with gigantic corporations, this is a money move and nothing else, please Apple fans, get the idea out of your head that this is Apple of old, this is just a now huge company that is finally on top and understands why MS did it's best to crush them as they now try to crush others.
The Apple you so furiously defend isn't the same Apple.
@terminatorer So if the iPhone supported Flash, there would be 0 games on the app store instead of tens of thousands, because every native game would just be done in flash... That's certainly the case for desktop computers! Flash completely destroyed the commercial PC gaming market!
(ugghhh)
@terminatorer No, this isn't the same Apple as before, but there are things that still make them unique. Money is not their only motivation. They have it good enough that they can indulge in making things they actually love to make. They don't have to worry about ever last penny they spend on something, because the CEO cares about more than the bottom line. He cares about design, and about quality, and the user experience. Thus Apple wins in the customer satisfaction ratings by a large margin. They make better stuff, because they can charge more for it, and have a much larger profit margin.
It's a luxury they can have - for now - that makes them better, if not exactly the same as the past.
@Leicaman
aren't you just all sucked up by the media.
Is anyone else annoyed by the fact that Apple now claims these 30.000 books which everybody could access since phones could read .txt files (1995?)
@pizzaman They're "claiming" them? Or they're just making them available as a convenience?
@darksharpie They're doing the latter, but they manage to fool the media into bringing it like these books are *only* accessible through the iPad. They're not literally saying that, but they're bringing it in such a way that the average layman might get that suggestion.
It's what they've done with many aspects of the iPhone: making a buzz about the iPhone being able to X, leaving ignorant users to think that you need an iPhone to X.
@darksharpie I mean, the fact alone that they bring this as news... (for me it would be news if the iPad would block access to these books)
My new video platform uses f4v right now and I don't have the time, money or inclination to find an alternative to flash (which btw works fine on every computer I've ever used).
If ipad or iphone users can't see the videos....oh well....I just don't care. Given that stats tell me 96.88% use windows, 2.7% mac...who am I going to focus on?
i wanna know what app is in the picture on the ipad. It looks awsome.
Apple did this by getting rid of the floppy disk, people lost there minds when this happened. Look at it now. Apple is a great company that innovates, who else can say that. Ohh yea apple haters how's that zune doing, lol
@Leroysboy Apple got rid of the floppy because the CDs where a superior alternative and had already become standard on computers. No one cared really. If anything, it was a relief.
In this case, Apple is pulling Flash from their web experience on the iPad - without offering up anything superior. If HTML5 completely replaced the Flash feature set, I could care less. if HTML5 offered better and more features, I would leave Flash behind faster than Apple could say Adobe.
This isn't innovation, this is control and iTunes store profits.
that's nice but nobody wants flash on the iPad so they can read the new york times website, especially considering they already have their own app.
apple puppets