Lora wished she'd taken her Tablet PC with her to the bookstore. In her post, she makes several excellent points about spreading the word on how to make use of tech stuff, such as the Tablet PC.
She's got me thinking: I need to carry my Tablet PC around with me more too. First, so I can use it. Second, so I can show it to others. Third, so I can learn more where it's of value to me.
It's funny, I don't carry the Tablet PC around very often when I'm not in work mode. I'm sure my friends would argue it's good to have some non-computer time--to leave the Tablet at home. But I think I might be missing out.
I guess if there were more public Hotspots, I'd probably carry my Tablet PC more because I like being connected to Messenger throughout the day. I guess the downside is that I'd have to have the Tablet PC on all the time.
Here are a couple types of things that pop into my mind as to reasons why I often leave my Tablet PC at home if I go shopping, for instance:
* I'd have to hold it all the time
* If I were to carry it around in its protective case, I'd have to unzip it from the case and wait for it to boot up in order to use it. I'm too impatient/and or lazy to wait that long.
* I might lose it.
* I might drop it.
* It's hot here in Phoenix and I'd be concerned about leaving it in the car. (A friend literally toasted his subcompact notebook by leaving it in sleep mode while in the trunk of a car.)
* There are only a few WiFi hotspots that I know of.
* The batteries will probably die before I get a chance to use it.
* The display doesn't work well outdoors.
* What am I going to do with it anyway? Am I only going to use it for 10 minutes out of a two hour trip?
Hmm. Interesting list. I find it equally interesting to see where I do take my Tablet PC with me in my non-work related trips:
* Visits to the bookstore. Yeah, the publishing world may cringe here, but I don't buy as many books as I used to now that I have a Tablet PC. In fact, I used to buy some technical books simply for a few printed lines. Now I jot down notes or references to them instead.
* Excursions to Home Depot/Lowe's. Well, it actually depends on what I'm doing, but this is a great way to accumulate ideas. With a USB camera attached to the Tablet PC, I snap a picture into a custom paper-app and scribble product information, prices, ideas, diagrams, etc. (It's a couple step process to do the same with OneNote, but all-in-all not too bad.)
* Lounging without a sketchbook. I keep trying to draw. Someday I might actually learn how to. Most of my stuff is embarrassingly poor. You know, the kind of stuff you tear out of a sketchbook and then once it's torn out you have to make sure you've removed all the tiny fringes of paper left behind so that no one can tell you drew something in the first place. But now with my Tablet PC, I just erase and delete to my heart's content. No wads of paper piling up.
* Visits to the doctor's office. I find this is a good time to catch up on reading and if I get tired reading, I doodle. I've been meaning to record the time with the doctor in OneNote, but I haven't tried this yet. I've tried taking manual notes, but I hate losing eye-contact to scribble something down. Besides, it probably wouldn't be legible anyway.
* Going to the library. This is similar to the first item.
* Visits with friends and family. On a couple of occasions I've taken the Tablet PC when visiting friends and family to share photos.
I think that's about it. Pretty short list. I've got to work on this.
Posted by Loren at August 4, 2003 02:08 AMYeah I'm exactly the same, but you missed one massive point why I use my ipaq rather than my tablet.
In London, if I was to walk around with my tabletpc someone will spy it and nick it off me. All the other points I take on board, but the fact remains people are not quite ready for computers out side the work area... And the jeliously of people who are, is unbearable.
For now, my ipaq wifi and a bluetooth connection is what I need for those kind of situations.
Posted by: Ian Forrester on August 4, 2003 05:13 AMJust a tangent about theft and safety:
In this month's issue of Dwell magazine there was a small comment about notebooks and theft. This designer, http://www.humanbeans.net, started selling pizza boxes as hideaway places for people to use in cars, public places, etc. A pizza box is more accepatable and less likely to be stolen. I thought it was clever. (It's not on their website.)
To a certain extent, I agree about the theft factor in a very public location - like a park or on the street - I have to be street-smart and aware. It's a bit like a purse vs a wallet, I have to be careful about how exposed / open it is. Something that is nondescript or blends feels safer. I'm not going to leave it in the cart at the grocery store while I walk away to reach for potato chips. I also don't take it with me when I take the dog to the park because his 100lbs may run me and the Tablet over if he sees a cat. :-D
Posted by: Lora on August 4, 2003 10:27 AMTwo leisure-time things I haven't done with my Tablet PC that it seems I should have: listen to music and watch movies when out of town. Hmmm.
I *like* that idea about pizza boxes. I'm sure the local carry-out would give me an extra one next time I stop by, and it'd be great to hide things in. I normally carry a towel or two in the car (normal for this area, to cover steering wheels in the sun) but I like the pizza idea even better. Thanks for passing that along, Lora
Posted by: steven on August 4, 2003 12:01 PMI had a VERY bad experience with bringing a Pocket PC into a bookstore... those guys wouldn't allow ANY form of data storage in there.. :P
Posted by: Marauderz on August 4, 2003 07:57 PMthose guys wouldn't allow ANY form of data storage in there
Not even a notepad and pencil?
Posted by: steven on August 5, 2003 04:05 PMCorrect, some places will not allow computers / handhelds and cameras. Or they may not say they don't allow it, but may stop someone if they're concerned about how they're using it.
Sam Walton style competitors price checking and taking snap shots make retailers be careful with what they allow in the storefront. But this will change, especially with grocery stores adopting a museum style / handheld / Tablet guidance systems and electronic shopping lists built into carts, etc. It's low level now, and then acceptance will grow.
Posted by: Lora on August 6, 2003 10:19 AM