Apple can sell ice cubes to Eskimos... (I'll take the entire tray please!)

Everyone is talking about the iPad, (largely for all the wrong reasons-- eh-ehm, can we all grow up, please). As an employee of National Geographic, I was personally very excited when Steve Jobs visited our newly redesigned website during the iPad product launch. Oour advertisers must have been in heaven when they saw that pleasant surprise-- the hits we got were jaw dropping!




But I digress.

Everyone knows that when Apple talks, we listen. Sure, we all have seen tablet technology before.... but never like this. Apple has (once again) created a new breed of technology that might just span the gap between computers and cell phones. And true to Apple form, this new technology is neither frivolous nor boring. Even all you nay-sayers out there have to admit that this product is not only beautiful, but also fulfills a missing, traditional need in today's technologically driven society (more on that to come).

So, it's not surprising to hear that software designers all over the world are developing applications specifically for the iPad. I am not a "gamer,"virtual nor do I have a particular interest in spending time in the virtual world (I can barely keep my head on straight in the tactile world!).

Yet I can see how something like the iPad could facilitate accessibility to the virtual world for those like me who really can't be bothered with it at this point.

I can't help but think of a beautiful, well-made, sleek and sexy Apple product in my hands-- with graphics to die for, the speed of lighting, and an intuitive, user-friendly platform.... Ok, maybe I could get into this virtual world thing afterall.

But here is what I find most interesting about this new product. "Techies" and business professionals are drooling over the opportunities to develop new software and applications. But at the SAME TIME, traditional publishing gurus are seeing the iPad as a way to salvage their industry! What gives?

Well, the software/application perspective is pretty intuitive; latch on to a hot product, design applications, sell them to the millions of captive consumers, and watch your money grow. Apple has not missed a beat in twenty years or more (excluding the recent "naming" oversight). Stakeholders want to ride that big, red-delicious wave, all the way to the bank, by creating new applications and reaching consumers who were previously intimidated by programs such as Second Life.

But how does traditional media reinsert itself in this picture?

Think about owning your own iPad. You can hold it in your hands- but it is by no means just a cell phone, nor is it a big, bulky laptop. You cherish and love this object like it was you child. You swab and dust the screen clean, (only with the factory approved shammy cloth!), and you feel very important when using it. You don't have to zoom to read web pages. The orientation of your device is horizontal. In fact, you can flip "virtual" pages, almost as if you were reading an actual book or magazine! And unlike the Kindle or other electronic book devices, your iPad is about the same size as a book or magazine, and offers rich and interactive content that helps you connect with content-- much like you did as a child when you insisted upon reading your favorite book over and over again.

Are you starting to see why "tech-nerds" and traditional media giants alike are excited about this product?

The iPad is an innovation that pushes the technological (and marketing) envelop by facilitating wide spread accessibility to the virtual world, while fulfilling a long-overdo need and desire for meaningful connections between readers and content- much like our forefathers experienced with books and other forms of print publications before computer screens were invented.

So go ahead and share your iPad predictions. I am interested to know what everyone thinks! Will it change everything? Will you spend more time controlling your avatar than being yourself? Will you read more books and magazines because they are readily available in complete visual, graphical splendor-- in the format from which we originally learned to read (HORIZONTAL!).

Let me know! And if you have a iPad, I would love to hear about your experiences-- for alas, I am a poor grad student who will not have the discretionary cash to buy one for quite some time.