“If our tipster is right, whatever [Apple’s] Tablet’s user interface (UI) is, it’s going to be different enough from OS X or the iPhone OS to require a significant learning curve,” John Brownlee reports for Cult of Mac. “According to reader Tom: ‘I just heard [to] be ready for a steep learning curve regarding the ‘new’ Apple product about to be released [and its] interface. This person is an employee of Apple and had just had a meeting regarding some of the new things coming. He/She would not go into details, but did say that he/she hoped we liked learning.'”
“As a rumor, it’s vague, but it does engorge thought. Time and again, interfaces that require steep learning curves fail when compared to subtle evolutions of intuitively entrenched desktop metaphors,” Brownlee writes. “Since Apple still does multitouch better than anyone else out there, presumably the Tablet won’t have too outlandish an interface, but talk of a steep learning curve is still eyebrow arching.”
Full article here.
If it’s Apple it has to be intuitive and user friendly.
Could be a dumb Apple employee, who thinks easy is “steep”.
Even Apple has an occasional worm.
I call BS on he/she/it/crap. This is Apple, not M$ after all.
None of my friends who I talked into buying a Mac can ever figure out how to put a file in a folder. “Tell me again. How do I send an e-mail?”
Bulls^&t;…….. My friend’s cousin’s dog’s trainer knows someone that said that the iSlate would be virtual and you can just swipe your fingers through the air to control it. Seriously…..
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Anyone high enough at Apple to attend a meeting to discuss new, unreleased products certainly knows enough not to go spouting off about any steep learning curve. I also can’t imagine Jobs signing off on a UI which was difficult for the user to learn.
…. ’nuff said.
Laughable.
UPDATE 10:22am: Former employee
Complete bullshit.
No one working at Apple close enough of the tablet would tip a rumour site.
You’ve got to be an utter fool to believe that crap.
I really don’t think the word “engorge” means what the author of the article thinks it means.
Remember that gesture “library” apple was working on a while back. We’re gonna see this implemented in the tablet. Get ready to learn the difference between a four finger swipe, a two finger swirl and a three finger tap. That’s what’s coming.
Sounds Like Oballmer, who can’t figure out how to turn it on.
Oh wait, thats the HP Slug, I mean Slate.
Rumor quashed
Is your thought engorged, or are you just glad to see me?
@ Gestures
Sounds more like bathroom gestures-“four finger swipe.”
Agree on the former employ (if true). Also if true, what moron comes out of a meeting and however soon after gives out a tip?
http://www.applebythehour.com (Need input on this site)
When developing the iPhone the OS team had dummy hardware to work with and the hardware team had a dummy OS so noone could get the full picture at once. Maybe this person saw a dummy OS?
Steep curve? Don’t they call that a cliff?
It’s all relative. Some people would say that the iPhone has a steep learning curve (it doesn’t) but individual’s perceptions can vary greatly.
My knowledge of learning curves says that “steep” means you learn quickly. A shallow learning curve, or a long learning curve, is one that takes a while to master.
Everyday I meet people who have switched from Windows to Mac.
9 times out of 10 they don’t get the Mac and more importantly.
they don’t deserve a Mac.
I’m Just Saying.
Rumor, Schmumor.
This rumor clearly points to an MS shill at work. It goes hand in hand with the MS/HP tablet vaporware announcement at CES.
Wait and See is the best approach.
Ha ha, I saw the engorged jokes coming! http://www.instantrimshot.com/
The phrase “steep learning curve” is inexact, commonly misused, and carries no meaning without some context. A rumor about a guy who talked to a former employee isn’t exactly what I’d call “context”.
Interestingly, “steep learning curve” can refer to the rate at which a person is able to learn something, meaning it’s actually easy to learn!
The opposite of “steep” would be a long, gentle learning curve, meaning the learning is a long, slow, incremental process; learning how to use Windows software, for instance.
Do we remember the steep learning curve of the mouse?
OctoberMac:
Steep learning curve actually means in order to “climb” it (i.e. to learn), great effort is required; a shallow learning curve doesn’t require such effort to “climb”. The distance crossed represents the amount of knowledge acquired, so if the curve is flat, the effort required will be minimal, and if it’s steep, great effort will be needed to cover that same distance.
Does that sound logical to you?