What new growth from old ideas spring?

What do I want to achieve on my Mac which is almost possible, but remains just short of reality. It could be "oh so good if only..."

Saturday, March 09, 2013

Dearth of Apple

OK, it has been long enough now... any day now...maybe tomorrow. Is anyone else missing the excitement of the Apple announcement?

I have read that Apple is maturing, growing out of its start-up ethos into a large more sedate regular corporation, but I just don't buy it. It always was large, initially in ambition and then in numbers. It has been large for decades. And it still remains ambitious to develop new magical products. It is just that I miss the excitement of the unfolding story. Trying to second-guess what is next in the either OS or software updates or to figure out pathways leading to hardware innovation and connectedness.

Not that the announcement always matched initial expectations. Often there was a burn-in period where the significance was a gradual discovery. A collective recognition by press and watchers alike that the iMac was a cultural more than manufacturing shift. That the unlikely middle ground of iPad use was so significant because of its instant on, always there, mobility and sheer sofability.

I think the lack of announcements has influenced the recent negative press and the share price as a consequence of the unknown and therefore potentially more volatile future. Let's face it, we all like a story and if we feel we can share in the development of that story, then we get drawn in to in in the same way that TV or radio series, or a good book will pull you in.

So, I am really beginning to miss the next instalment. I wouldn't mind so much if I new when it was going to play. The key dates in the Apple calendar evolved over the years, but there were always at least two annual events to rely on, to build up to and to savour. Don't get me wrong, I think the format should be different to the "Job's show". But I still think people enjoy a show, fronted by a charismatic compere. We want to be entertained, and it need not be the CEO.

My hope is that the current no-doubt frantic effort being invested in delivering a brand new clean and non-skeuomorphic interface will be unveiled at a fantastic new annual Apple extravaganza along with upgraded Mac's iOs devices and as yet unimagined stuff. I'm not sure that the show is less important than the stuff, because it is the story which we buy into, which has value for users and shareholders (and media) alike, not the hardware. The hardware value only comes to light after its position in the story unfolds.

And so children, snuggle down, switch off the light, and wait for the next exciting chapter...tomorrow, .............. perhaps.