Shift to the Future

I just got back from a short trip to Toronto, ON, Canada.  I used my iPad with my kindle reader to read some books on the way there and back.  It’s amazing that I can have 1/2 dozen books on a thin electronic slate, highlight and add notes, and later sync it up to “the cloud” for use later.  E-readers are disruptive technologies… While sitting in a cab cruising through the city, I wondered about the economy.  Actually, I think a lot about our economy these days.  I am overwhelmed with the complexity and magic that defines the economy.  Small shops on obscure streets, massive 50 story business towers, huge hotels, hospitals, government buildings, university facilities, restaurants, people walking everywhere, grid locked traffic with people coming and going, and so on.  At the airport, there are untold numbers of people going to and coming from hundreds or thousands of locations.  Some for pleasure and some for business.  Just one day in Toro...

Okay I got an iPad so what. Well I am pretty impressed so far. In fact I am writing this post on it right now. The onscreen keyboard is actually pretty decent. I am kind-of touch typing. I thought I would share my first impressions from my first weekend with it. I immediately got iTunes going, synced up my music. The listening experience is great. Works just like an iPod. Then I installed the Kindle Reader from Amazon and bought my first book: The Singularity written by Ray Kurzweil. Next I setup Activesync for the Mail app to connect to my Microsoft Exchange email. Worked great. I have used that exclusively this weekend to read and respond to email. I found and installed a Twitter app Twitterific, installed a Soduko app, Google Earth app, Language translator app, Wired Magazine app, and Sundry Notes. Reading with Kindle is very nice. A simple interface that doesn't get in the way. I love that I can highlight snippets of text and easily get back to it. I can also...