I think danah boyd illuminates the relevant point -- the iPad can change the way in which we share/use our devices. Although in practical terms it is probably not the 'right' tool for many social scientists (who tend to use specialist software etc.) it is a tool that can launch a 'sense of wonder' at technology. This then becomes a question of how design affects technology affects the human experience ... a concept with which I became acquainted when I did a joint project with design folk. I think the real power of the iPad is in the sense of wonder (even more so then with the iTouch etc.), which is a bit ineluctable but still quite powerful. Certainly that is the approach taken with the iPhone 4 ads here in the UK with the emphasis on the video phone. Personally, I intend to buy an iTouch to play with during departmental meetings AND to annoy my colleagues because none of them have one yet. Sarah Sarah Oates Professor of Political Communication University of Glasgow Glasgow G12 8RT United Kingdom Telephone: 0141-330-5124 Fax: 0141-330-5071 Email: s.oates@lbss.gla.ac.uk www.media-politics.com -----Original Message----- From: air-l-bounces@listserv.aoir.org [mailto:air-l-bounces@listserv.aoir.org] On Behalf Of Janna Anderson Sent: 16 July 2010 11:56 To: danah boyd; Barry Wellman Cc: aoir list Subject: Re: [Air-L] why iPad The iPad has amazing battery life compared with a laptop computer; it has four times more long-lasting power than a laptop for field work. It is also a great travel-work-pleasure device - you can store dozens of films, hundreds of documents, books, etc. and access them easily on long flights, in airports, in hotels with sketchy wifi or ridiculous fees for Internet. You can watch an entire season of "Dr. Who" while traveling to Australia, for instance, no worries. On 7/15/10 11:11 PM, "danah boyd" <aoir.z3z@danah.org> wrote:
Personally, I bought an iPad for field research and it's been great so far. What I needed was a reliable web browser that I could show to people I interview. And the AT&T plan - as evil as it is - was a lot cheaper than any of the laptop aircards and required much less commitment.
In the process, I learned something important. When I put a computer in front of someone, people face the screen. I can watch them OR I can watch the screen. Watching both is awkward and creates odd social dynamics because I have to sit next to the person. With the iPad, I could put it down on a table between us and watch the person's face while watching where they browse, albeit upside-down, but that's easy when I'm not trying to read the exact content. Shared browsing is very easy to accommodate and it's quite easy to go through sites with someone.
I'm not using it for taking notes or other text-heavy processes. I'm looking to browse. And not to mimic browsing that one does on a computer. Just outright stare-at-screen browsing while in the midst of an interview. And I'm very happy with it.
danah
On Jul 15, 2010, at 6:07 PM, Barry Wellman wrote:
After all the hype, I can't figger out why someone (even at Duke) would use an iPad rather than a netbook for their research. Sounds like kewl won over functionality. If I'm taking notes, I'd rather have a real keyboard. If I'm doing other stuff, I'd rather have the plethora of applications running on Win7/XP or MacOX than on the little apps running on iPods and iPhones with their baby OS. -- I've been using the iPhone 3GS for months now as a pocket phone etc and am continually frustrated on what it can't do. End iRant. End PodHype
Barry Wellman
S.D. Clark Professor of Sociology, FRSC NetLab
Director
Department of Sociology 725 Spadina Avenue, Room 388 University of Toronto Toronto Canada M5S 2J4 twitter:barrywellman http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman fax:+1-416-978-3963 Updating history: http://chass.utoronto.ca/oldnew/cybertimes.php
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"taken out of context, i must seem so strange" -- ani http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/ http://www.danah.org/ @zephoria
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-- Janna Quitney Anderson Director of Imagining the Internet www.imaginingtheinternet.org Associate Professor of Communications Director of Internet Projects School of Communications Elon University andersj@elon.edu (336) 278-5733 (o) _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/