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iPad Is CD-ROM All Over Again

Apple's tablet is a throwback to the days of top-down content control

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Apr 2, 2010 11:02 AM CDT

(Newser) – The iPad may seem like the next big thing, but “it feels like the second coming of the CD-ROM” to Cory Doctorow of BoingBoing. Content makers thought they could repackage their product in a more expensive form and remake media. But incumbents make bad revolutionaries, Doctorow argues. The iPad is designed to reinstate top-down media control. DRM is everywhere, you can’t load your own software—let alone write it—and you surely can’t override a command from “the mothership.”

Getting your kids a computer used to encourage them to remake, reprogram, and improve the world—hell, the old Apple II+ came with schematics . Get your kid an iPad and you’re saying “that even changing the batteries is something you have to leave to the professionals.” Bottom line: “Gadgets come and gadgets go. … The real issue isn’t the capabilities of the piece of plastic you unwrap today, but the technical and social infrastructure that accompanies it.”

In this Jan. 27, 2010 file photo, the Apple iPad is examined after its unveiling at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, file)

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iPad Is CD-ROM All Over Again

Apple's tablet is a throwback to the days of top-down content control

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Light shines through dark background, new owners complain

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Slate tries to convince one writer (unsuccessfully) that the device is great

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Adoption rate the fastest ever

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44% said they bought tablet over netbook

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FLA to audit working conditions at Apple suppliers

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iPad Is CD-ROM All Over Again

Apple's tablet is a throwback to the days of top-down content control

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OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Apple • DRM • gadget • digital content • iPad • Cory Doctorow • CD-ROM

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

iPad 2 Glitch: It 'Bleeds'

Light shines through dark background, new owners complain

Why Shouldn't I Hate My iPad?

Slate tries to convince one writer (unsuccessfully) that the device is great

iPad Catching On Faster Than the DVD Player

Adoption rate the fastest ever

iPad Wrecks Netbook Sales

44% said they bought tablet over netbook

Apple Asks Outside Group to Inspect Plants

FLA to audit working conditions at Apple suppliers

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?