Comments on: iOS 5 for tots: Quick pro/con

By: Stephen Shankland

Stephen Shankland — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 09:31:53 +0000

In general I find the single-user assumption of iOS to be really annoying (and also the weak user-switching abilities of Mac OS). In particular, for game profiles and status, it’s really weak.

I do have low-grade dystopian anxiety that user accounts and profiles will lead Apple to move to per-user charges for apps, the way Kindle and iTunes purchases are per-user. There already are separate Apple IDs for iTunes, and Apple IDs are getting more important with iMessage, which is linked to user identity not group identity.

By: Rob

Rob — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 13:54:18 +0000

John, I’ve always loved your blog, so it’s exciting to see you mention BubCaps. Please contact me if you’d like a pack!

As far as Multitouch Gestures go, they seem really useful, but they aren’t compatible with youngsters and some apps. I think Apple should add a setting that allows users to designate apps that will ignore gestures (rather than the blanket on or off setting).

By: wth

wth — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 13:35:07 +0000

Allowing small children to play around with a £500 device is beyond crazy. [I take it you don't have any such children. For us use of the tablet is a fun, communal daily ritual: each morning the boys storm into our room requesting "Truck videos!," after which we spend time exploring YouTube clips together. Other times (e.g. yesterday morning) I set up the tablet for little Netflix sessions, letting them watch 20-30 minutes here and there. There's a wealth of educational, entertaining stuff (e.g. Mighty Machines). --J.]

By: josh d

josh d — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 00:05:06 +0000

Agreed, I like the gestures. Double pro tip: buy a second iPad for yourself :)

By: josh d

josh d — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 23:24:04 +0000

pro tip: you can turn off 4-finger swipe gestures in Settings > General > Multitasking Gestures, [Thanks, but I quite like that capability in general. It's only when the kids are using the device (or maybe just certain apps) that I'd like to turn it off. --J.]