If you have read comments from a technology review or article in the last five years, or really just about any article, you'll see that most people think there is a war going on in tech - Apple vs. Google, iOS vs. Android, Closed vs. Open - call it what you want. There are people, myself included, who disagree.
Andy Ihnatko hit the nail on the head this week, several times in fact. He started on Tuesday when he published the first piece to his story 'Why I switched from iPhone to Android'. He continued on Wednesday when he published part two about customization and collaboration. To close, he cemented his place in tech journalism history (if you ask me) as intelligent and genuinely here for the technology with his conclusion published Thursday detailing the pros and the cons of the switch.
Andy, I want to thank you. I want to thank you as an iPhone owner, one who is very happy with my device. Your agnostic analysis of why Android became the right choice for you renewed my faith in technology journalism. It was a refreshing piece that focuses on how magnificent the technology of our time is and how it is the most exciting time in history to be alive (if you like tech that is).
For those who haven't read it, here's one of the several "disclaimers" (that are entirely necessary as demonstrated by the fact that even with them the comments went off into troll-land) that explain why both iOS and Android can be awesome and it isn't a black and white debate:
As I said at the very beginning, this isn’t the story of why Android is Way Totally So Much Better Than iOS. This is the story of this one dude who switched phones. Andy Ihnatko moving to Android isn’t a pivotal moment in the history of mobile computing. I just thought that a detailed piece of my observations, concerns, and experiences would be of interest to anybody who’s curious about Android. And given the revolutionary improvements in the platform over the past year, I thought it was timely.
When I assert the position that both mobile operating systems are incredible most responses I get are passive aggressive. "Well yeah, iOS is great for old people." or "Android is cool, but I just don't want to risk getting viruses." My favorite is when someone uses open or closed-ness as their argument for iOS or Android but isn't able to explain what open/closed means or how the respective OSes embody it. I'm not suggesting everyone needs to understand the intricacies of their mobile OS's philosophy; rather I'm highlighting how ridiculous the "war" has gotten and how entrenched so many people are in their opinions, often blindly.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion and not everyone will give credit to the "other" OS for one reason or another. Unfortunately, if your opinion is such that only one OS can "win", you are wrong (hint: italics are sarcasm font.) Like Andy said, it isn't Apple OR Google, it is Apple AND Google.
I won't rehash the platform agnostic, pro-awesome-tech, stance because it has been done already. I cannot recommend highly enough that you read Andy's work - part one, part two, and part three.
If you agree that both companies are awesome, this guide to making Gmail on your iPhone/iPad work how you want it to work might help.
Andy Ihnatko hit the nail on the head this week, several times in fact. He started on Tuesday when he published the first piece to his story 'Why I switched from iPhone to Android'. He continued on Wednesday when he published part two about customization and collaboration. To close, he cemented his place in tech journalism history (if you ask me) as intelligent and genuinely here for the technology with his conclusion published Thursday detailing the pros and the cons of the switch.
Andy, I want to thank you. I want to thank you as an iPhone owner, one who is very happy with my device. Your agnostic analysis of why Android became the right choice for you renewed my faith in technology journalism. It was a refreshing piece that focuses on how magnificent the technology of our time is and how it is the most exciting time in history to be alive (if you like tech that is).
For those who haven't read it, here's one of the several "disclaimers" (that are entirely necessary as demonstrated by the fact that even with them the comments went off into troll-land) that explain why both iOS and Android can be awesome and it isn't a black and white debate:
As I said at the very beginning, this isn’t the story of why Android is Way Totally So Much Better Than iOS. This is the story of this one dude who switched phones. Andy Ihnatko moving to Android isn’t a pivotal moment in the history of mobile computing. I just thought that a detailed piece of my observations, concerns, and experiences would be of interest to anybody who’s curious about Android. And given the revolutionary improvements in the platform over the past year, I thought it was timely.
When I assert the position that both mobile operating systems are incredible most responses I get are passive aggressive. "Well yeah, iOS is great for old people." or "Android is cool, but I just don't want to risk getting viruses." My favorite is when someone uses open or closed-ness as their argument for iOS or Android but isn't able to explain what open/closed means or how the respective OSes embody it. I'm not suggesting everyone needs to understand the intricacies of their mobile OS's philosophy; rather I'm highlighting how ridiculous the "war" has gotten and how entrenched so many people are in their opinions, often blindly.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion and not everyone will give credit to the "other" OS for one reason or another. Unfortunately, if your opinion is such that only one OS can "win", you are wrong (hint: italics are sarcasm font.) Like Andy said, it isn't Apple OR Google, it is Apple AND Google.
I won't rehash the platform agnostic, pro-awesome-tech, stance because it has been done already. I cannot recommend highly enough that you read Andy's work - part one, part two, and part three.
If you agree that both companies are awesome, this guide to making Gmail on your iPhone/iPad work how you want it to work might help.
