Tricorder

Reaction to the iPad announcement has been perplexing. Some people look into the iPad and see their hopes. Some people see their fears. Some people see money.

What we don’t see, interestingly, is the traditional scenario for the tablet computer: on the job, walking around, held like a clipboard. That’s what people have always assumed the tablet would be. It’s not.

Perhaps it’s a tricorder, the original Star Trek fashion accessory. I’m only half kidding here.

The tricorder was invented because, in 1966, television executives thought it looked strange for a young woman to be walking around without a purse, and so they needed to give Yeoman Rand something with a shoulder strap. We’re going to have the reverse problem: what are you going to do with the iPad when you just want to put it down for a moment?