

The Real Genius Of The Kindle? The Return Of ‘Unitasking’ - gyeh
http://paidcontent.org/article/419-the-real-genius-of-the-kindle-the-return-of-unitasking

======
stcredzero
I think Amazon should fund their own newspaper on the Kindle, as a content
driver for further Kindle sales. Most of it can be comprised of aggregation,
with a few exclusive investigative stories only available on the Kindle.

------
vorador
And what about the genius of a book ?

~~~
grellas
The Kindle provides a convenient and (most think) superior platform for
reading and navigating extended texts. The computer does not.

It lets those who enjoy reading have immediate and portable in-hand access to
their favorite reading and reference materials. The computer does not.

When I read extended texts, I like to concentrate for long periods on that
text. If I leave off somewhere, I like to be able to find my place quickly and
easily. The Kindle is a dedicated device that builds in the functionality to
do this. The computer does not.

Would I subscribe to the New York Times on the Kindle? Sure, if I have lots of
money and value the convenience more than the expense. It is nice to be able
to switch instantly to the news while reading your book on a commute train.
But, not really if I don't want to spend where I don't have to spend. Not when
I can get access to such news sources over the web.

Don't see that the issue of multi-tasking versus uni-tasking has anything
really to do with this.

News publishers who want to sell paid content will benefit incidentally from
any superior reading platform that will induce some minority of the reading
audience to pay for their subscription just to have all their reading material
in one convenient place.

But uni-tasking is not a deus ex machina for the news business.

If I put pure uni-tasking as my primary reading aim, I will sit back in the
comfort of my home, pull one of the wall-full of antiquarian books I own off
the shelf, and through myself into it without distraction.

If I am riding a commute train, or flying on a jet, I will take the
convenience of a superior reader, uni-tasking or not, and I will probably like
it all the more if it lets me do many things at once as I travel.

------
nazgulnarsil
this reminds me of the UI principle: focus the same way your users do. if your
users spend 90% of their time using two features, those are the features you
should put 90% of your effort into.

~~~
DannoHung
Blind leading the blind (leading the blind)?

If your users spend 90% of their time using two features, maybe it's because
you've made the other features suck.

------
pclark
one thing at a time? Like the iPhone has promoted since its launch?

~~~
antiform
"It's not a shortcoming, it's a feature!"

While I am now an Apple fan, this reminds me of the ridiculous excuses Apple
fanboys gave me when they compared their early-generation iPods to my MP3
player at the time (a Rio Karma).

    
    
      "It doesn't support gapless playback because in modern times, you should focus songs not albums!"
      "It only holds 10 gigs, because you should only listen to your best songs on the go!"
      "You don't need a button for skipping tracks, because you should spend your time listening to music, not switching between songs!"

------
endtime
>When’s the last time you did only one thing at a time? If you’re reading
this—particularly if you’re in the news or content business—there’s a good
chance you’ll have trouble answering that question.

Uh, when I read that passage it was the only thing I was doing. I often
multitask, but not all the time or even the majority of the time. And as
others mentioned, it's not like the Kindle encourages "unitasking" any more
than reading a book does.

------
kingkawn
That article is interesting, but his headshot creeps me out while I read it.

------
billswift
unitasking - also known as do one thing and do it well

