[Infowarrior] - Felten: iPad: The Disneyland of Computers

[Richard Forno]

(Building on Gilmor's posting from earlier this morning, here's Ed  
Felten's take...-rick)

iPad: The Disneyland of Computers
By Ed Felten - Posted on April 8th, 2010 at 8:06 am
http://www.freedom-to-tinker.com/blog/felten/ipad-disneyland-computers
Tech commentators have a love/hate relationship with Apple's new iPad.  
Those who try it tend to like it, but many dislike its locked-down App  
Store which only allows Apple-approved apps. Some people even see the  
iPad as the dawn of a new relationship between people and computers.

To me, the iPad is Disneyland.

I like Disneyland. It's clean, safe, and efficient. There are lots of  
entertaining things to do. Kids can drive cars; adults can wear goofy  
hats with impunity. There's a parade every afternoon, and an  
underground medical center in case you get sick.

All of this is possible because of central planning. Every restaurant  
and store on Disneyland's Main Street is approved in advance by  
Disney. Every employee is vetted by Disney. Disneyland wouldn't be  
Disneyland without central planning.

I like to visit Disneyland, but I wouldn't want to live there.

There's a reason the restaurants in Disneyland are bland and stodgy.  
It's not just that centralized decision processes like Disney's have  
trouble coping with creative, nimble, and edgy ideas. It's also that  
customers know who's in charge, so any bad dining experience will be  
blamed on Disney, making Disney wary of culinary innovation. In  
Disneyland the trains run on time, but they take you to a station just  
like the one you left.

I like living in a place where anybody can open a restaurant or store.  
I like living in a place where anybody can open a bookstore and sell  
whatever books they want. Here in New Jersey, the trains don't always  
run on time, but they take you to lots of interesting places.

The richness of our cultural opportunities, and the creative dynamism  
of our economy, are only possible because of a lack of central  
planning. Even the best central planning process couldn't hope to keep  
up with the flow of new ideas.

The same is true of Apple's app store bureaucracy: there's no way it  
can keep up with the flow of new ideas -- no way it can offer the  
scope and variety of apps that a less controlled environment can  
provide. And like the restaurants of Disneyland, the apps in Apple's  
store will be blander because customers will blame the central planner  
for anything offensive they might say.

But there's a bigger problem with the argument offered by central  
planning fanboys. To see what it is, we need to look more carefully at  
why Disneyland succeeded when so many centrally planned economies  
failed so dismally.

What makes Disneyland different is that it is an island of central  
planning, embedded in a free society. This means that Disneyland can  
seek its suppliers, employees, and customers in a free economy, even  
while it centrally plans its internal operations. This can work well,  
as long as Disneyland doesn't get too big -- as long as it doesn't try  
to absorb the free society around it.

The same is true of Apple and the iPad. The whole iPad ecosystem, from  
the hardware to Apple's software to the third-party app software, is  
only possible because of the robust free-market structures that create  
and organize knowledge, and mobilize workers, in the technology  
industry. If Apple somehow managed to absorb the tech industry into  
its centrally planned model, the result would be akin to Disneyland  
absorbing all of America. That would be enough to frighten even the  
most rabid fanboy, but fortunately it's not at all likely. The iPad,  
like Disneyland, will continue to be an island of central planning in  
a sea of decentralized innovation.

So, iPad users, enjoy your trip to Disneyland. I understand why you're  
going there, and I might go there one day myself. But don't forget:  
there's a big exciting world outside, and you don't want to miss it.