On Jun 30, 5:38 pm, Stewart Kissel wrote:
Sailplane pilots seem to have high techno-geek standings.
I have been watching with curiosity/amusement the
media frenzy over this device. Cell phones are quite
useful for many of us, and particularly for retrieves(when
we have coverage!).

This general category of device has existed for some time. They are
called smartphones. Smartphones are a melding of PDA (personal
digital assistant) and cellphone technologies with internet
capabilities thrown in. Smartphones are, IMHO, the logical evolution
of these technologies.

So is this device clever marketing by Steve Jobs, or
is it actually creating a new niche for electronic
devices?

Jobs has a pretty good track record of predicting and bringing to
market "new" technologies that people want and use. Ipod/iTunes,
personal computer user interface are notable. Btw, if your computer
is using Windows, then it is most definitely using "Macintosh"
technology, first promoted by Jobs in the early 1980s. The iPhone
will likely raise the bar for function and ease of use of smartphones.

I for one don't quite understand how someone
could get so excited about a cellphone.

It is not just a cellphone.

Are these
the pet-rocks of the digital age, or do the put current
cellphones and laptops out of business? Just curious.

Current cellphones, quite likely especially as smartphone prices come
down. Getting e-mail and looking something up on the internet can be
very useful.

Laptops, not so sure. Time will tell.

Regards,

-Doug