Apple's Front Row "copies" the innovation of Microsoft's Media centre - a short course in Apple history, its future and Freud

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Apple's Front Row "copies" the innovation of Microsoft's Media centre - a short course in Apple history, its future and Freud

Date Created: 19 Oct, 2005, 12:29 AM

Well, that didn't take long!

Ill-considered offerings from analysts and commentators lamenting Apple's late entry into the so-called Media Centre, which apparently for some, is an idea invented, concocted, conceived and utterly dreamt up by Microsoft.

As I recall, some years back, Steve Jobs at a San Francisco MacWorld showed us Apple's vision of a "Digital Hub", a place of convergence for the digital equipment and software that would soon enough be emerging. Soon after followed the first iLife software package which carried the idea to another level.

Indeed, soon after Microsoft released details of its Media Centre variation of Windows Xp, which produced this comment on Geek.com in December 2002:

"Microsoft announced the rolling out of its own "digital hub" applications called Microsoft Plus Digital Media Edition for Windows XP. The product line is aimed at targeting Apple "switchers" who are moving to Macs for their easy-to-use suite of iApps. Microsoft will unveil the new software, which is designed to provide users with more features for editing and playing with media files, on January 7."

The idea of using a computer for displaying other media goes back quite a few years, of course.

As I recall, since a friend still has one, Apple introduced a TV-capable Macintosh, the LC500 series.

This range of Macs entered service in 12 years ago, in 1993. Here is Lowendmac.com's description of it:

"This was perhaps the oddest Macintosh ever. It was the last desktop with a 68030 processor, the first with a built-in TV tuner, the first black desktop Mac*, and the first Mac to ship with a remote control. The built-in 14" Trinitron monitor displayed 16-bit TV images, but only 8-bit computer graphics. Software allowed it to capture a single frame from the TV as a PICT file."

Hold on to the concept of a Mac with a remote control for a moment.

Now along comes the new iMac with Apple's Front Row software to enhance the Digital Hub Concept. Looking quite elegant and simple in traditional Apple style, It's not meant to be a device that sits in the middle of your lounge room, connected to a huge plasma screen. It's a computer, which, linked to the evolving iTunes media experience (Music, TV, short movies) emphasises once more Apple efforts to manage the whole widget - software, hardware and gateway to content.

Now some bemoan this silo approach, going on to cite DRM as further evidence of locking in Apple's consumers, but this loses sight of how many choose to remain within the silo because it offers a better experience than being outside it, or being held captive in another.

And for some, Apple appears to be late on the scene with respect to Media Centre concepts, shamelessly copying the "master" of innovation, Microsoft.

Analyst Rob Enderle has this to say today:

"Surprise ... Apple Copies Media Center  Speaking of Media Center, I'm surprised that there was less outrage over Apple's Front Row software, which is a complete Media Center rip-off (albeit one that offers only a subset of Media Center features). Joe Belfiore, the general manager of Microsoft's eHome division, is in New York this week for Digital Life for the soft-launch of XP MCE 2005 UR2, and he's surprised about a completely different issue. "I was surprised that it took them as long as this to do a feature like Media Center," he said. Indeed. But this lengthy gestation--Media Center has been out for over three years now--suggests that Apple isn't all-powerful. Furthermore, Apple is only now dealing with issues Microsoft first solved four years ago--IR interfaces, for starters--and has yet to figure out all the issues involved with TV tuner cards, TV recording, and so forth. In short, they have a long way to go before they can ever catch up with Media Center. Most tellingly, perhaps: Why is Apple's interface so text-based? It looks sad next to Microsoft's highly-visual approach. Which, frankly, is what you want with digital media content. Just a thought."

Enderle is the sort of Microsoft apologist who sends me back to my personal professional library, and reviewing Freudian theory, especially with respect to defense mechanisms, especially denial and rationalisation.

His idea of the "most telling" aspect of how far Apple has to go to catch up with Microsoft is Apple's use of a text-based interface.

This is the interface Front Row presents on the new iMac.

The one Enderle is complaining about.

Did you see the video of Steve Jobs demonstrating its use? Did it look similar to a small mp3 player about the size of a deck of cards, selling in the millions, and causing many in the Windows camp to decamp over to the Macintosh in the hope that the rare emotional connection and ease of use they've discovered in this piece of technology will transfer and continue in that piece of technology which has caused them frustration up to now - their PC?

In fact, if you go to Apple's own site and look at its updated pages for the new iPods and iMacs, Apple makes it very clear how the two are connected, physically and metaphorically. The emphasis on the webpage is the ease of synching between iPod and iMac with its Front Row.

Those who choose the iPod as their principal "on the go" music centre, can now use it as an "on the go" media centre, now including videos and TV shows. And how do you navigate the iPod? Through its much praised scroll wheel and software. Which is carried over on the iMac's Front Row. Talk about "Transfer of Training"!

And which enables an extremely simple infrared remote control to give access to all the choices available on the iMac. Learn to use the iPod (your Bubba can learn it in 3 minutes) and you've learnt how to use Front Row on the iMac.

The metaphor is carried over in the form of the remote control which looks astonishingly like an iPod Shuffle.

Steve Jobs wasn't kidding when he said his favourite graphic in his San Jose keynote, one that "captures what Apple's all about", was the iMac remote dropped in between two remotes for two Windows Media centre players, Gateway and HP.

The difference in complexity, or simplicity, was astonishing, as he counted the buttons on each: 40 or so, versus 6.

Which connotes ease of use because Front Row's software, as easy to use as the iPod's, does the work, not the user. He or she already "knows" how to use it because of their pre-training on the iPod. They don't need inpenetrable icons in the Microsoft tradition (=chintzy) to work their way to the media they wish to view or listen to.

This is the part that the Enderles of the world don't get. Poor Don Norman, former Apple fellow, now consulting to Bill Gates to help Microsoft develop better interfaces, must tear his hair out when he reads how wrong the Microsoft apologists can be...