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  • On Selling My EDU Soul to Apple

    By Joshua Kim March 3, 2011 10:15 pm EST

    Dear Apple. I'm ready to trade you my EDU soul in exchange for the following products:

    • A learning management system (LMS) that is designed with the same power, simplicity and quality user experience as iMovie or GarageBand. I'm ready to move off the open Web model, and into your closed world of elegant, simple and gorgeous client applications and mobile apps.
    • Versions of said LMS that are optimized to work on the iPad and iPhone - analogous again to the new iMovie and GarageBand apps announced at your March 2nd event.
    • Learning tools that combine the features of an LMS, media management system, presentation capture, and synchronous meeting software that are designed to work with simply and seamlessly with Apple hardware. Think education versions of iTunes, iPods, MacPros, iPads and the best Apps.

    In exchange for these products and services, I give you my EDU soul. This transaction includes:

    • An abdication of my desire to participate in shaping your product roadmaps and strategic direction as a customer, or even my ability to understand and plan for what this EDU product map might be.
    • A promise to be locked into your hardware, and to purchase new versions at high prices soon after you release them.
    • To be locked into your "vertical pipeline", purchasing everything from my educational content to my educational applications to my educational hardware from you.
    • To "mature" out of my dream to move to open source software.
    • To allow you to control which applications and services I receive, forgoing the diversity and freedom of the open Web (and web apps), for the benefits of operating within your Apple ecosystem.

    Selling one's soul is usually not seen as a good idea, but your iPad 2, MacBooks, and apps have so enthralled me with their power and beauty that I think this may be a good bargain.

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Comments on On Selling My EDU Soul to Apple

  • Posted by BK on March 4, 2011 at 8:00am EST
  • Apple will never provide what you need Josh. Apple has never embraced the enterprise market, and mainly produces SW to power their HW units.

    From Steve Jobs' own mouth
    “What I love about the consumer market, that I always hated about the enterprise market, is that we come up with a product, we try to tell everybody about it, and every person votes for themselves. They go ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ and if enough of them say ‘yes,’ we get to come to work tomorrow. That’s how it works. It’s really simple. With the enterprise market, it’s not so simple. The people that use the products don’t decide for themselves, and the people that make those decisions sometimes are confused. We love just trying to make the best products in the world for people and having them tell us by how they vote with their wallets whether we’re on track or not.”

    cited from http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/hiner/why-steve-jobs-hates-the-enterprise/5133
  • I am with you
  • Posted by K Klein , Computer Studies on March 4, 2011 at 8:00am EST
  • I HAD been holding out hope that the smart people at Google would be doing what you ask, but I have now lost hope.

    And, even after all these years and a tremendous resurgence by Apple, Bb/WebCT/Angel (and whatever remains of these others after being devoured by Bb), these LMS STILL don't work with Safari. And, while I am grateful for Firefox (Thanks Mozilla!), the inability of ANYONE to craft an elegant LMS cries out for the Apple "fit and finish."

    Given the long partnership with education, I would also welcome Apple's entry into this market.

    Hello Cupertino?

    KK
  • Mac or PC
  • Posted by Heather Munro Prescott , Professor of History at Central Connecticut State University on March 4, 2011 at 8:15am EST
  • Thanks for the post. I'm trying to decide what to get for a new office computer. I switched from Mac to PC ten years ago. Now I'm thinking of going back to the Mac platform -- but this post is making me rethink this!
  • Why LMS?
  • Posted by Sal on March 4, 2011 at 11:30am EST
  • I'm not a teacher, but someone interested in the market. Can someone explain why a LMS is so important? Can't you keep track of your students and grades using an excel spreadsheet?
    For everything else, like virtual classrooms, file sharing, shared calendar etc I use http://Enterthegroup.com. It's free and very nice.
  • Canvas LMS
  • Posted by Steve Foerster , an adjunct IT instructor at a Midwestern community college on March 4, 2011 at 11:30am EST
  • You may want to check out Canvas LMS from Instructure. As of last month they've released it as open source, but also offer to host it or to consult for those institutions who want help hosting it themselves. It has a really simple, intuitive design and interesting features. http://tinyurl.com/66pks7c

  • LMSes vs Silicon Valley
  • Posted by Bryan Alexander , Senior fellow at NITLE on March 4, 2011 at 11:45am EST
  • So why hasn't a Silicon Valley giant produced a course management system? We've seen a few startups, but where are Apple, Google, MS, Amazon? None of them have made a single gesture CMS-way in the past decade.
  • even if they would...
  • Posted by librarian on March 4, 2011 at 1:00pm EST
  • how would you feel about your soul when they restricted access to course content? what happens when faculty assign an app to educate about domestic violence or comment on current politics or artisticly render famous works of art and apple won't let it in the store? no thanks apple. you won't get my edu soul any time soon....

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