Even my mom knows Apple introduced the iPad yesterday. It seems to have a lot of people confused, lost in reality distortion, disinterested … even angry. Everything from the name (which is crap) to the specs to the usage to the furniture onstage was in critics’ sights.

It’s No Jesus Pad. Is it?
People wanted a miracle from Jobs, and it seems like the whispers were true: Apple may have been conducting market research out in the open for the better part of a year by getting people to talk, mock up, and debate how the ultimate tablet would look and act. When the real thing was unveiled to be almost exactly what everyone agreed upon, the reality was less theatrical than hoped—and thus somehow disappointing.

What Say You?
So I have a couple thoughts on this “magical” (shudder) new device. While I don’t know if I’ll buy one (certainly not the first generation) I feel there are a lot of interesting storylines emerging as a result of this product.

It’s not a netbook
I feel netbooks have a place, for people who want a cheap computer and understand/don’t care if it’s slower or less useful than their primary one. But Apple and their target audience care a lot about those issues. Speed factor is why the iPhone doesn’t allow much multitasking or Flash (which is still bullshit, but whatever). And remember, Apple likes clear differentiation between their product lines so people know exactly what they’re giving up—or paying for.

It’s the Kindle, stupid
I feel Apple is targeting the Kindle market, even with the extra “laptop-like” features they doted on. But Jobs hates the idea of a standalone e-reader, which is why they made iPad a kind of “Kindle on steroids” entertainment and reading hub.

There are no USB ports. Contains a mobile phone processor (Apple’s own creation, but still). Doesn’t play Flash. You can connect to 3G networks on a pay-as-you-go basis—this is way closer to a phone or PSP than a laptop or netbook. Apple doesn’t envision people using Photoshop or Final Cut on this device, but MS Office is in the wheelhouse (or iWorks, for people who can stand anything beyond Keynote). I could see Apple adding a camera but I could also see why they wouldn’t: For differentiation from MacBook and iPhone.

The Third Device
Back to differentiation: Apple since Jobs’ return would rather be cannibalistic and eat their own children than keep competing products on the shelf (see: every iPod since Generation One). With that in mind, what can this device be that’s different from other devices in their lineup? I bet they envision a user chillaxin’ on the couch or in bed, where an iPhone is too small to read and a laptop is too bulky (a problem I’ve noted for a while in my house). This is a pretty good size for reading a book or watching video. You watch a show, read a magazine, maybe work on a PPT for work… But nothing overly processor intensive. The dock and keyboard are meant for Office-y work; sales people slamming out presentation tweaks before wowing clients by pulling iPad out of their briefcase.

CHiPs
Back to the Apple A4 chip. That’s an interesting tidbit. Apple is now, to paraphrase Jon Gruber, one of the premier mobile computing houses in the world, and according to him, this device blazes through tasks (albeit without Flash). Apple can now build end-to-end products, hardware to software, soup to nuts—and not just the shiny outsides, but now the guts, too. This means they don’t have to wait for a partner to figure out speed and engineering. They can do it themselves. Combine that with their battery upgrades and all of a sudden they’re putting together some pretty strong feats of industrial design, on their own timetables.

Double Your Pleasure, Double Your Pixels
Also, the App Developers ability to double the size of their Apps for this bigger screen? The Google Nexus One has double the pixel resolution of an iPhone. I guarantee these two facts are not mutually exclusive. Apple will most likely double pixel resolution on the next iPhone, and this is a nicer way to transition that change than announcing to Developers, “Guess what? Now all your Apps will be half the size and legibility on an iPhone screen.” This device actually paves the way for smoother upgrades on the smaller device.

Flash: Savior of the Universe
The only thing I don’t see Apple overcoming much longer is lack of Flash. Since this device is a mobile chipset and so presumably will be included in the next iPhone, Apple seems to be painting themselves into a corner on their Flash stalemate. They can’t claim “BEST internet experience” when half the pages you load… don’t fully load. I can see Jobs saying “Well Flash sucks so this really is the best experience,” but that’s a Bill Clinton-level linguistic loophole more than a reality most will accept on their new $500 (minimum) toy. I feel like this Adobe/Apple thing might be solved sooner rather than later.

That’s All For Now
I’m sure I’ll see the iPad out in the wild in the near future. I look forward to watching how it’s accepted (or not) in the general marketplace after people start using it in earnest. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of new storylines and objects of desire coming ever so soon from the company people love or love to hate.

20. Them Crooked Vultures, Self-Titled

Dave Grohl unwittingly helps make the best Queens of the Stone Age album since last time he made a QOTSA album (Songs For The Deaf). Helps to have John Paul Jones on bass.

19. The Twilight Sad, Forget The Night Ahead

Scottish accents and blasts of feedback make for a satisfying wall-of-sound experience. One of the more epic album openers of the year.

18. J-Dilla, Jay Stay Paid

Posthumous mixtape from J-Dilla features high-caliber lyrics from well-respected emcees and the standard three-incredible-beats-per-song.

17. DM Stith, Heavy Ghost

Most slept-on album of the year. Downtempo “glitch” electronic constructs beats based on feedback into quiet headphone music.

16. Monsters of Folk, Self-Titled

A supergroup of indie rockers make simple acoustic pop that focuses first on the songs—and stays remarkably cohesive.

15. The Horrors, Primary Colours

The Horrors wrestled the Joy Division crown from Interpol and added a shit ton of reverb. Great down-and-out sound recalls the best of mope rock with a detached edge.

14. Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, (Self-Titled)

Seattle five-piece belts out loud racuous guitar rock with shiny pop sensibility. Multiple-generation band members reflect a multi-layered sound.

13. Band of Skulls, Baby Darling Dollface Honey

Revivalist classic rock in the vein of White Stripes and Zeppelin. Many great songs on one $5.99 album. Ridiculous they’re not more well-known.

12. Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

No one does pop music better than the French. This album was a long time coming and worth the wait.

11. Sonic Youth, The Eternal

Getting on in years yet still rocking harder and with more original ideas than bands half their age.

10. Mos Def, The Ecstatic

After years of half-assing his way into a cliched rapper/actor reputation and all the unfulfilled expectations therein, Mos Def locked himself in a room and memorized all the lyrics from MFDoom’s Madvillian. When he finally emerged, he understood that no rap song needs third and fourth verses, and often not even two. Though the middle sags in places as Mos lapses into experimentation, the overall shortened and focused bursts of crazy-good flows—along with Rick The Ruler’s mind-blowing guest spot—made for a great album. FInally, he deserves the title of Mighty Mos.

09. Clipse, Road To “Till The Casket Drops” (Mixtape)

Although the full album (Till the Casket Drops) felt a bit flat after a year of delays, this mixtape—released in January ‘09 as a teaser—knocked it outta the park. Aside from the most awkward title in history, Road To… was a permanent fixture in many hip-hop heads’ rotations for the first half of the year. Freshly-jacked beats and knowingly blinged-out, “what recession?” rhymes were the perfect soundtrack to ride around (pretending to be) shining. I wondered at one point in Q2 if any legal hip-hop release would be able to top this free download.

08. Gallows, Grey Britain

Taking the Sex Pistol’s side in the punk wars, Gallows couldn’t be further from the pop-punk that’s risen to prominence in the last decade. Hell, they got into a fistfight—onstage—with their opening band here in Chicago a few months back. Their last album, “Orchestra of Wolves” was intense as hell but didn’t capture the ferocity of their Bonus Discs’ Live BBC recordings. Album two, problem solved. The production feels a bit more raw but the hooks somehow shine stronger.

07. Flaming Lips, Embryonic

The Lips have been treading dangerously close to the hippy-dippy side of psychadelica ever since the follow-up to Yoshimi. Embryonic is their attempt to sucker-punch that style with the dark, bad-acid side of experimentation. Extended jammming has resulted an album among their best. A raw, edgy, and vaguely sinister feel permeates the album as the songs wash in and out in waves, building from whispers to cresendos, quiet to cacophony. By the time closer “Watching The Planets” is in full swing, it feels like the comedown from a crazy trip.

06. Baroness, Blue Record

Wearing their influences on their sleeve, Baroness put together a technical display informed by hard rock and metal’s best, flashing moments harkening back to Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Deep Purple, Pantera, and current people’s champ Mastodon. Sporting a gutteral bark as well as harmonized vocals, the result is a richly varied record that gallops at breakneck speeds but turns on a dime into dreamy and atmospheric numbers. While metal purists might scoff at the moments of beauty as “weak,” anyone who appreciates diversity will see that the shifts in dynamics help make the heavy moments that much heavier.

05. Decemberists, The Hazards of Love

No two words are more dreaded in combination than “Rock Opera” (hmm, I guess “Mission Accomplished” and “Sarah Palin” would also qualify, but I digress). Guitars, piano, three vocalists and untold violins add to the spectacle throughout. While the fillers and plot connector tracks were undoubtedly awful, the meat and potatoes of Hazards more than compensate with straight-up honest-to-god Zeppelinesque rock and roll. And rock they did, to the story of a demon philanderer that gets with the women, then kills the resulting kids. Macabre but awesome.

04. Mastodon, Crack The Skye

The dudes in Mastodon may not yet have the vocal skills to recreate this album’s demanding harmonies live. But on disc, Crack The Skye is easily on par with their masterpiece and previous high-water mark, Leviathan. The same sludgy funk is there, but the guitars are light and match the airy feel that concludes their four-pack Elemental concept (previous efforts were based around water, earth, and fire). Just when you think they can’t possibly squeeze in another riff, album closer “The Last Baron,” a 13-minute epic, crushes everything.

03. Raekwon, Only Built For Cuban Linx Pt 2

Most fans didn’t think Wu-Tang had another album like Ghostface Killah’s excellent Fishscale left in them. But Raekwon was in the lab, quietly putting this criminal masterpiece together like a robber plotting one last job in a heist film. Very few lyricists in hip-hop can paint a picture like The Chef (and those who can are guesting on Cuban Linx 2). “Gritty” doesn’t begin to do justice to the beats and lyrics, as Rae describes in vivid detail the ins and outs of late 80s crack-infested NYC. The transition from head-nodder “House of Flying Daggers” to the violent criminal tale “Sonny’s Missing” into the barely-whispered crack cooking nightmare of “Pyrex Visions” shows Raekwon in possession of a dynamic range few can match.

02. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, It’s Blitz!

Karen O had a moment at Lollapalooza this year where she realized the gravity of not only filling in for the Beastie Boys, but actually equaling their status as crowd-owning Icons of Pop. She took a moment to soak that in, and allowed the crowd to share it with her band. That moment would have been much harder (or harder to believe) if the YYYs didn’t have It’s Blitz in their back pockets, adding to an already solid catalog. From the fist-in-the-air opener “Zero” through hook-dripping “Heads Will Roll” and “Dull Life” to the parting shot “Little Shadow,” the album is full of great songs, period. One of the rare albums that slowly grows on you throughout the year.

01. Future of the Left, Travels With Myself And Another

Overflowing with black humor and a mean streak a mile wide, two-thirds of Mclusky returned with a taller bassist (Kelson Mathias) and nearly identical attitude to their glory days of …Do Dallas. A year’s worth of financial and industrial meltdowns are perfectly summed up in “The Hope That House Built”: “In the end, everybody wins/ As long as we remember/ There’s a reason for incredible wealth,” then inviting us like lemmings into the gleefully morbid chorus: “Come join! Come join our Hopeless Cause/ Come join our Lost Cause!” FOTL also lash out at materialism (“Drink Nike”), tell a tale about terrorism in the 1800s (“Throwing Bricks At Trains”) and note the banality of true evil (“You Need Satan More Than He Needs You”). Though Travels is FOTL’s second album, it will be remembered as the one where singer/guitarist Andrew Falkous and drummer Jack Egglestone rediscovered their guitar attack and true calling as the Andy Rooneys of Rock: All piss and vinegar, but with their hearts in the right place. That is, if they have hearts.

Manic Street Preachers, Journal For Plague Lovers
Major Lazer, Guns Don’t Kill People … Lazers Do
Florence and the Machine, Lungs
Converge, Axe To Fall
Animal Collective, Merriweather Post Pavilion
Pearl Jam, Backspacer
Imogen Heap, Ellipse
Heartless Bastards, The Mountain
Primal Scream, Beautiful Future
Blakroc, (Self-Titled)
V.V. Brown, Traveling Like The Light
Kutiman, Thru You (YouTube video mixes)
Slayer, World Painted Blood
DJ Tor/Sufjan Stevens, Illinoize (DJ mashup)
Royal Bangs, Let It Beep
Deerhunter, Rainwater Cassette Exchange
Pissed Jeans, King of Jeans
The Bird and The Bee, Ray Guns Are Not Just The Future
Girls, Album
Rancid, Let The Dominoes Fall
Morrissey, Years Of Refusal
Tombs, Winter Hours
The xx, XX
Matt and Kim, Grand

A breakdown of Jay-Z’s most misunderstood lyric from “Empire State of Mind.” I love reading cultural anthropology like this.

The big difference: This might be the first coding book I’ve read that stresses craftsmanship over simple how-to’s.

While there’s probably not a lot of new information to be found for seasoned designers (and especially for code ninjas), the thing that impresses me most is Dan’s explanations of thought process. He doesn’t simply lay these code snippets out and tell us to start using them. Instead he explains each tactic along with the best situations for success. He offers caveats on which browsers will allow these techniques. He reinforces a progressive mindset of rewarding forward-thinking browsers without affecting the experience of users who don’t (or often can’t) use those hip browsers. He even touches on how to explain to decision-makers that pixel-perfect uniformity across browsers is becoming passe; that embracing some loss of control in the name of better experiences is a better way forward.

I also like that he’s confined a book’s worth of coding techniques into 2 pages of tightly rendered HTML, reinforcing his mantra that simplicity and craftsmanship can be used to great effect in real-world design. He proves that it’s possible to employ every example in the book with subtlety and restraint that won’t overpower design.

So, depending on your level of familiarity with CSS, jQuery and HTML5, you may not be blown away by the actual code, but the thinking behind the code is a very good reason to pick up this book.

Buy it on Amazon.