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On Board This I-Pad Train

    Hey, everyone. I love to watch the internet start to buzz after one of these Apple events. The I-Pad Mini was unveiled yesterday. Much to my surprise, it has the features of the older, but excellent, I-Pad 2. What I mean is this. It doesn't have Retina Display or the A6X chip. Obviously, it will have those very soon, maybe in the Spring of next year. I feel that the target market for this device is the ladies, who want an I-Pad to fit in a handbag, students of high school and college levels and the elderly who love to read but find a full-sized tablet a bit hard to hold for long periods. Folks are also griping about the price points and are comparing apples to oranges as they look at some of the e-readers. Selling products for cost is not for everyone, though it seems to work okay for Amazon.
       I have zero interest in a Mini for myself. I want the bigger tablet. Here comes the second internet feeding frenzy prompted by Apple's announcement binge. I am speaking of the fact that there is another new version of the I-Pad.
    I bought the I-Pad 3 when it came out a few months ago. I really like it. It is superior to the I-Pad 2, though probably not enough to have warranted an update. A lot of folks who just bought the I-Pad 3 are really angry with Apple. I mean, early adopters must have the latest and best. For myself, I hate to be like the poor kid watching through the candy store window as the rich kids eat all that good stuff. So far, I have bought every iteration of the Padster that came out, 2 I-Pods, an I-Phone for myself and several things for Carley. She has hung in there, tough, with the I-Pad 1.
    A couple of years ago, I did a blog in which I talked about the innovations in gaming, with huge games and great graphics, and how these things would drive the I-Pad innovations and I-Pad innovations would drive the gaming advancements, creating an endless train of new, must-have gear. Well, I was correct. I am on board this I-Pad train and who knows whither it is bound? Now, yet another quandary is upon me as I wonder if I should upgrade yet again and get the I-Pad 4. It has the highly coveted A6X chip which will provide faster gaming and much better graphics. The train is scarcely slowing as it passes my station and I wonder if I can grab the rail on the caboose as it thunders past. There are no cinders flying on this digital behemoth; it is clean and shiny and has a background the color of money.
    I must say that it is just fun to have an interest. At my age, anything that excites me is welcome. I am looking for more hobbies, not less, as I face retirement. The more important issue to me about an upgrade is gaming. Let me talk about that.
     Gaming on IOS has been very cool. I am tiring of it, somewhat, because of all the crookedness going on. The in-app culture that prevails is a culprit. I hate the fact that I can rarely complete any game, however good, because of the difficulty. Much of that is so that in-apps can sell. At a price of up to $99, not cents, many games whisper that there is no way in heck that you will finish without shelling out massive dough. There are sneaky scams and ads and updates that mess up the games. So with my general irritation with the gaming, why should I upgrade to the I-Pad 4? The wish for its upgrades are mostly game driven and I am almost done with being driven by this gaming.
     I must say that I look back at 8-track tapes and cassettes, music stores that made you buy an album when you wanted one good song, and I don't want to stay at the same technology. I love the great sound and massive selection on my I-Pod. All this talk reminds me of an old gospel song. This train is bound for glory, this train...
    Certainly, this journey of technology is insignificant next to matters concerning the soul. From the fast-paced, live on the razor's edge world of the I-Pad train, I'm CE Wills.

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