U.S. Air Force Buys 18,000 Apple iPads to Replace Flight Bags

[Eclipse]

The protocals to allow devices to operate on the network.  Especially in the personal wireless area, they are not able to meet the guidelines. Personally apple wouldn't be my first choice, but they were what was purchased. Wonder what the tech support turn around time will be on them.

Are you talking about the wifi issues the iPads had in working with mixed-mode access points?

[abdsp51]

Didn't really ask.

[MIKE]

http://www.pcworld.com/article/250498/air_force_abruptly_scraps_ipad_plan_for_special_ops.html#tk.hp_new

[Eclipse]

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/12/03/02/us_air_force_awards_9m_contract_for_up_to_18000_ipads.html

"Ferrero said the contract price per unit came with a substantial discount which dropped the tablet's $599 retail price down to around $520."

So about a 13% discount on a $10M contract.

The current retail for an iPad2 is under $500, and these are an obsolete product, so this deal most likely looked a lot better last year when it was negotiated.  When you consider how long these things take, Steve Jobs was probably still alive when the first phones calls were made. I wonder if an enterprise customer on this scale is told about upcoming products?

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/12/03/02/apple_begins_preparing_for_ipad_3_event_with_colorful_decorations.html

By this time next week, a big chunk of people who haven't even figured out how to use what they have, will be mad that they don't have the latest.

[BuckeyeDEJ]

Off the shelf is the way to go. You start having to modify stuff and the costs go up very quickly. Especially when you're buying 18,000 of something!

No it isn't. Buying off the shelf crappy IOS products isn't a good idea.

Math:
Ipad 2: 500 X 18000=9000000
Asus Eee PC T91MT-PU17-BK: 375 X 18000=6750000

9m - 6.75m = 2.25m

They could afford to build a custom version of linux for 2.25m. Then you have everything you need, a better product AND you save a bit.

You guys said the planes had WIFI, so no extra cost.

You get what you pay for. The iOS platform isn't crash-prone, it's simple to access information quickly, like when you need something quickly in the cockpit, and it's one less thing to fight with while you're doing something else. Can't say that for Windows, Android or anything else. Definitely not Windows. And before you throw Linux out there... remember that the Mac OS is Unix-based, so it's bulletproof. Again, can't say that for any other OS.

[Eclipse]

MAC OS bulletproof?  No, not even close.  User friendly and poor market share does not equal bulletproof.
There's no such thing.

Android is based on Linux as well, is just as secure, and more open.  I'll do whatever I like with my technology, without having to ask for permission, thanks.

Nothing wrong with preferring one platform over another, but no fair making things up just to make a point.

[BuckeyeDEJ]

Mac OS is stable. No blue screens. iOS is based on Mac OS, which is based on UNIX (not Linux), using the Mach kernel. UNIX itself was developed in the late 1960s by Bell Labs, so that it's still as robust today as it was back then speaks volumes, doesn't it? Linux is just a branch of the UNIX family tree.

As for Android, I can't speak to it much, other than that I know it's open-source, but that's useless for pilots who would likely need their electronic flight bag to be standardized. Besides, open source means open security. Not sure the Air Force would cotton to that too much.

[Eclipse]

To say OSX is "based on Unix" is somewhat of an oversimplification, to say the least.  It is as far removed from "Unix", as
Linux is, and contains DNA from a whole mess of *NIX-esque systems such as BSD, not to mention a whole big chunk
(the majority in fact), of NEXTStep /OPENStep, which was SJ's (relatively) failed attempt to create a next-generation OS
in-house (and a little DARWIN thrown in for good measure).

And you're correct, OSX does not have "blue" screens of death, it has Gray and Black ones.

As to Android, while it is much, much more open, it is not fully open-sourced (there's somewhat of a complaint about that as a matter of fact). But regardless, "Open source" does not mean open security.  To say that means you are either personally biased or don't understand the question.  One of the reasons *nix-based operating are generally more secure is the openess, which means that developers, hackers, and anyone else interested may see exactly what it is doing, and how, including the holes, which are then fixed. 

To say that iOS is based on OSX is factually correct, but doesn't mean much.  It is also far removed, and highly tweaked and customized.
You cannot share apps between the two, and while there has been some speculation that Apple might attempt to merge the mobile and desktop OS' that is doubtful anytime soon, it's also irrelevant to the discussion.

[lordmonar]

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/12/03/02/us_air_force_awards_9m_contract_for_up_to_18000_ipads.html

"Ferrero said the contract price per unit came with a substantial discount which dropped the tablet's $599 retail price down to around $520."

So about a 13% discount on a $10M contract.

The current retail for an iPad2 is under $500, and these are an obsolete product, so this deal most likely looked a lot better last year when it was negotiated.  When you consider how long these things take, Steve Jobs was probably still alive when the first phones calls were made. I wonder if an enterprise customer on this scale is told about upcoming products?

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/12/03/02/apple_begins_preparing_for_ipad_3_event_with_colorful_decorations.html

By this time next week, a big chunk of people who haven't even figured out how to use what they have, will be mad that they don't have the latest.

Depends on how the Request For Proposal (RFP) is written.
If the RFP is very specific about what the customer wants or when they want it.....then no the bid proposals will match the RFB.
The government gets caught out on this all the time.
The contracting specialists who write the RFP don't always know what the the end user really wants or needs.  The people talking to the contracting specialists may know what he WANTS.....but may not really know what he really needs.
The contractors who are submitting their proposals are going to write them so that they meet the RFP with as low a cost as possible.  A contractor who submits their proposal that is answereing what the customer actually needs and not what they asked for is going probably going to loose the bid.

So.....I don't know what the RFP said.....but it could have been a simple supply related RFP....."Need 10,000 IPAD2 tables with XX PDF reader."  Not a lot of wiggle room there....even if Apple is about to come out with the IPAD3 in only six months.

[Eclipse]

So.....I don't know what the RFP said.....but it could have been a simple supply related RFP....."Need 10,000 IPAD2 tables with XX PDF reader."  Not a lot of wiggle room there....even if Apple is about to come out with the IPAD3 in only six months.

And for the most part the update will be evolutionary vs. revolutionary, since they can all still handle the same OS.  Other than a little weight and a magnetic cover, the 2 vs. the 1 wasn't all that exciting.  The speculated updated display wold be nice for charts and old eyes, but
what they provide today, or even did in the one, far exceeded the need as it was.

Which reminds me, I have a couple of iPad-sicles out in the garage I should thaw out and update.

[BuckeyeDEJ]

To say OSX is "based on Unix" is somewhat of an oversimplification, to say the least.  It is as far removed from "Unix", as
Linux is, and contains DNA from a whole mess of *NIX-esque systems such as BSD, not to mention a whole big chunk
(the majority in fact), of NEXTStep /OPENStep, which was SJ's (relatively) failed attempt to create a next-generation OS
in-house (and a little DARWIN thrown in for good measure).

And you're correct, OSX does not have "blue" screens of death, it has Gray and Black ones.

As to Android, while it is much, much more open, it is not fully open-sourced (there's somewhat of a complaint about that as a matter of fact). But regardless, "Open source" does not mean open security.  To say that means you are either personally biased or don't understand the question.  One of the reasons *nix-based operating are generally more secure is the openess, which means that developers, hackers, and anyone else interested may see exactly what it is doing, and how, including the holes, which are then fixed. 

To say that iOS is based on OSX is factually correct, but doesn't mean much.  It is also far removed, and highly tweaked and customized.
You cannot share apps between the two, and while there has been some speculation that Apple might attempt to merge the mobile and desktop OS' that is doubtful anytime soon, it's also irrelevant to the discussion.

NeXT failed, though its software heavily influenced the modern Mac OS. As for screens of death, I have yet to see one in Mac OS X. I sure saw a bunch of crashes in OS 9, OS 8, System 7, System 6, System 5.... dead mac screens, even. But I have yet to see a "screen of death" in OS X. And I'm a heavy Mac user. Care to show me one?

Simple fact is, they want what they want, and they'll get what they get. Open-source functionality doesn't mean much for what aviators do in the cockpit. I'm sure that since they'll be secured government computer devices, they need to be standardized and they will be. Just don't expect a CAC reader on the side of it.

[PHall]

Folks, they're buying these things to be electronic T.O. Libaries. They don't need a bunch of bells and whistles.
The crewmembers just need to be able to look up stuff when they need it.

Frankly, the users really don't care what OS they use.
As long as it works and they don't have to go to a half dozen classes to learn how to use it and they will be happy.

It's a tool...

[Spaceman3750]

To say OSX is "based on Unix" is somewhat of an oversimplification, to say the least.  It is as far removed from "Unix", as
Linux is, and contains DNA from a whole mess of *NIX-esque systems such as BSD, not to mention a whole big chunk
(the majority in fact), of NEXTStep /OPENStep, which was SJ's (relatively) failed attempt to create a next-generation OS
in-house (and a little DARWIN thrown in for good measure).

And you're correct, OSX does not have "blue" screens of death, it has Gray and Black ones.

As to Android, while it is much, much more open, it is not fully open-sourced (there's somewhat of a complaint about that as a matter of fact). But regardless, "Open source" does not mean open security.  To say that means you are either personally biased or don't understand the question.  One of the reasons *nix-based operating are generally more secure is the openess, which means that developers, hackers, and anyone else interested may see exactly what it is doing, and how, including the holes, which are then fixed. 

To say that iOS is based on OSX is factually correct, but doesn't mean much.  It is also far removed, and highly tweaked and customized.
You cannot share apps between the two, and while there has been some speculation that Apple might attempt to merge the mobile and desktop OS' that is doubtful anytime soon, it's also irrelevant to the discussion.

NeXT failed, though its software heavily influenced the modern Mac OS. As for screens of death, I have yet to see one in Mac OS X. I sure saw a bunch of crashes in OS 9, OS 8, System 7, System 6, System 5.... dead mac screens, even. But I have yet to see a "screen of death" in OS X. And I'm a heavy Mac user. Care to show me one?

Simple fact is, they want what they want, and they'll get what they get. Open-source functionality doesn't mean much for what aviators do in the cockpit. I'm sure that since they'll be secured government computer devices, they need to be standardized and they will be. Just don't expect a CAC reader on the side of it.

Kernel panics are "fun". You get them for the same reasons as a BSOD but it shows less detail requiring calls to Apple.

[lordmonar]

Folks, they're buying these things to be electronic T.O. Libaries. They don't need a bunch of bells and whistles.
The crewmembers just need to be able to look up stuff when they need it.

Frankly, the users really don't care what OS they use.
As long as it works and they don't have to go to a half dozen classes to learn how to use it and they will be happy.

It's a tool...

+1
We still got computers running bloody Windows 95!
Because it works!

The gear heads will argue all day about some minor difference......all the stupid things need to do is display PDF files, survive the ham-fingered the skillfull operations by the air crew......and maybe be protected against the rat bastards maintenance guys adding things...when we find these things jammed up behind the control panel, underseats, in the ventalation system or lost behind the 3 pallet down.