The Dr. and Leon

If you’ve followed my blogging on UberTablet.blogspot.com you’ll quickly realize that Dr. Neil Roodyn and I are mates. In one post I went so far as to term the connection “almost umbilical.” With Neil’s prowess for all things ink it wasn’t long before my four year old son, Leon, would be affected by this man too.

UberTabletKids.blogspot.com is a realtime enactment of the trials and tribulations children face when challenged by Tablet. I think you’ll agree that their efforts are commendable and in many cases amicable when compared to us.

Sit back and watch Leon learn to ink to “Dr. Neil” on MSN. It’s his first attempt; and one that speaks volumes for Tablet PC as a tool for kids to learn and grow with. If you also take into account that Leon's arm is broken and he's only four years of age (at date of post) then you'll inevitably witness just how intuitive inking is for children. How ironic is it that he's inking to a Dr.?

Hi, and welcome.

My name is Hugo Ortega, father of four year old Leon Gaston Ortega. While posting on all things Tablet PC, via the UberTablet website, I have featured Leon as a regular highlight. It was his ability to adapt to new technology that really caught my attention and that of loved ones around us. You see, Leon has been Googling since the age of three, a phenomenon I really wasn’t expecting. When I looked at the hypothesis of “Tablet PC as the most teachable form of computing for children under the age of three” I was astounded by my results.

I recall handing Leon a Tablet PC for the first time when he has four years and three months old. Now, before continuing it’s probably important to distinguish the role of computing and Tablet PC in our lives. Since an early age with Atari and Commodore 64 I had a passion, but no direction, for all things PCB. Unlike many of my peer I lacked leadership on this front, and therefore proper exposure. While taking baby steps towards the attainment of knowledge it wasn’t until Windows 95 that PC’s really started to influence my intentions in life.

My first PC was a Toshiba Libretto notebook that provided the computing power I needed for internet connectivity and was small enough to deem mobile. When Tablet PC came into my life, shortly after completing my Microsoft Certified Professional qualification, I remember instantly thinking that technology had finally gone full circle. Not only had the third-person action of moving a mouse to navigate through windows been demolished, but it had been enhanced by becoming pen enabled. I instantly realized the power of Tablet PC as a sophisticated tool; the beauty of Tablet however was its ability to disguise all this technology in sheep’s clothing. If you remember correctly of your first experience as a student it was more than likely with pen and paper. We’d lost DOS, keyboard and mouse and now come pack to pen; I could clearly see a market for Tablet PC for Children.

When I talk of Leon’s first Tablet related experience you need to know that Leon has been fairly spoilt when concerned with all things technology. When he came into this earth we already had several PC’s in our home; we also had a small network, broadband internet connectivity and a Dad that could fix almost anything he managed to break. If you look a these ingredients as a whole then it’s not hard to envisage that Leon’s first Tablet related experience was an almost intuitive one.

My intention with UberTabletKids.blogspot.com is to capture the special moments when children of Leon’s generation are exposed to Tablet PC. With my recent nomination as Vice President of the Parents and Citizens Committee at Leon’s School I now have access to countless volunteering children willing to Ink along with Leon. One thing you’ll note is that the children featured in this website do not hesitate with the technology, they do not focus on the price premium, or nor do they consider it as NEW or INNOVATIVE…it just is what it is, a Tablet!

For your own interest here are several occasions in which the Kids in my life have already Inked their way into my heart:

http://ubertablet.blogspot.com/2006/03/uber-tablet-kids-rock.html
http://ubertablet.blogspot.com/2006/02/manly-breakfast-best-when-surrounded.html
http://ubertablet.blogspot.com/2006/02/tablet-pc-as-aquatic-safety-device.html
http://ubertablet.blogspot.com/2006/02/sydney-windows-mobile-user-group_15.html

I have recently started podcasting, and on one momentous occasion I had the pleasure of sitting with .NET legend, and Tablet PC pioneer, Billy Hollis. Listen here as Billy describes his involvement in a Nashville School to make Tablet PC compulsory – the first example of its kind in Tennessee.

http://ubertablet.blogspot.com/2006/02/hello-australia-this-is-billy-hollis.html

I do all I can to make your exposure to inking on Tablet “child’s play.” If you allow me, I’ll Blog my journeys in displacing Tablet PC as an unnecessary form of computing.

Tablet PC is the most riveting evolution of computing not yet to make a splash…