2. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

THE TAKEAWAY

This textbook would not have been possible without the enormous contributions of so many of my colleagues in the industry and in academia. To all, my sincere thanks.

It seems like only a week ago or so that the iPad first made its appearance, but many of us are already on our third version. Once I spent about four hours with my first iPad, I already knew three things:

  1. This was a game changer for our industry.
  2. As a storyteller—isn’t that what most of us who trained to be journalists are?—I had found the ultimate tool with which to tell better stories.
  3. I would study the tablet, its use, its potential and write about it as frequently as possible on my blog.

I still believe in all three of these statements, but my passion for the tablet has grown tenfold, at least, in the two years since. I am even more sure that it will change the way we communicate after all that has happened in the past two years, as I have seen people of all ages engaging with their tablets.

THE FIRST IPAD LABS

And, so, in the spirit of sharing my interest, curiosity and passion for the iPad, I began an occasional series on my blog that I called “The iPad Lab.” A laboratory is all about experimenting, trial and error, reaching conclusions and making newly found knowledge available to others. Armed with a tremendously adventurous spirit—feeling sort of like a nineteen-year-old at the age of sixty-four—I published my first iPad Lab post in the blog. The post was welcomed by quite a number of happy readers, who, like me, were excited about the tablet and wanted to know more.

At the time, little research was being conducted into the behavior of tablet users. Nor was much known about the important task of transferring traditional print content from newspapers and magazines to this brand new platform, a process that allows for so many opportunities to enhance the storytelling process. My iPad Lab series attempted to bridge the gap. While the discoveries may not have been earth-shattering, I was heartened that these were the same discoveries shared with me by other practitioners. A few months into the iPad Lab series, I knew that it was time to have a gathering of people with the same interest and passion that I had about the new platform. So, in June 2010, we had the Poynter Tablet conference (a liveblog transcript is available here and here, and highlights are in the fourth section of the End Matter). It is remarkable to me that so much of what was presented and discussed at the Poynter Tablet conference is still relevant today.

By the time I had published some twelve segments of the iPad Lab, I began to receive occasional e-mails and telephone calls, mostly from academics, who were asking me to put them together in a book.

Enter Aaron Kenedi, a talented editor and designer with whom I had worked previously. Aaron, editor of Print magazine at the time, inspired me and connected me with the folks at HOW Books. I sent a book proposal to Megan Patrick, content director for HOW magazine and books, and the rest is history.

Aaron and Megan head the list of the many talented, gracious and passionate people who have contributed a wealth of ideas to make iPad Design Lab: Storytelling in the Age of the Tablet what I hope it will be: an early light in what will soon be a bright skyline as more write about their experiences with the tablet.

ENTER REED REIBSTEIN

The moment I had signed the contract to write this textbook, I knew that my editor and art director would be Reed Reibstein, a 2011 Yale University graduate who has worked very closely with me since his freshman year, and whom we hired full time the day after he graduated. I often refer to Reed as my copilot, and what a great aviator he is. He constantly reminds me of the way his generation of twenty-somethings thinks—thanks for that, Reed—but we can also have conversations about classic typography and complicated grid structures, or argue about color palettes or the choice of a word. It is unusual to find someone so young who can be so mature and smart, but not just about one topic. He has been a thorough, inquisitive editor but also a magnificent and restrained art director. Like the rest of us working with the tablet medium, Reed, too, is learning, and he does it with gusto, precision and the highest amount of curiosity. All of those qualities he passes on to me, the way that only a twenty-something can do when working with someone almost three times his age.

I am most thankful to Reed for his enormous contribution to this textbook. And, while I take full responsibility for any errors that may appear here, I credit Reed with providing major intellectual capital for this textbook. While it is my first digital book, it is Reed’s first book, period. We have both looked out of the window together, ready to gaze into the unknown horizon, taking in the fresh air and savoring the experience to the fullest.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS

We were lucky to have an ensemble of tremendously talented people who gave us so much of their time and creativity.

Robert Newman: whose foreword to the textbook I have cherished, along with the terrific information he passed along from his experience with Reader’s Digest.

Joe Zeff and Ed Gabel: the best cover concept any author could hope for, executed by perhaps the industry’s most gifted illustrators for all platforms.

Luis Vazquez: for spectacular illustrations that made this textbook come alive.

Rob Layton: for reading parts of the manuscript and making incredibly meaningful suggestions to make this textbook more suitable to university students worldwide.

J. Ford Huffman: a writer’s editor par excellence, a colleague and longtime friend, for reading parts of the manuscript and putting his red pencil to work.

William Powers, author of Hamlet’s BlackBerry: for a frank discussion of platforms and the theory of disconnect.

Dr. Roy Peter Clark: writing coach and guru of two generations of journalists, who talked storytelling and long-form journalism with us.

Dr. Pegie Stark Adam: the ultimate media color expert, without whose expertise our discussion of color for the tablet could not have been possible.

Roger Black: my dear colleague and one of the most respected designers in the world.

Mario García, Jr.: my oldest son, who provided insights about digital platforms, especially websites and their relation to tablets.

Frank Deville: my dear Luxemburger friend, who has been a major contributor of fun pop-ups to my blog and now to the textbook.

Toni Lewis: my assistant, for facilitating life in general so that I can devote time to such pursuits as writing this textbook.

All of the following wonderful colleagues and friends also advised and contributed to this textbook. To all of you, my heartfelt gratitude:

Ben Abbotts

Abdul Hamid Ahmad

Jan Bayer

Joshua Benton

Peter Biľak

Marcus Brauchli

Tyler Brûlé

Andrew DeVigal

Sytse Dijkstra

Steve Dorsey

Constantin Eberle

Michael Eder

Claus Enevoldsen

Florian Fromm

Dr. Hans Gasser

Massimo Gentile

Jeremy Gilbert

Miguel Angel Gomez

Andrew Grill

Cyrus Highsmith

Jonathan Hoefler

Alexis Johann

Josh Klenert

Anupa Kurian

Robert Kuschela

Lucie Lacava

Etienne Maccario

Justin Makler

Matt Martel

Regina McCombs

Gerhard Mischling

Tim Moore

Raju Narisetti

Michael Paustian

D.W. Pine

Mark Porter

Sara Quinn

Oliver Reichenstein

David Shedden

David Stanton

Alfredo Triviño

Jon Wile

Earl Wilkinson

Craig Will

Anne Wong