I don't fully comprehend all the angst over the "closed" nature of the iPad. Where were all these people when Sony brought out the PS3? or when Microsoft brought out the Xbox? How about the Wii? DS? PSP? Amazon Kindle? Nook? All of these are <i>specialized</i> computing devices. All of them are officially "closed" (though a great many are hackable). The fact that those systems are closed dosen't threaten mainstream general purpose computers. Why should the iPad? It's a device built for a specific purpose: consuming entertainment and media content as well as some work-related tasks like email and word processing.