I’ve been thinking about the idea of literacy this week, and the pinnacle of what modern literacy means would have to have computer code (and more importantly, writing computer code) at the top of the hierarchy. I always see on the WordPress sites the maxim that ‘code is poetry’, and to be honest there is some value in this…
Amongst some of the strange things about writing code is that it only ‘works’ when you write on a computer with the right applications. You can write poetry, a novel, or even an email note on a napkin…of course, you would need to get these forms of expression into the correct formats (printed, in the case of a novel, or poetry, and using any ubiquitous email program for email). Computer code is a bit different, in that most computers are capable of dealing with many computer languages (natively) and there are plenty of free editors out there for you to write to your heart’s content…
The iPad is different…
And here may be one of the reasons that you could say that the iPad represents the forefront of what many call post literacy… with the exception of writing some HTML, there are no real code editors which would work on the iPad…there is no Swiss Army Knife sort of programs like Notepad ++ for this tablet.
For what it’s worth, there are a couple potential candidates out there (especially if you deal solely with website development…):
Textastic
http://www.textasticapp.com
This app DOES highlight syntax for quite a few languages, and may be the real deal…for only $4.99…
Top 3 Code Editors For the iPad
http://www.readwriteweb.com/hack/2010/12/code-editors-for-the-ipad.php
CodeToGo
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/codetogo/id382677229?mt=8
The iPad Falls Short as a Creation Tool without Coding Apps
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/03/ipad-creation
How long before vim appears on the iPad?
http://tehcorporate.posterous.com/how-long-before-vim-appears-on-the-ipad
