Normally, I am a reader and not a commenter, but this is a good discussion regarding bias, and I thought I might chime in. Sorry, but gonna wax philosophic here.
As the head of IT of a (relatively small) company, I can tell you I have one bias regarding technology, and that is toward any solution whose benefits and costs net out to a material benefit for my company. Naturally, we have people suggesting specific tech solutions all the time, but we always try to get them to focus on their needs first, then weigh as many alternatives as we can.
That weighing inevitably includes platform consideration, and there is no denying that any new platform that is introduced into the mix will require new skills in IT to support. Doesn't mean we wouldn't introduce a new platform, but it does mean this soft cost has to be considered in the value prop.
So, whether you're an iOS-lover, Windows-lover, Linux-lover or whatever really doesn't matter in business. What should matter is what is the best solution to address the business need, all things considered.
Regarding touch screen technology (or any other new technology), we weigh criticism of any new idea in this way - Is the criticism based on the discomfort in change or is it valid in terms of impact to the solution's effectiveness. My favorite question in this is: "If I brought in someone off the street who never did it the 'old way', would it matter? Would they be more productive going the 'old way' or the 'new way'?
Long-term decisions shouldn't be based on short-term inconveniences that will, by definition, be a non-issue within a matter of months. However, getting people to first start changing, then continue through the learning curve with as little resistance as possible, is forever a challenge.
Given all of this, I can tell you we are watching Windows 8 closely. Why?
- We are almost exclusively a Microsoft shop, so this will be our desktop. Nothing out there is going to provide the magnitude of benefit that would change that.
- We support iPads to an extent - mainly for VPN connectivity into Windows virtual or physical desktops. There are no iPad apps to-date that significantly impact the business. It is primarily a connectivity device and not a productivity tool.
- The iPad (and iPhone and iPod Touch) certainly is training a new generation more toward touch interface than mouse and keyboard. I am not saying it will become dominant anytime soon, if ever, but to ignore this impact would be negligent. I have to consider the importance of touch interface to my upcoming workforce.
- Of course, my more experienced workforce will probably never get away from their mice and keyboards, so a solution that provides both input options seems the most viable to me.
Speaking personally, I am interested in how Windows 8 tablets will do in meshing the simplicity and ease of use of the iPad/iOS platform with the need for more capabilities on the business productivity front. I know that iOS-lovers will pipe up here and claim there are all kinds of business productivity options on that platform, but protest all you will - the penetration into the corporate world says that the benefits do not outweigh the costs of change.
My two cents and perspective. Discussion and debate - when we weed out the emotional chaff and intentional obfuscation - is a fantastic thing.