John Gruber on what this hilariously confused comment thread on ReadWriteWeb, in which hundreds of people think an article about Facebook's login system IS Facebook's login system because it's ranked highly in search results, says about the state of computing, and the iPad specifically:

It’s funny, yes, but it’s a fascinating glimpse at just how confused many people are about how web sites and browsers work. They don’t use bookmarks, they don’t type “facebook.com” in the location field. They just Google for whatever they’re looking for and assume the first result is correct. All this argument over whether the iPad is too simple — if anything it’s probably still too complex.

Exactly. All the folderol over how the iPad doesn't do this, doesn't do that, doesn't have a this port or a that-facing camera, etc., misses the point. As I've argued before, Apple wants the iPad to work for people who don't know how to use their browser. Being a computer user is practically required to be a functioning member of society now, and rather than expecting everyone to learn our outdated software based on outdated metaphors, Apple is trying something new.

The real trick they've pulled off with the iPhone is that it's also extremely functional and useful for people who do have computer skills. The iPad will probably give both groups plenty of reasons to plop down their cash, too.

And yes, you could argue that the lack of Flash and other things people "expect" on the web is extra confusing for just these kinds of users, and you'd be right, but it won't matter. They'll still buy it, and content providers will find a way to get to those users without using Flash. It's already true on the iPhone, it'll just move faster when the iPad comes out.