Roger Black on the iPad and his Next Enterprise

"I am flabbergasted by how many people went out and bought an iPad," he added, "and even more so how the publishing industry thought it was some kind of magic pony that would save them."

Treesaver is an in-browser reading experience that dynamically adapts to a user's device and screen size. Using web-standard technologies present in HTML5, Treesaver enables innovative, visually appealing column-based page designs that don't require any additional downloads: all you need is a modern web browser.

"If people created better experiences for the Web and it didn't look like ..." Mr. Black paused, rubbing a handover the shiny dome of his forehead and wincing at the thought. "I mean, most Web pages are like third-world soccer stadiums," he continued, a hint of exasperation creeping into voice. "A lot of posters everywhere and you can't figure out where the exit is. It's just a mess." Treesaver relies on HTML, the lingua franca of the Web, so articles adapt to different devices and operating systems, bypassing the expensive process of creating a unique app for each of the competing stores run by Google, Apple and Microsoft. Publishers using Treesaver can lay out an article once and be confident their readers will see the intended look no matter what hardware they're using. Mr. Black built the program in partnership with Filipe Fortes, an interaction designer and Microsoft vet with a Master's degree in human-computer interaction.