1. No Home Button

First noticed by reader BenAmirault, the lack of home button on the iPad shown in the invitation has been the primary focus of attention. While many leapt to the conclusion that Apple may be getting rid of the home button (Steve Jobs famously didn’t like buttons at all), others quickly pointed out that the iPad could just be in in landscape mode. However, some other clues may prove it’s not that simple…

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In case you’ve been living in the analog world for the past few days, Apple sent out invitations Tuesday to an event to be held next week. And the Internet exploded, right on schedule.

Apple, true to form, has not said anything about what products or services it’ll unveil next week, or if it’ll unveil anything at all. Nonetheless, based on past history, a nonstop cavalcade of rumors, and third-party sources, Apple is all but guaranteed launch the next iPad, aka the iPad 3, at its March 7 event.

That much was effectively confirmed by Apple’s invitation, which shows a picture of a finger reaching out and touching what can only be an iPad screen, along with the words, “We have something you really have to see. And touch.”

That’s all we have to go on, at least officially. That’s when we turned to you, faithful Mashable readers, to see if there were any clues in the invitation that might not be obvious. It wasn’t much to work with, but that one image and those 10 words prompted a frenzy of digital forensic examination the likes of which could only be matched by an entire season of CSI.

SEE ALSO: Forget the iPad 3 — I’d Still Buy an iPad 2

From the wording to the visible apps to the pattern of droplets on the screen, readers extracted clue after clue as to exactly what the iPad 3 might be. Keep in mind that all of this is highly speculative, that Apple could have easily Photoshopped the image extensively, and the company is notorious for its misdirection over rumors.

Still, the invite is real, and it really came from Apple. Here’s what our readers were able to extract. Feel free to share any more theories in the comments.

More About: apple, ipad, ipad 3, itv, tablets, trending

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The New York Post reports that the U.S. Department of Justice is talking to industry figures about Apple’s decision not to support Adobe Flash on the iPad. An anonymous “Hollywood” source told the Post that the DoJ is “doing outreach” because “the Adobe thing is just inviting the wrath of everybody.” The Post already predicted this inquiry several weeks ago.

Apple failed to support Flash in the iPad’s web browser even though it’s the most widespread format for interactive and video content on the web, and the iPad is touted as the ideal device for surfing the web. Apple’s Steve Jobs believes that Flash’s days are numbered, and that it will be replaced by the recently developed HTML5 format, which is supported by the browser used by the iPad and other iPhone OS devices.

Adobe adapted its Flash development technology to make it possible to produce applications that would run on the iPad despite its lack of browser Flash support, but Apple updated the iPhone Developer Program License Agreement to forbid that process, blocking Flash developers from the device entirely.

As the Post’s source said, the decision has drawn the ire of many media professionals who have made their livings distributing content in the Flash format. They believe Apple is trying to bully the industry into switching to HTML5 by refusing to support it on the iPad. The iPad isn’t quite popular enough yet to make that happen on its own, but its siblings the iPhone and iPod touch might do the trick.

The DoJ hasn’t released any comment about its alleged inquiry into Apple’s Flash policy, but it’s already watching Apple closely for something else entirely: the iTunes Music Store, which companies like Universal, Sony and Warner Bros. have accused of antitrust violations.

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Tags: adobe flash, apple, Department of Justice, DOJ, Flash, ipad

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