I like it better if 100% of the software on the device operates under the same constraints, so the developer of some app that I really need/want can't decide "no, you need to be in desktop-alike mode for this to run, because I just don't feel like dealing with tablet mode". It's basically the same problem as allowing multiple app stores, in that it'd fragment the experience and leave me having to choose between "do what the developer of this app wanted, which isn't what I wanted" and "don't have the app". I prefer that everyone has to deliver software the same way, under the same constraints, for predictability and user control of their environment (that is, I want the device to work like a traditional tablet, period, so I prefer that developers have to treat it that way, as it results in the device always working the way I want it to, for all software that runs on it)

And in fact, I can currently choose the experience I want if I decide I want a typical multitasking desktop—by putting down the iPad and going over to a Mac (or Linux, or Windows, or FreeBSD machine, or whatever). Or, to extend the "I like a tablet that becomes things, modally" way of thinking about it, by putting the iPad in Remote Desktop mode and connecting over VNC or SSH or RDP to a traditional desktop or server.

As I wrote the above comment, I was thinking along a similar line of thought re: "no, you need to be in desktop-alike mode for this to run."

I do agree that this is an issue, but I wonder how much of one. I feel like there is quite a bit of inertia behind iOS style "apps" right now that a sizable mass userbase will not use your service if it is a desktop-style interface, because that sort of interface is unfamiliar to them.

Only for very niche apps would you be able to survive on desktop app alone. Many fo those niche uses would be geared towards power-users who are likely more used to a desktop environment.

We tried to build a universal app for two sides of a job board once. The app offered different workflows depending on whether you're a job seeker or a recruiter. Man, managing that UX- and code-wise was a pain the ass. Imagine doing that for the whole OS.

This is a common workflow? two views talking to the same backend.

I think that's what Windows 8 was going for, to be able to choose between a tablet experience and a desktop experience based on which app you use. The problem was that they pushed the app experience too hard without a clear option to choose between the modes. Win 10 has walked this back pretty well, but I still find myself using desktop apps 99% of the time (even when using the Surface as a tablet).