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What are you missing before being able to use iPad as your sole work computer?
- Thread starter kriista1234
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I just found an interesting article about how useful tablets are. While I don't agree with everything said in this article, there are many things that apply to me.
http://arstechnica.com/staff/carthage/2011/02/why-i-dont-care-very-much-about-tablets.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss
I just found an interesting article about how useful tablets are. While I don't agree with everything said in this article, there are many things that apply to me.
http://arstechnica.com/staff/carthage/2011/02/why-i-dont-care-very-much-about-tablets.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss
That seems like a very 'hater' article. Sure, touch lacks a lot of things that traditional input does, but at the same time, you could make a similar article on how ridiculous the mouse input paradigm is. (Your whole hand being relegated to controlling a single pinpoint spot on a virtual screen).
How so? It depends on your needs. The article is sensible.
I use apps like Maya, Nuke, PfTrack, Premiere, After Effects and more. There is absolutely no way you can use those apps solely with touch. Input devices like mice allow for pinpoint accuracy. VFX isn't just the only field where a kb/mouse makes sense. One thing you are forgetting is the kb/mouse combination, which offers an efficient way to work using hotkeys and shortcuts. Another obvious option is a pen, like Wacom, but again, it's that "whole and being relegated to controlling a single pinpoint spot on a virtual screen" which you think is ridiculous.
It's about thinking outside the fanboy box...
I don't want my iPad to be my sole work computer even though it already does most of the stuff I would need it to do. It's just not what I got an iPad for.
Camel, have you ever heard of thte pogo stylus? The finger is too thick for pinpoint accuracy but a stylus can do it. Also, apps have something called zoom and no appisgoing to replace what you do prosuxtivity wise but you multitask between them and you can get similar results. Ipad apps specialize but combined can do it.
It's more than those programs were built around that paradigm. If touch was the only thing that existed, those apps would be built around that and we'd be having a different discussion now.
I'm not a fanboy by any means, but nor am I a hater. I think touch is a big shift in how stuff is going to be done in general, and in specific to this.
I'm not a fanboy by any means, but nor am I a hater. I think touch is a big shift in how stuff is going to be done in general, and in specific to this.
I agree with all the posts that say the iPad was never meant to be your sole computer. That being said, with Docs2Go & Dropbox, among a few other apps, I rarely take my work laptop out of its dock in the office, and I do work at home routinely. I have gone on about 5 extended business trips since April and took my iPad only on each. (During one, I was teaching an online college class and I graded activities and interacted regularly with the students, who had no idea I was away.)
I do have one minor annoyance that I miss with my laptop--this is probably the wrong place to bring it up but maybe I am unaware of a function the iPad can perform and one of you can point me in the right direction. When I am working on an email, and want to look at an existing email (to refer to what someone said, or to copy & paste something, for instance), I can't open another email without closing out the one I am working on. In other words, while I can use the "multitasking" functionality to open other apps, I can't seem to use it for opening two emails at one time. Right now my workaround is to use a copy/paste app like Pastebot, which is fine if you think about the email you want to refer to before you start composing a new one. Thanks for any of your suggestions.
I do have one minor annoyance that I miss with my laptop--this is probably the wrong place to bring it up but maybe I am unaware of a function the iPad can perform and one of you can point me in the right direction. When I am working on an email, and want to look at an existing email (to refer to what someone said, or to copy & paste something, for instance), I can't open another email without closing out the one I am working on. In other words, while I can use the "multitasking" functionality to open other apps, I can't seem to use it for opening two emails at one time. Right now my workaround is to use a copy/paste app like Pastebot, which is fine if you think about the email you want to refer to before you start composing a new one. Thanks for any of your suggestions.
for me:
-file system
-usb port that allows data transfer from/to anywhere
-camera
-a bit more cpu/gpu power to be able to drive an external display/improve presentation support
-1 GB ram
-128 GB expandable by microSD
-printing with all wifi and usb printers (drivers!)
-usb supports usb devices (like hd, ethernet dongle, scanners, webcams, cameras)
-Stylus!!!!
most important better apps that support:
-keychain access
-airpot utility
-better ilife suite (iPhoto!)
-better pages, numbers, keynote
-much more real multitasking with much faster easier switch between apps
-real copy paste of all data between all apps
most of my list could technically be done easily with the next or the ipad after that.
but the fact that even easy software things like airport utility and keychain access have not made it tot the iPad proves for me that Apple will never make the iPad a sustainable "computer". I will most likely not upgrade my iPad because of this and wait for the Android/WebOS platform. Maybe they are good.
edit: the best alternative for me would be a refurb MBA for $849 paired with the ATT tethering plan for my iPhone. the touch screen UI of the iPad is great and I would miss it. but if it was my sole computer usability trumps touch and feel.
-file system
-usb port that allows data transfer from/to anywhere
-camera
-a bit more cpu/gpu power to be able to drive an external display/improve presentation support
-1 GB ram
-128 GB expandable by microSD
-printing with all wifi and usb printers (drivers!)
-usb supports usb devices (like hd, ethernet dongle, scanners, webcams, cameras)
-Stylus!!!!
most important better apps that support:
-keychain access
-airpot utility
-better ilife suite (iPhoto!)
-better pages, numbers, keynote
-much more real multitasking with much faster easier switch between apps
-real copy paste of all data between all apps
most of my list could technically be done easily with the next or the ipad after that.
but the fact that even easy software things like airport utility and keychain access have not made it tot the iPad proves for me that Apple will never make the iPad a sustainable "computer". I will most likely not upgrade my iPad because of this and wait for the Android/WebOS platform. Maybe they are good.
edit: the best alternative for me would be a refurb MBA for $849 paired with the ATT tethering plan for my iPhone. the touch screen UI of the iPad is great and I would miss it. but if it was my sole computer usability trumps touch and feel.
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The force of the ignorant is strong and their memory short. History repeats itself far too much for my liking.
First we were of the opinion that computers would never be something for a household to own/use. Right.
Fast forward to when portable computers found its way to the user and how we, years later, discussed "desktop replacements" because the average laptop wouldn't be able to handle everything we needed to do. Right (of course, Industral Light and Magic and Pixar might still be of that opinion).
And now we're being dumb all over again.
Simply put: we're currently seeing another *paradigm shift*. Whether tablet devices will be our main device/computer remains to be seen. Basic problems such as touch input not holding a candle to a basic keyboard (even if touch works ok for some) will have to be solved.
The iPad has been out for *one (1!) year* and we still fail at seeing the possibilities, despite our horrible record at predicting these things.
What can or cannot be done with the iPad (and similar devices) is not up to some of the posters on this forum. It's not even up to Apple, in a sense.
The developer, on the other hand, is a much more important factor, regardless of what APIs are available.
Since the AppStore open there have been some fantastic applications making the iPad quite close to what many need in a computer, regardless what it was "designed to do".
A friend of mine recently bought an iPad after having mocked it a great deal since it was announced. It's now his most used tool for his research (that's beside all of the usual media consumption an a morning paper subscription).
As for myself, I currently don't own one but plan on getting the 2nd gen. If there was a way to compile XeTeX documents on-board, without the help of online services, it could serve as my only computer, feature wise, despite its software limitations.
What would I *want* in the next gen iPad? Don't know, since the biggest obstacle is iOS itself. As for iOS:
- A file storage that all apps can read from/write to. Accesible via USB, as well. Make it separate from app storage/system to avoid confusion and hide app/system storage completely from the user.
- More APIs (see LaTeX comment). Also to allow for more cross talk between apps (we might already have some of that)
That's about it. Hardware will change anyway. What's important, is software: what it let's us do and *how* we do it (i.e. UI/GUI).
As somewhat of a mobility freak, I feel we live in exciting times, indeed.
First we were of the opinion that computers would never be something for a household to own/use. Right.
Fast forward to when portable computers found its way to the user and how we, years later, discussed "desktop replacements" because the average laptop wouldn't be able to handle everything we needed to do. Right (of course, Industral Light and Magic and Pixar might still be of that opinion).
And now we're being dumb all over again.
Simply put: we're currently seeing another *paradigm shift*. Whether tablet devices will be our main device/computer remains to be seen. Basic problems such as touch input not holding a candle to a basic keyboard (even if touch works ok for some) will have to be solved.
The iPad has been out for *one (1!) year* and we still fail at seeing the possibilities, despite our horrible record at predicting these things.
What can or cannot be done with the iPad (and similar devices) is not up to some of the posters on this forum. It's not even up to Apple, in a sense.
The developer, on the other hand, is a much more important factor, regardless of what APIs are available.
Since the AppStore open there have been some fantastic applications making the iPad quite close to what many need in a computer, regardless what it was "designed to do".
A friend of mine recently bought an iPad after having mocked it a great deal since it was announced. It's now his most used tool for his research (that's beside all of the usual media consumption an a morning paper subscription).
As for myself, I currently don't own one but plan on getting the 2nd gen. If there was a way to compile XeTeX documents on-board, without the help of online services, it could serve as my only computer, feature wise, despite its software limitations.
What would I *want* in the next gen iPad? Don't know, since the biggest obstacle is iOS itself. As for iOS:
- A file storage that all apps can read from/write to. Accesible via USB, as well. Make it separate from app storage/system to avoid confusion and hide app/system storage completely from the user.
- More APIs (see LaTeX comment). Also to allow for more cross talk between apps (we might already have some of that)
That's about it. Hardware will change anyway. What's important, is software: what it let's us do and *how* we do it (i.e. UI/GUI).
As somewhat of a mobility freak, I feel we live in exciting times, indeed.
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The iPad is a fantastic device that has changed the way we think about tablets. I loved mine and I will certainly be getting the iPad 2 as soon as it is out. Having said that I don't see it becoming my main computer for at least the next decade.
The iPad is a fantastic device that has changed the way we think about tablets. I loved mine and I will certainly be getting the iPad 2 as soon as it is out. Having said that I don't see it becoming my main computer for at least the next decade.
I do the vast majority of my job on my iPad. What I'm missing is the ability to print to PDF and then email that out. A little more memory so that background jobs aren't killed off so quickly would also be a good thing, but not necessary.
On file systems..
Having worked in OS internals for many years, the iPad, like all similar devices, does have a file system. What people are really asking for here on the forum is a visible, user accessible file system.
The internals of every OS I have ever seen require at least a minimal file system; otherwise there would be no way for applications and the OS itself to find anything.
Having worked in OS internals for many years, the iPad, like all similar devices, does have a file system. What people are really asking for here on the forum is a visible, user accessible file system.
The internals of every OS I have ever seen require at least a minimal file system; otherwise there would be no way for applications and the OS itself to find anything.
what I am missing?
The things I would want for an ipad to use it as my sole computer(or even close to it) it would need to be a Xoom. The xoom has everything I need, so I can get rid of my ipad and move closer to the productivity of a desktop/laptop in a small, compact, mobile item.
What I want from iPad:
Accessible file system
USB transfers
Bluetooth Transfers
expandable storage
a Desktop like home page(not just page after page of static icons)
4g access
3rd party to 3rd party Apps that talk to each other(no more sandboxing)
These items, the Xoom has.
The things I would want for an ipad to use it as my sole computer(or even close to it) it would need to be a Xoom. The xoom has everything I need, so I can get rid of my ipad and move closer to the productivity of a desktop/laptop in a small, compact, mobile item.
What I want from iPad:
Accessible file system
USB transfers
Bluetooth Transfers
expandable storage
a Desktop like home page(not just page after page of static icons)
4g access
3rd party to 3rd party Apps that talk to each other(no more sandboxing)
These items, the Xoom has.
thanks for stating the obvious. Palm also had a filesystem but it was not accessible for the longest time. That was what made it useless to most of my friends and colleagues and to me. The iPad is going the same direction and that is troublesome.
A LaTeX system would be a killer feature for me--then, with the external keyboard, I can do 90% of my work on the device and take it with me wherever I go.
(No, the experimental LaTeX + Google Docs will not work. I don't want to depend on 3G or WiFi.)
Well, that, and a sensible user-accessible file system.
(No, the experimental LaTeX + Google Docs will not work. I don't want to depend on 3G or WiFi.)
Well, that, and a sensible user-accessible file system.
Well, if it had native printing capability, and more processor speed to adequately run what it SAYS it can run, it would be pretty close for me.
At home, my MINI runs Itunes/atv/encodes, etc, but really, I use the Ipad for almost everything else. I found I do not like reading on the Ipad, but continue to do so because it's convenient...and that sums it up...it's convenient, conversational, and consumer oriented.
My mBP hardly gets open on the road anymore, but the reason is I don't have the kind of road business that requires a computer anymore. When I did, I would have never ever considered the Ipad. It just would not cut the mustard
At home, my MINI runs Itunes/atv/encodes, etc, but really, I use the Ipad for almost everything else. I found I do not like reading on the Ipad, but continue to do so because it's convenient...and that sums it up...it's convenient, conversational, and consumer oriented.
My mBP hardly gets open on the road anymore, but the reason is I don't have the kind of road business that requires a computer anymore. When I did, I would have never ever considered the Ipad. It just would not cut the mustard
The iPad is fast, it just doesn't have enough RAM and it shows when multitasking between many apps. That is its main problem at the moment.
well, I don't have an iPad, but on my iPhone 4, I can access different sheets in a google docs spreadsheet. The sheet names are listed at the top of the display and clicking on one switches to that sheet.
The only thing I don't see are charts. I can edit cells with no problem though.
You might also check out creating a Form in Google Docs - this basically lets you create a Data Entry form for adding a row to a spreadsheet. You have to arrange the spread sheet so that it is row based instead of column based, but that should be a pretty reasonable thing to do for most situations anyway. A form is definitely usable from mobile Safari.
So a GoogleDocs form is just the easiest possible method for creating a web based data entry application. There are many tools and services that could be used (I think that Bento or FileMaker do this, but I could be wrong). Don't think of your spreadsheet as a file that you have to open in an app. Think of it as a datasource that you access, update and share. A form is just a super simple web based application that lets you (or anyone else that you authorize) add to that datasource.
Isn't creating a pdf and attaching it to a new mail message an app feature rather than an iPad/iOS feature? I was sure that this was available in the Pages App for example.
TUAW has an interesting article, comparing the iPad to the MBA: http://www.tuaw.com/2011/02/22/ipad-versus-macbook-air-which-is-right-for-you/
Pages can export to PDF. There are also other programs that can send PDFs per mail.
OS X - Lion. A deal-breaker.
Hi-res screen (at least as much as the 11" MacBook Air)
2gb ram, minimum
iOS is becoming obsolete. It haven't seen any major updates. I love my iPhone, and even though iOS on the iPhone is also kinda primitive, the lack of functionality really became apparent on my iPad. That's why I sold it. I will return to the iPad when Jobs and his pals realize that too user-friendly interfaces can compromise functionality.
I consider myself an Apple fanboy, but iOS really pisses me off. The iPad made me love my 15" MBP sooo much more.
I'm going to get so much hate for this...
Hi-res screen (at least as much as the 11" MacBook Air)
2gb ram, minimum
iOS is becoming obsolete. It haven't seen any major updates. I love my iPhone, and even though iOS on the iPhone is also kinda primitive, the lack of functionality really became apparent on my iPad. That's why I sold it. I will return to the iPad when Jobs and his pals realize that too user-friendly interfaces can compromise functionality.
I consider myself an Apple fanboy, but iOS really pisses me off. The iPad made me love my 15" MBP sooo much more.
I'm going to get so much hate for this...