iPad -> after 1 week
Continuing the iPad saga…
One week in… the device still has that “shiny” hold over me. Having spent the week visiting with my parents, I had the opportunity to subject the device to the ultimate survival test: my brother’s granddaughters, aged 3 and 2. The tablet has survived the experience with only minor smudges on the screen.
I think the little one has the most potential to be a computer scientist as she found the Sesame Street iPhone game that I downloaded for the kids without any prompting from me. The application worked well even when you used the “2X” option to have it fill the screen. Speaking about iPhone apps, I’ve found that the iPad does well with most of the iPhone apps; the only one that puked on me was the Dropbox application.
I’m still working out how to insert the iPad into my workflow. I’m using the OmniGroup’s OmniFocus iPhone app for the moment to do DayTimer sorts of things. I don’t think that I’ll be really effective with the device until I get the iPad version of that package. The iPad is just making my addiction to Evernote even more pronounced as I use that note-taking application as my offline storage for my brain. I purchased a really nice SSH/VNC client that works on both the iPad and iPhone. It’s a really strange feeling to be editing files on a Solaris box using EMACS or vi over a terminal connection from my iPhone.
Still haven’t got a handle on the question of data storage. The way that Apple has the OS locked down makes the application workflow really cumbersome. It’s sad as they have the stuff in place with MobileMe to make this work right; as it is, I’m waiting to see what solution comes out from Dropbox. Speaking of which, go register w/ Dropbox now if you haven’t already done so. They’re the only people I’ve seen to date to figure out a workable way of dealing with storing user data on cloud servers.
The only solution I’ve found for linking the iPad into my research paper workflow would require that I switch from using BibDesk to Papers. I’m loathe to do that as it’s a $40+ investment ($26 for the student edition of their Mac version + $14.99 for the iPad/iPhone app). I use BibDesk as BibTeX is its native file format while Papers would require import/export from its database followed by additional editing on the Mac with EMACS/Auctex. Adds multiple steps into my workflow.
No clear winner has emerged for me in the battle between iBooks and the Kindle iPad application. The reading experiences are about the same between the two applications but the Kindle application has the advantage of being available for multiple platforms + Amazon’s selection is far more extensive. OTOH, iBooks has imported most of the titles from Project Gutenberg which gives a really good collection of classic literature from which I can make selections. I can see this turning into a major soak for my credit card very quickly if I don’t apply some self-control. Of course, you see how well that worked with purchasing the iPad.
There have been times over the past week where I’ve thought to myself that I should have waited to buy the 3G version. Mostly this happened when I wasn’t able to find an open access point at a time when I really wanted to use the device. However, I still lean towards the idea of using a 3G to 802.11 bridge like the Sprint MiFi given that the MiFi will allow me to connect multiple devices. It’s a cost thing as I know that I’ll still have a laptop with me most of the time for work purposes. I think most people will be fine w/ spending $25/month with AT&T.
I’m going to have to get some sort of external keyboard for those cases when I need to do serious typing. The on-screen keyboard works well for causal stuff (e-mail, short notes in Evernote, and web surfing) but not if you’re using it as an occasional laptop replacement. You can still buy a folding BT keyboard similar to what Targus used to sell for the WindowsCE-based PDAs. Sadly, I sold the one I used to have for my old HP PDA so have to look at purchasing new.
Assessment after one week of use: still impressed + still think it a good investment. Still working out how it fits into my daily workflow. Let’s see what I think on my next report when I reach the 1 month anniversary.
Selah.