So, do you iPad owners agree?
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372157,00.asp?obref=obinsite (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372157,00.asp?obref=obinsite)
Not the typical top ten but some interesting choices. Personally wouldn't rush out for most of them myself and Tweetdeck for iPad is not available at the moment and perhaps will never surface now Twitter has acquired them.
Not really, swap Instapaper with read it later depending on tastes.
Angry Birds has been getting fairly meh to me lately since they have been adding advertisements and less levels and more lag.
Swap Kindle for iBooks as well, gives a better reading experience, unless you want the PC version.
Overall, a fairly tame list. There are other apps that give the iPad a much more varied and powerful experience. These don't even barely push the capabilities.
King
Darnit, shouldn't have looked. Now I want an iPad.
Decent list, a little dated. I'll have to check out iDisplay, sounds like a good match for my iMac. Not exactly sure how much I'd need it though considering I already have a 27" display on the thing.
Angry Birds = most overrated game ever. Although pretty amazing when you consider how freaking rich the developers must have gotten from it. We should put our heads together and make an app.
I'd recommend for the one must own iPad game: Dead Space. A little pricey but when you consider graphics and sound on par with it's console brothers and sisters it's a great value. It's a genuinely scary and super fun 3rd person action adventure shooter set in outer space. Alien killing galore.
Also must downloads if you subscribe to Comcast or HBO, the HBO Go app and the Xfinity TV apps. I'm sure there are apps in the works for the other major premium cable networks.
"Dead Space" has a version for the iPad?!? WOW!
Quote from: Rico on May 12, 2011, 03:21:05 PM
"Dead Space" has a version for the iPad?!? WOW!
Oh yeah, its pretty good too.
King
don't forget google earth....!
Ok Dear Santa I know it's a little early but I want....... Need an iPad!
I have the majority of the apps listed in the article but I think my lists fir iPad apps is a better list for making your iPad a 'productive' device. And since I use MS Office, I selected some different apps for office automation than iWork. Several iPad postings are on my blog.
Hey - which is the best comic book reader app out there?
Quote from: Rico on June 07, 2011, 07:22:16 PM
Hey - which is the best comic book reader app out there?
Personally, Dark Horse, but DC, Marvel work too. The Star trek one is...not so great tbh.
King
I have the DC Comics app. It is a good reader. My biggest issue is getting the more current issues of the various titles on the thing. I am looking to get the Marvel app to see how it compares.
Haven't tried the DarkHorse one. Tim, you think it measures up? What titles are you following on it?
really, i'd think the star trek one would be good. what's good/not so good about it?
Quote from: RickPeete on June 07, 2011, 07:36:36 PM
I have the DC Comics app. It is a good reader. My biggest issue is getting the more current issues of the various titles on the thing. I am looking to get the Marvel app to see how it compares.
Haven't tried the DarkHorse one. Tim, you think it measures up? What titles are you following on it?
Yes, the app has been working brilliantly after a few bug fixes. Been following The Guild, Firefly (currently reading), Star Wars the Clone Wars (well, whenever it comes to the app, it's not there yet, probably due to Lucas), and Mass Effect comics. All sorts of good comics on it and it's the first app I bought comics on, have yet to do so with Marvel or DC right now due to price and availability being limited.
King
Quote from: turtlesrock on June 07, 2011, 07:37:18 PM
really, i'd think the star trek one would be good. what's good/not so good about it?
The company that does it is pretty lazy and did a substandard job on the app.
King
I haven't tried it yet, but I've heard other podcast hosts rave about Comixology. I believe they carry most comic books. But you can always check out their catalog online. http://www.comixology.com/ (http://www.comixology.com/)
I use Cloudreaders, it's free and I've never had an issue or problem with it. You can't buy stuff through it but it's an excellent reader for all your cbr/cbz/PDF comic files. You can use iTunes or wifi to transfer files to your iPad.
Thanks Joby - I'll check it out!
I got the Cloudreader App going Joby, but I can't simply drop a .cbr file into iTunes on my PC for some reason. I have to seem to do it the Wifi way. Any ideas?
Quote from: Rico on June 08, 2011, 06:07:28 PM
I got the Cloudreader App going Joby, but I can't simply drop a .cbr file into iTunes on my PC for some reason. I have to seem to do it the Wifi way. Any ideas?
No, you can't, you need to go to your iPad, then click on the "Apps" tab, then go down to file sharing, click on the app and drop the file on the right of the apps.
King
What he said...in iTunes, on the apps tab, scroll down and cloud reader should be selectable. Click on it then drag and drop your files into the box next to the cloudreader icon.
Ahh, I see. Obviously I'm not an Apple Genius - yet! I'll try that later on tonight.
P.S. As a related thing - has anyone tried any of the alternatives to iTunes to manage their iPad content with? Such as: http://www.copytrans.net/copytransmanager.php (http://www.copytrans.net/copytransmanager.php)
I've seen this and others like it but I've never quite seen the point. I like iTunes and I'd be nervous that something would go screwy. I actually did try one of those programs that allow you to take media off of your iPod and bring it onto a hard drive (this was before the flash memory iTouches) and I wound up accidently deleting a bunch of my songs permanently. I was SO ANGRY. That was the last time I tried to use a non-sanctioned product with my Apple devices.
Realistically Rico, I just wouldn't. Idk of anyone who tried to get non-iTunes program to sync with the iPad and having it actually work reliably. Also note that iTunes backups your device so in case something goes wrong, the program will be able to put your data back on it, I have used it twice, once for my iPhone and once for my iPad so having that there is a nice lifeline.
King
Yeah they're not worth using unless you can't use iTunes. For example I wanted to access my iPhone on a Linux OS, for which iTunes isn't available so I used an alternative program.
They are a couple of programs that allow you to access the unprotected portion of the the hard drive to retrieve and store files, such as "iPhone Explorer" that can be quite useful. For example you could place a non-Apple file on the iPad for transportation.
Always make sure you are backed up though as things can go wrong when you stray from what Steve gives you! :)
Quote from: KingIsaacLinksr on June 08, 2011, 06:09:28 PM
Quote from: Rico on June 08, 2011, 06:07:28 PM
I got the Cloudreader App going Joby, but I can't simply drop a .cbr file into iTunes on my PC for some reason. I have to seem to do it the Wifi way. Any ideas?
No, you can't, you need to go to your iPad, then click on the "Apps" tab, then go down to file sharing, click on the app and drop the file on the right of the apps.
King
Thanks for the help on this. Man - they really don't make it easy. I wish you could just drag the file to the device listed in iTunes - or even copy & paste there.
Hey, do you guys sometimes see no data listed under an App and you know there should be items listed there? I had to restart iTunes to show the files I knew were there.
Quote from: Rico on June 09, 2011, 02:34:32 PM
Quote from: KingIsaacLinksr on June 08, 2011, 06:09:28 PM
Quote from: Rico on June 08, 2011, 06:07:28 PM
I got the Cloudreader App going Joby, but I can't simply drop a .cbr file into iTunes on my PC for some reason. I have to seem to do it the Wifi way. Any ideas?
No, you can't, you need to go to your iPad, then click on the "Apps" tab, then go down to file sharing, click on the app and drop the file on the right of the apps.
King
Thanks for the help on this. Man - they really don't make it easy. I wish you could just drag the file to the device listed in iTunes - or even copy & paste there.
Hey, do you guys sometimes see no data listed under an App and you know there should be items listed there? I had to restart iTunes to show the files I knew were there.
No, you just need to sync the device to iTunes (again) if you added files to your iPad while it is connected to iTunes, if that is the problem I am thinking of. Really though Rico, this is the worst part of the OS that you will ever have to work with. The rest of it is simple and easy. :) And with iCloud coming, this problem should evaporate. *fingers crossed*
King
Also should mention this now, if you install iBooks, search for iPad guide in the store of iBooks. (It is also in the top 25 list of books) That will help. :)
King
I did try a resync, but it didn't show them. I had to basically close iTunes and start it again. It eventually showed the items. And hopefully this will get smoother in the future. Wireless transfers are just too slow for me. Especially with movie files and big things like that.
Quote from: Rico on June 09, 2011, 03:48:54 PM
I did try a resync, but it didn't show them. I had to basically close iTunes and start it again. It eventually showed the items. And hopefully this will get smoother in the future. Wireless transfers are just too slow for me. Especially with movie files and big things like that.
hmm....odd. Guess something to keep an eye on.
And yes, big movie files tend to nom nom wireless, I'll grant that.
King
Hm, for me the items show up immediately, at least with Cloudreaders, which is the only app I use that has a different kind of system for adding files. I've noticed that if I have the app open and running on the iPad while I'm adding files to it thru iTunes, sometimes it won't recognize or find the new files in the app itself until I shut down the app completely and restart it.
By the way Rico, a weird thing about apps/iOS you might not know is that simply closing an app doesn't actually shut it down completely. Try double clicking on your home button, and you should see a little toolbar pop up on the bottom of your screen that shows you all the apps you currently have running in the background. If you touch and hold on one of the icons in the toolbar you'll see all your icons start to shake and an "X" will appear in the corner of them. Tap the X to completely close the app. I've found that not having a bunch of apps running in the background all the time helps conserve the battery, so I try to shut them down all the way when I know I won't be switching to them anytime soon.
Okay everyone, you have to download Icab Mobile's web browser for iPad. This browser is fully functional AND supports the ability to upload files via the web "browse" button!
So now, iPad users can upload photos from their photo albums to the forum!!!
And, the browser has built-in support for DropBox and upload/downloading of files!
For $1.99 it is well worth the price.
Quote from: Jobydrone4of20 on June 09, 2011, 08:22:42 PM
Hm, for me the items show up immediately, at least with Cloudreaders, which is the only app I use that has a different kind of system for adding files. I've noticed that if I have the app open and running on the iPad while I'm adding files to it thru iTunes, sometimes it won't recognize or find the new files in the app itself until I shut down the app completely and restart it.
By the way Rico, a weird thing about apps/iOS you might not know is that simply closing an app doesn't actually shut it down completely. Try double clicking on your home button, and you should see a little toolbar pop up on the bottom of your screen that shows you all the apps you currently have running in the background. If you touch and hold on one of the icons in the toolbar you'll see all your icons start to shake and an "X" will appear in the corner of them. Tap the X to completely close the app. I've found that not having a bunch of apps running in the background all the time helps conserve the battery, so I try to shut them down all the way when I know I won't be switching to them anytime soon.
Holy Frak! Joby, thanks for letting me know about all those apps running in the background. I mean I knew they kept running but I had a TON open - some multiple times I think. Hey, is there a quick way to shut them all down at once (besides powering down)?
And Rick - I'll check out that alternate browser real soon. Sounds great!
I've used iCab, I wonder if it still has that forum login problem...
King
Looks like the login problem I had is fixed, which is good. But yeah, iCab Mobile is a good alternative browser. :).
King
i just got ninjump and it is really fun! :)
Quote from: Rico on June 19, 2011, 06:45:09 PM
Holy Frak! Joby, thanks for letting me know about all those apps running in the background. I mean I knew they kept running but I had a TON open - some multiple times I think. Hey, is there a quick way to shut them all down at once (besides powering down)?
And Rick - I'll check out that alternate browser real soon. Sounds great!
No problem...I'm not really sure about the impact on the battery I but I would guess that having all those apps running in the background would have to have an affect on performance. I really don't know how to do a mass shut down, I just kind of got in the habit of closing everything manually two or three times during the day.
I downloaded these apps for my 11 month old. He has a blast playing with them on my iPad:
Baby Finger (a hand eye coordination game for babies)
Animal Fun
Animal Sounds
Baby Touch (Peekaboo) A really cool interactive story for babies.
Pocket Frogs is fun...for a while. But my niece and nephew love it.
I tried Tiny Vox for recording...so far I haven't had very good results with it. I tried to send Rick an audio comment using this ap and it was never sent, even though it said it was
I have the Skype ap on my iPad, though I haven't had time to try it out
Well Done! is a great "To Do" list ap. I use it a lot for work.
I also downloaded the "Azul" video ap. Supposedly you can watch a variety of video formats but I haven't had the chance to review the tutorial to see just how you can import those movies. I have a plethora of divx Trek episodes that I'd like to watch on it.
I also use iCalendar. You can tie it into Google Calendar, which is really cool. We are currently using Google Calendar on our web site to update our show schedule.
Generally, nothing's actually "running" in the background since Apple doesn't allow it. There are seven tasks (I think) that apps can perform while they don't have the focus so there will be some impact but not as much as you might imagine.
Quote from: Feathers on June 21, 2011, 09:22:01 AM
Generally, nothing's actually "running" in the background since Apple doesn't allow it. There are seven tasks (I think) that apps can perform while they don't have the focus so there will be some impact but not as much as you might imagine.
To build on this, apps are "frozen" in the background and then eventually get pushed out of memory when you run out. You are using a slight amount of battery usage, but it is a negligible amount. Its way less than some devices (Laptops, Droids, etc). There are only a few apps that truly run in the background: music players, GPS-related activities, clocks and a few others that I can't remember. But these activities are very noticeable.
King
Well, I do think things seem to "sort of" run in the background. I'm playing this MMO game and I can hit the home button and pop out of the game and check email, the forum, etc. and go back to the game. Now, the game has to stay connected to the internet and get updates since it's an MMO. I'm not just "pausing" the game. I was just shocked at how many apps. were sort of going. Plus it seems to let you open multiples of certain apps too. I just had no idea I had so many still "open or running."
I'm surprised at the 'multiples' thing. I've never seen or heard of that.
I've never seen multiples on my iPhone. I think Order and Chaos does keep running in the background. Basically apps that run in the background have a kind of "background mode" where they're not fully running but are still maintaining some degree of activity. In this case it might be maintaining a connection to the game server.
The multitasking on iOS devices isn't really multitasking as we know it on "desktop" OSes.