How will this work for students?

[caveman1952]

Chapter Downloads

About six months ago I heard a rumor that Apple was going to open a bookstore similar to iTunes (which we now know is iBooks) and have arrangements with textbook publishers to offer chapter downloads as well as full book downloads.

Some (maybe many) instructors require a book for a course but end up assigning only one or a few chapters. Allowing individual chapter downloads could enable big savings.

Little was said about iBooks today, and nothing about textbook chapter downloads, but I'm hoping there's something to the rumor.

 

[bozzykid]

I'm wondering what features the iBooks app has. For instance, can you make notes and share these notes with other users? If you really wanted to use the iPad for school books, I think Apple would have to add a lot more features to iBook than that showed today. Of course they didn't show all the features, so we will have to wait and see.

 

[generationxwing]

Especially if that dock will allow me to connect to a projector (with appropriate converter cables). I usually have one or two presentations a semester that I present with Keynote.

Well, it looks like I found my answer.

You can use the existing iPhone video output cables to deliver component or composite video, but you can also now use an iPad-specific cable to attach it to a VGA projector (or other display) at its native 1024x768 resolution. And while your presentation progresses, you can not only control it, but also highlight using a virtual laser pointer you move with your finger. You can also paint on the screen John Madden style to emphasize things as you speak.

If the Keyboard dock didn't sell me on the iPad (it did) then this sure as hell did the job.

 

[desk003]

What I'm hoping for is an amazing handwriting recognition note taking application. To finally remove paper notebooks from my bag would be great! Even without the ability to convert from handwriting to text, it'd be completely worthwhile. There's the livescribe pen which seems like it'd be better than just notebooks, but eliminating the need to even have multiple physical notebooks for all my classes would be a huge backsaver.

From what's been shown on the iPhone in regards to handwritten notes, it doesn't seem like this would be a huge issue. Has anyone seen those gloves that have the little things on the end to allow for iPhone use? Having a 'pen' with this would complete the experience.

Didn't apple file a patent for no-stylus handwriting recently? That really got my hopes up for something like this.. Sadly, Steve didn't say anything about it.

If an app comes out like this, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

 

[125037]

Lol... Pages on the iPad is $10. Rumors put the HP slate at $1000.

Rumors also put the iPad at $1000.

 

[NeuralControl]

How can anyone seriously believe the iPad is geared towards students? I really wanted to purchase the iPad. I wanted to get a device that is smaller than my MBP and could be used during lectures and at home for casual surfing and media consumption.
For example, I use my MBP during lectures now. I generally have Pages, Keynote, and sometimes Safari running. I split Pages and Keynote equally on my screen and follow along the presentation while taking notes in Pages. This means two applications are running. If the iPad is not capable of running multiple applications simultaneously, how can it be considered a tool for academia? Similarly, many times students need to reference their textbooks while typing documents. The iBooks reader and Pages would have to be open to accomplish this. Right now, that would not be possible.
I genuinely hope Apple rethinks a few things before releasing the iPad. It has enormous potential and Apple needs to unleash it.

 

[coolbreeze]

No way I'd take notes in a lecture class by tapping away at virtual keys.

And no I'm not lugging a dock and KB around. Defeats the "OMG tablet" purpose.

Give me Wacom and I'll jump. Outside of that, I'll continue with my X200 tablet.

 

[desk003]

Personally, I doubt textbooks will come out and work well enough on iPad for awhile yet. My plan is the plan I've had for the past 2 years of college and not found something good enough to meet my criteria: tablet for note taking, books for textbooks.

 

[mastermind6192]

Solution found

Are there any new apps which come standard on this which can be used for word processing?

Let's say I want to take the iPad to a lecture. I would need to be able to load .docs, .ppts, & .pdfs (syllabi, lectures, outlines) for viewing, and I would need to be able to type out notes via an application like Word. I don't think Notes fulfills this need. What do you think? Also, will there be a folder-like native application? Only about half of the lecture buildings on campus offer wifi. Therefore, I would need to download the files and have them stored on the iPad for quick viewing. I know there are applications like AirSharing that can download and store files on the iPhone, but it would make more sense for the iPad to have this functionality out of the box. Being able to hand-draw notes for classes like ochem or physics would be even more useful, but haven't heard anything on this

You can buy the iWork apps!Each program will be available individuals for sale.

 

[Lexoticstylez02]

Here's to hoping the iPad will allow you to download .doc, and pages files from instructor sites and then viewing them in the appropriately application!

 

[zip120]

i'll be a freshman in college next year and i really think this is gonna be a great device - it'll store all of my textbooks and be great for taking notes in class, but still be extremely portable
but i have a concern that i'm not sure whether anyone brought up - i'm planning to get a macbook pro too, and i want a bluetooth keyboard for it
the problem is i think it would be clunky to bring a bluetooth keyboard to class that doesnt connect to the ipad dock, but there's no way to connect the ipad keyboard/dock to my macbook pro
will i have to spend $140 on 2 keyboards?

 

[NeuralControl]

Hold on a second. Don't get ahead of yourself yet. There's no guarantee all your textbooks will be on iBooks by the fall. Trust me, certain professors require some very unique books.
It would be very awkward to bring the iPad and a separate keyboard to class. You're not going to have enough room in a lecture hall seat to hold your iPad and keyboard.

 

[zip120]

Hold on a second. Don't get ahead of yourself yet. There's no guarantee all your textbooks will be on iBooks by the fall. Trust me, certain professors require some very unique books.
It would be very awkward to bring the iPad and a separate keyboard to class. You're not going to have enough room in a lecture hall seat to hold your iPad and keyboard.

would it be awkward to bring it to class with the keyboard thats attached to the dock?
i think that would still take up less space than a macbook

 

[NeuralControl]

I go to a Big East university and most of my classes are in large lecture halls. Imagine a small flip up desk from the side of the seat. Personally, I would not want to attach the iPad to the dock in class.
Your experience may be very different. Even in smaller classes, where you sit in a desk in front of the professor, it may just be awkward to have that set up.
Maybe it will become more mainstream in the near future, but I personally can't see that now.

 

[Eddyisgreat]

I've been lugging around a laptop since my junior year in high school. This is going to revolutionize my workflow. Don't ask how, but it will .

 

[NeuralControl]

Can you please elaborate? Maybe I don't see the whole picture just yet. What is going to change in your workflow?

 

[bozzykid]

i'll be a freshman in college next year and i really think this is gonna be a great device - it'll store all of my textbooks and be great for taking notes in class, but still be extremely portable?

Professors will make you spend crazy amounts of money for the actual book. I don't seem them switching to e-books anytime soon.

 

[damnyooneek]

Professors will make you spend crazy amounts of money for the actual book. I don't seem them switching to e-books anytime soon.

many textbooks have ebook versions. this trend will keep growing. these companies will still make a nasty amount of money because they can save so much on printing the books and distribution cost. people will buy it because its more convenient to have a tablet with all your books in it than to carry around heavy books.

 

[Justinf79]

The problem with getting your books in eBook format is that you can't sell them later back to the school at the end of the term.

 

[Cougarcat]

I'm a student and will be buying this w/ iWork. Since I've gotten my iMac, all I've used my laptop for is reading PDFs/taking notes in class, PowerPoint presentations, and the occasional web browsing. The only thing I would have liked to see (besides a camera, strange omission) is an Apple Preview application, complete with nice annotation features. (Perhaps the iBooks app can read PDFs??) But that's OK, I'm sure a 3rd party developer will step in!

Anybody want to buy a 1.67 Powerbook for $200?

 

[Eddyisgreat]

many textbooks have ebook versions. this trend will keep growing. these companies will still make a nasty amount of money because they can save so much on printing the books and distribution cost. people will buy it because its more convenient to have a tablet with all your books in it than to carry around heavy books.

It's convenient sure but the only trend i'm seeing at my local bookstore is an ebook costing 70-85 percent as much as a hard copy and then sometimes not even including a web component. I'm 100 percent paperless (unless I have bills or papers that haven't been scanned in yet) but I can't justify NOT spending the extra 25% for a tangible asset whose value can be recouped and doesn't rely on draconian "lets do whatever the heck we feel like on everyone's device george orwell 1984" DRM. The benefits, so far, aren't there yet. Maybe when we the cost of the ebook is brought down to 45-50 then it will start to make more sense.

 

[marksman]

You still have to purchase it.

Seriously. I might just get a HP Slate. At least I get free stuff.

Yeah it is $9.95

OMG.

Please get a slate, and please come back and apologize to us all when you do and then end up buying an iPad because it sucked.

 

[djourd]

I bet on release there will be a bunch of good note taking apps.

 

[Andrew07]

seems like Pages can fulfill my Word requirement. You would think having a native "Create New Folder" ability wouldn't be too hard to implement...

yeah, it doesn't seem realistic to have the tablet and a bluetooth keyboard set up on the small fold-outs in most lecture halls--it'd be too awkward trying to get it out of the way as people move through the rows.

I was a little disappointed Apple didn't go into any length discussing media and publisher partnerships today. Hopefully more information will come out soon. But on my book shelf right now, not one of my science, English, or math books have the same publisher.

 

[craigc_]

Being a university student, I felt like this device would be perfect for me till I realized the fact that it cannot multi-task. I need to be able to have a e-book, PDF, or Keynote/PowerPoint presentation open ALONG WITH the Pages app for example to take notes with. I also may need to have Safari AND Pages open to do the same. I hope Apple has multi-tasking planned and they will have me sold.

One last feature I wish they may at some point include is "push" documents. For example, through a MobileMe account, I want the ability to type up notes in a lecture at school, have it automatically saved up into the "cloud" and right there for me to access at home without any syncing. That would be great.

Either way, I'll probably just end up buying one anyway.