iPad Why can’t people use iPad as iPad and Computer as computer

[DNichter]

Now I’m wondering if some people are using multiple iPads simultaneously for work.

Personally, I use the new iOS 11 equivalent of "spaces" on the iPad. I will group certain apps together, such as mail and messages, safari and files, into groups that live in the multitasking screen. I jump from each super quick when needed.
[doublepost=1525099982][/doublepost]People using iPad's exclusively as their computer seems to make a lot of people uncomfortable. Why not just allow people to use what they want?

 

[cipher29]

I only use my Mac for productivity but even then, it outclasses the iPad for productivity tasks:

• Better window management. Drag and drop to other applications and finder
• Multiple tabs on the finder. Multiple finder windows.
• Multiple browser windows (all tabbed)
• Multiple workspaces
• Quicker and easier to use the mouse, move windows and focus and touch type

Honestly, I think if you’re working in multiple apps and switching between many tasks...

(Say word processing, text processing, spreadsheets, chat, web apps etc)

...I simply cannot see how you could possibly do anything like this faster on the iPad, right now.

This... I can update a spreadsheet etc on the fly with my iPad, but when I”m deep in create mode with a spreadsheet/powerpoint etc, the iPad falls on its face quickly.

A lot of the time when I”m working in Excel, I’ll have 2-3 spreadsheets open - this just isn’t realistic on the iPad.

 

[DoubleFlyaway]

I was using two iPads simultaneously... Teaching on the 12.9 for video and whiteboard and looking at documents on my Air 2. Lately I find myself just using the 12.9 more and more. I've gotten more adept at using the multitasking features and also discovered that in the proprietary software I often use, I can upload a screen shot of a page to the white board and write directly on it for my student... So I have less need to look at a separate item while working on the white board.

I do still use them both often, but honestly it is just me messing around with a game on my Air 2 while my students are busy with problems.

 

[Centris 650]

Try to navigate Excel files with several thousands of columns and rows and combined with lots of functions. It is nightmare to do on iPads. Simple is that.

That doesn’t mean the iPad isn’t a computer because you can’t do your work on it.

 

[Royksöpp]

I do just that. I'm not a believer in hybrid devices. I bought my iPad knowing it was an iPad, I really didn't have any other expectations. With that being said, the extra screen real estate and upgraded internals of the 10.5 Pro make it the perfect travel companion to a Mac. I couldn't live with an iPad as my computer, but I can easily understand why some users can. If I were going on a trip for longer than a week I would take my iPad. My MBP is light, but it can't beat the portability of an iPad.

 

[bensisko]

Try to navigate Excel files with several thousands of columns and rows and combined with lots of functions. It is nightmare to do on iPads. Simple is that.

Navigating an Excel with “several thousands of columns and rows combined with lots of functions” sounds like a nightmare on ANY system.

 

[s2mikey]

I do just that. I'm not a believer in hybrid devices. I bought my iPad knowing it was an iPad, I really didn't have any other expectations. With that being said, the extra screen real estate and upgraded internals of the 10.5 Pro make it the perfect travel companion to a Mac.

Yep - this is my take on it too. I dont want either device to try and be like the other one. Nope. Just be the best you possibly can at what you were designed for. iPads are the best tablets because they are JUST tablets and have a tablet-centric OS that runs on them. Thats how it should be, IMO. Same for macbooks and laptops: Run your full blown OS like a regular computer ought to. Dont try to add touch features or other gimmicks.

 

[bensisko]

Yep - this is my take on it too. I dont want either device to try and be like the other one. Nope. Just be the best you possibly can at what you were designed for. iPads are the best tablets because they are JUST tablets and have a tablet-centric OS that runs on them. Thats how it should be, IMO. Same for macbooks and laptops: Run your full blown OS like a regular computer ought to. Dont try to add touch features or other gimmicks.

I think it COULD be really good, but nobody has cracked the code yet.

It’s partially hardware and partially software.
On the hardware side, you’re going to need bigger, bulkier hardware to run desktop applications. You can make it iPad thin (like the Samsung hybrid) but you’re sacrificing power (which is the first thing people would scream about - how “underpowered” it is). Or make it thicker and heavier and you loose a big part of what people go for in a tablet.

The BIG issue is on the software side, specifically in changing the whole user experience between desktop/mobile. You really have to do a LOT of reconfiguring in the UI to make a desktop app into a true mobile app. Maybe that even means loosing features, but certainly making it touch-first.

Microsoft had some good momentum with Windows 8. Yes, it was a disaster in terms of a released product, but as a concept it was a really good first step.

If Apple came out with a hybrid (I say, knowing that it won’t happen anytime soon), I would like to see an iPad style device that lets you configure the UI dynamically - maybe using a slider bar - between iOS and MacOS. An “in between OS” won’t cut it - it needs to be adjustable for the user needs at the moment. The UI would have to be completely configurable.

What I like is the SurfaceBook concept from Microsoft. Take the tablet portion and plug it into the “Performance Base” and get more processing power, more graphics power, etc.

A real, TRUE hybrid isn’t going to look anything like what we have today - and may never happen. The industry seems to be going for more of a new OS for every platform. Microsoft WANTS to have one Windows to rule them all, but at the end of the day, it’s still different versions of Windows with different UIs. For Microsoft to be truely successful, they have to leave their current customer base behind and think about what they need to do to make it work - they’re just too tied to their current customer base who demands a Start Menu.

 

[LovingTeddy]

Navigating an Excel with “several thousands of columns and rows combined with lots of functions” sounds like a nightmare on ANY system.

When you have a coompany with thousand of employee and we need do weekly performance update, you have excel with thousands of rows and columns. Lots of cells have functions built in.

It is impossible to run on iPads, even if several columns and rows. Our company has lots of sells sheets, forms, contracts, terms and conditions are all using some shorts of macros within word and excel forms.

 

[bensisko]

When you have a coompany with thousand of employee and we need do weekly performance update, you have excel with thousands of rows and columns. Lots of cells have functions built in.

It is impossible to run on iPads, even if several columns and rows. Our company has lots of sells sheets, forms, contracts, terms and conditions are all using some shorts of macros within word and excel forms.

Sounds like what you really need is a web app with a back end database.

 

[LovingTeddy]

Sounds like what you really need is a web app with a back end database.

The performance report is automatically generated by the system from various sources and application. We often need to tweak the system a bit, so we sometimes need to recreate excel form. It is definitely something not doable on the iPad. Again, I am not expecting iPad can do it.

 

[iPadified]

For you, ipad +pencil may beat a cursor in terms of speed and versatility but it doesn't for me. And precision of input and navigation do not decide what is a computer - since 1971 I've used a whole lot of computers that were absolutely lacking in precise input and navigation but they were certainly computers.

I did not say that a pencil or finger gave precision enough in all types of work for me. I find Excel navigation and 3D modelling is more efficient with other type of input. Use the best input device for the work at hand - easy as that. A carpenter has many tools for different work and I do not see why not computer based workers can have the same freedom of tools.

 

[Ta0jin]

First of all, I am entitled to make a thread. If you don’t like it , please not read or reply. If you think it is inappropriate, report it.

What I am saying is that if iPad works for them, then good for them. However, people should treat iPad as iPad, not replacment of PC. Use iPad as iPad and use PC as PC. Just because iPad works for someone, doesn’t mean it is full PC replacement. Lots of people are injecting idea of iPad is future and PC is doomed and iPad works better than PC or PC works better than iPad. It is not.

For what I need to do an iPad works perfect. I don't personally need a PC but I also understand that it can never be replaced by a tablet for some people. I use adobe illustrator and with an Apple pencil my needs are met. I'm not sure why people who are saying an iPad is a PC replacement or it's "the future" seems to bother you that much but if someone can get by using an iPad I don't see the issue really.

 

[Abazigal]

An excellent article I found on a blog about iPad productivity. I find his points so much mirror my own.

https://tablethabit.com/blog/2018/04/9-things-i-learned-going-ipad-only

All of the people I know who are iPad only (or even iPad first) have taken the limitations of iOS in stride. Some, like me, use the limitations as a means of focus. Others, like Federico Viticci over at MacStories, have found ways to bypass those limitations. He creates Workflows, automation, and even writing his own code to make iOS work for him. In both cases pro users of the iPad will hit some roadblocks, but they take that as a challenge rather than a disadvantage.

So much of what I do can be done without many bumps in the road. But when I do get to an area where there are some road blocks, I take it as a chance to learn more about the systems in which I do my work. I want to find ways to make my own detours towards my destination.

Something about iOS, and those who use it as their main OS, makes you want to push forward and raise the bar just a little higher each and every day. I am sure there are other communities like us, but for me this feels like home.

Viva la iPad!

 

[muzzy996]

Every time this thread jumps back up towards the top of the list I start singing War's "Why Can't We Be Friends" song . . LOL

 

[gobikerider]

Overall my iPad Pro is a joy to use but I still find apps can be functionally limited compared to Mac counterparts and Safari is abysmally less then the OSX counter part because the “iPad” user agent compared to the normal “safari”. Overall I still find the iPad limiting for fairly mundane tasks hopefully iOS 12 can improve some of the smaller things but I’m guessing we won’t see anything significantly improved until iOS 13.

 

[Mahasamatman]

Overall I still find the iPad limiting for fairly mundane tasks hopefully iOS 12 can improve some of the smaller things but I’m guessing we won’t see anything significantly improved until iOS 13.

Just out of interest, and no challenge implied, what smaller things is it that are troublesome?

In my case, I have had to unlearn a number of ways to doing things on MacOS that are different on iOS. Not wrong just different so I’m interested to hear what you find problematic.

 

[strawberryshortcake]

Just out of interest, and no challenge implied, what smaller things is it that are troublesome?

In my case, I have had to unlearn a number of ways to doing things on MacOS that are different on iOS. Not wrong just different so I’m interested to hear what you find problematic.

Not the person you quoted, but how do I rename pictures and video files. That’s a fairly mundane task that I never thought should be a massive headache to get done ... and I still don’t know how to rename files. So I simply gave up. Not a big deal, yet it is a big deal.

 

[bensisko]

Just out of interest, and no challenge implied, what smaller things is it that are troublesome?

In my case, I have had to unlearn a number of ways to doing things on MacOS that are different on iOS. Not wrong just different so I’m interested to hear what you find problematic.

Sounds like when I first switched from Windows to Mac - I had to “unlearn” (or learn the simpler method) for doing things on Mac OS.

 

[Mahasamatman]

So if you can see the file in the native Files app, you can press and hold on the file and you’ll get a menu up which includes rename as an option. Is that what you mean for the last part?

Unless you get photos on using something like FIle Explorer they’ll be in Photos which has no rename option, and the same for videos I guess.
[doublepost=1525382632][/doublepost]

Sounds like when I first switched from Windows to Mac - I had to “unlearn” (or learn the simpler method) for doing things on Mac OS.

Indeed, not right or wrong, just different.

Mind you, that’s not quite what I would be saying if I lost my work MBA and had to use a Windows 10 laptop instead after 15 years of OS X. All those years of muscle memory...

 

[strawberryshortcake]

So if you can see the file in the native Files app, you can press and hold on the file and you’ll get a menu up which includes rename as an option. Is that what you mean for the last part?

Unless you get photos on using something like FIle Explorer they’ll be in Photos which has no rename option, and the same for videos I guess.

Just the standard run of the mill whatever preinstalled app that came with a completely brand new ipad. How can something so simple be overlooked by Apple. I simply wanted give a real name to some of the pictures in the default photo app. Still can’t. Also, video files won’t display their full name. Imagine having over 200 episodes of Frasier and not having a clue which episode is which.

 

[Mahasamatman]

Just the standard run of the mill whatever preinstalled app that came with a completely brand new ipad. How can something so simple be overlooked by Apple. I simply wanted give a real name to some of the pictures in the default photo app. Still can’t. Also, video files won’t display their full name. Imagine having over 200 episodes of Frasier and not having a clue which episode is which.

Yeah, I can see why that would annoy, though I don’t do it myself - photos go into Lightroom and get categorised by location etc. so for me renaming a photo is immaterial...

 

[bensisko]

Just the standard run of the mill whatever preinstalled app that came with a completely brand new ipad. How can something so simple be overlooked by Apple. I simply wanted give a real name to some of the pictures in the default photo app. Still can’t.

Not overlooked... in iOS the expectation is that you are choosing images/photos/videos based on the thumbnail not a file name. When you go to insert media, you’re presented with a visual browser instead of a file listing.

 

[strawberryshortcake]

Not overlooked... in iOS the expectation is that you are choosing images/photos/videos based on the thumbnail not a file name. When you go to insert media, you’re presented with a visual browser instead of a file listing.

And if you make minor modifications not immediately visible to the naked eye, and you’ve got 10 or more of those slight modifications, then I would certainly say that’s overlooking things. As far as media is concerned, if the thumbnail image is the same for all videos but different tv episodes, and the title only reads ... The Big Bang Theory S1E03, etc. etc. Which episode was the one labeled "Big Bang Theory - The Bad Fish Paradigm"

... to me, that’s definitely overlooking.

 

[bensisko]

And if you make minor modifications not immediately visible to the naked eye, and you’ve got 10 or more of those slight modifications, then I would certainly say that’s overlooking things. As far as media is concerned, if the thumbnail image is the same for all videos but different tv episodes, and the title only reads ... The Big Bang Theory S1E03, etc. etc. Which episode was the one labeled "Big Bang Theory - The Bad Fish Paradigm"

... to me, that’s definitely overlooking.

It might be an issue for you, but it doesn't mean it's been overlooked. I doubt there are large scores of people out there using their iOS devices to make 10 copies of an image with only slight modifications that are not immediately visible to the naked eye.

As has been posted above - it's a different way of thinking about interfacing with computers. Apple is giving us a very visual, touch-based user interface to a mobile device. You do have to think differently about how you interface with content on your device. Some people like it and others don't.

Personally, I love it! If I never had to worry about file names or where I put a file ever again, that would be a good thing. I know there are others that need to control that organization in a traditional sense.

As to media, I'm assuming these are not purchased videos. Are you watching these videos through the Photo app?