iPO | 42 . day 9 - remote control computers with your iPad...

Less than 10 days into this experiment, I have found several things I REALLY needed to do on my iPad that could not wait until I got back to my desktop computer. I make a living as a consultant specializing in Apple technologies, so I had no illusions that my iPad would fully replace my MacBook. But like most people, I am convinced that the iPad is more than enough "mobile computer" for my needs 80% of the time.

So what to do the other 20% of the time? Most technology experts agree the simplest solution is to leave your home or work computer on and connected to the internet and use the iPad to access it remotely. I agree whole heartedly and posted about my current favorite app for that ( iTeleport ) here back in January of this year. I like iTeleport because I am in control of the setup and don't have to pay a third party service. It can be configured for Mac, Windows, and Linux desktops, works all the way back to iOS 3.2, works on 3g, and has support for custom key modification support.

However, there are a myriad of other options available for the iPad these days and the folks at Gigaom have a great post talking about 14 of them. Take a look if you think you might have a need for such things, it has already saved my bacon several times recently when I either forgot to put a file into dropbox or needed to run an application on my Mac that is not yet available for the iPad.

iPO | 42 . day 8 - "classic" keyboard for ipad

I saw this at wired and could not resist posting about this as another optional keyboard for your iPad. It is will only set you back $799 to have a 1945 Royal Aristocrat typewriter as your go to keyboard for your iPad. Take a look on Etsy.com if you want to know more.

If that seems a bit pricey, you can get the conversion kit for only $75 and supply your own typewriter.

Brings back memories of the data entry devices from Terry Gilliam's 1985 movie Brazil where there was a typewriter attached to such a small screen that they had a huge magnifying glass in front of it to be able to read it.

iPO | 42 . day 5 - counting the days...

Since I started my 42 days with an iPad as my only mobile computer, I quickly realized it would be handy to have something that could count the days for me as my overworked brain could not do the math even just a few days into this experiment. So they say... "There is a app for that!" and more often than not they are right.

I found a simple and clean app for 99¢ that was just want I wanted and thought I would share with you all. 

Count the Days does just what it claims. It can count up or down from an event date and as you can see, it gives you a simple clean view of just the info you want. You can have multiple events and simply swipe between them. 

I saw a review that said the app was not intuitive and I had to laugh. Simply click the info icon, click the + button to add, set a date and give the event a name and your done. The app works for iPad and iPhone and is supposed to let you choose a custom image for each event. I have had problems with this not working as promised and have reported it to the developers.

In any case, it does what I wanted and is very handy. Let me know what you think if you try it as well.

Apple security update for OSX 10.5 intel only...

For those of you who are still running OSX 10.5 (Leopard) on a G4 or G5 processor, take note that it is almost certainly time to buy new hardware.

Apple has released a security update for Leopard, but for intel macs only. 

Apple announced the switch to intel processors back in 2005 and by mid 2007 had switched all their computers to the processor. In 2009 they introduced OSX 10.6 (Snow Leopard) which was available only for intel based Macs.

If you have managed to keep your old G4 or G5 Mac running all this time, congrats to you. However, it may be finally time to upgrade your hardware as it appears there will be no further updates for the operation systems you can run on the old hardware.

If you are interested in such things, there is a good timeline of the transition here.

iPO | 42 . day 02 - bluetooth issues...

 So today I thought I had found some odd bug in my iPad. I had the login screen (as seen here) but the onscreen keyboard would not come up no matter what I did. I reboot the iPad thinking it was stuck. Same thing. 

Then I realized that my keybard was in my bag and the only way to type in the password to unlock the screen was via the keyboard! And since the Apple Keyboard does not have an on / off switch, I could not just turn off the keyboard to get the onscreen keyboard.

Lessons learned...

... if you use a Bluetooth keyboard with your iPad, it might help if if has an on / off switch if you plan on separating the two on a regular basis. Otherwise, you will have to enter passwords via keyboard or you will have to remember to turn off bluetooth on the iPad when you stow the keybard in your bag.

... also learned that if you have the keyboard connected and want to see / use the onscreen keyboard, you just tap the "eject" key to show the onscreen keyboard.

Note... that does NOT work when you are typing at the unlock screen

iPO | 42 . day 01 - keyboards...

Here is the new setup at work. Same as before except that now it is an iPad and a computer. Previously it was a MacBook Air and a monitor. So I still have two screens, but now they are independent with one running iOS and one running Mac desktop.

On to keyboards. I knew that a real keyboard was a must if this was to replace my Air. I also that one of the benefits of the iPad for me would be the ability to use the iPad easily without the keyboard. So my criteria...

... had to easily detach from iPad

... as close to full size as possible

... store and carry easily when not attached to iPad

... would like to have some protection on the iPad when not part of the keyboard

I will post more later about other keyboard options, but long story short I am using the Origami Workstation by inCASE. This $29.95 "workstation" is designed as a case for the $69 Apple bluetooth keyboard.

As a case, it folds over to protect the keyboard and has locking curved plastic clips inside that snap the keyboard in place to keep it from sliding out.

When you open the Velcro flap, it folds back and together (thus the origami name) to form a stand for the iPad. You can orient the iPad in portrait for landscape mode, but there are no attachments to keep the iPad secured to the stand. 

So total cost is about $100 and was in the same range as other bluetooth keyboard options. For me, this solution was perfect as it allows me to keep the current smart cover and back protection I have on the iPad and just pull out the keyboard when I need to do some serious typing. As a side note, you could use this stand for an iPhone or any other tablet by simply pairing the Apple keyboard to any bluetooth compatible device as it is really a carrying case for a keyboard that folds into a stand when in use.

note... I also have added the Apple Magic Trackpad to my desktop setup as that supports many of the gestures on the computer that we are used to on the iPad.

iPO | 42 - starts today....

Starting today, I am giving up my MacBook Air for 42 days and will be working with an iPad as my only mobile device (iPhone excluded of course). Look for daily post detailing my experience.

At this point, I am guessing you are thinking one of two things depending on your computer experience and usage.

Either...  "You must be crazy, the iPad is NOT a notebook replacement. You won't last a week!"

Or... "DUH, why would you carry around a huge notebook when you can just take the iPad".

I know that both reactions are valid with respect to the question... "Can the iPad replace my current notebook computer?". I know we get that question as consultants almost daily and I am committed to exploring this in a real world environment.

I actually tried this when the original iPad was released a few years ago. My conclusion was that the iPad was a great mobile device, but was not a realistic replacement for a notebook computer at that point. Fast forward 2 years later, 65 million + in iPad sales, and 600 thousand  available applications, and I think the answer might be different this time.

As a technology consultant, I believe strongly that the growth in this industry for the foreseeable future is in mobile. I don't think desktops will go away, and I don't claim to know the ultimate form factor mobile devices will take. However, I do believe that we are in the middle of a sea change event similar to the rural to urban population shifts we have seen in the world since the 1900's.

In the US the rural vs urban population split was 60% rural vs 40% urban in 1900. By 2000 we had shifted to 20% rural vs 80% urban. Estimates are that this gap will continue to widen worldwide. I think we are going to see a similar shift from desktop to mobile in the technology requirements for most computer users in the very near future.

I know we are early on this curve, and that there will be some creativity needed on my part to make this work. But that is why I am committing to 42 days of iPO to find out what works and what is still a challenge.

Stay tuned for updates. And please comment and share your thoughts and ideas as well.

how to turn off preview of iOS messages...

This tip is just a quick follow-up to the previous post showing you how to sync your messages between iOS devices.

It has been in iOS since v5 but I thought a reminder might be timely here as so many of us are now using iPads as well.

By default, notifications for messages will pop up on your iOS device and show you the message as well. This is fine when you are the only one lookat the the screen, but now that we are all sharing so much info on our iPhones and iPads, it can prove embarrassing or just inappropriate when a private message pops up in the middle of demonstration you are doing on your iPad.

This problem is easily avoided by going to Settings / Notifications / Messages on your iOS device and turning preview off.

This will help you avoid the embarrassment of a text message from your coworker popping up in the middle of you iPad screen asking "is your meeting with our jerk boss is over yet?" ... while your boss is looking at your iPad screen reviewing this months TPS reports ;-)

sync messages between all your iOS devices...

For those of us running iOS 5, we were thrilled to learn that the new messages app on the phone would send messages at data and not count against your sms tex messaging plan (as long as both users were on iOS).

Apple also touted syncing of these messages between iOS devices, however, many users have had trouble making this work. The trick to making this work properly is to use the same email address (probably the one you use as your appleID) on all the devices you whish to syncronize.

Here is your quick fix...

Go to Settings on your iOS device.

Select Messages 

Choose the Recieve At

Choose Caller ID

Verify a matching email address

Note: Make sure the "check mark" is by the email address rather than the phone number (on iPhone)

That should do it. Also note, Apple will replace iChat on the Mac desktop with Messages when Mountain Lion is released this summer, but you can try that out in Beta here if you want to get a jump start. I mention that as this trick should also then work to sync messages to your desktop! I have been using it for a while now, and yes, this means you can "text" message your iOS friends from your desktop mac.

easy way to setup email in Lion...

Great article at Mac Trast on an easy way to setup mail on your Mac if your are running Lion.

If you go to system preferences and select "Mail, Contacts, & Calendars" you can setup for most popular account types like iCloud, MS Exchange, Gmail, Yahoo & AOL.

If all this did was setup mail, then I would say just use the setup assistant in your mail application. However, as many of these accounts offer services beyond mail, setting them up via system preferences allows you to control and setup the othere services as well. As in the example above, you can have gmail setup for mail and chat but NOT for calendars.

Very handy tool available in Lion.... so another possible reason to upgrade.