Using an iPad - was krankshaft format solution found

[Paul Mather]

I think that industry also is assuming people use iPads and tablets, too.  Here, we are going through a process of replacing our 20+ year old ROLM phone infrastructure with a "unified communication system" that will make it seem more like we are in the 21st century than the 20th. :-)  Anyway, we were encouraged to attend vendor exhibits on campus to get the measure of what the various bidders on the contract were offering.  What surprised me is that almost all of the six vendors still in the race had iPad support.  (Some were also promising Android tablet support "coming soon.")  What was even more surprising was the IBM consortium actually have developed their telepresence offering for the iPad and it is the Mac OS X version that is still "coming soon."  Come to think of it, the IBM "phone" looked rather akin to an iPad jammed into a docking station pedestal.  So, I guess for those sorts of things ("unified communications") tablets are seen as a good solution.

I don't have an iPad, but the people I know at work that do appear to like them mainly for their convenience and that, for the basic tasks they want to do (Web surfing, checking their Exchange calendar, etc.), they work well.  My old advisor now seems to bring his iPad to meetings instead of his laptop.

Cheers,

Paul.

On Apr 8, 2011, at 6:06 AM, John Rennie wrote:

> I have an Android tablet that is effectively the same as an iPad
> (see http://www.archos.com/products/ta/archos_101it/index.html)
> and I use it all the time.
> 
> Like you I was a bit sceptical about tablets, but as it turns out I
> love it! I use it mainly for reading books. It displays PDFs well and
> I use the Android version of Kindle to read my ebooks. In fact I used
> to have a Kindle but I sold it because the tablet is much nicer to
> use. The battery life is about 10 hours, so it's a lot less than a
> Kindle, but I only have to charge it two or three times a week.
> 
> I also use it to surf the web from my armchair. I often find that
> when I'm watching TV, or maybe when I'm reading a book, I come across
> something I want more info on. I can grab the tablet and jump onto
> Google in about ten seconds, which is far more convenient than having
> to turn the laptop on and wait for it to start.
> 
> There are a few other minor things I use it for e.g. playing
> solitaire and using the XBMC remote control app. These may seem minor
> but they all add to the experience. I resisted buying an iPad because
> £429 seemed a lot (though the iPad 1 is now only £329!). My Archos
> was only £250 and this seemed reasonable. Having said that, the iPad
> has a better screen and is faster, and you may feel it's worth the
> extra (I don't!).
> 
> JR
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: BOC/Hawkwind Discussion List [mailto:BOC-L at LISTSERV.ISPNETINC.NET] On Behalf Of Jonathan Smith
> Sent: 08 April 2011 01:15
> To: BOC-L at LISTSERV.ISPNETINC.NET
> Subject: Re: krankshaft format solution found
> 
> I am interested that people really do use iPads. How do you use them?
> Everyone I know who bought one says its just a toy. As I have a Android
> smart phone and a Apple laptop, it seems excess to needs. I am interested in
> a Kindle, or a good eBook reader, but they are not supported where I live,
> so that can wait.
> 
> I much prefer Apple computers too, but have to use Windows as well. Unix is
> much too geeky for me as well-- too many variants. The choice of either
> making Steve Jobs or Bill Gates richer is not appealing, but that's the way
> its become. I'd forgotten who Brittany Spears was!
>