It’s time to say goodbye

Posted on July 18, 2011 by admin

In case you’d missed it, this blog hasn’t been updated for some time. The reason is that my works situation changed and last year and I’ve had to reset my priorities.

So, after considerable thought, I’ve decided to shut this blog down. Rather than just kill it off, I’m going to close off comments and leave the content online as an archive.

Thanks to the many readers and others that I’ve met though this blog over the years. It’s been a blast.

I’ve not stopped writing or blogging. I’m now focussing my energies at Journo Advice where I blog about what I’ve learned about working as a freelancer.

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iCade – The Best iPad Accessory ever!

Posted on December 21, 2010 by admin

OK – we all know that there’s a burgeoning cottage industry built around accessories for the iPad but this is one I just have to have.

It’s not just a cabinet but a full-MAME rig that transforms the iPad into a proper caming rig. It includes hundreds of games including the classic Donkey Kong, Space Invaders and more.

You can find it at Think Geek for a lazy $150USD.

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Google Analytics on the iPad

Posted on December 21, 2010 by admin

Following on from my recent look at The iPad Blogging Toolkit, I’ve been getting my head around the whole SEO, or Search Engine Optimisation, thing. Put simply, the application of good SEO techniques can help you get your blog further up the page ranking system of search engines. That means that when people search for something, your blog or website is more likely to come up near the top of the results.

One way to measure how your site is performing is to use the software that most web hosting companies provide. However, a more popular way of measuring how much traffic your site is attracting and, more importantly, how it’s finding you, is to use something like Google Analytics. In order for Analytics to work you need to run some specific code on all the pages you wish to measure. If, like me, you’re not interested into delving into your blog’s source code, there are WordPress plug-ins that do the legwork for you.

If you’re an iPad user, one of the hassles is that not all of the nice graphs show up on the screen. That realization meant that I needed to take a trip to the App Store. A quick search for “Google Analytics” revealed several different applications that would bring the data from Google Analytics.

Like many people I started with a free option – an app simply called Analytics. The App Store reviews seemed reasonable and the price was right.

What Analytics delivers is the same experience you’d have on a computer running a proper web browser. Graphs, tables and other visual elements appear with Analytics just as they would on a regular computer. Depending on the performance of your Internet connection, the app can feel a little slow but it wasn’t bad enough to make us want to spend money for another application.

The main stats I’m interested in are number of visitors, where they are coming from and what search terms are attracting them. Armed with those bits of data I can tweak the posts I create (using BlogPress) so that I can make sure I write content that my readers are most interested in and draws the most traffic through search engines.

This is the start of a journey for me. being able to find tools that work when I’m not at my desk is super important. Analytics is, for now, one of the tools that enables me to write relevant content that attracts visitors.

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The iPad Blogging Toolkit

Posted on December 20, 2010 by admin

Having migrated the blog from B2Evolution to WordPress I’ve now turned my attention to regularly posting. As an iPad user, I want to be able to create and publish content while I’m out. That means that I need to find the  best iPad tools for blogging.

iOS Tips for Capturing Images

The iPad makes it easy to capture images from the web.

To grab an image from a website, just tap-hold on the image. A context menu will appear that allows you to save the image. That will put the image file in the iPad’s Photo app.

If you need a screen capture, which might be the only way to get an image if you need something that the usual image saving process can’t do then simple hold down the iPad’s front button and press the power button. If the sound is on, you’ll hear a shutter sound as the screen flashes. The screen capture will be saved automatically into your Photos.

Image Editing on the iPad


There are literally hundreds of image editing and manipulation apps for the iPad. We’re going to suggest just two.

The first is actually an iPhone app but that’s not a big deal. Crop Suey makes it easy to crop and rotate images – perfect if you need to clean up a screen grab or some other image.

Crop Suey costs $1.99 from the App Store.

The second app is one for when you want to make things look a little special. Color Splash (free from the App Store) lets you apply some special affects to images. It takes an image, converts it to black and white and lets you selectively recolor specific parts of the image. If you need to highlight something in an image, just recolor that specific part.

Blogging Software for posting and editing on the iPad

Of course, the iPad’s version of Safari is big enough to run the WordPress admin tools from then browser. But what if you’re not online?

WordPress for iOS is a good place to start. It lets you create posts and save them locally. You can add images but it doesn’t let you set the alignment easily. Also, if you want to create a link you have to manually create the link – that means you need some basic HTML skills.

The reality is that WordPress for iOS is OK but very basic. In our experience, it also not very stable. We found that it would frequently crash after saving.

Another option is BlogPress. It’s a more polished app that can be used to create content for a whole bunch of different blogging systems including Blogger, Drupal and Joomla among others.

We like that is offers some basic HTML formatting and seems far more stable than WordPress’s app. One thing we did notice with the HTML formatting was that it uses the older B and I tabs for bold and italics respectively whereas “strong” and “em” are more commonly used these days.

We also like that BlogPress will automatically send an update to Twitter and Facebook when we post without the need to load a plug-in to WordPress.

BlogPress costs $2.99 from the App Store. In our view, the cost is worth it for the advantages it boasts over WordPress’ free app.

Keyboard Case – make your iPad a notebook


Typing on the iPad’s soft keyboard isn’t too bad but sometimes it’s nice to use something with actual buttons. We reviewed the PADACS Rubata Keyboard Case a few weeks ago at ITWire.

We’ve been using this case for awhile now and it’s getting used a lot. It does add some bulk to the unit, making the iPad the same size as a netbook. However, being able to pull the iPad out and use it as a regular tablet gives it an edge over many netbooks.

The PADACS Rubata Keyboard Case can be purchased from the PADACS online store for $110AU

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iPad 2.0 coming in February 2011

Posted on December 20, 2010 by admin

A little while I mused about an iPad 2 might look like. Well, it seems that we’re going to find out earlier than expected according to this story I’ve published over at ITWire.

Reports from Taiwan are that Foxconn Electronics, one of Apple’s key suppliers, will be shipping around 500,000 iPad 2.0’s in February 2011.

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iTunes Sync is Broken

Posted on September 18, 2010 by admin

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve had to update several iPods and iPhones with the latest iOS4.x updates. It occurred to me that when iTunes says that it’s syncing data to the iPod or iPhone that it’s not actually doing that.

The reality is that the “iTunes sync” is actually a one-way push. Applications that you purchase on your iDevice aren’t automatically sent to your iTunes library. That means that if your iDevice is lost or irreparably damaged then your most recent purchases may be lost. When you’re doing a software update, you need to manually tell iTunes to do a “Sync Purchases” by right-clicking your iDevice in the Devices category on the left side of the iTines screen.

This isn’t a new “feature” but seems counter to Apple’s “it just works” ethos. At the very least, iTunes should sync purchases automatically before a system update to ensure nothing is lost. Am I asking for too much?

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iPad 2.0 details revealed?

Posted on September 11, 2010 by admin

This isn’t rocket science but it’s clear that Apple has given the world a huge look in with regards to what iPad 2.0 will be.

The recent release of the latest iPod touch is a pointer to what Apple will deliver in the second generation iPad. Techcrunch is reporting a rumour (unsubstantiated by their own admission) that an out of cycle update may come in time for the holiday season. And let me tell you – if they’re right, I’ll be at the front of the queue to buy one.

At the top of the list of new iPad features will be the Retina Display. If Apple can increase the iPad’s display resolution and clarity then iPad 2 will be a winner. I never had any problem with the iPhone 3GS but sit it next to an iPhone 4 and the difference is massive.

iPad 2 will have a front facing camera. FaceTime is a big deal for Apple and it will be integrated into many of their products. I’m surprised that a camera wasn’t added to the new Apple TV but it’s a certainty for iPad 2.

iOS 4 will be part of the build but I suspect that the iPad version will be a substantial diversion from the iPhone one. Put simply, iPad is more like a traditional computer than the iPhone. That means a revised interface is needed. iPad 2 will have better task management and switching that its predecessor.

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Media consumption on the iPad

Posted on September 6, 2010 by admin

When I connected my 16GB iPad to my Mac the other day, I noticed that I was using about a third of my iPad’s storage for music. That had me thinking – when was the last time I listened to a song with my iPad? The answer is NEVER.

The iPad is a great media consumption device (it also a great creation device but that’s a discussion for another day) but I don’t use it as a music playback device at all.

Unlike the olden days, my media library won’t fit onto any iOS devices. In fact, even if I was using a 160GB iPod classic, I’d need several to carry the whole library. So I use some playlists to only siphon a limited amount if content to my iPad. However even that limited subset of a few hundred tracks is overkill for me. One track would be overkill.

I watch a lot of movies on my iPad and share photos with friends and family regularly. For those graphically intense functions the iPad is brilliant and remains, for now, the best tool I’ve found for that purpose.

As you’d know from previous posts, I travel with my iPad a fair bit and often use it as my only computer when I’m on the road. I know it has limitations but if it’s good enough for me to write this post from an airport lounge, browse the web, catch some email and make VoIP calls, it’s adequate as a traveling companion and, in some ways, superior to a notebook or netbook.

But for visual media consumption, it’s simply the most convenient device I’ve used. Perhaps if a decent video editing app was made for the iPad I might hold some music on it for knocking up a quick movie but for now, my iPad remains a music-free device.

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iPad Road Trip – Can it survive for four days?

Posted on August 25, 2010 by admin

This week, I’m attending Tech Ed – Microsoft’s major technical education event for IT professionals. I’m attending as a member of the media at Microsoft’s expense (just laying out the appropriate disclaimers before I start). I’m away for four days on the conference, having left home on Tuesday and returning on Friday afternoon. For the first time, I’m traveling with the iPad as my main computing device. No notebook, no cheating by using one of the many machines that are around for attendees – just the iPad.

The Kit

In order to use the iPad as a primary computer for the best part of a week, I needed a few accessories. I was going to bring a stand but decided to pack light and am using a PADACs Executive Leather Case. This offers great protection in my satchel (a Crumpler “The Quarfie”) and doubles up as a stand. That props it up so I can either use the Apple Bluetooth Keyboard I brought or the on-screen keyboard comfortably.

Fortunately, Microsoft has provided WiFi access to conference delegates so Internet connectivity is easy – a big consideration as I only have a WiFi iPad and not a 3G model. In the hotel however, it’s a little trickier as in-room access is only via an Ethernet cable. For that, I’m using the Huawei E5830 I picked up on eBay so that I have ready access to Internet.

Obviously, the iPad’s battery is never going to make it through four days so I have the charger with me. I’m using the same charger for my iPhone so that makes my travel load even lighter – one brick to charge them all!

Reality Check

So, can the iPad make it as a primary computing device? In a nutshell – yes but not forever.

Data entry in the conference sessions and during interviews was easy. The iPad’s instant on capability means that I’m up and running way before most of the other folks using netbooks or sub-notebooks.

Plenty of people have already written about the iPad’s hardware so I’m going to mention one app that I’m road testing (I’ll have a full review in an upcoming edition of Australian Macworld) is Office 2 HD. This is yet another productivity suite for the iPad. At this stage it only support word processing and spreadsheets and I’ve only worked with the word processor as that’s a key application for me.

The big attraction of Office2 HD is that it plays nicely with DropBox. That means I can open and save documents to my DropBox account so I don’t have to worry about backing my work up while traveling.

For the writers out there, Office2 HD includes all the usual formatting options like bold, underline, italics, bullets, numbering and text alignment. It also includes a word count – a must for journalists.

The biggest issue with the iPad as a notebook or netbook replacement is the lack of USB connectivity for transferring content to and from a memory stick. For a journalist, this is critical as many press kits are distributed this way.

Task Swapping Blues

Hopefully, iOS 4 will address my other problem – effective task swapping. My biggest bug bear with iOS 3 or 4 is that switching between open applications is a major PITA. Here’s an example of an everyday task made hard on the iPad.

I’ll often go to the web browser to look up a piece of information. For me to take the information back to Office2 HD, or any other application, I need to return to the home screen (by pressing the iPad’s big button – I can’t do it on the Apple Bluetooth keyboard. If anyone knows how please tell me!) I then relaunch the app I was working in and paste the text. Thankfully the usual cut, copy and paste keyboard shortcuts work.

If I need to go back to the browser a few minutes later to look something else up – something that’s common when fact checking or using spec sheets – the browser re-fetches the page. The only party that benefits is the carrier who picks up some extra data charges.

Even with iOS 4, with its new-fangled multi-tasking, is rubbish at task swapping. Support for Command-Tab switching (Alt-Tab for the Windows folk) would be very useful.

Camera Shy

I know this has been addressed by just about every iPad critic on the planet – and some of the fans. But the lack of a front-facing camera is a real problem. It’s almost a certainty that iPad 2 will have a camera now that FaceTime is part of the Apple landscape. But for now, not having a camera is a show-stopper for me. Being able to video-conference home and colleagues when traveling is important – particularly on longer trips.

One More Thing

It’s funny how experience is the only way to really find a serious deficiency with a device. I’ve started a contract job as the IT manager of a school. Like most other businesses, my employer uses Microsoft Exchange – a platform I’m warming to after 15 years or so of working with Lotus Notes.

I use GMail as my main email service and I access that via Google’s support for the ActiveSync/Exchange protocols (I know it’s more complex than that but you know what I mean). On my iPhone, I can access multiple Exchange accounts at the same time. With the iPad – which has been given its iOS 4 makeover yet, I can add another Exchange account. The iPhone is a good backup but typing on the iPad is so much easier.

So, there you have it. One man’s experience of using the iPad as his one and only computer. Lots of wins and some losses but the iPad is good enough – for a limited time.

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iOS 4 for iPad

Posted on August 15, 2010 by admin

We’re getting close to the release of iOS 4 for the iPad. Expected in the next few weeks – perhaps to be announced or released at the iPod event that’s expected in the next few weeks. However, after a few months of iPad use and several weeks with iOS 4 on my 3GS and 4 iPhones, I can see that a straight iOS 4, without some specific iPad customisation, will be a disappointment.

Here’s my shopping list of what iOS 4 for iPad needs.

Task Management

After using iOS 4 on an iPhone, it’s clear that Apple’s “trust us, we’ll look after everything” mentality doesn’t work when you’re multitasking. On the iPhone, applications that used to close down under iOS 3 (I now that’s not the real name but you know what I mean) stay active in the background. As a result, they keep using CPU cycles or, in the worst cases, use the GPS or some other power hungry process.

Shutting down applications manually is possible but it’s a multi-step process that’s not obvious for users. I recently wrote a story for ITWire on this topic. Although the iPad is a lot like an oversized iPod touch – it’s a very different device. The iPad is used to run more complex applications and is a far more effective for data input. That means that the interface can be more like OS X. That means proper application-closing ought to be possible. I’m not expecting pulldown menus but surely the UI specialists at Apple can come up with a “Quit” button.

Keyboard Support

Being able to use a few keyboard shortcuts would be nice. For example, when multi-tasking comes to the iPad as part of iOS 4, Command-Tab switching (or Alt-Tab if you’re a PC user) would be handy. In fact, support for the full set of system wide cut, copy and paste, bold, underline, italics and other shortcuts would be handy.

File System Access and Printing

The iPad is a serious computing device. Being able to access network file-shares without having to resort to third party applications would make it far more useful and appealing to enterprise users. Sure, the iPad shares its OS with the iPhone but it is NOT an iPhone.

Apple developed iOS as an offshoot of OS X. That means that the file system and network access are there, somewhere under the covers. It’d be nice if they were liberated.

As I’ve been testing printers over the last few days, I’ve been reminded of how well Snow Leopard deals with printers. As soon as the OS sees a new printer, it automatically identifies it and installs the appropriate driver. Wouldn’t it be nice if the iPad could do the same? Would an iPad driver be that different to an OS X one?

I’ve played with enough tablets running Windows to know I don’t want the iPad to run a crappy port of OS X. However, almost everything I want is achievable through a third-party utility. If Apple could deliver the same functionality in a way that’s better integrated with the rest of the operating system then they’d be making the iPad a viable business tool.

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