iPad!

[juliet]

Because Uncle Steve loves me, I got my iPad a whole day early, on Thursday. I have not quite spent all my time since then playing with it, honest. Conclusion: very very shiny indeed.

I am especially impressed with iBooks, although I need more download suggestions (public domain only available currently in the UK, it seems; although I do have the Kindle app as well & may experiment with that. I'd kind of rather keep everything in one place, though). Recommend me books! Am currently downloading a film to see how that works.

Also, if any iPhone users can recommend me apps, that would also be good. I have iSSH already, and some other bits & bobs.

And yes, I did write this on it. The keyboard is pretty usable for touch-typing in landscape, although it has revealed that I have a couple of overly long fingernails which clack awkwardly.

(Things that attract positive attention from bar staff: bringing a dog in; showing your friends your iPad. I can confirm that the Royal Oak is both dog- and Apple-friendly :-). Sidney was really very well-behaved & fell asleep under the table after a bit - the lovely chap behind the bar let us know when a larger corner table became free so we could fit at it and tuck her away out of the road. They also provided a bowl of water, bless. Royal Oak in 'continues awesome' shocker!)

Comments

[damned_colonial]

Re: iBook, note that you can use http://manybooks.net to download .epub files and load them onto your iPad via iTunes. You can also make your own epubs out of whatever you have lying around using http://calibre-ebook.com/

[juliet]

Thanks! I'd encountered Calibre already (& have already used it a couple of times) but hadn't found ManyBooks. Project Gutenberg also does ePub now on its own website, which is handy.

[damned_colonial]

*nod*, but manybooks has more, I think.

[juliet]

Yes -- looks like all the PG stuff plus lots of other Creative Commons things (e.g. Cory Doctorow) as well. Awesomeness :)

[lovingboth]

Shiny, certainly, but the idea of only being allowed to run software that Steve Jobs thinks won't get in the way of the money pouring into his wallet means I will never get one.

[brrm]

Currently, I am, liking Newsrack (rss reader) and Guardian Eyewitness. VNC and RDP by Mocha both work well for work purposes, though I've not yet figrured out how to drag.

[brrm]

(you can't edit comments on DW?)
IPlayer also works well, as does the inaccurately-named Iphone.tvcatchup.com for watching all channels live.

[juliet]

Paid users can edit comments (same as on LJ).

Newsrack wants MONEY so will put it on the 'maybe later' list. Feeddler is a free option, btw -- works well enough for my purposes & syncs with Google Reader which was my main criterion.

The TV stuff sounds interesting -- cheers! Hm, wonder if 4-on-demand will work OK.

[julietteculver]

One thing I've found with my iPad is that many apps aren't as essential as on the iphone because the web browsing experience is so much better. A lot of good iphone apps also don't have iPad versions yet and in my case, I just got my iPad to use at home so haven't bothered with a lot of travel/location-based ones that I have on my iphone.

The one that I would still recommend is Instapaper. You install a bookmarklet on your browser and can save items to read in the app on your iPad/iPhone later. Couldn't live without it. There's a free version with not quite all the features I believe.

I've also just bought GoodReader and think I might end up using a lot. It's a PDF and document reader and can link to your Dropbox account, Google Docs etc. (btw if you use DropBox, there's a DropBox iPad app too). It's 59p at the moment.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

GoodReader is awesome for PDF, directories of jpegs, and other random formats, plus downloading via HTTP. TouchTerm for ssh. Atomic Clock for NTP. WiFiFoFum for detecting wifi (might not be available any more). Stanza is another good ebook reader, with built-in shops access. The Guardian App.

In travel, I'd recommend Tube Deluxe, London Bus (also has an interface to the TFL journey planner, so not just bus), and London A-Z if you prefer old school maps - still has GPS indication of location.

AutoDesk Sketchbook is good for drawing. You might like Opera Mini for a different browsing experience.

Frotz is essential for interactive fiction text adventures. Myst, Monkey Island Special Edition. Smaller games such as Edge. Thereminator is great for wiggling your finger about and making noises.