Wednesday 28 September 2011

I've got a new I-Pad, what can I do with it?

Well pretty well as I arrived, the chap in the sign up bit thrust a pen in my hand and said, go on, run a session.
So I got out my brand new toy, and asked the good people of Bar Camp for their ideas.
Forgive my lack of tecchy speak, but I hope you find my guide helpful!
I had bought my I-Pad as a good portfolio to showcase animation at networking events, I had no idea just how going to be so useful for other things as well!
There were a few people working out if it was worth their while buying one, and few folks with android versions comparing the differences between tablets - there was no overall conclusion, all devices seem to have their benefits. One chap had a rather fabulous Asus Eee Pad Transformer with a nifty detachable keyboard which looked rather good. He liked it and was pleased with the range of apps and the flexibility of not being tied to the Apple brand.
There was a discussion about Jailbreaking - you can download free software which lets you put anything you like on the I-Pad. Software is legal, but you will invalidate your warranty if you put anything on that apple doesn't guarantee - so only to be done if you really know what you are doing.
The academics in the room loved using the I-Pad for taking notes and cutting and pasting from the internet. Favourite apps included Dragon Dictation and Daily Notes . Lots of people using Dropbox to access files from other devices.
People liked to use their I-Pads as remote controls for other gadgets through apps such as Remote and Android users liking XPMC Remote. Using Plex to stream all kinds of media from your mainframe computer and to Apple TV.
Lots of fun to be had with kids on the pad, a gorgeous book The Bear Ate all the Brussel Sprouts. Great games Peggle, Plants vs Zombies, Trainyard, Bop-It! and Angry Birds were all mentioned.
Good free and discounted stuff through Living Social, and help in the kitchen from Big Oven - even gives you a shopping list before you start cooking!
Some like reading books on theirs, but many still prefer their Kindles and they find the screens too bright.
I've been getting creative with my I-Pad and getting stuck in making music with Garage Band, android and linux users were getting pretty excited by Ardour which sounds amazing.
Of course I love it most for Animation - I love the National Film Board of Canada's app - access to some of the best animation ever made. Dailymotion is pretty good too. You can have a go at making your own animation with I Can Animate, but there's lots of other stuff out there to look for.
Thanks everyone for a relaxed but really informative session!

No comments:

Post a Comment