I owe my nearly-thirteen year old son – big-time!  This time next week he will be the proud recipient of an iPad – part birthday present, part relocation “compensation” and part his own personal investment.  But in the meantime, I’m here at 30,000 feet, typing on his intended device – being a kind soul, he graciously allowed me to give it a test run!

Reading all the publicity and chat surrounding the iPad, I’ve been intrigued by it’s potential as a work-aid.  Forget the fancy games, the videos and the photos – I wanted to see if it could make my reluctant road warrior-scientist existence just that little bit easier.

So taking advantage of a short trip to Minneapolis, a shiny new iPad in the closet just begging to be used, and my son’s generosity (I asked first!), I’ve been putting Apple’s latest gizmo through it’s paces.

As I write this, I am coming to the end of 48 hours on the road with the iPad.  In bringing the device with me on this trip, I had a pretty specific aim in mind – to explore how effectively it could replace my laptop while traveling, and whether it would make my life easier.  In other words, is it just an expensive solution looking for a problem, or does it truly have the potential to ease my workflow while on the road?

Out of the box. From the get-go, setting the iPad up was simplicity itself.  First, the packaging is inspired – open the box and all you have is the iPad, a power supply and a USB cable.  This device is designed to be intuitive – you are immediately invited to just switch it on and follow the instructions.  Syncing with iTunes on my laptop and loading up the new apps was a breeze – within a matter of minutes I was ready to rock and roll.

But how did the apps themselves fare?

Editing a Keynote presentation on the iPad

Talking the talk. What most excited me about the iPad was the possibility of using it to give presentations, without having to lug my laptop around with me.  I give a lot of talks, and some years ago I standardized on Apple Keynote as my presentation platform of choice.  So I was more than a little excited by the prospect of using the iPad version of this app.  Scheduled to give a keynote talk at an event on Thursday morning, this was my chance!

There’s been a lot written already about the iPad version of Keynote, and not all of it positive.  Although presentations on the app can look stunning, it isn’t directly compatible with the desktop version of Keynote – custom fonts don’t transfer; there are a limited range of templates available; presenter notes aren’t supported; and the app has a nasty habit of messing up presentations that are transferred back and forth between the iPad and a desktop computer.

Armed with this intelligence, I transferred a  copy of my presentation to the iPad before heading off to the airport, and spent half the flight between DC and Minneapolis tweaking the iPad version.

As it turned out, this wasn’t too hard a task – helped no doubt by the rather minimalist slide design I use.  It took a little time to get to grips with the Keynote iPad app limitations – not being able to group elements on a slide was a bit of a killer for instance – but within an hour I had a slick looking presentation all set to go.

Come Thursday, the actual presentation went seamlessly.  Plugging the iPad into the projector using Apple’s VGA connector and hitting “play” brought up the presentation on the screen immediately, and controlling the flow of slides was simple from the iPad’s screen.  I was impressed – I was able to give a slick, professional looking presentation from a slab of glass and aluminum a fraction of the bulk of my usual laptop.  And it all went without a hitch.

Keynote on the iPad is far from perfect.  But it’s good enough that, if you approach presentations from the perspective of designing them for the device, it works well.  I actually suspect that the simplicity of Keynote on the iPad has the potential to help people design better presentations, precisely because it’s limitations force you to think more about content and delivery.  And I must confess, slideshows on iPad itself can look stunning using the the features that are available.

For me, the’s no question that I would happily use this app in place of my laptop.  For others, Apple will probably need to work on features like handling groups and showing presenters notes (which it is incapable of handling at present) before it’s ready for prime time.

Viewing a publication in Papers on the iPad

The paperless office. I’ve long had fantasies of a portable device that gives me easy access to PDF files while on the go – meeting documents, reports, scientific papers and the like.  When electronic books came into vogue a few years back I had high hopes that I could ditch the stack of papers I constantly seem to cart around with me and transfer them to an ebook.  No such luck – although I gather the Kindle DX is better than most e-books in handling PDF’s, my experiences with other e-books were not happy ones.  So I was particularly interested in how the iPad would fare in this respect.

Before setting off, I loaded up two very different apps for working with PDF files: PDF Reader HD for viewing PDF files, and Papers – an app that allows you to carry a searchable library of academic papers around on the iPad, and sync them with your main computer.

Both apps displayed documents in what I can only describe as stunning detail.  It’s hard to over-emphasize how good these files looked on the iPad – the closest thing in my experience to date to having the original paper copy in my hand, but with the advantages of being able to search and scan the documents in ways impossible with hard copies.  I loved being able to magnify plots in papers and inspect them in depth, all with a flick of my fingers.  This feature alone made the iPad experience richer than accessing the papers on my laptop or as printed documents.

The Papers app allows documents to be synced between the iPad and a computer running the desktop version of the program.  The system worked smoothly – my only gripe being that you are limited to having 1000 papers on the iPad.

Transferring files to PDF Reader HD is a little more convoluted – you either need to use the iTunes interface, or transfer files via an internet browser over a wireless network.  The system works, but it’s messy.  Nevertheless, it was relatively easy to transfer a suite of useful files to the iPad so that I had them at my fingertips.

Taking note. I’ve recently started using EverNote to take and sync notes between my laptop and my iPhone.  The basic service – which is free – stores indexable notes in the ‘cloud,’ allowing access to them from wherever you are – a great idea for jotting down ideas and keeping track of thoughts while on the go.  EverNote for the iPad extends the number of devices these notes can be written and accessed on.

Despite the occasional crash, I found EverNote a useful tool on the iPad.  In the meetings I was in I could quickly jot down notes, and retrieve them later from whichever device I had access to – whether it was the iPad, iPhone or laptop.  What I particularly liked was how easy it was to break out the iPad and type something in – faster than getting the laptop out, and easier than typing on my iPhone.  In fact, I have found typing on the iPad in landscape mode as fast, and nearly as easy, as typing on my laptop.  I suspect it’s because I am a rather sad two-finger typer (a friend who is a touch typist was completely flummoxed by the iPad keyboard), but I had no problems with the virtually keyboard.

The free version of EverNote only allows access to notes when on line – there’s an annual charge for accessing notes off-line.  As it isn’t always possible to access a Wi-Fi internet connection with the current iPad, this is a potential issue.  But overall,I found EverNote on the iPad a great way to keep track of thoughts ideas and the occasional important piece of information that came my way.

Checking email on the iPad

Keeping in touch. Email was great on the iPad.  It took just a few minutes to establish access to my Mobile Me account and my University Exchange account, both of which allowed access to my email, calendar and contacts from the iPad.  Working with the built in email client was simple but effective – very similar to using the iPhone, but on a big screen!

My calendar on the iPad using the built in app was gorgeous!  Not only was it easy to flick through, add and edit appointments, but the slick presentation made working with my schedule extremely easy.  In terms of an organizer, I would rank using the iPad far above the iPhone or my laptop.  This is the digital calendar I’ve been waiting for all my life – I just didn’t know it until now!

The iPad’s address book was similarly slick, but didn’t quite have the wow appeal of the calendar. It was simple and effective though, and again much easier to access than having to pull my laptop out and power it up.

What I particularly appreciated with the calendar and address book applications was the ability to sync with various sources.  As I sit here typing, I can access my Exchange and Mobile Me calendars, as well as a separate set of appointments and contact that are synced with my laptop.  It makes working with my information in the way I want to surprisingly easy.

Getting organized with Things on the iPad

Getting organized. I use Things from Cultured Code on my iPhone to keep track of the myriad tasks I need to keep track of – it’s a beautifully simple application that works well with my less than organized approach to life, rather than forcing me to adopt a restrictively awkward work patten.  Initially I was hesitant to load the iPad version of Things up because of the cost – it will set you back close to $20.  Fortunately, the kind folks at Cultured Code allowed me access to an evaluation copy for the purpose of this review.

Things on the iPad works extremely well.  It has the same functionality as the iPhone version, but with the larger screen it is transformed into a far more productive tool.  And compared to the desktop version of the application, i found having my to-do list at my fingertips while on the go invaluable.

When on the same Wi-Fi network as a desktop version of Things, the application will sync information seamlessly between the iPad and the computer.  I had no problem syncing Things between my laptop, iPad and iPhone in this way – no matter where I was or what I was using, I knew what I was supposed to be doing.

The bottom line. Overall, this has been a great experience with the iPad.  I’ve loved the immediacy and accessibility of the device – it’s placed information and tools at my fingertips that have helped me work faster and more efficiently, and all with a minimally short learning curve.

Don’t get me wrong, the iPad is far from perfect – there are things it doesn’t do that a PC does.  But the way I have been using it, I think that some of the downsides that have been discussed on line over the past couple of weeks aren’t as relevant to me as they perhaps are to others.  The iPad i’ve been using hasn’t got over-hot during use.  I haven’t had problems connecting to the internet.  The lack of multitasking hasn’t been a serious issue.  I haven’t been stymied by a lack of Flash when accessing the web.  And typing has been straight forward on the virtual keyboard – the first draft of this piece was typed in Pages on the the iPad with no trouble at all.

That said, the iPad clearly is not a laptop replacement.  For example, I had hoped to be able to post this blog direct from the iPad, but difficulties using WordPress from the device would have meant posting the piece without formatting, hot links or images.  And the file handling is rather crude and limited.  But as an extension to a laptop and a means to making life on the road less stressful and more productive, the device is a wonder.  Think of it as a smart digital briefcase that you can pack your important files into when you hit the road, and that connects you to your digital world when your laptop is just too cumbersome and your smart phone just too small.

So, after 48 hours, what’s the verdict?  Is the iPad essential?  No. Does it make life easier?  Without a doubt.  Is it a worthwhile productivity tool for the itinerant scientist?  Absolutely.  Do I want one?  What do you think?!

In other words, I’m sold on the thing.  The only challenge now is how to scrape the dosh together to buy my own after this one has been returned to it’s rightful owner!  On the other hand, I wonder if he would miss it…

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Endnotes. Someone mentioned in passing that you can also play games, listen to music and watch videos on the iPad.  Honestly though, who would want to indulge in such frippery when you have such a great set of productivity tools at your fingertips…

Actually, I would have loved to have spent time within the wider world of iPhone apps, but time and schedule didn’t allow on this occasion – and I was supposed to be evaluating it as a business tool.  But I can say – from my limited experience – that photos on the iPad are stunning, video works exceedingly well, and web-browsing was as smooth as any experience I have had (assuming I wasn’t trying to view Flash-based sites).  Even the built-in speaker is adequate.

I was also fascinated by the increasing range of useful apps, as opposed to entertainment apps.  I only had time to load up and play with a simple calculator app and Wolfram Alpha – both were impressive though.  Wolfram Alpha in particular looks like it’s worth exploring in depth on this platform – the app takes full advantage of the format, and provides a portal to a vast information resource.  I can see this taking of as a serious platform for science  and education apps.

From this very brief encounter, the real bottom line is that this is a highly innovative and intuitive device that I can see becoming increasingly useful in the future to scientists and other professionals, whether on the road or not.

Screenshot of Wolfram Alpha on the iPad - an app that begs to be explored more!

Last night, Stephen Wolfram threw the switch on Wolfram Alpha – a ground-breaking… no, make that game changing… “search engine” that computes answers to questions rather than simply drowning you in a torrent of possibly-relevant web pages.  Itching to give it a whirl, I asked some of my friends on Twitter to suggest some questions to ask it.

This is the screencast of what happened (press play to start):

Mmm, maybe now we’ve got the ultimate answer-machine, we need to work on the ultimate questions a little more…

Frivolity aside, this is a stupendous achievement.  OK so it doesn’t handle nonsense questions that well (although all credit to the Alpha team that it at least handles some of the more “important” ones!) and it needs a crash course in “love.” But what it does do is cut through the digital dross and begin to make sense of the mountains of information data buried in the web.  And I suspect that this is just the beginning.

Congratulations Wolfram – you could have just ushered in the next phase in the evolution of the Web!

Many thanks to everyone on Twitter who sent me questions – especially @kulinowski, @chronsciguy, @eronarn, @silentypewriter, @physicus, @crc8 and @quinw

And a quick note to @physicus – Alpha may struggle with the problem of dispatching small rodents, but Stephen Wolfram’s New Kind of Science works a treat!