Using the iPad for Work

iPad at Work: Helping a North Carolina Town Go Paperless

Tue, 16 Aug 2011 14:10:00 -0400

Way to go, Cornelius, North Carolina! The town’s commissioner’s have replaced bulky 210 page agendas with an iPad - another great way to use the iPad in the office.

See the article here .

In and Out Of Office: Putting iPads To Work

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 10:00:05 -0400

Are you using an iPad for business, and are looking for tips on how to create and edit files, perform file transfers, and view email attachments? Check this article from the Wall Street Journal’s Walter Mossberg for a little help. Looking for more? Our extensive use of the iPad from the airplane to the conference room lead us to develop the iPad for Work Guide.

Using an iPad for Business? Keep your data safe.

Fri, 12 Aug 2011 10:00:06 -0400

In his post, Keep your iPad data safe, Dennis O’Reilly outlines 4 tips people using an iPad for work should follow for security. The article, posted on CNET on 8.1.11, suggests the following:

1) Assign passcodes on an app-by-app basis

2) Use passwords rather than four-digit passcodes

3) Locate your iPad and lock or wipe it remotely

4) Erase all data automatically after 10 failed login attempts

If you are using an iPad in the office, check out more best practices in the OS Insights iPad for Work Guide.

iPad for business: how to make it work for you

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 10:05:05 -0400

There is little debate that using the iPad for work is a flexible way to add tools to your capabilities. BIZGENE cased three scenarios to showcase this flexibility:

iPad for business: the social worker

Helen Roberts is a supervising social worker. She has been using an iPad for work for about three months and uses it alongside an iPhone 4. She says she wouldn’t be able to cope with her current workload without the iPad. … Key advantages of the iPad for Helen are “Portability, ease of use, ease of switching between work and home modes and being able to sign documents ‘on the fly’ instead of printing them out and having to scan them in later.”

iPad for business: the entrepreneur

Alex Kinch is a freelance mobile industry specialist. He has been using an iPad work for nine months and also has a Mac Pro, an iPhone and a MacBook Pro. He says he doesn’t take the laptop out of the office because the iPad is much easier to use and lighter to carry. … Alex is clear about the main advantages the iPad offers over his laptop and sums them up as “Portability, much longer battery life, built in 3G connectivity.” He adds “I travel lighter! No need for a mass of cables, a bulky bag and definitely less hassle at airport security. I also think the slightly simpler facilities on the iPad compared to a full laptop mean I work more efficiently.”

iPad for business: the communications company

Communications agency Public has been using iPads within its business for eighteen months alongside iMacs and iPhones. With 40 employees and two iPads the company has not done one to one deployment, instead using the iPads for specific activities such as gathering reference images and client presentations for which it uses Keynote. … Darren Price, senior art director at Public says he likes the iPad because “It’s obviously highly portable (much lighter than a laptop) and it’s ideal for showing clients images and presentations in any setting.”

Flexible, but indespensible

None of the three interviewees say they could easily go back to life before the iPad. It has become an indispensible tool, and has improved efficiency. But what’s striking about the three examples is how the iPad fits into different niches well. Showing and signing documents. Giving presentations. Allowing easy selection of photographs.

(BIZGENE - iPad for business: how to make it work for you, Sandra Vogel, 8.9.11)

If you are considering purchasing an iPad for the office, check out OS Insights 10 Decision Factors to assist you.

iPad, a tool for work!

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 11:55:00 -0400

People are finding use in the iPad for work because of some primary benefits the iPad has over a traditional laptop:

Always on.

Portable.

Flexible.

Ease of use.

Because of the features I list above, I am able to always be connected, like when walking down the hall and a developer stops me with a question. I can pull up a project task and review some details. It’s ease of use and mobility allows me to work throw a wireframe and workflow with the customer. And for those times I’m away from my office and someone wants to meet and discuss, I have everything I need at my finger tips. It’s awesome. (Delphi Technology Solutions - iPad, a tool for work!, David Lozzi, 1.6.11)

Simply put, convenience is the main reason why people are using the iPad as a business tool. If you use the iPad at the office, we would love to hear what you think. Take our survey and when the research period is over, we’ll send you a summary report of our findings.

Top 10 Must-Have Business Apps for 2011

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:55:00 -0400

No matter your weapon of choice from iPhone to iPad, BlackBerry, Android or Palm device, apps make every business man’s life that much easier. But with thousands available for download on dozens of mobile gadgets, it can be hard to tell which are really worth their weight in microchips. Following are 10 of the top business apps for entrepreneurs to help you get started. All of them put the power to boost productivity right in the palm of your hand.

1. Square (Free, www.squareup.com) – Process credit card payments from anywhere using your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch with Square’s free card-reader accessory. An intuitive interface and single universal fee (2.75% on each transaction), with no monthly charges or contracts, makes it easy to use for both individual contractors, freelancers and small businesses. Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover are all accepted.

2. Evernote (Free, www.evernote.com) – Ever feel like the absent-minded professor? Stay on top of tasks with this service that lets you take virtual memos on-demand. Capable of storing text, photos and voice recordings, you can dictate, snap pictures and automatically synchronize updates across your computer, smartphone or electronic tablet. You can also tag notes by location.

3. Scanner Pro ($6.99, www.readdle.com) – Instantly transforms your iPhone into a portable, multi-page document scanner than can capture electronic copies of invoices, business cards and signed documents. From meeting notes to contracts, its high-quality image processing and automatic edge detection readily handle conversions. You can also produce and skim email-ready PDFs on-demand, set up custom page sizes and password-protect your files.

4. Flight Track Pro ($9.99, www.mobiata.com) – Staying on top of flight delays and gate changes is easy with this handy travel tracker. Import trip data from an airline confirmation email, and it will monitor your itinerary, alerting you to delays, cancellations and alternate boarding plans. The program also provides satellite and weather imagery and maps of airport terminals — in case you need to sprint for a connection.

5. MightyMeeting (Free, http://app.mightymeeting.com) – Upload presentations and product videos to the cloud, then access them nearly anytime, anywhere with this handy demonstration tool. Allowing you to quickly call up clips and slideshows on your smartphone or tablet PC, it makes it easy to showcase sales pitches or market overviews on-demand. Users can also connect mobile devices to a widescreen projector for added impact.

6. Gist (Free, www.gist.com) – Lets you organize and update contacts in a single location with minimal fuss. Capable of importing email, phone and address data from multiple sources (inbox, social network, smartphone, etc), the program makes it easy to keep up with ever-changing contact information. Also has an option to view colleagues’ real-time Facebook and Twitter feeds without exiting the program, which is nice.

7. LinkedIn (Free, www.linkedin.com) – Makes it possible to access the leading social network for professional users while on the go. Search for new workers, mentors or strategic partners; mingle with peers; and share business tips, news and insight with like-minded people.

8. Print n Share ($8.99, www.mobile.eurosmartz.com) – Dream of printing right from your smartphone or tablet PC? Wish granted. Wielding this nifty app, you can send documents straight to a WiFi printer, or one connected to a Mac or PC. Requests may also be issued remotely over 3G wireless networks, so you can pick up copies of contracts or insertion orders the next time you’re in the office.

9. Jump Desktop ($19.99, www.jumpdesktop.com) – Offers the option to control your desktop remotely, regardless of where business takes you. Armed with an Internet connection, you can manipulate files or folders via touchscreen, and actively browse on your home or work computer. Compatible with Mac or PC systems, it lets you be productive without having to lug your laptop.

10. OmniFocus ($19.99-$39.99, www.omnigroup.com) – More expensive than most apps, but cheaper than an executive assistant, this full suite of utilities for task management makes plotting a daily agenda much simpler. Capable of organizing tasks by groups, contexts, tools, locations and resources, it helps you keep tabs on ongoing engagements and prioritize to-do lists. Also supports synchronizing between multiple devices.

For more info, check out our OS Insights Best Business Apps for iPad Guide!

Tech Crunch: Big Surprise! The iPad Trumps Android Tablets At The Office

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 08:02:33 -0400

Wow! Glad to hear Apple is doing so well. According to this Tech Crunch article, Apple has trumped the Android tablets at adoption inside of offices. From what we have seen with OS Insights, this is true.

If you have an iPad, take our iPad for work survey! If you don’t, check out our Ten Decision Factors PDF for buying an iPad.

WSJ: Business Add iPads to Their Briefcase

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:26:00 -0400

Great article from the Wall Street Journal about businesses using iPad. It would be interesting to find out how many of them truly know how to use it. If you have an iPad, take our iPad for Work Survey. If you don’t have one, check out OS Insights Free Ten Decision Factors / Should I buy an iPad Guide!

New York Times: Law Firms Turn to iPad for Work

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 18:12:59 -0400

This New York Times article does a great job of describing how iPads are increasingly becoming work tools.

Singapore to issue 8,000 iPads to new military recruits

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 15:02:00 -0400

Singapore to issue 8,000 iPads to new military recruits:

On our site, we’re studying how to use the iPad for work, but this is a different type of work we haven’t examined thus far!