Posts tagged with "iPad"

PDF Converter for iPad Creates New PDFs Off Webpages, Contacts, Docs, More

iOS comes with a fast and elegant built-in PDF viewer (in fact, the latest JailbreakMe 3.0 is largely based upon a security hole in the PDF display engine), but unlike Mac OS X the options to convert documents into new PDF files are limited. PDF Converter, a new app by Readdle (the makers of PDF Expert and Terra web browser, among others), aims at providing an easy to use yet powerful solution to turn almost anything on your iPad (webpages, documents, clipboard contents, even photos) into new PDF documents to save locally or send to an external physical or virtual printer.

Released earlier today at $6.99 on the App Store, PDF Converter runs as an iPad-only application for now. The interface resembles Readdle’s previous works for the iPhone and iPad – namely ReaddleDocs and PDF Expert – with a narrow sidebar on the left side of the screen allowing to switch between the different types of content you can convert to PDF. The app supports PDF creation off clipboard contents, Address Book contacts, photos, webpages and just about any document that can be sent to third-party apps using iOS’ native “Open In” menu. By opening a document into PDF Converter, in fact, the app will take care of turning it into a properly formatted PDF document that keeps pagination and line breaks (as well as layout and graphics) intact, while making the doc’s text entirely selectable as you would expect from a PDF. Unlike ReaddleDocs and PDF Expert the app doesn’t come with direct iDisk and Dropbox access, but the developers recommend you use the “Open In” menu in those apps if you wish to get documents into PDF Converter.

In my tests, I’ve found PDF Converter to perform reliably with a variety of content and clipboard contents sent from iOS apps to Readdle’s utility. The built-in Address Book integration will allow you to print out contacts in a simple plain-text layout with all available fields (email, phone, address), but more importantly full clipboard integration means you’ll be able to, say, copy a web address from Safari into your system’s clipboard, launch PDF Converter and have the webpage you just visited available as a PDF you can print, email, or open into another app (you can’t rename PDF files in the current version of the app, but Readdle says that’s coming with an update soon). Furthermore, the developers have enabled a unique URI shortcut system for PDF Converter that will let you send a webpage from Safari to the app by simply adding “pdf” (without quotes) before the http:// string of a webpage, in the address bar. Change a URL to “pdfhttp://”, wait a few seconds, and the webpage will become a new document in PDF Converter. I tried this by saving MacStories’ and Brooks Review’s homepages as new docs in PDF Converter, and then I sent them off to a virtual printer on my Mac using the amazing Printopia desktop printing tool. Not only did the PDF transfer just fine, unlike other solutions to generate PDFs off webpages, PDF Converter’s engine kept the layout of both sites exactly the way I’m used to see it in Safari. For offline reading and webpage archiving (perhaps paired with Evernote on the Mac, or other apps like Yojimbo and DEVONthink), this is very useful.

At $6.99, with PDF Converter you get a powerful tool to create new PDFs on your iPad, and share them with other apps that support document interaction with iOS’ built-in features. The price may be a little steep and the app definitely isn’t for everyone – it’s a rather niche software that, however, addresses a common complaint with elegance, and good interoperability with Readdle’s other PDF app, PDF Expert. Read more

Former Pixar Animator And Moonbot Studios Create Surreal iPad Storybook

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore is a fascinating new ‘iPad Storybook’ that recently hit the App Store. Developed by Moonbot Studios and lead by an ex-Pixar animator, William Joyce, the book is an intriguing mix of book, animation and game.

Put yourself in Morris’ shoes as you dive into the story of Mr. Lessmore and his flying friends through Moonbot Studios’ first Interactive Storybook. In this reinvention of digital storytelling you can repair books, tumble through a storm, learn the piano and even get “lost in a book,” flying through a magical world of words, giving you a dynamic journey through the story.

Available on the iPad App Store for $4.99, the book contains sequences where you have to interact with the iPad app in order to progress through the story. It includes such activities such as drawing, playing a piano, playing with food and a number of mini-games. It looks like a tonne of fun, jump the break for a beautiful trailer of the interactive Storybook.

[Via The Next Web]

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TV Forecast HD Is A Beautifully Refined iPad App That Keeps Track Of Your Favourite TV Shows

If you are anything like me, you probably don’t watch much live TV anymore; instead just watching a few shows a week on TV and the rest via an online catch-up service. If that sounds like you as well, you may be interested in a new iPad app that makes it easier to track when your favorite shows are airing on TV. The app, TV Forecast HD, is developed by Big Bucket Software (also the developer behind The Incident) and is an entirely redesigned version of TV Forecast, which is currently available for the iPhone. Jump the break for the full review of TV Forecast HD, which has just been made available today.

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Apple May Be Looking For A Second iPad Manufacturer

Apple is apparently looking for a second manufacturer for its next generation iPad to assist Foxconn who is currently the sole manufacturer of iPads. Taiwanese-based manufacturers Quanta Computer and Pegatron Technology are currently the frontrunners according to DigiTimes and its sources.

Sources say Pegatron, which has reportedly won the iPhone 5 manufacturing tenders, is a more likely candidate for the orders. DigiTimes suggests that part of the reason Apple is seeking a second manufacturer is concerns over their reliance on Foxconn which was highlighted in May when one of their factory buildings saw an explosion and led to limited production for a number of days.

According to DigiTimes, the manufacturer chosen could start manufacturing iPads with the launch of a rumoured iPad HD product that some are suggesting will launch this Fall.

[Via DigiTimes]

Web Usage Data Reveals Different iPad Patterns

According to click data analyzed by URL shortening and analytics service bit.ly, the iPad ultimately differs from other platforms in the way it’s used throughout the day. The discovery is unsurprising as Apple has been heavily touting the iPad as a new category of device aimed at doing things better than regular smartphones and computers (which Apple also happens to sell), but it’s interesting to see these usage patterns confirmed and visualized by a service that’s undoubtedly the most used when it comes to shortening and sharing links on the web.

Bit.ly analyzed links clicked from Linux, Windows and OS X machines, as well as BlackBerry, iOS and Android phones, and the iPad. Then, they compared the click data against the time of the day, the day of the week and the country to build a graph that summarizes usage patterns for the most common devices that access bit.ly links every day. The results for computers and smartphones don’t surprise: people start using PCs and smartphones as they wake up, usage slightly increases through the workday, and slows down as the evening approaches and users are far more likely to consume other content. That kind of content consumed in the late hours of the day happens to be represented by the iPad which, unlike other platforms, sees a slower approach throughout the day but a higher peak in the evening as people come back from work. In weekend days, iPad usage in the morning and afternoon is slightly higher than the rest of the week.

The iPad’s usage pattern is drastically different. Usage dips after breakfast, remains low during traditional working hours and does not peak until much later in the evening. During the weekends iPad usage between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. is higher than it is during the week at those same hours. No other device sees a heavy increase of use during the weekends, showing that the iPad is used as an entertainment device and differs from both smartphones and browsers.

Bit.ly also notes how Facebook and YouTube are still the most accessed websites from users, and that in spite of “official” availability in 39 countries, they registered iPad data from 203 countries. The iPad is different from other devices, and it’s being used by consumers in new different ways that are causing these unprecedented usage patterns. For instance, people are more likely to come back from work and relax on the couch with an iPad reading news or a book, rather than sitting at their desk using a PC again. Or, they might want to enjoy a game with their kids, or read a book to them before they go to sleep. Check out the full report at ReadWriteWeb for the complete stats.