Someone is trying to talk me into getting an Ipad, says it will organize my life, make it easier.

[Denninmi]

true or false, is it a useful tool to manage all of the information that comes flying at me like an artillery barrage, or is it just a fun tech toy?

[TreasonousBastard]

1. Both.

[cyberswede]

2. I like mine...

Here are a few reasons why (there are probably more I can't think of right now):

• It's easy to manage different email accounts (e.g. work and personal) without logging on to different mail programs or a browser - it's instantly available.


• The calendar is really easy to use and navigate, and it's synced with my office calendar.


• I can easily switch between my work and personal Twitter accounts without having to log on and off.


• It's so easy to post stuff to my Photobucket account that I sometimes email a photo to myself from my computer, so I can post it with the iPad.


• There are a ton of free apps to choose from, like the Weather Channel, local news affiliate weather, local public radio, Pandora, IMDB, Kindle reader, fitness tracker apps, Netflix, the Rachel Maddow Show...the list is endless. There are also a zillion game apps, if you are looking for a fun tech toy.


• I can read & post on DU from anywhere!

[hobbit709]

3. Now try doing real work on ANY tablet.

Nothing like word processing on a touch screen. video, photo or audio editing..

[cyberswede]

7. True, but...

Keynote is rockin' cool!

Actually, I can access my desktop computer via remote access, so I can do real work. I can type pretty fast on the touchpad (and even on my iPod Touch) - but it was awkward at first.

Also, a bluetooth keyboard/mouse can be used with an iPad (though to me that kinda makes it more like a laptop, so what's the point?)

For me, it's more about having quick access to the stuff I need to be organized & able to communicate all day long. Obviously, I prefer to do photo/video/audio editing on my Mac.

[HopeHoops]

4. If it doesn't fit in your pocket, fuck it.

[LynneSin]

5. It's a useful way to burn $500

As useful as making a pile of cash to the amount of $500 and lighting it on fire.

[pipi_k]

6. Like most anything...

it's all in how you use it.

I use mine mostly for entertainment. It's basically a bigger copy of what I have on my iPhone, which is a bit more utilitarian because of its size, which makes it more portable.

[TreasonousBastard]

8. OK, serious answer...

Nothing will organize your life for you--YOU organize your life.

I have 3 tablets, 1 not so smartphone, 1 Android phone, two laptops, and a desktop and am still totally disorganized. I use the tablets (the one I actually use)almost entirely for reading books, magazines, and newspapers. I use the laptop (again, 1) for when I'm not at my desktop and just can't keep my fingers off a keyboard. The Android phone gets my email, synchs my calendar, and connects to Evernote and Dropbox. Could connect with Skype, too, but what's the point? The not-so-smart phone is my phone until I find a provider, phone, and plan that works better than what I have.


None of this is any more organized (but actually more work) than when I just carried around a pocket calendar. My work doesn't require anything more than a phone and a paper notebook and the organizations I belong to and work with rarely require any of it.

[hunter]

9. Nothing could organize my life short of a personal assistant.

I have a paper notebook and a ten year old cell phone.

If I could get rid of the cell phone I would.

If somebody gave me an Ipad I would give it to someone else as fast as I could.

I feel that most of the information I'm supposed to manage is crap.

Theodore Sturgeon:

I repeat Sturgeon’s Revelation, which was wrung out of me after twenty years of wearying defense of science fiction against attacks of people who used the worst examples of the field for ammunition, and whose conclusion was that ninety percent of SF is crud.[1] Using the same standards that categorize 90% of science fiction as trash, crud, or crap, it can be argued that 90% of film, literature, consumer goods, etc. are crap. In other words, the claim (or fact) that 90% of science fiction is crap is ultimately uninformative, because science fiction conforms to the same trends of quality as all other artforms.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon's_law

A good reason to get an Ipad would be to show other people pictures of your kids and pets, watch videos on the train, or play Angry Birds.

I really hate how computers have accelerated the proliferation of very low quality "information."

Before computers I could rip through a pile of useless papers, throwing them in the shredder, and that information would be gone forever. Then I could truthfully answer, "Fuck, I don't know," if a question about some useless minutia ever came up again. But 99.9% of the time it never did, and the other 0.1% of the time the information could be recreated.

Now all 999 of those useless records in 1000 are preserved and elevated in importance, contaminating the wellsprings of true innovation.