I’ve already covered most of the aspects of my own personal network (i.e. an iPhone, an iPad, and a NetBook). I have been using these three devices for three distinctly different roles, but there is a comparable need to develop as much overlap as possible, if only to make this little network as robust as possible.
In this regard, I am writing this post, as well as dealing with all of the other ‘behind the curtain’ tasks involved in posting an article to this blog. So far I can see three subtle problems.
The first is that I get so many things done with the iPad that I don’t spend nearly enough time typing on it (i.e. I can see that I need some more practice…). While the iPad is a technical wonder in many areas, the included screen keyboard is equivalent to those small ‘spare’ tires which most modern cars come with…it will get you through the rest of the day (if you are really lucky)but it is not something with which you would want to use every day.
Consequently I am using a Bluetooth (wireless) keyboard. I admit that this might seem a bit like cheating (for those of you who expected me to have to slog through this post with the screen keyboard…you Sadists!). In any case, the Bluetooth keyboard works quite well, and is something which all iPad owners should consider picking up. This keyboard also connects to the iPad very quickly and easily (a very clear process which seems to be quite robust).
My second problem with writing a post to this blog solely with an iPad is that quite honestly…how will anyone be able to tell whether this is how I wrote this post? Maybe is will become quite apparent (if this turns out poorly), but if this works out, there is no real way to determine if I used my NetBook…
I guess that this is a strange sort of proof that there is value in having as much overlap in your tools as possible…This ‘proof’ is also a rather strange blog post in that the only possible interest anyone could have in this article may be based upon how I wrote it, not what I wrote about (a very good reason to do this rarely…). In any case, you can see that the iPad can work (in a pinch) as a typing station…
