Yet another great thing about Good Reader - transfer folder via wi-fi

I learned another great thing about Good Reader today: unlike iAnnotate, it allows you to upload large number of files and folders using wi-fi.  Using your desktop/laptop you can connect to the iPad running GoodReader as a mini-server of sorts.  Once you log into it by pointing your computer to a specific IP address, the iPad shows up as a folder on your main computer.  Then you can simply drag and drop files and folders that you would like to have physically on your iPad.  That way you can read your research papers even when not connected to the internet and thus missing a link to any sort of cloud storage.

Here are the directions for how to deposit files and folders on the iPad using a wi-fi connection in GoodReader...

Wi-Fi Transfer Instructions

By the way, my comments refer to what is called "Professional" transfer in the instructions above.

So simple, and yet...

How do you show a .jpg (picture) file in class?  No clue.  But if you need a workable, highly inellegant solution, here it is:

Create a PowerPoint or Keynote blank slide with the .jpg inserted and then display it using either Keynote or VGA Expedition on the iPad and your external monitor.

Duh, sound is all or nothing!

The first time I played a video in the classroom, I kept hearing beeps randomly and unexpectedly which really seemed to be disruptive.  I kept scanning the room for a facebooking or tweeting student who is not paying attention only to realize that the sound was coming from my iPad.  Duh, incoming email beeps!!!  Needless to say that if you plan on showing videos and using anything with AUDIO in the classroom, disable the sound notification setting for your mail and spare yourself the embarassment.

Another great thing about GoodReader - saving PDFs from Safari

Say you are going to a conference and you want to download a campus map.  It's easy to open a link to a PDF file from within Safari.  However, if you don't have 3G, and no access to a wi-fi network upon your destination, you may not have access to the PDF map in your browser.  Obviously, you would want to somehow download it to your iPad.

I found the following trick very useful:

1) "Select All" and "Copy" the address from your safari browser

2) Open GoodReader

3) Go to the section entitled "Web Downloads" and click on "Enter URL"

4) Paste the address and accept.

Your map will be downloaded as a local PDF file on your iPad accessible via GodoReader.

GoodReader vs. iAnnotate

The iPad was launched in part as a competitor to Amazon's Kindle, a well received and popular E-book reader.  I am not much of an e-book fan since I prefer the smell of printed pages in my hand or listening to an audio-book while riding the Metro.

However, I am finding myself needing a quick and accessible way to read PDF articles that does not force me to stare at the giant computer screen all the while maintaining horrible posture.  Printing the PDFs is out of the question since I am running out of room for storing all that paper (and trees).  The iPad provides a great alternative to reading PDFs on your computer.  Not only that, but for those of you who are highlighter-happy like me, several iPad apps provide a rather close and very reliable digital alternative to the print-read-highlight learning environment.

Of course, there is no single app for that.  You have to find what works for you.  I have been playing with two apps: Good Reader ($1.99 on iTunes) and iAnnotate ($9.99 on iTunes).  They are both excellent applications and I recommend that you get at least one if not both.  Let me review some of their strengths and weaknesses and you can decide for yourself.

Good Reader
Pro: Price.  Can't beat $1.99 for this rich, feature-packed app.  It feels like a steal.
Pro: Excellent integration with Dropbox (see earlier post why Dropbox is important).  You log into your cloud (e.g. Dropbox) and you select the files you want downloaded to your ipad.  You can also upload annotated copies of files.  This is one of the few applications that allows you to store files like you would in a "desktop environment."  It is very intuitive and easy to move the files around.
Con: While integration with Dropbox is impressive, you cannot download entire folders from Dropbox and there is no way to keep libraries (e.g. folder of papers that you need to read) in sync.

iAnnotate
Pro:
Con:

Other VGA-enabled apps

Here is the running list of apps that support VGA output.  Everyone, please contribute updated info.

YouTube
Videos
Photos (slideshow only)
Keynote
Netflix
iAnnotate
PaperDesk
VGA Expedition

Formatting (read: hacking) videos for teaching

Videos app on the iPad is nice for showing audio/video materials in lecture on the big screen (projector, LCD).  However, unless you are sitting on a big library of  MPEG-4 formatted files, you won't be able to import much into iTunes and from iTunes into your iPad.

If you are wondering what MPEG-4 means, you're not alone.  Suffice it to say that there is a huge number of video formats out there, but Apple designed products work with only a limited set.  That means that videos you want to show in class (for which of course you have permission) need to be first formatted into Apple-friendly formats.  You will need to prep your videos on the computer which feeds your iPad, add them to iTunes, and then you can plug in the USB cable and move the videos from iTunes to iPad.

To prep the videos, I find that Handbrake is pretty easy to use and it can be downloaded on any platform.
http://handbrake.fr/

Learning about video formats and optimization for video screens is a daunting task when you have 4 hours to come up with a lecture.  However, you can accomplish a lot by choosing some default settings and letting the software do its job.  Handbrake, as of now, does not have a preset for the iPad but you can use the Apple Universal preset to get the settings filled in and getting the conversion going.  Your final video may not be optimal for your students' entertainment but I am sure it will do a great job for their learning.  Keep in mind that this is a processor-intensive application so I don't suggest running giant programs like STATA or Matlab on your computer while trying to format a video.

Once the video is formatted, it should have the .m4v extension.  You can then add it to your iTunes.  Once in iTunes, it's easy to transfer over to the iPad.

Point of clarification, your videos show up under MOVIES in iTunes but in VIDEOS app on the iPad itself.