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.

Other fun extras!

Google Earth is pretty cool but after using it once or twice I pretty much cannot find use for it again for a year.  If you are an enthusiast, the link is here:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/google-earth/id293622097?mt=8le.com

If you don’t want to go crazy while grading, may I suggest a personalized radio station from Pandora radio. 
http://blog.pandora.com/pandora/archives/2010/04/pandora-on-ipad.html

It might be possible to hold office hours on the web using a webcam.  Oops, there is no camera on the iPad.  I guess you can still use Skype to get in touch with cool colleagues from abroad.  The Skype app is designed for the iPhone but it will work on the iPad as well.  The graphics are not there but the functionality is.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/skype/id304878510?mt=8

Oh, and don’t forget your guilty pleasures.  You know it, I know it, everyone knows it...teachers do watch TV, at least on an off chance that they get some down time.  Well, with the iPad, the TV primetime runs on your time.  To catch up on any ABC shows you may like, consider their crystal clear, though sometimes buggy, ABC player for iPad.  The choice of interesting shows is limited but that’s a whole another blog...
http://abc.go.com/site/abc-player-for-ipad

You will notice that all of these require good and constant Wi-Fi connection.  Still looking for fun extras that can run without internet connection...like when you are stuck between flights at an airport and you are too tired to read papers.