Tag: iPad

#TechTuesday – Apple’s WWDC 2017 Announcements

Apple likes to open their Worldwide Developer Conference with some upcoming hardware and software announcements, and this year was no exceptions. WTAM 1100 Newsradio’s Bill Wills and I talk about the upcoming iMacs, HomePod, iPad Pros and iOS 11 on this week’s #TechTuesday segment.

WTAM 1100 – Apple TV and iPad Pro

Bill Wills and I talk about upcoming Apple products, including the iPad Pro and Apple TV, as well as alternatives already available on shelves, such as the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 or Roku 3. Listen to #TechTuesday at 7:50am every Tuesday on WTAM 1100 Newsradio.

iMovie and GarageBand on the iPad 2

When the current batch of tablet PCs came out last year, many in the tech community dismissed them as mere toys. They were labeled “consumption devices” because the conventional wisdom held that their lack of processing power and touch-based interface made content creation impossible.

With the release of the iPad 2, Apple has really made strides in proving this wrong with the iMovie and GarageBand apps available for $4.99 each. Using these two tools, I was able to both edit together some quick background music, as well as stitch together a series of photos into a video slideshow that could be edited and uploaded straight from the iPad to YouTube.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8mhgpBgHcs

Unfortunately, you cannot currently import music created in Garageband directly into iMovie. However, once you have transferred the music to iTunes on your PC, then back onto the iPad’s iTunes, you can use it in your iMovie projects. Hopefully, Apple will add this functionality in a future update, or a 3rd party app will find a way to help.

There’s no doubt that the more involved professional multimedia creation process will still require dedicated computers for years to come, but it’s amazing to me how quickly tablet PCs are opening up the world of mobile content creation for the rest of us.

How do Authors Sign eBooks for their Fans?

There’s nothing I love more than providing a serious answer to a not-so-serious question, which is why I couldn’t resist responding to Robert Stephen’s tweet: “So many authors here. How does an author sign an ebook?”

We all know that eBooks are gaining in popularity exponentially thanks to readers like Amazon’s Kindle. The benefits to the avid book reader are numerous, with cheaper books and less storage requirements being just a few.

However, eBooks do have a flaw for fans of an author in that they will eventually eliminate the old tradition of standing in line at the local book store for your favorite author to write a quick personal message and sign the the inside of your book.

I think Amazon should look prevent this bleak future by working on the technological problem now. Otherwise, you’ll have book fans looking for increasingly fine Sharpie pens to ask authors to sign the back of their Kindles, and really, that will only end up getting messy.

Perhaps someone could develop an iPad app that allows an author to load in images of their book covers for signings. When an eager fan comes up from the line, they could enter their email address, which eBook they want to have signed, which the author could do with a stylus designed to work with the iPad. The image, with the author’s personal message and signature would then be emailed to the fan, who can then treasure it always. Or print out 1,000 copies and wallpaper their room.

As Android tablets and iPads become more common, someone could develop a digital autograph books, so the fans could do this electronically with covers from books, movies, music albums or even websites.

“Why, yes, I’d be happy to sign this digital copy of meisterplanet.com for you!”