Federico Viticci's Overview of iOS 9

As every Apple nerd on the planet is more than aware of, today was the big WWDC 2015 Keynote. Loads of interesting things were announced, including OS X El Capitan (I'm still not sure about that name, but moving on…) and watchOS 2.

As a full-time iOS user though, the announcement of iOS 9—particularly the iPad productivity enhancements coming with it—were easily of most interest to me. I would explain more about these new features myself, but Federico Viticci already has it completely covered.

He sums it up nicely in the “iPad and Multitasking” section:

As someone who uses the iPad as his primary computer, the productivity and multitasking features announced today seem spectacular. The iPad was at an inflection point — still failing to convince some tech circles of the benefits of a tablet — and the changes coming with iOS 9 are a reassuring sign of Apple's commitment to the uniqueness of the device. With Slide Over and Split View, Apple isn't trading off the inherent simplicity of the one-app-at-a-time model for more complexity: they're adding an option for those who, like me, want to work with an iPad and do more at once.

I love that Apple is acknowledging how great the iPad can be as a primary device. Hopefully more 3rd-party developers take note and stop treating the iPad like a second citizen.¹

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1. I'm looking at you, Squarespace. Managing pages and site design is still a joke on iPad. How about a full-on iOS app for such things? I still don't understand why something like that doesn't exist and yet Portfolio and Note do. ↩

Act 2 of 'Broken Age' for iOS is Here! [App Store Link]

It's been nearly a year since I played Act 1 of DoubleFine's point-and-click adventure game, Broken Age for iOS. All the while, I've anxiously awaited the second act to drop so I could complete this wonderful story.

Now that Act 2 is finally here, I may have to clear my schedule for the rest of the day.

[PSA: I've only ever played the iOS version, but if you're more of a Mac gamer, Broken Age for Mac is currently on sale for $18 (down from $25).]

Our New Favorite Podcast App for iOS

Over at The Sweet Setup, we've chosen Overcast as our new favorite podcast app for iOS, edging out Pocket Casts as our previous top pick.

Once we have a top app pick—in any category—it's very rare that we switch to anything else. In fact, as of this writing we've only done it one other time. So, trust me when I say it was a tough decision, especially because we still love Pocket Casts to death. In the end however, it was the right call.

Federico Viticci's Review of the iPad Air 2

Federico's review of the iPad Air 2 is far more than a breakdown of its specs and features. It's a credo for why the iPad has become his primary computing device.

“The iPad’s screen and body are glued together physically and conceptually. [...] as a computer [it] truly disappears in your hands, feeling like a display that you grab and touch and swipe and throw away when you’re done.

[...]

Three years ago, when I was stuck in a hospital bed and I wanted to continue my work, I started using the iPad out of curiosity, challenging myself to get more done on iOS in spite of its limitations and differences from OS X. Today, some of those limitations still remain, but the iPad and new versions of iOS have solved most of my problems in new and unexpected ways.

The iPad is the best thing that happened to my professional life.”

Like Federico, the iPad—mine is the 4th-gen model—is my primary device. In fact, I don't even own a traditional computer anymore (unless you count my wife's Windows 7 laptop, which I avoid using at all costs).

I'm in a better position than most to find any holes in Federico's argument, but I can't disagree with a single word of his review, or more importantly his philosophy concerning the iPad. It truly is an incredibly versatile device. Most shortcomings with it I've ever come across have been due to lack of developer interest, but even that problem is getting less and less prevalent by the year.

Just to give an example, here are some of the apps that help me get my writing work done:

• I write in Editorial, with a bevy of workflows and TextExpander snippets that make my life at least 10x easier.
• I publish in Squarespace Blog.
• I capture ideas in Drafts and often move my more long-term personal notes over to Simplenote.
• As I come across interesting links in Twitter and RSS, I save them in Instapaper and archive the best stuff in Pinboard (which I often access using Pinner).
• My teammates and I at Tools & Toys and The Sweet Setup use Slack and Basecamp to communicate and stay on top of upcoming projects.
• I use a mixture of apps for managing blog photos: VSCO Cam for editing, Pixelmator for creating and/or combining images, Reduce for resizing images to appropriate widths and file sizes (with EXIF Wizard Pro to double-check EXIF data), and Droplr for hosting Spark Journal images.

And this list is just the tip of the iceberg. The iPad has limitations, sure, but those are more and more becoming edge cases. Nearly all my needs are covered by the iPad, and I have almost no desire for anything more.

* * *

Further reading: Josh Ginter's review + gorgeous photos of the iPad Air 2 on Tools & Toys.

Suggested Uses for Day One

In my recent review of Day One, I listed a few ways to put the journaling app to good use. Over at The Sweet Setup, Shawn Blanc's review of the same app contains a running list of other great ideas worth checking out.

This bit at the end is so true:

“Thanks to tagging and searching, Day One can serve as all of these things at once. That’s the beauty of a personal journaling app, it can be filled with all sorts of topics and media types, with no need to keep it “focused.” And I think that’s the road best traveled. Because a huge part of what makes a successful journal is constant use.”

Using VSCO Cam for iPad

Shawn Blanc shares his first impressions of VSCO Cam for iPad, along with his new photo-importing process that involves a Lightning-to-SD card reader.

“Long have I wished for an iPad-centric workflow. For one, the larger screen of the iPad is far better suited to photo editing. Moreover, for extended trips, I’ve always wanted to be able to edit a dozen or more photographs and then send them out to the relevant friends and family. But importing them one at a time and then editing them on my iPhone just never felt appealing.

But, now there is VSCO Cam for the iPad. Combined with the Lighting to SD Card Camera Reader, my wish may have been granted.”

As Shawn details, it's not a perfect setup and probably won't entice many photographers to switch to a primarily-iOS workflow. Still, it feels like we're getting closer to such a world every day—and as someone who is already 99% iOS-centric, you can bet I'm watching this space closely.

VSCO Cam 4.0 Released

I don't often make a habit of linking to app updates on this site, unless there is good reason. Today's release of VSCO 4.0 provided one very good reason: iPad support.

That's right, the interface has been retooled for the iPad display. Let's just say I might have jumped up and clicked my heels when I found out.

Last Year's New Tech

Shawn Blanc:

“If you’re in the market for a new iPhone, iPad, and/or Kindle — this is a great year to buy. Each device is the best its ever been. But…

Despite the fact that there are all these new and amazing gadgets, I think it’s legitimately safe to say that many folks will prefer the tech that was new last year. And, in many cases, there are some people who would be better served by getting last year’s gadgets.”

He's absolutely right. My iPhone 4s is in desperate need of an upgrade, but I'm not entirely sure I want the iPhone 6. It's a lovely device, don't get me wrong. I just don't feel like I need that big of a screen on a phone—that's what my iPad is for.

What I'm really tempted to buy is the iPhone 5s, which I consider to be Apple's best and most beautiful iPhone yet.

My one worry is that, since the 5s is already a year old, it will be obsolete that much sooner. And I don't mean in a "keeping up with the Joneses" way, but rather that Apple may stop supporting it too soon for me.

Pixelmator for iPad [App Store Link]

I've been wishing for an iPad version of Pixelmator ever since I bought the device. Now it's ~finally~ here, and was an insta-buy for me. Still can't believe it's just $5, considering how powerful it is.

The best part? No more putting up with the eccentricities of Photoshop Touch.

Drafts 4 for iOS

Huge update to one of my favorite apps. There are more new features than you can shake a stick at, some of which I listed in this Tools & Toys post only minutes ago.

Drafts 4 is a $5 paid upgrade for existing users, which I hope I never see a complaint about because Greg works hard to keep the app up-to-date and relevant. This is an app I use all the time, and I'm happy to support him again.