App How To: Pinterest for the iPad

In this video I take a quick look at all the features that have been released in the new iPad Pinterest app. The app allows you almost all the same functionality that the web offers minus rearranging your boards.

Once you load up the app you are first asked to login to your Pinterest account via Facebook, Twitter, or Email. If you don't have an account yet you can create one at first login. If you have not linked Twitter to your iPad it will make you do this first if that is your preferred way to sign in.

Once you are logged in you will then see everybody's pins that you follow. You can easily scroll down the page to see all of the pins. To repin, like, or comment all you need to do is click on a picture and you are given those options. If a picture is too large you may need to scroll to the bottom of the page to see the comment menu.

In the top left of the app there is a menu icon. You can open the menu by clicking on the icon or by swiping your finger on the screen to the right. In the menu you can browse different categories as well as open up a built in web browser or view your profile and settings.

When you go to the built in web browser you can then search for anything on the web and then Pin It right from the app. This is works really well and it is easy to use.

When you click on the settings in the menu you can easily change your Facebook sharing settings and other options just like you would on the web.

Once you are done browsing a certain category or the web there is a X box on the current tab in the upper right corner that you can click to take you back to the main page.

The app runs very well and is performs that main features of Pinterest well. If you have any questions please leave a comment below and I will do my best to answer you.

App Link: iTunes

Google releases Music Beta web app for iOS!

If you have attempted to use Music Beta on your iOS device before it worked, but barely. Google just released its Music Beta web app for iOS 4 devices that allows much easier navigation to play your music in the cloud. I used it on my iPad and it is a very nice experience. You can swipe between columns for easy navigation. It surprised me when I left Safari and the music was still playing. Looks to be a full feature web app right out of the gate.

If you miss the desktop version you can always hit the link in the top corner to get back to it. Once you are there you may need to read these posts to help you navigate your way around. How to use Google Music on the iPad and How to scroll on Google Music

Thank you for this Google!

Music Beta

How to Add a Website Shortcut to Your Home Screen on Android

Phones and tablets are really the perfect devices to browse the web on the go. In this tutorial I shows you how you can add a website shortcut icon to the main screen on any Android device so you can quickly jump to your favorite site. If you would like to make a icon for your own website or blog, watch a tutorial here to learn how. The great things is that if you create a icon for your iPad, the icon is then made available on any iOS or Android device when you create a bookmark.

Editorial: Are We Really Multitasking?

In the beginning of the fight between smart phone vs. smart phone and tablet vs. tablet, there was a great desire from consumers to be able to multitask like they could on a desktop PC. On a PC you have the option to have many different windows open, this allows you to be able to run and see multiple programs at the same time.

With the PC style of multitasking it allows you to be listening to music in the background or easily switch from a game to using the web. One of the most common forms is having a dual screen computer. This allows you to see multiple programs at once so you don't have to continually change between them while you copy information from one program to the other.

Many of the current Mobile OS platforms have elements of multitasking built in but it seems that they are still far from what we really need. From the beginning of the iPhone you could open up iPod and start your music, then you could switch to view your Calender or messaging very easily while still listening to your music. This is great but let everyone longing for more.

Now the iOS allows you to do this with all apps. You simply press the home button twice to open up the most recent apps so that you can switch from one to the other only running certain tasks like music and or location based services in the background and pausing the rest of the processing. On Android it is a similar way of doing things. When you leave an app it will keep the spot where you just were. You can then hold the home button and a list of recent apps will appear and you can then switch back to where you previously were. Android is known for running many computing tasks in the background to keep all widgets and services up to date with the greatest information.

Yes these process would fall in the line of actual multitasking, but is that what we truly are doing? Right now, look at your computer screen and see how many different windows you have open. Is there just one or are there multiple? Do you spend your time only doing one thing or is there a web browser open on one side of the screen and Word open on the other? These processes are what makes a computer so great. With this we can do much more than what a simple piece of paper could ever do for us.

On the mobile OS this is something that is still yet to be done. Recently Microsoft put out a demo of upcoming features of Windows 8 for touch screens that gives the ability to do this type of computing on a touch screen. There are certain apps right now such as Twitter on the iPad that allow you to view your stream and click on a link to open a new panel where the browser opens so you can still see your stream and view a web page at the same time. This would be great to have in tablets because of the amount of real-estate.

When Honeycomb came out I thought about what would be the one feature that I would love to have on it that iOS did not have. I thought it would be great if you were able to open two Android apps at the same time and use them simultaneously. The possibilities of combinations of apps could be anything. Maybe you want to check your bank account transactions and want to update a budget at the same time but don't want to keep switching back and forth between the apps because it is hard to remember the detailed information. Maybe you a browsing Facebook but want to be playing a casual game of Cut the Rope at the same time.

From what i have learned this is not possible yet on any available mobile OS. I have not been able to find any apps that allow you to open two specific apps at the same time. The ability to do this maybe based on the processor but this definitely needs to be put down on the Need to put in the next OS update list.

How To Sync Your Google Account With Your iPad

If this is your first time setting up your iPad you can just click mail and exchange, but if you have another email account already syncing you can go to settings, Contacts Mail Calendar and then add account.

In the email spot type in your full Gmail or Google Account address. Leave the domain blank. Next type in your full email address, then password and then name the account. Click save and then the iPad will verify the account. A Server field will appear. In here type m.google.com. Once you click save you will know it is all correct if it will ask you which you would like to sync of the Contacts, Calendar, and Mail. Once you choose and click save at the top this is the final step.

Now if you change something on your iPad, when it is connected to Wi-Fi it will sync whatever has been changed. This is the best way to keep all your information in sync without having to use iTunes. This works if you change anything on on Google it will change it on your iPad.