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Hi, this is Don McAllister and welcome to another
edition of ScreenCastsOnline for iOS.
Well, I'm just back from Mac World and a week's holiday, so ever so slightly jet-lagged.
But for this week, I thought I'd share with you some experiences I had
whilst using the iPad while traveling.
Although I had my MacBook Air with me, I ended up using my iPad for
probably 90 percent of the time, mainly due to the availability of a
new AT&T data plan for the iPad.
That allowed me to use three gigabytes of data for just $30.
The MacBook Air took a backseat and the iPad became my workhorse machine.
I used it mainly for emails and managing membership queries.
If you're a Mac user, you soon become aware of some of the limitations
of iOS and the lack of a full windowing environment.
Although there are elements of multitasking in iOS you really need to
consider each application as running independently and familiarize
yourself with rapid application switching.
Some people do regard this as a plus as it's less distracting to them,
and they appreciate the default status of just using a single app at any one time.
But for my particular workflow, I needed to switch and work between
Mail and Safari as well as use Copy and Paste extensively.
There were three applications that boosted my productivity on the iPad,
these were TextExpander, 1Password and PasteBot.
I'll cover each one over the next few weeks and show you how I found
them to be invaluable with my particular workflow.
But let's start this week with PasteBot.
PasteBot is a clipboard manager that allows you to store multiple clips
or clipboard entries on your iPad, your iPhone or your iPod Touch, then
retrieve them from a history and then paste them into any application.
It does support text and images only, but I found it invaluable while I
was away copying and pasting between various applications.
So let's have a look.
If I go to the App Store, I've already searched for it.
It's by TapBots, they do quite a few different applications.
In fact, just as I'm recording this, they've just released a new
version of the Twitter client for the iPad, but we'll look at that in a couple of weeks.
This is PasteBot. It's $3.99 in U.S. dollars.
Basically, what I will do is to install it on this iPad, enter my Apple
ID and the password, say, "OK."
PasteBot is an iPhone application, it's not universal, but it will
obviously run on the iPad.
Let me just run it for the first time and everything you'll see will
look exactly the same on the iPhone itself.
The first time we run it, we get these screens, "Thank you for purchasing PasteBot."
You can just swipe through to have a look at some of the instructions.
I'll take you through all this.
Oh, something I forgot to mention, if you have a Mac, you can actually
synchronize your clippings between your Mac and your iOS device using a
special application that you can get for free and install on your Mac.
If we have time, we'll look at that later.
But let me just tap on "Finish."
This is the main clipboard view.
You'll notice that, the first time I've run it, I've got this message
here to visit the dashboard, to manage folders or access the settings.
You can organize your clippings into folders.
We'll have a look at that shortly.
Let me just tap away.
Let me just tap back to clipboard, just remove that message.
There are a few here that are already supplied as part of the application.
You see, this is an image, if I tap on that image...
A couple of things to point out, you see we get this new menu drop-down at the bottom.
But you'll notice there's also this blue light.
This blue light indicates that's the currently active clip.
That's the one that, when we paste, will be pasted into another application.
If I tap on another one, say, the text clip underneath, you'll see we
now have this blue light next to the text clip.
Another image, again the blue light.
Then, down at the bottom, we have a link as well.
By tapping on the relevant clip you select the one you want to paste.
But before we look at pasting, let's have a look at how we actually get
stuff into the application itself.
Let's go ahead and cross over to another application and let's copy some text.
If I go across to Safari, say...
Let me just double tap the home button to bring up the multitasking bar.
By the way the way, I'm recording this is slightly different.
I've sort of rearranged the orientation so you're seeing everything in landscape mode.
On the iPad itself, you'll find that this is currently in portrait
mode, but ignore that for now.
That's why you're seeing a mini multitasking bar at the bottom rather the full width.
But let me go to Safari.
I've got a Mac World article here.
Let's say I wanted to select this paragraph of text.
If I tap and hold, use the normal selectors to grab that complete paragraph...
We'll say "Copy."
That's copied to the normal copy and paste buffer, copy to the clipboard.
But to copy it into PasteBot itself, I need to go across to PasteBot.
Double tap on the home button, tap on PasteBot, and you'll see there is a brand new entry.
Let's go back across to Safari.
This time, let's select another paragraph.
Let's say this heading beneath this, "The state of eBooks in school."
I tap and hold.
Select that line of text and say "Copy."
Back across to PasteBot...
Now I have that new clipboard entry.
Also, you'll notice that the blue light is highlighted next to it.
But, say, if I wanted to use the first thing I copied.
This one here, the "When parents, teachers and administrators are surveyed" clipping.
I just tap on that and you'll see then we get the blue light on that particular clip.
To paste it into something, let's go back to the home screen.
Let's go to the "Notes" application.
Let's create a new note, "Interesting article."
Then, here we'll just tap and hold and say "Paste."
And that first clipping has been pasted into my note.
To copy images, let's go back to Safari.
If I tap and hold on this image here, you'll see that it's actually a link.
If I was to copy that now, it will copy the text to a link.
I actually want to copy the image.
What I'm going to do is to save image.
Now, if I go to "Photos..."
Again, the single tap of the home button takes me to my main screen.
Photos are down at the bottom.
There is my photo that I've just copied.
Let's tap on the icon here to send it somewhere and tap "Copy Photo."
That's now copied it to the clipboard.
If I double tap on the home button, go to PasteBot, and there's my new
image safely saved away in PasteBot.
We can look at the full image by tapping on the circle next to it.
There it is. Go back to the clipboard.
There is a set limit to the number of items that you can keep in you
clipboard within Pastebot, and that's 200 items.
But you can organize them into folders if you want to keep them permanently.
There are no limits on the clippings that you create and store in folders.
Before we look at folders, let's have a look at organizing our clips
and that drop-down menu that we saw before.
Let me tap on the images that we've just copied into PasteBot.
Now you'll see that we have a panel here that shows me the dimensions
and the date that it was captured.
I can just tap on that to toggle between the information.
There's an action menu so I can duplicate the clip and I can move it to a folder.
Let's set up a new folder.
Say "Move to Folder."
Currently, the options are "Clipboard" and "TapBots."
The TapBots folder is the one that is provided automatically.
Let me go ahead and say "New Folder."
Let's call this one "Images."
For an icon, let's choose that one as the icon and then say "Save."
That has now disappeared.
To get back, if I go to Dashboard...
You'll see, now, I have a new "Images" folder.
Tap on there, and there it is.
Tap it once again, and I get the drop-down menu options.
This one is the "Filter" menu.
Now, because it's an image, I've got various things I can do.
I can change the brightness, convert to black and white, invert, change
saturation and change to sepia.
If I wanted to convert this to black and white, tap on there.
There's my black and white image.
I can adjust this controller as well, but I won't actually do that.
We'll say "Cancel."
Let's go back to the dashboard and back to our main clipboard.
Actually, if I just go back a level, you'll see I've got six items out of a possible 200.
You are limited to 200 on the clipboard.
But as I say, sort them into folders and you'll have no worries about limitations.
Back to clipboard...
Let's have a look at the text.
If I tap on a text item, now you'll notice this is saying, "Group count-2."
There's a small symbol in the bottom corner, which shows that this is a group of clips.
Now, I'm not 100 percent sure why that has happened.
You can create groups manually.
But if I tap on the button next to it, you see down here we have a
"1/2" showing me there are two items in this group clip.
Yeah. It's some unknown data.
When I have copied it, it picked up some other data as well, which I don't really need.
We'll look at groups separately because they can be quite useful.
What I'm going to do for this particular one is click on the action
menu and say "Ungroup Clip."
Then, this one here I'm going to delete.
I'm going to tap on there and tap on the trashcan and say "Delete."
That's better.
It looks like, though it's the same on the second one as well, that's
picked up some information that we don't need.
I'm going to, again, go into "Action," "Ungroup Clip", tap on the
button next to it and hit the "Trash."
As I say, we'll look at groups shortly but that's how it should look
now, just individual text clips.
Let's tap on this first one again.
We have, now, the action menu, "Duplicate," "Move to Folder," as we saw before.
Say "Cancel' to that.
This time "Filters..."
Lots more things we can do with text.
These are all built in to PasteBot.
Convert to lower case, convert to upper case, decode and encode HTML entities.
That's if you're wrapping some HTML tags in there.
A very useful one, "Find and Replace."
"Quote lines," Smarten quotes..."
Even a translation or rapid HTML tag...
For instance, if I wanted to wrap some bold tags around this, I can
just tap on that filter.
"Enter tag," let's say "Strong."
You see, at the top, we've got the HTML tag inserted there, and at the
bottom we've got the end tag as well.
Then I can save this and that's a piece of HTML I can paste into a document.
Let's say "Cancel" for now.
The other icon in this drop-down menu is this "Send to" icon.
I can send it as a search via Google.
I can send it as an email or send as a text message as well.
Again, I'll say "Cancel" to that.
To actually edit the individual clip, we've tapped on this button
before, but if I tap on the large circle next to it...
If I tap on the title, you see I've got the date, the character count and the word count.
I can also physically edit the text so, if I backspace over here, I can edit it.
Full stop, say, double space.
OK, we'll say "Save," it's now edited.
I can also change the title.
Currently, it's untitled so, if I tap on "Edit, " I can now add a title.
Being able to create a title like this is great, especially for images.
Obviously you can search your text, that's fine, but when you come to
search your images, unless you give it a proper title, you have to look
for your images rather than being able to search for them.
Let's say "Save" to that.
OK, that's fine.
Down at the bottom, access to our filters, access to the "Send To"
icon, and then we can trash it from this point as well if we want to.
Let's go back to "Text."
You will now see my title blurb.
It's at the top of that one.
Let's go back to that image that I had before.
We'll go back to my Images folder.
We'll edit this by tapping on the big, round button, tap on "Edit," and
I can now give this a title.
IPad Newsstand Image... We'll save, back out to Images, and you can see
I can see the title there.
As far as searching is concerned, you can't search across multiple
folders, but if I wanted to search my Images folder, if I just drag
down, I get the Search panel here.
Because I've put the title in, I can now search on that title.
Obviously, I only have a single image in there, so there's no point in
me showing you that.
If I wanted to use this to paste now in another document, tap on it
once, we get the little blue icon highlighted, and that's ready now to
be pasted.
Before we move away from this view, one of the things you can do with
images, if I tap on the "Edit" button, you'll notice down at the bottom
I can rotate the image.
I can also crop it as well, so if I wanted to crop the image I can do,
just move these controls and say "Crop," and then "Save."
Back out to "Images..."
Let's go back across to Dashboard and go across to the Clipboard.
As well as doing the individual edits on individual clips, you can edit your History.
If I go here to "Edit," you'll see, if I wanted to delete a couple in
bulk, I can tap on that one.
All clippings selected, that one as well...
I can delete those two at once. That's fine.
Let's go back to Edit again.
If I wanted to move these to, say, a new folder, tap that one and tap
that one, "Move," let's create a new folder.
Text Clips, give it that icon, say "Save," OK.
Let's go back across to my new Text Clips folder.
I mentioned grouping before, and this is how you can group things manually.
Let's say I wanted to combine these two separate text clips into a single text clip.
All I need to do is just say "Edit," select them both, and then say
"Group," down here at the bottom.
Now we get the icon showing me this is a group clip.
If I go into here, there's the first clip and there's the second clip.
That's all I would expect to see, unlike before.
Let's come out.
To use this, I've got the blue dot highlighted.
Let's go back to Notes.
Let's create a new Note.
Then tap and hold, "Paste."
See, we get the first clip and then also this "The state of E-books in
schools," which is the second clip, combined together.
That's creating and using a Group clip.
Back to Pastebot.
We go back to the Dashboard, back to my Clipboard.
Let's delete both of these, so if I select "Edit," select each clip,
say "Delete" and then tap on "Delete."
We've now got an empty Clipboard.
Let me go back to Notepad and I'll create a new Note.
This one has multiple sections.
As I mentioned before, by default, when you use Pastebot, you have to
copy the clip and then go across and open Pastebot, and that will save
it for you in there.
That can be a little bit monotonous if you've got lots of clips that
you want to copy all at once.
You have to basically switch between each application.
They've got round it in a sort of a way, in that you can set Pastebot
to carry on capturing copied clips in the background for up to 10 minutes.
This is one of the limitations, again I mentioned previously, of iOS in
that there's no real true multitasking, only for certain applications
and doing certain things.
What they've done is, they've switched on Background Processing in
Pastebot for the maximum of 10 minutes so that you can actually start
to capture multiple pieces of text or multiple images.
The way to do that.... This is my new note.
I'm going to want to copy these three sentences, these three lines of text.
To do it without the background processing, I'd have to do it three
times and then switch to Pastebot three times as well, a little bit laborious.
To switch on Background Processing, if I go across to Pastebot and then
go to Dashboard and Settings, you'll see here we have an option for
Background, Run in Background.
It gives you some information there.
Pastebot can run in the background for approximately 10 minutes after
you exit the application.
It will continue to store all your copies without returning to the app.
We can also have this push notification so that, after the 10 minutes
is finished, that will give you a note to say, "By the way, 10 minutes
is up. If you want to start background processing, run Pastebot again."
I'll leave that on and I'll also switch on "Run in Background."
Anything I do now... Let's go back to Settings, back to Dashboard.
You'll see my Clipboard is currently empty.
Go back across to the Notes application, and now I can just start
copying and every time I copy, as long as I do it within 10 minutes, it
will appear in Pastebot.
Here's the first one.
Tap and hold, I'll just select that first paragraph, we'll say "Copy."
I go to the next one, tap and hold, again select the full paragraph, or
the full line in this case.
Again, say "Copy" and down here tap and hold, select that one, "Copy."
That's three copies, so I should now have three clips in Pastebot.
Let's go across, and there we go.
There's my three clips.
That's as I would expect to see them, without the Group icons.
I think that might have been a Safari issue that I had before.
What I will do now is, I'll come back out and I will go back to the Notes application.
It's 11:30, I'm going to leave it for 10 minutes and we should see the
notification pop up saying that the background processing has completed.
There we go.
"Pastebot's backgrounding session has ended. Launch the app to restart it."
Now, to save any further clips, I would have to go back into Pastebot.
But once I go back into Pastebot,
I'll get another 10 minutes' worth of background processing.
Let's take a look at the sync between Pastebot and the Mac.
I've nipped across to the Mac, and this is a live screen capture of my
iPad, showing the settings on Pastebot.
If I go to Sync, you'll see it says to go across to Pastebot.com and
then download a small utility.
I've actually done that so, if I go across to Safari, on this page
you'll find a button to download the application.
I've already downloaded and installed it.
It installs as a Preference pane.
Let me pop Safari out of the way and go to my System Preferences.
This is the Pastebot Sync Preference Pane.
Let me switch that on.
"No device registered with this Mac."
Over here, I'll just say, "Connect with your Mac, " it generates a pass-code, 4987.
On my Mac, I just enter that in.
We're now connected, "Mac Pro 02."
You'll notice, over on the iPad, we can add additional machines, so if
you've got more than one Mac you can actually add additional machines to here.
That's fine, let me go back across to Settings, back to Dashboard, and
back to my Clipboard.
Let's start by copying from the Mac to the iPad.
If I just copy something on the Mac... Let me, say, open TextEdit.
We see some text.
Select and Command-C, and then immediately over on the iPad...
That's text that I've selected on the Mac, copied to my Mac Clipboard,
and then immediately it's been transferred across to Pastebot.
Also, if I go across to the iPad and scroll up...
If I want to copy this and another paragraph of text, tap and hold.
[computer tone]
That's been copied across.
If I go back to TextEdit on the Mac, do a Command-V, there we go,
another paragraph of text.
Basically, that's a clipping that's stored on my iPad, tap and hold, is
transferred wirelessly across to the Mac, into the Mac's paste buffer.
Just do a Command-V to paste on the Mac, and it appears on the Mac, very neat.
That utility is a free utility, once you've bought the application to
run on your iPad or iPhone.
You can do that with images as well as text.
That's Pastebot by Tapbots.
(Music)
That's it for another week.
Don't forget that, if you're a Mac user, you can also find a new
tutorial in the Mac feed.
This week, it's all about Moom, which is a great window management
utility from Many Tricks.
Before I do go, can I just ask, if you have purchased one of the iPad
applications, especially one of the SCOtutor for iPad applications, if
you can either leave a review or just leave a rating on the App Store,
that would be a tremendous help.
Just to try and raise the visibility of the apps, either on the Mac App
Store, or over on the iTunes App Store as well...
Don't forget, if you have purchased an SCOtutor app, a rating would be
greatly appreciated.
Anyway, that's it for this week.
I'll speak to you next time.