Digital Tools
Tools
Tablets (e.g., iPad)
Cellphones are no longer only phones. Most devices are minicomputers, which have functions that come close to a normal computer, even if it is not marked as a Smartphone. You have a voice recorder for musicians, a video recorder for dancers, notepad/text-writing apps (and external keyboards) for writers, etc. The available Apps can simulate nearly any device, and it can even be equipped with sensors for mobile data collection.
Tablets can be incredibly useful. They combine the advantages of smartphones with much greater screen real-estate. However, this is also their disadvantage: Whereas they are easier to carry than a notebook, they are not as comfortable to carry as a smartphone.
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(Smart-)Phones
Sound Output
(Video-)Camera
Virtual Interface (simulate any interface; show all kinds of visual information)
Microphone Additionally, making notes on a mobile device is more socially accepted, as people will likely think that you are typing a SMS or an eMail — which is true: you have to tell your future self something it must not forget.
Usage • Find out what your device is capable of — and have a look at the available Apps (see Resources starting on page 359). It is strange if people pay hundreds of dollar for a device (directly or per contract fees), yet are somehow reluctant to $5 for a good App. • Transfer ideas as soon as possible. As the storage is often huge, digital devices often suck in ideas, and take them with ‘em when they die/crash. • Use it when pen and paper is either not available, or not accepted.
Usage • The virtual keyboard is much more silent than any mechanical one, thus, tablets are great for silent typing, e.g., writing in presentations or meetings. • Tablets can be used for sketching. Use a Pogo sketch pen (griffel that works on the surface of a tablet, http://tenonedesign.com/sketch.php). Apps like Autodesk's Sketchbook Mobile or Brushes allows you to draw, providing (among others) a wide selection of pens and brushes, layers, and colors (see „Sketching“ on page 352). • Tablets are great for illustration work on written texts. Scan the text (or if created digital, export it as png images), put the images on the bottom layer of Sketchbook or Brushes, and draw on the layers above. Delete the page layer later to keep the illustration. • Tablets are also great for reading, especially if you use a software like Sente or GoodReader and highlight/add comments. With Sente, the comments can be exported later. Very, very comfortable and a great task on a train ride. See „Reference Management Software“ on page 346, „Reading Research Literature“ on page 348, (also applicable to other kinds of literature), and „Reading Digitally“ on page 349. • Tablets can be used during a train journey more easily than notebooks. You can cover them more quickly and you can actually hold them in one of your hands and work with the other (e.g., highlight or annotate relevant sentences). If you use a good App (e.g., Sente, GoodReader) you can use even a 30 minutes train journey every morning and evening effectively. Create a reading list and focus on highlighting/annotating. Export the material later.
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Digital Tools: Hardware Tools Digital Tools