iPad

[Charles Roussel]

This question might have been asked before but can we use the ipad with Home Inspector Pro?

[Dominic Maricic]

Unfortunately the iPad is iJunk. It's a giant iPhone and it's extremely weak. It only seems fast because it's only allowed to run one application at once. We're waiting for them to come out with their next version and hope it'll be better. The CTL2Go at CTLCorp.com is a much faster (60% faster) machines with a lot more ram, and a keyboard and is only $499 US. They also have a better slate coming out as well. Contact Matt Kintz at mkintz@ctlcorp.com and he can help you if you're interested in a special shipping rate.

[Eragorn Northe]

When one buys and ipad, I plan on doing just one thing at a time with it, so if i would work that would be great as it is the perfect size!!!

[Dominic Maricic]

Sure thing. Email me if you decide to get it to get the coupon code.

[Toby Todd]

I for one am so disappointed that ALL of the inspection software companies are so anti-apple. To call the ipad junk is totally ridiculous. It has it's shortcomings but I think it would be a wonderful device to carry around on an inspection. Too bad no one let's the customer decide.

[Toby Todd]

I take part of that back, atleast your software runs on mac. I have a netbook, the Atom is slow and perhaps doing one thing at a time is not a bad thing.

[Dominic Maricic]

Hi Toby,

Sorry you're right, calling it iJunk is going a bit overboard. It has been a huge disappointment to us, other developers and inspectors for what we wanted to use it for. I don't know how you can call us Anti Apple since we're one of only 2 programs that run NATIVELY on the Mac! Approximately 25% of our users are Mac users. There are other slates you can purchase to carry around, you can even buy the modbook from Axiotron: http://www.modbook.com/ which WILL work with Home Inspector Pro (Mac Slate been around much longer than the iPad).

The iPad is not a content creation device. Apple will tell you that. It is a consumption device. EBooks, Web Browsing, Music, Games. Work great. Don't try to edit video, create big presentations, etc, as it's not made for it. It only has 256 megs of ram (a cheap netbook has 4 times that at 1 gig, most laptops now come with 4gigs). The iPad is GREAT for what it was made for. Unfortunately a lot of developers such as ourselves had hoped Apple would go with the original talk of the iPad being closer to the Mac OS, which it's not. It runs the iPhone OS.

No software developer can afford to let the consumer decide here. You're talking about at least $50,000+ and literally hundreds of hours in development for a single device for a market where there's only 20,000 inspectors in the entire country. If Apple had put Java on the device like 99% of other devices we could have made a version for it in around 100 hours and it would be worth trying out. But as it is we'd need to sell 500 copies to people who are only buying HIP because of the iPad to break even financially and that doesn't count the lost features that all the other users lose out on because we're not developing the software for other mac & windows users. It just doesn't make sense. Especially when we expect (hope) the next iPad will have Flash & Java.

Facts about the current iPad(assuming we did make it):

The iPad does not allow more than 1 program to run at a time unless it was created by Apple. This means you could not generate your report without closing out of the software to look at it. Then restarting the program to open it back up.

256 megs of ram means you couldn't import many photographs and have the software resize and work with them.

The 1 ghz processor would make the entire process and program extremely slow.

The device is made to be used with a virtual keyboard which takes up 1/3 of the screen. It does not suppose hand writing recognition which is required to walk and write.

It costs just as much as the CTL2Go which includes a keyboard or the new HP or Intel slate which are identical but run Windows on much faster processors and a lot more ram.

[Toby Todd]

I understand completely what you are saying, I am not, and do not know how much work it truly takes to create an app. What bugs me, is how EASY the iphone, and in turn iPad is to use. Maybe I am biased, but with all the iphone downfalls it is the simplest, most intuitive device I have ever used, and cannot imagine life with a physical keyboard phone again. Apple has me under its spell, there devices simply WORK as they say in their promos. I have owned windows computers all my life, and was a palm treo user for years. I can tell you my Treo had to have a hard reset multiple times a day, and we all know the issues with windows. I bought my first mac about a year ago and the difference has been phenominal. Its BLAZING fast, it is visually stunning, and I now know why someone would pay so much for a computer. As for the iphone, twice in the 8 months i have used it I have had to reset it. Its amazingly reliable. Thats what I am looking for for my business very easy to use hardware/software that is rock solid reliable.I guess that is my frustration, I want to use a device that is new and exciting while also being very functional. I see all of those things in the iPad. Play it safe, just create a very basic, text input only iphone app. I WOULD USE IT even on the small screen I would still happily use it, and would pay extra for the luxury. Also, sorry, i dont buy its underpowerd. Every tech editor out there has been amazed at how fast it is. For god sake the iphone is only a hair over 600mhz processor and can run the most amazing games. I only say that because how much processing power do you think a device will need to run a basic text input app that will sync with the full version? I promise, im getting off my high horse now, but to not even consider apps for arguably the most popular mobile devices out there is just sad.

[Dominic Maricic]

Hi Toby,

It was definitely considered. And every time we get an email from someone requesting it, we consider it more. So far about 30 guys have asked for it. Out of those 30 I know about 25 went out and bought the CTL2Go and 2 bought the modbook (just like iPad but more powerful).

It is a nice device for what it's made for, but it is underpowered for what we need to do. The CTL2Go for example has a 1.6ghz processor which makes it 60% faster than the iPad's 1ghz. There are many negative reviews about the iPad from developers and editors, but they are online, magazines don't print them. The amount of ram on it at 256 megs is equivalent of a computer made 10 years ago. That's part of the reason Apple limits it to one application at a time. I think the Generation 2 iPad will be MUCH better, just like the Generation 2 iPhones were a huge improvement.

Many inspectors take 150 to 300 photos per inspection at anywhere from 5 to 10 megapixels which takes a massive amount of power to resize and input into software. For normal programs where they have millions of potential users, heck ya it's a great investment to make a program form. But 20,000 inspectors / 10 inspection programs does not compute. I'm sure the next generation will have Java on it and we can make a port. You actually could already run Home Inspector Pro on it but it requires you to 'jailbreak' the iPad so it runs Java which we can't support as it voids your warranty.

Check out the modbook, it's a sweet Apple slate. We have a few inspectors who use it now!

P.S. I'm very grateful I don't have my windows based Treo any more. The palm versions weren't too bad. I do have an android phone now and the new android based tablets look like they'll have Java and will be able to run our software too.

[Cliff Kornegay]

Dominic-

Do you know anything about the durability of the Modbook? Looks great, but doesn't look sturdy.

[Dominic Maricic]

Basically any tablet except the ctl2go and toughbook are only slightly tougher than regular laptops. Even the ipad will easily bust if dropped. The modbook would be the same so I'd get a sling for it.

[Eragorn Northe]

I for one am so disappointed that ALL of the inspection software companies are so anti-apple. To call the ipad junk is totally ridiculous. It has it's shortcomings but I think it would be a wonderful device to carry around on an inspection. Too bad no one let's the customer decide.

EXACTLY!!!!

[Eragorn Northe]

Basically any tablet except the ctl2go and toughbook are only slightly tougher than regular laptops. Even the ipad will easily bust if dropped. The modbook would be the same so I'd get a sling for it.

The IPad Like the Iphone have this really great idea for a case called an otter box!
It can take the drops and opps! check them out.

[Dominic Maricic]

I for one am so disappointed that ALL of the inspection software companies are so anti-apple. To call the ipad junk is totally ridiculous. It has it's shortcomings but I think it would be a wonderful device to carry around on an inspection. Too bad no one let's the customer decide.

EXACTLY!!!!

Otterbox makes cases for lots of products and they're really great!

Eragorn, we do let the customer decide. If people were willing to spend $2000-$3000 for an iPad application we could create a limited version for data collection only (the whole program would not work without a complete rewrite and the photo importing would have to be dropped due to the limited amount of memory). As of now the iPad is still limited primarily to Apple customers and is only 1 device. So you have a market of 20,000 inspectors, then limiting that to splitting across 20+ inspection programs, and now only AT&T customers (for the most part). While Google Chrome's operating system will be available on many different slates & tablets, as with Windows machines which hits a much larger target area. We have to prioritize our energy into areas where the effort will be the best used. We have to focus on bringing access to the majority of customers. Right now we're one of only 2 programs that work on the Mac and have about 90%+ of the users. So we try very hard to include everyone.

When the iPad becomes available with other carriers and they make it more powerful, we'll definitely reevaluate this issue. For now , we'll keep adding new features into the software.

[Dan McConnon]

Another issue to consider with the iPad (the current version at least): The device does not contain a camera, nor does it have any means of connecting devices. As Dominic mentioned, it's a content creation device, so this (kinda) makes sense. If a version were created for the iPad, there is still the hurdle of how you would be able to load additional content like photos to your inspection without a way to connect the camera.

[Steve Henderson]

Just wait iPad will eventually run os 10 and have more storage and processing just takes some time and jailbreaking opens a world of options Ie multitasking ect slot of software devolpers are now making programs just for jailbroke. Devices it takes less than a min to jailbreak now and can be un jailbroken for warranty purposes. I too am a fan oh of Mac but they really did underbuild iPad I think for price point they should offer a super iPad for 2k that has snow leopard and loads of ram and hd space

[Dominic Maricic]

Supposedly a full OS X version is in the works which would great along with some more horsepower..

[Tom Camp]

I sure hope your right, the iPad looks like it would be ideal with a few more features.

[Dominic Maricic]

Maybe if they added a handle to make it less likely to be dropped, added some more ram, faster processor, dropped the price and worked with something other than AT&T. There's 3 or 4 companies coming out with slates that blow the iPad out of the water with all of the above (except the handle).

[Tom Camp]

Are these three or four companies still windows based??
It usually takes apple a while to get the bugs worked out, but so do many hardware and software companies.
I am confident apple will be listening to their support base and make changes to their next generation of iPads.
There is many different iPad covers on the market now, which protects the unit from falls.  Thanks Dominic

http://www.tomcampinspectionservices.com
Colorado Springs Certified Home Inspector
719-201-9472

[Dominic Maricic]

Yes, those were windows machines. The only Apple tablet that has power is the ModBook at Axiotron.com. A few inspectors are using this. The rest use windows tablets and transfer to their Mac once they get home.

[Steve Henderson]

iOS 4 is the world’s most advanced mobile operating system. And soon iPad owners will get to enjoy its 100+ new features and innovations — including multitasking, folders, printing, and more. Look for iOS 4.2 coming in November for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.1

ok DOM we are getting closer please start making it we have multi task and printing next month

http://www.apple.com/ipad/software-update/

[Dominic Maricic]

The problem is you still have a 1ghz processor (60% slower than the CTL2Go for the same price), 256 megs of ram and no Java support. I really don't see Home Inspector Pro working until they put OS X on the iPad. iOS 4 is already running as a reduced version of OS X but Apple doesn't want to open it up more so that developers can get in and use it without being forced through the Apple Store.

[Donald L. Richards Jr.]

Dom,
  so you don't like apples "restrictive" or "closed" software systems...?
  You're severely limiting yourself and us as customers, by keeping yourself closed to the easier way of what you're familiar with... "better the Devil you know, than the one you don't?" Apple is moving to more closed system for all of their software with the new "Mac App Store!" soon you won't be able to update a mac program without a similar vetting process as the iOS app store. If I could the sync it to my iMac and quickly add Photos to either print or email it to my client, I'd gladly buy another HIP license to be able to have a basic HIP on my iPad.

How many others of you would buy another license to be able to use your iPad in the field?

[Donald L. Richards Jr.]

Another issue to consider with the iPad (the current version at least): The device does not contain a camera, nor does it have any means of connecting devices. As Dominic mentioned, it's not a content creation device, so this (kinda) makes sense. If a version were created for the iPad, there is still the hurdle of how you would be able to load additional content like photos to your inspection without a way to connect the camera.

Dan...
Not Long after the iPad was introduced there were accessories that attach to the doc connector that allow you to connect a camera, or use a card reader... your input is appreciated, but you're mistaken.

And on top of that with multitasking now available and their iWork programs as apps... I can make documents with photos integrated into them quite easily and they are beautiful high quality professional looking documents.

If people dont like Apple products... Doesn't bother me!
But there's no reason to spread misinformation (I don't think DAN was doing that) and downright hatred.
I have been a PC user most of my life, recently switched, and we're now an iFamily!  They Just Work!

Dom,
Hypothetically speaking... IF someone were to "jailbreak" an iPad how would he/she go about installing it on the iPad?

[Dominic Maricic]

Obviously we like Macs. We're one of only 2 inspection programs out of over 20 that runs natively on a Mac. We'd love the iPad to bet a better device, but it's not there YET.

A few guys are using their iPad as a remote to control their home computer with HIP, but not many.

Even if you jailbreak the iPad there's currently no way to install Java on it (though there are many trying and I'm keeping a close eye on this). Because of this we have to write a new program from scratch which will mean about 6 months and tens of thousands of dollars of work. This means we'd need to sell a ton of programs to even come close to breaking even.

The other really big problem with the iPad is, how do you use it? Even if we developed a software program for it you can't walk around and use it since it's touch sensitive. It does not work very well at all with a stylus. This means that you have to hold the iPad in one hand and then use your other hand to type on the screen (very ineffective). It's also a very fragile device.

Add to this that the iPad/iPhone are still limited to what carriers can use it and it all adds up to financially not make a lot of sense. This means that the marker of inspectors that can even use it is limited. The home inspector market is EXTREMELY small. There's a max of 20,000 inspectors right now, spread across 3 main inspection software companies and another 20 small ones.

This doesn't mean in any way that we won't be developing for the iPad. In fact, quite the opposite. I expect Apple to come out with an iPad version that runs a full version of OS X in the near future. At this point we won't even need to build a new program, the current one will just work!!

If you really want a true Mac tablet, check out the ModBook from Axiotron and you'll be ready to go with HIP and a Mac tablet now.

[Donald L. Richards Jr.]

Dom,
firstly,Do you own an iPad?  "Extrememly fragile?" not hardly! , more fragile than my 2go? yes. but that's where cases can come in very handy.

second, Axitron doesn't do that MOD them selves, local contractors actually do the conversion, and they are very hard to find!
you are the one who said a jailbroken ipad could run the HIP software...

third,
its not actually a from scratch program build...  apple seeds the project with the basic operating structure, so... 6months? for a text based software development? my nephew made a graphics heavy game for the iOS devices in less than two... Have you looked at the apple development program?  you're obviously coming at it from a negative slant to begin with.

[Dominic Maricic]

Hi Donald,

Yes, I've been a member of the Apple Development system for about 7 years and have looked into iPad development heavily. It is definitely a complete rebuild of the program. Apple doesn't seed the project with anything. They supply basic packages just like every programming system (and I write over 15 languages!). We'd be starting off writing line 1 of the program. Writing a heavy graphics program is actually no harder than writing a program like ours as there's many packages to assist you with writing your graphics, especially with all the writing the program does direct in the PDF language and special formatting we do. The first release of Home Inspector Pro took over a year and was initially 50,000 lines of code and it was no where near as powerful as our current release.

A few people have commented on the program being jailbroken but I couldn't find anything from me (but it could be on another post). There are a few jailbreak solutions that would partially work but the program would not run properly at this point. If you REALLY want to make it work get a 3G/4G card and then

You're definitely missing the point if you think we're coming at this with a negative slant. We are the ONLY inspection software to run on Windows, Mac & Linux. We pride ourselves on being the most flexible program on the market and would love to work on every device. But right now you're asking the equivalent of you driving 2000 miles to do a $500 home inspection and in the meantime abandon all your other customers while you drive cross country. Would you do that?

We have inspectors asking us to make the program work on Blackberrys, Androids, iPads, iPhones, Windows CE, Windows Mobile, Windows 98-7, Mac OS X, and more!! When/if enough people ask for a particular platform and it becomes cost efficient, we'll get it done.

[Michael Merino]

Dom,
firstly,Do you own an iPad?  "Extrememly fragile?" not hardly! , more fragile than my 2go? yes. but that's where cases can come in very handy.

second, Axitron doesn't do that MOD them selves, local contractors actually do the conversion, and they are very hard to find!
you are the one who said a jailbroken ipad could run the HIP software...

third,
its not actually a from scratch program build...  apple seeds the project with the basic operating structure, so... 6months? for a text based software development? my nephew made a graphics heavy game for the iOS devices in less than two... Have you looked at the apple development program?  you're obviously coming at it from a negative slant to begin with.

Don, you sound like you work for Apple. Are you a home inspector? I would not want to use the Ipad, for the reasons already stated. I have a camera that is a touch screen and I have to turn it off after every pic so that I do not get accidental pictures. I would also want to be able to do more than one thing at a time, like do a search for info when an agent tells my client I am wrong. I also want something that is not so fragile, I have dropped a few cameras in my time and I am sure I will drop more, not to mention I would drop the Ipad. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have a tablet that I can carry at my inspections and most likely will have one in the future, but it won't be an Ipad unless and until they improve it.

[Dominic Maricic]

We have a few guys using the iPad with the logmein and other remote programs and it's rumored they're working on a much more powerful iPad.

[Dana Bostick]

The iPad is a content viewing device, not a content creation device.  I have found a couple of Motion Computing slate tablets for $200 each from another inspector. (he has several, these were backup machines) They should show up today now that UPS has dug out in IL.  I did thousands of inspection on my Motion LE-1600 over three years until it finally died.  I consistently beat other inspectors on gang inspections by a half hour or more while using it. One is an LS-800 (8 inch) and the other is an old LE-1400.(10 inch)  should be sweet if the 8 incher will be workable.

[Dominic Maricic]

The iPad is a content viewing device, not a content creation device. 

Agreed. That's why it's so limited in ram. Hopefully they'll come out with a more powerful one in the future.

[Julian Benton]

The new iPad2 looks good. Personally, I would like to be able to use the iPad2 in place of the CT2Go. Currently I use the CT2Go onsite to fill in the report information and then move the report to my iMac or MacBook, add the pictures and then finalize the report. Sure, others would like to do EVERYTHING onsite but like an earlier post, I would pay for a "lite" version just to do what I need.

[Dominic Maricic]

You might get your wish We'll see....

[Gabriel Zitz]

Is the iPad fast enough now?
The "dramatically faster" iPad 2 boasts a dual-core A5 "system on a chip" processor under the hood, said Jobs, good for twice the CPU power and nine times the graphics performance of the original while maintaining the same 10-hour battery life.
Thanks!

[Dominic Maricic]

We'll find out what the capabilities are when it comes out. They lack of handwriting recognition is still going to be a factor as it's hard to hold with one hand and type with the other. The capacitive pens are out but I haven't tried them yet.

[Dana Bostick]

One finger typing might be an improvement for some guys. ;-0

Having been a tablet user for years, handwriting is the way to go if you don't have a regular keyboard.

[Julian Benton]

I find the handwriting recognition on the CT2go to be hit-or-miss, so I just use the stylus and the virtual keyboard. I have gotten pretty fast so using one finger on the iPad will not be that big of a deal.

[Dominic Maricic]

Julian, are you using CTL's handwriting software or the built in Windows software?

[Donald L. Richards Jr.]

I'd have to agree with Julian... I'm using the ctl built in handwriting program... Very hard to work with!
My CTL2Go NL2 isn't what I was hoping for I end up using it like a netbook that I could have bought for half of what I spent!
Just my 2cents

[Julian Benton]

I was trying to use the CTL2go's handwriting software, I guess. It is whatever shows up when I try to input while in "tablet mode". I will have to check later when I get home.

[Dominic Maricic]

Which version of the handwriting program are you using, and did you train it. I've used it pretty extensively with no problems as have many others.

[Donald L. Richards Jr.]

Which version? the one that came with the CTL pre installed software... stylus pro or something like that.  Tried to train to no avail... still spotty, and much faster to use the keypad

[Casey Patten]

The CTL handwriting software takes some time to adjust to.  The training doesn't take that long (though it's got some crazy symbols that are just about impossible to input)...but...you need to take your time when writing on the screen. 

I like the fact that I can have the interior areas of a home pretty much done (doesn't work in Minnesota winters outside) before I walk out the door.  Saves mucho time!  Plus the durability and portability...

[Richard Margerison]

I can't believe I am hearing a supposed tech expert fall for the megahertz myth. A 1.6 GHz is not automatically 60% faster than a 1 GHz processor of a completely different architecture.

The iPad has also always had s way to import photos and frankly I don't see any tablet device being a practical camera regardless of operating sytem

[Dominic Maricic]

Not sure who exactly you're addressing. Not that it matters but having a degree in Computer Science and spending years building over a thousand computers, build our own processors, administrating networks of more than a thousand machines and dozens of servers, taught computer systems & programming for a decade and more does give me a slight bit of tech knowledge

Putting it simply, yes, different processors do have different capabilities. The amount of L1/L2 cache, die size, bus size, GPU, hard drive speed, heck even the temperature of the processor has an effect. At the end of the day though the processor speed is measured in the amount of instructions (lets call it mathematical addition for simplicity) that the processor can do per second.

1 GHz processor is capable of doing approximately 1 billion cycles per second. Now how fast the computer ACTS depends heavily on the operating system and other factors, but this is what each processor is capable of. You mix in hyperthreading, multiple cores, pipelining and other technologies and that changes things up a bit. Apple's OS is more efficient than Windows. Because of this it makes programs run smoother with less processing speed. Unfortunately some of the processor manufacturers have moved away from simple processor speeds in their names which further confuses things.

iPad 1 is a content consumption device. Doesn't matter how you want to slice it. This has been repeated over and over even by Apple itself. When this conversation started we only had the iPad 1. Importing 150, 5 meg photos, automatically reducing their file size and importing them into Home Inspector Pro just didn't make sense. Remember it had 256 megs of ram NOT 2 gigs like the CTL2Go. Now as the iPad introduces dual core and other technology this is/will be changing.

No tablet will make a good camera until they can figure out a way to add optical zoom.

[Bob Hintze]

Dom,
I'm overwhelmed yet impressed! I'll stick w/my CTL 2go. Just had the screen replaced (under warranty) because I closed the tailgate on it. It has easily cut my 'admin' time to minutes.
Regards...

[Dominic Maricic]

Awesome, glad to hear that Bob. Make sure to post that in the CTL thread here on the forums. Some people have a hard time getting over the handwriting recognition hump and hearing the benefit from others is a big help.

Make sure to check out the new HIP text messaging widget posted in the website section

[Julian Benton]

Dominic,

I hope you are close to releasing a version for the iPad. My 2goPC is starting to have issues and I would like to just make the move to the iPad. If you have BETA software, I would be willing to buy an iPad to test it for you.

[Dominic Maricic]

Yup, we're getting close. Don't get the iPad yet as I'm hoping a iPad 3.0 comes out soon for the holidays with handwriting recognition.

Did you get the warranty on the CTL2Go?

[Julian Benton]

Just the regular warranty. It has been 2 years in any case and the resistive touchscreen is showing wear.

[Dominic Maricic]

Ahh, it's best if you have the screen protector on. Makes them last longer. They did just put their old 9" version up for sale for $199!

[Julian Benton]

After a Windows XP auto update over the weekend, my 2go Tablet touchscreen is completely unusable. Can I get an idea as to when the iPad version will be available so I can make a proper decision about to do next?

Thanks!

Julian

[Dominic Maricic]

Hi Julian,

What's going on with the 2Go, does it not start up?

Our main focus right now is the Android version with the iPad following close behind (we're working on both at once). The problem with the current iPad is still the lack of handwriting recognition though. Hopefully that will change with the iPad3.

[Julian Benton]

It starts up but if I touch the touchscreen, the curser jumps to the upper left corner and stays there and I need to restart. I also am no longer able to access the Quick controller to calibrate the touchscreen.

I guess I will see if the local computer store can fix it while I wait for the iPad version.

Julian

[Dominic Maricic]

Can you use the keyboard? Hit the Start button on it and navigate to the calibration screen.

[Julian Benton]

Did that. The calibration program doesn't respond correctly to all of the presses. If it wasn't for the fact that it worked perfectly the day before the update. I would think that the touchscreen was damaged. Taking it in tomorrow.

[Dominic Maricic]

Let me know how it goes!