The Indispensible Device

Published Date

If there is one electronic device that I cannot do without these days, it is my IPad. To be sure, my PC desktop, my IPod, my laptop, my TracFone, and my landline phone all have their place and their importance, but it is the IPad that is most critical to what I do. This is especially so now that I have the use of only one eye.
As regular readers of my work know, reading is a personally and professionally important part of my day. For me these days, that is most easily done on the IPad, where the lighted screen and the ability to enlarge the text as needed make that reading so much easier. The one drawback is that many of the books that I would like to read and to have as reference are not available in editions that I can download to the IPad. Where there is a space to tell the publishers that I would like to have their book for reading devices, I do. But to date there has been little progress made. Not enough call for what I read, I guess. Many magazines can also be had in on-line editions, and a few of those are also on my IPad. Again, much easier for me to read these days than are the print editions.
I am able to download the photographs I take quite easily onto my lightweight companion and, currently, photographs of recent visits to Africa and Alaska offer pleasant memories of those two journeys. For the photographer, the easily carried IPad provides a wonderful showcase for his or her work. Being able to carry a copy of the user's guide so easily is handy, too, as are the many aps that are available for post-processing the photos.
Apps of word games are also to be found on my slender sidekick, providing me with hours of pleasing and educational entertainment. Games of violence and destruction do not have place on my screen. There is enough of that going on in the real world. No need for it to be glorified in some on-screen game.
Through downloading apps, many of which are free or low in cost, I have access to newspapers both domestic and foreign. These make for a great way to get to have a feeling for what others around the country and the world think about many of the same issues that daily confront us in our own backyards. Understanding others is essential to any useful dialogue.
There are language learning apps, also. Right now, because my wife and I will be traveling to Germany and a cruise on the Elbe River later this year, I am using such an app to learn some basic German. It's always nice to be able to say a few words in the language of the country to which one is traveling. Natives of those countries do appreciate that you cared enough to make the effort.
There are a couple of writing apps on my daily companion, also. These are where the articles that you read often have their origins. Because the device's built-in keyboard can be laborious to use – at least for my fingers – I often take a specially-designed-for-the-device separate keyboard with me to make the work easier.
Others undoubtedly use aspects of the IPad's capabilities that I don't or haven't yet discovered.
And, no, I am not trying to sell anyone on IPads. As with all devices, it has its limitations, and these can be frustrating at times. You do have to be near Wi-Fi connections to use many of its apps. It's just that the size of the device, its easily read display. and its myriad capabilities have found a legitimate place in my life these days. I don't leave home without it.
(Ithaca Bound is the pen name of Dick Conway. His e-mail address is: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .)