CMU School of Drama


Monday, March 21, 2011

Autodesk Desktop Applications on my iPad

Between the Lines: "I thought I would have some fun with my iPad (1st gen) and use it to get to the information and applications on my Windows laptop. I tried the GoToMyPC service 30 day free trial and installed it on my Windows 7 based laptop and then installed the free GoToMyPC iPad app.

3 comments:

Matt said...

I wondered about potential applications of the ipad to the world of technical theater. The author is experimenting with the ipad's potential to be a PC away from your PC. And with Lightwright on iPad I wonder if there's drafting potential. Or at least viewing potential. Perhaps the ipad could be used for install. Have all your drawings with different views of the actual physical set you are installing. But I'm not sure. There's certain features of paper that can't compete with an ipad: if you drop it from tall scenery it won't break and if it does break you may have lost all your sketches and notes but you can print another one.
Very interested to see where this goes.

Charles said...

I'll echo some of Matt's comments here. The future of technology vs paper in the entertainment industry is certainly going to be something to keep an eye on. I was interested that the ME on the show I ALDed this winter would complete all work notes I sent out from the PDF in his email, on his iPhone. No need to boot up a computer or print anything off. That being said, the iPhone is easy to slip into a pocket and keep safe... Perhaps not so much for the iPad.

I guess the advantages are that it's easier to update things, and stay on the same version as everyone else... and If you need a document you don't have infront of you, it's a few clicks away. I suppose maybe the other best thing about it is keeping all the paperwork updated. What with Dropbox, and LW5, and VW2011 it can sync paperwork easily with live data exchange. So not writing notes on paper first is kinda nice.

david p said...

I agree with both Matt and Charles. With all of the applications the iPad currently has in the technical theatre world, it's only a matter of time until a drafting program becomes possible. Perhaps not one so complicated as AutoCAD, though. With all of the applications the iPad has for lighting control, sound design, automation, and general operation of equipment, it seems natural that the next step would be CAD. Matt brings up a great point about dropping the iPad from the top of an Alice tower, though...