My Big iPad Complaint

The big thing that is keeping me from really using the ipad to it's fullest is the lack of google doc editing in Safari. I figured by now there would be an app that would allow for an elegant solution, but either that hasn't yet happened or I just don't know about it. With all that said, I was just running through tweets using Twitterific when I saw a tweet that linked to an open google doc. I was curious so I clicked it and Twitterific opened it in within its own browser. To my absolute shock, it remained editable. I couldn't invoke the onscreen keyboard, but was able to change formatting and see comments happening in real time ... So much more than can be done in mobile safari. It gives me hope and makes me wonder if I had my keyboard connected would it allow me to edit the document? When I can live edit google docs the iPad will be a much more viable solution for me.

Comments

[Jamie Oberdick]

That's sort of strange to me. Why wouldn't it be able to?

[Ellysa Cahoy]

Totally with you on this. I was in shock when I realized that Google Docs were only viewable on the iPad. That said, the fact that it is a little more locked down has helped me treat it more as a consumption device---for books, videos and more--and less as a functional computer. I kind of like it that way (for now, at least.)

[Acavender]

As I understand it, this is a problem with Google Docs, not the iPad. I've yet to be able to edit Google Docs in *any* mobile browser.

[Alan Levine]

I'm just downloading it, but word from a colleague is that Office2 Pro does what you need
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id364361728?mt=8

[Cole Camplese]

I am interested in the thinking that at the moment you may be enjoying not being able to do normal work on the iPad. I find myself being able to do about 90% of my work here and have found myself doing less work at home because I am using the iPad. I still crank through a ton of email on it, but stay away from interacting with quite a bit of stuff because of the lack of google doc integration. I think I am liking the balance it affords as well. But at the end of the day, I will eventually need full editing in google docs if I am going to really take advantage of the iPad in a more complete way

[Rob Porter]

I wonder if opera works?

[Joe Fahs]

Hi Cole,

I really like the pop-up browser within Twitterific for iPad and hope that Apple will include a similar tool that will bring up a note-taking utility within any app. Twitterific's browser and Safari Desktop work the same when editing a Google Doc document - selecting and formatting as you mentioned but no virtual keyboard and the browser is not supporting copy-paste from other apps.

This link http://developer.apple.com/safari/library/technotes/tn2010/tn2262.html explains the lack of ContentEditable support, which apparently is required for editing Google rich text documents. Hopefully Apple and Google will work together to provide editing with in Safari given the high demand by their mutual customers.

Joe