Apple iPad - ideal aviation companion?
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I cannot confirm it directly but nowadays if you buy Jeppview 3, you get (according to what you paid for) both IFR and VFR plates all in the one product.
Jepp's Ipad plate database viewer (which is all it is) should be able to display all this stuff. And the text pages too.
But you do have to pay for all this. If e.g. you bought just the UK IFR plates then you won't AFAIK get the VFR plates too.
I am from Prague too
Jepp's Ipad plate database viewer (which is all it is) should be able to display all this stuff. And the text pages too.
But you do have to pay for all this. If e.g. you bought just the UK IFR plates then you won't AFAIK get the VFR plates too.
I am from Prague too
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With the new Bad Elf GPS attached the Foreflight on the Ipad is becoming a serious georeferencing tool. I'm going to install a bracket in the airplane and have it as my main GPS. It has all you could ask for, plus it gets updated every time you take it home and charge it. Can't beat that.
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gyrotyro,
Interesting. I was looking at that last night. Hopefully an iPad is on its way for my upcoming birthday - not buying it for flying, primarily, but on the other hand Lowrance have just pulled the plug on any future updates for my Airmap 1000c, and I see that RAM make an iPad mount which will work with my existing RAM yoke and sucker mounts...
I think I'll take it flying and see what I think of the viewability, especially now that a proper external GPS is available.
Tim
Interesting. I was looking at that last night. Hopefully an iPad is on its way for my upcoming birthday - not buying it for flying, primarily, but on the other hand Lowrance have just pulled the plug on any future updates for my Airmap 1000c, and I see that RAM make an iPad mount which will work with my existing RAM yoke and sucker mounts...
I think I'll take it flying and see what I think of the viewability, especially now that a proper external GPS is available.
Tim
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There is apparently a small range of HP printers which Apple's software supports from the Ipad.
It's a crap situation really but that is what you get if you choose to become a fully contributing member of the Church of Jobs
The next best thing is to print to a PDF (for which I gather there are 3rd party add-ons) and email that to somebody who has a normal printer.
Same issues with the Iphone, apparently. We have one here and I did get some 3rd party add-on printing over wifi (Altamail I think it was; I replaced the crappy built in email client with it) but the quality was very poor. And it worked only if the said printer (which could be any of many types) was attached to a PC running the Altamail print server program. This is done in corporate application areas but if you are a travelling pilot then obviously the printer which you have available won't have this server available.
It's a crap situation really but that is what you get if you choose to become a fully contributing member of the Church of Jobs
The next best thing is to print to a PDF (for which I gather there are 3rd party add-ons) and email that to somebody who has a normal printer.
Same issues with the Iphone, apparently. We have one here and I did get some 3rd party add-on printing over wifi (Altamail I think it was; I replaced the crappy built in email client with it) but the quality was very poor. And it worked only if the said printer (which could be any of many types) was attached to a PC running the Altamail print server program. This is done in corporate application areas but if you are a travelling pilot then obviously the printer which you have available won't have this server available.
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The Jeppesen plate viewer form the iPad does not support printing so it does not matter how many printers support air print.....
The chart viewer is meant to be used as a cockpit companion not as a desktop replacement for printing plates.
As for printing from the iPad there are a number of mac and pc applications that share any printer with the air print client. The app still needs to be printing enabled though.
The chart viewer is meant to be used as a cockpit companion not as a desktop replacement for printing plates.
As for printing from the iPad there are a number of mac and pc applications that share any printer with the air print client. The app still needs to be printing enabled though.
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The trouble with this business (IT in aviation) is that there is any number of "90%" solutions but nothing that actually works fully.
If you cannot print, then you have just about two options for the cockpit: (1) carry a second Ipad (because any electronic device can just stop working) and (2) print all you can at home before the trip and rely on the Ipad for unplanned diversions only.
To fly with just an Ipad for all your approach plates etc is just nuts.
And to fly with two of them means looking after two of them, charging them, etc. And if it can't print, you have to fly with 2 of them, else you still need an IBM compatible PC running windoze back home on which to run Jeppview from which you can print...
This technology has some way to go, but the issue of the failure of the display device will obviously never be side-stepped merely electronically.
I stay with printed plates, very simple, very sunlight readable
, and use an old windoze tablet on which I can display any number of others, plus run all kinds of other apps, and of course printing works as it should.
If you cannot print, then you have just about two options for the cockpit: (1) carry a second Ipad (because any electronic device can just stop working) and (2) print all you can at home before the trip and rely on the Ipad for unplanned diversions only.
To fly with just an Ipad for all your approach plates etc is just nuts.
And to fly with two of them means looking after two of them, charging them, etc. And if it can't print, you have to fly with 2 of them, else you still need an IBM compatible PC running windoze back home on which to run Jeppview from which you can print...
This technology has some way to go, but the issue of the failure of the display device will obviously never be side-stepped merely electronically.
I stay with printed plates, very simple, very sunlight readable
, and use an old windoze tablet on which I can display any number of others, plus run all kinds of other apps, and of course printing works as it should.
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Thanks for the informed replies- shame about the lack of printing capability. Will have to keep a 'normal' laptop current to print off the paper plates to remain legal- was hoping to do away with that if I went the iPad route.
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I think a combination of the iPad and the Kindle is probably a good way to go. Kindle would handle all your plates and is superb in sunlight. And the charge lasts forever. The iPad can deal with all else.
But frankly, having two iPads is probably not a bad idea. Certainly cheaper than any other option. With Foreflight and Bad Elf external GPS you have a serious tool at your hand for less money than even the most basic aviation audio panel would cost.
But frankly, having two iPads is probably not a bad idea. Certainly cheaper than any other option. With Foreflight and Bad Elf external GPS you have a serious tool at your hand for less money than even the most basic aviation audio panel would cost.
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Apple has only just begun with AirPrint (wireless printing). Just like with AirPlay (wireless transfer of music, photo and film to an apple TV) it is reasonable to expect this technology to develop over the next year or so, at the same time more AirPrint printers will come available.
Of course it could be that an apps provider does not wish to incorporate the facility, but that has nothing to do with Apple...
Of course it could be that an apps provider does not wish to incorporate the facility, but that has nothing to do with Apple...
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Will have to keep a 'normal' laptop current to print off the paper plates to remain legal
They would be a little pushed to introduce such a law because it would play into the hands of certain copyright holders, and that would likely be illegal under EU law.
Kindle would handle all your plates and is superb in sunlight
The only way to get that functionality is to run some processing on the list of files which generates the tags on which the Kindle "runs". You still have to avoid having 2 or more PDFs of the same name, but this has been done by some commercial apps. It's a real bodge though.
And if you are going to store just a small number of plates, you may as well print them out... and then you don't have to worry about keeping the thing charged which usually means taking it to a hotel.
One can keep denying this but a windows tablet would offer most things that are needed. I was hoping that the Ipad would stimulate these but instead most/all of the new ones being developed are running Android, which in turn makes them as useful for aviation as a chocolate teapot. It makes them work as a pure display device, which is OK if that's all you want, but since none of them have a sunlight readable screen you may as well buy the Ipad which is at least quite light and thin and isn't sunlight readable either.
Like I say this game has some way to go, but there is no indication that consumer products will ever have decent sunlight readable LCDs. It's just not a priority, and is not likely to be all the time the prime application is multimedia.
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At the behest of the UK CAA we certainly do have a requirement to have paper charts onboard (they have only just conceded that self printed are acceptable- before that original Jepp only).
A real shame that you can't print as we will either have to go for Class 1 EFB approval (which by the uk CAA present requirements will be tough) or stick to our present system.
A real shame that you can't print as we will either have to go for Class 1 EFB approval (which by the uk CAA present requirements will be tough) or stick to our present system.
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What about downloading the IAP charts from the AIP website to the ipad/iphone, which are viewable in ibooks. Then use an app like print magic to print to any wifi enabled printer?
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Apple have a basic problem with printing from their 'phones' (Iphone/Ipad) because when you are printing you need to have a printer driver within the O/S. M$ solved this by having loads of drivers, plus most printers come with a windoze driver, but if you don't have a driver within the O/S then you are back to the old MS-DOS/ CP/M situation where each app had to have its own set of printer drivers. It's not easy for Apple to deliver generic windoze-like printing which will 'just work' to any printer you happen to come across when travelling. For starters that printer needs to connect to the phone somehow (obviously) and most printers you see in say hotels are not going to be networked and shared over wifi. The best Apple are going to achieve is to make it work with a very small range of printers, and the printer will need to be a network printer configured in a manner which you are unlikely to get when travelling - because the printer doesn't belong to you.
The best generic thing would be decent printing to an A4 PDF which you then email to somebody.
The best generic thing would be decent printing to an A4 PDF which you then email to somebody.
Last edited by IO540; 9th Apr 2011 at 21:17.
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No you don't. There are a number of apps that allow print sharing to be done on mac and pc. I have a utility on my macs at home that allows me to share the printers and print from air print on the iPad. This requires no drivers. We also have a similar thing installed at work on the win doze networks that does the same thing.
There are also printing apps for the iPad. What air print enabled printers do specifically is allow direct printing from an apple device without server intervention. Air print is not an apple specific protocol but one being rolled out industry wide that apple have signed up to. So expect to see much wider adoption in the future. In the meantime as early adopters we have to work with what we have!
There are also printing apps for the iPad. What air print enabled printers do specifically is allow direct printing from an apple device without server intervention. Air print is not an apple specific protocol but one being rolled out industry wide that apple have signed up to. So expect to see much wider adoption in the future. In the meantime as early adopters we have to work with what we have!