VMWare View & iPad Trackpad Display

[cbarria]

I think the client would be much more useful if we could have the following features implemented:

• Ability to hide the trackpad and use the entire iPad display like Citrix does.
• Ability to convert the iPad to a trackpad when connected to an external display. That is, replace the screen with a large trackpad allowing for all the features and gestures available on Apple's standard trackpad.
• Connect to an actual bluetooth trackpad (wishful thinking) 😉

How feasible would it be to export the display at a 1920x1080 resolution?

[Datanuts]

I have had the same exact reservations regarding using my iPad 1 to replace a dssktop or laptop. I wanted to use my ipad 1 like a workstation but lovely apple locks out the mouse abilities. So you now have a couple options available to you:

1) Buy yourself a VGA adapter for the ipad, connect it to a monitor, use a bluetooth keyboard and a stylis.

2) Buy yourself a VGA adapter for your iPad, jailbreak your iPad, open Cydia and download BTStack keyboard ($5.00, I know Jailbreakers like myself hate paying for apps, but I tried the cracked version I fould of this and it didn't work. Trust me, the $5.00 is worth it.) Download BTStack mouse (free) Backgrounder (free) which you need to make it work correctly. This should give you the freedom to use the iPad like a workstation. However, the downside.... BTStack mouse works great on its own but it will disable the onboard bluetooth rendering your keyboard useless. That's where BTStack Keyboard comes in. Here's the rub; since both apps are non-apple sanctioned programs, there are issues. The first one you'll notice is, if using a nice folio keyboard, none of the ipad buttons work. To solve that, get a three button mouse and configure your other buttons to handle ipad jestures. The another issue is, the onboard keyboard pops up every time and if you close it, you can't type on the BT keyboard. The biggest issue by far is for some reason, when the ipad goes into sleep mode, the keyboard disconnects and you have to disconnect the mouse through the BTStack mouse software, turn the mouse and keyboard power off, then follow the sync up procedure again. Keyboard first, then mouse. This procedure gets very tiresome so I wouldn't recommend it.

3) My personal favorite, buy an iPad docking station:

http://www.buyincoins.com/details/multi-function-docking-hdmi-usb-vga-ypbpr-sd-ms-tf-card-reader-ipa... (about $71) then buy an ipad extender cable:

http://www.buyincoins.com/details/dock-extension-cable-for-apple-ipod-iphone-2g-3g-3gs-product-1341.... ($2) because the [ipad 1 and 2] will be in portrait mode otherwise. The dock had HDMI out, VGA out, powered USB out, and a number of other ports. So you need to plug in a monitor, a regular USB keyboard (which is completely supported but apple will deny it! {using the standard USB camera adapter won't support a keyboard because it draws power from USB and the iPad1 or 2 doesn't supply enough juice. But with a powered dock or USB hub, you're all set}).  You'll need to jailbreak your [ipad 1 and 2] to Install the BTStack mouse (which works flawlessly by the way).

Lastly, in order to mirror your jailbroken ipad1 (iPad 2 supports this natively) to the monitor properly, you need to follow this procedure:

http://www.iphoneheat.com/2011/04/enable-video-mirroring-on-ipad-1-guide

If you don't follow the above link, you won't be able to see video broadcasts on your monitor.

So if you decided number 3, you will have a perfectly functional ipad workstation with a full size monitor, USB keyboard and bluetooth mouse.

Happy remote computing!

[Datanuts]

I wanted to revise this explanation for all who are interested. After purchasing all the goodies described in this post, and trying to put them into practice, I have a bunch of issues with it. The first is, when connecting the ipad 1 to the multipurpose dock, I used the display out app I bought and downloaded from Cydia but no matter what I did, the resolution was terrible on the display. I tried several different monitors with the same result... The big negative about the dock is the fact that you are stuck in portrait mode unless you tilt the whole mess sideways, (which is fine except for the fact that the dock is not designed to lay like that and easily comes loose). I purchased a 30 pin extender cable for the ipad and guess what I found out??!!! It works for everything except.... for .... you guessed it.... Video! The video out software works great other than for the poor resolution.... I have to think that the ipad 2 would fair much better in this scenerio, however I don't own one.

The good thing about this dock is the fact that you can plug in any USB keyboard to it. That, in combination with the btstack mouse app (free on cydia) and an "Apple" bluetooth mouse (I purchased a 3 button bluetooth mouse on ebay for 10 bucks that worked perfectly on my PC, and Android, but not the ipad), the Apple Magic mouse works great with the ipad1. The big problem with that is, only 1 button and jestures don't work!

Using the combination described above, you can sort of simulate a workstation but keep in mind, that you still have to manually press the home button on the iPad to get out of programs. It becomes very cumbersome...

I would love to hear other stories from people with better luck than me. I have found that my Asus Transformer Android Tablet works better as a hybrid tablet/workstation. I don't want to give up on the iPad though.