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Aiming for the iPad only tripkit

Hi all,

I’m aiming to only bring my iPad on trips, this year it’s been OK, much thanks to Skydemon, but it only works as long as I’ve prepared and printed stuff at home (IFR plates as an example). The main problem so far is the totally havocked printing from the iPad.

Yesterday I upgraded my Parallels install at home on my MAC and also installed a new guestOS, Windows 8.1 and noticed the product Parallels Access. Say what you want about Windows 8.1 on a desktop, but it should favour access from an touch device such as the ipad. My hope is to get a working setup that allows remote access to my Win install from the iPad and the applications that I apparentely need.

Has anyone had any experience with Parallels Access or similar software? Or have you given up on the hope of using an iPad only and bought a small PC/MB Air?

Thanks
/M

Or have you given up on the hope of using an iPad only and bought a small PC/MB Air?

That’s me (given up). A 12" laptop (with winXP – I have some oddball software to run) does absolutely everything.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Martin, I think your problem is not the iPad, but the inferior software. If you run ForeFlight (alas US-only), then you really don’t need any paper in the cockpit anymore. Unfortunately I am not aware of anything even remotely as good for Europe.

172driver, absolutely correct. It’s a work-around.

What about backups?

The biggest problem with a paperless cockpit is that you need a credible backup.

The much publicised airline ops who moved to Ipads (to save carrying 10 tons or whatever of paper manuals) solve this with a second Ipad. Frankly, how many private pilots are going to buy two Ipads and maintain a mirrored configuration on them? I don’t know of a single one. Most people who have gone paperless have no backup. What most have is some sort of “hopefully viable” fallback which involves some effort e.g. a list of Eurocontrol waypoints in an email on their phone (and loading them into a handheld GPS as DCTs, in case of an electrical failure). Some have terminal chart PDFs on their phone, but flying a NP IAP in turbulence while trying to read the phone isn’t the best thing. It also means you need to remember to collect that email onto your phone before you get airborne….

I can see both sides of the argument, and printing is a hassle for the way many people have organised their life (especially if they have gone down the Apple IOS route), but printing does deliver a very very good in-cockpit data presentation which doesn’t need a backup and is totally sunlight readable. Then the “gadget” can be retained for unplanned diversions, which is fair enough.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

The iPad is already an extra device to accomplish the flight. The G430 (most often used) is the primary device to fly on. The iPad is primarily useful for plates. Moving maps and stuff like that are handy, but not necessary to complete the flight. If the iPad fails, I have an iPhone which contains another copy of SkyDemon so I have backup plates available in case I need them. It’s not so easy readable on a small screen, but in unlikely case of an iPad failure it’s doable. In my experience the iPad is a reliable tool. For people flying G1000 cockpits I really don’t see the need for an extra backup besides the iPad. The G1000 contains everything you need to complete the flight, including plates.

Bushpilot C208/C182
FMMI/EHRD, Madagascar

I for one do not use Windows (and Parallels) anymore on my Mac. It is just always a frustrating experience.

I use SKYDEMON on the iPad, plus JeppFD for approch charts if I need them, plus some weather and notam apps.From JeppFD I can print any chart without a problem, from SkyDemon I have not tried yet.

From JeppFD I can print any chart without a problem

What process do you use? Do you have an Airprint compatible printer, or some 3rd party printing solution?

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

I wouldnt just because there is no backup for an iPad only solution. I know things like SkyDemon and maybe one of the Jepp products integrate the moving map and the charts, but certainly in the case of SkyDemon, unless you have downloaded into the cache all the charts you need, then you might have problems if you divert somewhere and dont have a chart cached. I have maybe 95% faith in my iPad but you read of overheating or battery lifeline issues, so I will never have 100% faith.

And there is the idiot user sometimes (me), who accidentally uninstalled the whole product just before departure, when all I had meant to do was to kill the app so I could relaunch it and sort of an external GPS issue.

Peter, i didn’t want to buy a new printer so i bout the LANTRONIX XPrint Server, which is a little box connected to both the printer and the Network and transforms any (or most) printers to an Airprint printer.

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