Our Favorite iPad Apps

There’s something that can be said for all of the VPS.NET staff – we’re addicted to Apple products. Perhaps it’s their oh so sexy design, the superior build quality or their ease of use; whatever it is, if it’s Apple, we have to have it. We also know that some of our customers fall into the same boat us, being addicted to Apple, and requiring constant access to monitor their business. So, why not share some of our favorite apps?
iSSH – Definitely the favorite SSH client for use on the iPad, though it does come with a price tag of $9.99. The best part about it, is the easy to use cut and paste option. It sounds a little funny to be doing cut and pasting in SSH, but we’ve found it to be quite useful.
NiceTrace – Diagnosing network issues is a breeze with NiceTrace. It gives you constantly updating trace route information, allowing you see where any delays might be.
CamCard – We often find ourselves being the spotlight of conferences, having business cards literally thrown our way. It sometimes can get a little overwhelming. CamCard definitely makes it easy to keep track of business cards, having an easy to use scan utility, and it also exports to Excel files which is a big help. Things like the LinkedIn integration are very cool too.
Data Usage – The app doesn’t do much besides monitor your data usage, but lets not downplay the importance of that. Going above your monthly limits can be quite expensive. It has a number of notification methods that can be used to alert you when you reach pre-defined thresholds and if you go over your monthly limit.
ShoeBoxed – We’ve recommended this app before, but I can’t recommend it enough. I’m terrible at keeping track of receipts, making it quite difficult to get reimbursed for business expenses when away for conferences and meetings. ShoeBoxed is awesome, as all you need to do is scan in the receipt and it does the rest for you. It can even export to an excel spreadsheet, if you need it to. Fear Accounting no more!
Smart Keyboard – The biggest complaint we hear in the office on the iPad is the keyboard especially when being compared to Android. Smart Keyboard has the same great predictive text tools as Android, and at $1.99, it isn’t too much of a risk if the default keyboard annoys you.
Fuze Meeting – On the run yet have a meeting scheduled? Fuze Meeting is by far the best meeting app for the iPad. Not only are you able to attend meetings, but you can even contribute outside documents, like keynote presentations. If you’re real sly, you might be able to get way with attending a meeting while at the beach, without the boss knowing you’re not even at your desk.
Pulse – Burnout is awful; one of the easiest ways we avoid it is by scheduling a few breaks to read the news, rejuvenating ourselves a bit. Pulse is definitely the favorite reading tool, allowing you to bring any news source necessary, as long as they have a RSS feed. With sharing capabilities on Twitter and Facebook, and allowing you to save articles to Instapaper, it’s the office favorite.
There are many other great tools out there – feel free to share your own! You might even see us using them at the next opportunity.