email us at amarts@artifact3.com

Name: Amin Marts. No worries if you mispronounce the first name, I’ll correct you.

What I’m interested in: Simply, finding solutions for problems, excuse me, challenges.

What I bring to the table: Big picture thinking. Ruthless execution. The ability to distill complex topics into bite-sized and easy to digest contextual stories.

Turn On’s: Smart design. Simple solutions to complex problems. Billboards that make me stop, think, and take a picture to share with you. Jargon. Most of all, flowy singletrack.

Turn Off’s: Jargon. Overly complex solutions that don’t scale. Ambiguous messages. Unintelligible handwriting. Skiers who wear Starter jackets.

My Favorite Tools: iPad, Keynote, Mindmeister, DropBox, old skool whiteboards, OmniFocus, Glenn Beck.

Things I (admit) I read: HBR, Economist, anything Seth Godin writes, WSJ, on occasion the International Herald, when feeling snarky The New Yorker.

January’s Wish: To lose the twang I’ve developed from watching too much CMT during Christmas.

Best way to contact me: Through my twitter or email. I’m easy to find.

Posts Tagged ‘evernote’

03.26.2011

Backup Your iPad….or not

In a recent meeting I was asked,

“How do you backup data created on your iPad?”

It’s a great question that isn’t asked often enough. Much like Web 2.0 collaboration apps, adoption of tablets, namely the iPad has been driven by the enduser first and the business second. Lately, conversations surrounding how to protect data on the iPad have centered on application security more so than insuring the recoverability of data created on the device. The reasons for this stem from the device’s architecture, which dictates that (most) applications have their own silo’d file space. This presents a road block for any backup agent since it would need access to this protected file space to backup a file or subset of files. Following suit, the most efficient means for extracting the target data would be over a private wireless network or over the Internet. Not impossible however the native backup functionality of iTunes backs up the base OS and your customized settings. Second, most applications designed for the iPad have native sync capabilities.

Enterprises should evaluate off-the-shelf applications for their ability to customize the sync location. Two evaluator’s questions should be:

  • Where is the default sync location?
  • Is the location configureable?

More times than not the sync location is either the cloud or the desktop where the full client resides. My needs are hardly enterprise class but I’ve settled on using Dropbox to make available and synchronize documents between my desktop (which I protect with Mozy) and my iPad. I also use Evernote for note taking and it syncs to the cloud, which give me access to my notes via the iPad app, the desktop client or through a browser. Regardless of location or device I’m able to access my documents and notes. All I need is an Internet connection.

Posted by on 03.26.2011 at 4:54pm   Tags: , , , ,
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01.18.2011

iPad: Apps To Get You Started

I recently added an iPad to my quiver of solo-preneur  tools. The thought process behind the purchase was simple. I needed a tool that would allow me to both, take notes and display ideas to small groups. Previously sharing complex ideas required a trek to the whiteboard or a slide deck. Now I can easily share slides I’ve previously created then shift back to note taking mode without disrupting the flow of the meeting with an impromptu trip to the whiteboard and without hiding behind a laptop screen.

The beauty of the iPad is its broad ecosystem of supportive applications. The list seems endless but there’s a hot few you should certainly consider if you’re keen on making the most of your iPad.

Dropbox:

Free if you require under 2GB of storage. The use case is simple. You have files that you need access to regardless of your location or device (iPad, iPhone, laptop). More likely than not you’re going to want to share those files with friends and business partners as well. Dropbox enables this with a set of simple to install and use clients that work on all of your devices.

Keynote:

You know it, I know it, everyone knows it. The “PowerPoint” like linear presentation sucks, but it’s integral to sharing ideas with your peers. Keynote is a functional $9.99 substitution that turns the iPad in a presentation machine. The iPad app version lacks some font support in addition to certain animation combinations. What this means; keep you presentations simple. Presenting from an iPad at a conference table is different that standing in-front of a room.

Evernote:

Free. Evernote, provides me a medium to capture notes offline and synchronize them with all of my devices (iPad, iPhone, laptop). Additionally, Evernote has a huge ecosystem of companies who have built applications that take advantage of Evernote’s baseline functionality (multi-device synchronization).

Posted by on 01.18.2011 at 8:00am   Tags: , , , ,
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