How to Fix iPadOS Multitasking : Take a Page from Windows 10?
I have been using the iPad since day 1 and have been an early believer in the platform. John Gruber unreleased a scathing rebuke of the current state of the iPad in 2020 that became the talk of the tech world today.
I use my iPad Pro every day, often for hours a day. I consider it the Imperial Shuttle to the Star Destroyer that is my MacBook Pro (home) and iMac (work). At Microsoft Ignite I ended up using it for 90% of my operations despite having my MacBook Pro with me, declaring to some coworkers it the perfect conference computer for me. I even brought a PS4 controller for Apple Arcade games and a Logitech MX Master for Remote Desktop scenarios, which did prove useful at points. iPadOS is in a weird state now, really in a weird twilight between iOS and a future, more distinctive operating system that we were promised with iPadOS.
In 2019, Apple finally broke it apart from iOS officially and introduced being able to put widgets on the home screen, gave us a more dense home screen layout for icons, updated the multitasking options with drag multitasking and a side-over mode that puts iPad apps into single-column iPhone-like mode, also added support for both Xbox/PS4 gaming controllers, and added proper support for USB devices such as external storage and cameras. In a lot of ways the iPad took its first steps in a long time towards becoming a “real” computer.
The more I think about it, the more I think perhaps we need something like Windows 10 and have a “tablet” mode and “desktop” mode in which users could toggle back and forth whenever a keyboard+mouse or trackpad device is attached. I think that could greatly simplify multitasking operations of they removed the split-screen multitasking gestures. Catalyst apps have shown us (imperfectly) what iPadOS apps running in floating windows could function like. I would keep the slide-over iPhone apps in tablet mode, but otherwise get ride of multi-app mode in tablet mode. Those wanting to have “true” multitasking could have floating windows, side-by-side applications, Expose gestures like the Mac…the full meal deal. MacOS and Windows are largely a similar experience because through years of evolution it was settled that how they are designed are good ways to use those form factors.
I think perhaps having a distinctive “tablet” mode by default on the iPad which a focus on single-apps like the iPad has traditionally done would be a better move than the awkward mess that they have right now. That way you do not overload the tablet experience on the baseline iPad, iPad mini, and iPad Pro when you are using it as a unitasking tablet, which I imagine how most people are using it. Heck, I could see that it could even open the door to using an iPad Pro with things like multiple displays. It would also give the larger 12.9" iPad a better reason for existing if you use it as more traditional computing device given its larger screen real estate, which is largely even on the best iPadOS apps. For those wanting to use the iPad as more of a ChromeOS or MacOS replacement, having floating windows would be more familiar, more capable, and I think easier to use.
-Hobie
Further Reading/Watching
iPad Introduction
