Ear Works 4 and iPad
First off, we love our iPhones in EWInc. Markus had it first and I got the bug too, it's a great little piece of mobile functionality.
We've used it with tons of apps, from messaging, online meetings and project management to personal work management, customer support and marketing campaigns.
Lately I've even tried remote access to one of my computers using TeamViewer personal edition. It works incredibly well considering the relatively small screen of the iPhone.
So technically, I was thinking, I can work in Ear Works 4 directly on my iPhone. Sure, there's a lot a pinching and scrolling involved but it's pretty cool!
I probably wouldn't use it in the clinic on regular basis, maybe just to check the schedule, but again, the schedule can be exported to both Outlook and iCal. Plus TeamViewer personal edition is free only for non-comercial use, to use it in the clinic the fair play dictates you should buy the $100 version. And just for accessing EW4 on the tiny screen, it can be a bit difficult to justify the expense.
But now there's Apple iPad with way more screen real estate than the iPhone. And there are better remote access solutions than TeamViewer. Many clinics running EW use now LogMeIn free to access the work computers remotely from home and that is free even for commercial use. The problem is, the web version of LogMeIn doesn't work on iPhone/iPad.
But, like the slogan says, "there's an App for that". It's called LogMeIn Ignition for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. It does the trick and it's cheaper than TeamViewer commercial edition.
Now on the iPad I can imagine running EW properly: recording and discussing the test results, taking case histories, do counselling and pretty much everything else EW4 does. There will still be a need for zooming and scrolling but it's a completely different story.
Here's what you'd need for it to work:
1. LogMeIn installed on an EW workstation in your clinic (it works even with EW3!)
2. an iPad connected to the internet (via WiFi ideally)
3. LogMeIn Ignition on the iPad
I haven't tested it yet, we didn't get our iPads here yet but soon I'll be able to confirm.
If you have an iPad around and you give this a try let me know how that went, I'm curious how if feels and what impressions that generated in the clinic.
It might make quite an impression on your patients!
Enjoy!
Florin
