Michal Ždanský Server 9to5Mac, specifically Mark Gurman already brought it last month some interesting insights regarding the upcoming iOS 8 operating system, which should be presented in less than three weeks at WWDC. The information comes directly from his own sources and has already proven to be true and accurate in most cases in the past. According to Gurman, iPads with the eighth version of iOS should receive a crucial feature that was first demonstrated by Microsoft Surface - the ability to work with two applications at the same time.
Multitasking on the Surface is one of the undeniable advantages that Microsoft's tablet has over the iPad, and in this regard, Redmond has attacked the competition several times in its advertisements. We'll lie, it's a feature that some of us envy Windows RT. Watching a video while taking notes, or typing while browsing the web would be useful in many situations. Currently, the iPad only allows full-screen apps, and the best option for working with multiple apps is to use the multi-finger gesture to switch apps.
iOS 8 is set to change that. According to Gurman's sources, iPad users will be able to work with two applications at once. At the same time, it should be easier to move files between them, i.e. using a simple drag from one window to another. The same should apply to text or images in documents. The XPC feature, which Gurman says Apple has been working on for some time, should also help with this. XPC works simply by app A telling the system, "I can upload images to the web", and when you want to share an image in app B, the option to upload it through app A appears in the menu.
However, implementing the display of two applications at once is more complicated than it seems at first glance. First of all, such multitasking represents huge demands on the processor and operating memory. Because of this, Apple would have to limit the feature to only newer machines that have at least 1 GB of RAM. This eliminates, for example, the first generation iPad mini. Quite likely, only iPads introduced last year would get such a function, as they have enough power in them. It should also be taken into account that the full-fledged running of two applications at the same time will have a significant impact on battery life.
Hardware complications aside, the problem still needs to be solved in software. Apple can't just put two apps next to each other in landscape mode, as the opening image suggests. Individual objects would be difficult to control. Server Ars Technica suggests that a feature in Xcode that's been around since iOS 6 could help - AutoLayout. Thanks to it, instead of the exact location of the elements, it is possible to set, for example, only the distance from the edges and thus make the application responsive, similar to how it is solved on the Android platform. But as some developers confirmed to us, almost no one uses this feature and there is a reason for that. This is because it significantly lacks optimization and can significantly slow down the application when used on more complex screens. It's best suited for preset-type screens, developer z told us Guided ways.
The second option is the presentation of a special display, i.e. a third orientation in addition to horizontal and vertical. The developer would have to adapt his application exactly to the given resolution, be it half the display or another dimension. Each application would thus have to have explicit support and it would not be possible to use unsupported applications immediately, which does not suit Apple very well. When it first introduced the iPad, it allowed iPhone apps to run in two zoom modes, making it possible to use all the apps available in the App Store. Of course, Apple can come up with a completely unconventional solution that would solve multitasking elegantly.
Another problem to solve is how to get the applications next to each other. It must be simple and intuitive enough to easily add or disconnect the second application. The concept video below offers one way, but it seems too geeky for even less tech-savvy users to use. So it will be interesting to see how Apple will argue with this feature, if it really does introduce it.
[youtube id=_H6g-UpsSi8 width=”620″ height=”360″]
It's sad that Apple is copying... e.g. Samsung has done this and it's called MultiView... e.g.
Samsung ... in the article it is written that it was first demonstrated by Microsoft Surface :-) in addition, the Samsung is a copy as a whole.
That's why I wrote "eg" twice... Samsung is so good at copying that Apple can't catch up with it, so Apple should consider where it's heading and return to its company values...
So according to you, since computers have been able to do this for a long time, suddenly someone reinvented the wheel? A tablet is still just a computer and it's only a matter of time who puts it there, when and why. In my opinion, the iPad doesn't lack that much in terms of mutigests, but it can be useful sometimes, and it will hopefully bring new possibilities and differentiation from the iPhone. But it's not as necessary as ControlCenter.
By Samsung you mean Android, right?
Apple doesn't copy, it just takes inspiration.
I don't know, but I never missed the second app. On the contrary, I consider the iPad to be an excellent tool precisely because I can fully concentrate on the one activity I am currently doing. For more complex activities where multiple applications are needed, I recommend working on a MacBook. I consider making one universal tool for everything a road to hell...
I kind of agree... I don't see much sense with two windows at the same time... rather, they should do a better job of marking the text and clicking to copy... I would also appreciate pinning the application to a fixed position in multitasking. I think that would be much more useful than two applications at once. And the problem with the developers would also disappear...
2 apps at once and blah blah blah blah blah blah…
I don't really understand why anyone thinks about it like this... When it has been working on the iPad for a long time, even if it is a tweek and a jailbreak is required.
Tweek Quasar can do it
http://youtu.be/5Q_DvfOOeJE
Although it is not elegant, it also works on the iPad 2. So it is definitely not a HW, but rather a SW solution.
but this is scary
On the contrary, I like it
Do you like how it is used? It's a horror. It's a much simpler gesture to swipe to the second app and I'll have it before I mess with the dual window setup. Two windows, yes, why not, but not like this. I can switch to Android straight away.
Yes, I can do that, I know, but it's still easier to drag and drop within one page than to copy and then move to another application and paste there. I use the company register on the website a lot and copy data from it to my contacts, and this would make my job a lot easier. So I like it. On a Mac, you also have more windows next to each other and it doesn't matter, and here it's just a little smaller monitor, right?
But of course two windows, why not, but it's a touch tablet with sensors for rotation and surely it can be done in a much more pleasant way than this one, pardon the pig. It's 2014, not 1995, to compare it with a computer, and there at least the magnetic function like Windows7 works.
The Netrstream program from Elgato in the iPad version has been able to watch TV and surf the Internet at the same time for about 2 years. But I almost never use it at the same time.
It shouldn't be difficult for existing applications, considering the universal applications for iPhone and iPad. If I put the iPad in landscape, then the application in portrait for iPad and portrait for iPhone will fit next to each other (it should also work in pixels). All that remains is to make an intuitive UI, and Apple can do that, we don't have to worry about that.