I am seriously considering buying a 'new iPad'.
Apart from the usual music, movies, browsing etc I also want to use it for a specific business application :
I have moved into a new job role and the biggest part of my learning curve is learning all what has gone on in the past - especially the correspondence between ourselves, major vendor, partners and government authorities.
All the historical correspondence (1 page to 30 page pdf files) are available, sorted in folders / subfolders by country / project / company etc on my PC.
There are probably around 50 folders containing 900 files in total (500MB).

I have trialled pulling all the pdf files from one specific folder into iTunes (Add File to Library function) which worked successfully.
In iTunes, the 'Book' name is the file name and I can edit Author/Artist to a specific originator (company); Grouping to a specific project; Category/Genre to a specific country.

I then synced Books between my iPod Touch and PC. Using the iBooks app I have access to all the pdf files but when looking at the 'Library Bookshelf' I lose all the filename / Author/Artist, Grouping, Category/Genre so they are all pretty random.

What I need to know is what is the best app for the functions that I need :
1. manage the pdf files into a structure of folders / subfolders etc with visibility on the file names
2. open and read the pdf files with reasonably good refresh and page switching rate
3. allow me the minimum of file annotation - either highlighting or underlining sections - I would even be willing to forego this if 1 and 2 were covered.

I've read most of the threads which recommend GoodReader, iAnnotate, PDF Reader and others but they seem more applicable for books or a much smaller number of documents.

Any suggestions much appreciated.

Thanks

Ian MacK

Have just found the alternative display mode in iBooks on iPod Touch - can show in file list format that can sort by Bookshelf / Titles / Authors / Categories.
Not ideal but much better than Bookshelf mode ......

Both GoodReader and PDF Expert should be good for this.

I've come to prefer GoodReader for file management (handles a much wider variety of file types), and PDF Expert for it's PDF tools (not more or better, just easier in my opinion). Either will do this job. I don't know why you thought they were only good for a small number of files.

GoodReader offers only list style views of folders and files. PDF Expert gives you both, though it's not obvious at first. The icon/list and sorting options are hid until you give the view a quick downward pull.

Either app is a worthwhile purchase, and you'll find them useful far beyond what your current requirements.


Oh, and both of them will connect with a wide variety of online cloud and storage services/servers, including the common ones like: DropBox, Box, SurgarSync, FTP, SFTP, and WebDAV.

TwerpPoet

Thanks for the recommendations. A question that comes out of your response :
Will both Apps handle the same set of pdf files ? (or do I have to load them twice onto the iPad ??)

Thanks also for your comments regarding apps connecting with online clouds etc - but for me it's one small step at a time !

Ian MacK

No problem.

Yes, each app has its own local file storage, and to work on a PDF it must be local. Moving a file back and forth between the apps will require you to track versions carefully; something that will be easier if you decide to keep your documents synced online.

PDF expert has been prety good for me too. I'm still in school and use the highlight, tools, etc. a lot. I try to convert everything to PDF for simplicity,I've had a few issues with GoodReader, but I don't think it's that bad. I use DropBox and put everything digital on the iPad, I even put my textbooks on my ipad by using a company that scans my books for me and turns them to PDF. I don't remember life before the iPad.

I'm with twerppoet 100% - PDF Expert and GoodReader and my two apps of choice...

Hey H_Davis,

What's the name of the company that scans books that you used? I've seen a few.

I've used a few actually. 1dollarscan was the one that I was using recently, they seemed the most orgainzed. They scan other things I do believe but I used them for books.

Thanks for the info.