Chapter 2. Mind Your Media

In one respect, the iPad very much resembles a big iPod—to transfer media between the iPad and your iTunes library you must physically connect the iPad to the computer using the Dock connector cable. That seems like a quaint method of file transfer for a handheld device that connects to the network wirelessly. Fortunately, that’s just one approach. You can download content directly from the Internet to an app on the iPad, or you can stream media to your iPad, thus playing it directly from some other computer without copying it to the iPad’s memory.

Each method has its advantages. Streaming is preferred when you don’t have much storage to spare on the iPad, or when you’re looking for something new to hear or watch. However, you need a persistent network connection. In contrast, media downloaded to the iPad is always there, whether you’re on a network or not.