Document annotation workflow - tips?

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Level 1

8 points

Document annotation workflow - tips?

Hi,

I am trying to figure out a good document/annotation workflow but have yet to find the solution. Here's what I would like to do:

Open and read PDFs, PowerPoint and Word documents
Annotate the documents with Apple Pencil
Save the documents in one single place
Open the annotated documents, potentially add more annotations and save

Any idea how to accomplish this? I have a range of apps, including Microsoft Office apps iAnnotate, iBooks etc, But the biggest issue is to find one place where I could store it all without loads of workarounds (i typically don't remember whether they are word doc, PPT or PDFs when it is time to open the file and recall ny notes).

Best,

Fredrik

Posted on Nov 22, 2015 8:56 AM

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Answer 1

rccharles

Level 6

12,957 points

Nov 22, 2015 12:04 PM in response to fredrikb81

GoodReader

-- With GoodReader on your iPad/iPhone, you can read virtually anything, anywhere: books, movies, maps, pictures.

-- sync with Dropbox, OneDrive, SugarSync and any WebDAV, AFP, SMB, FTP or SFTP server

-- The types of annotations that can be created and edited in GoodReader include typewriter text boxes, popup comments ("sticky notes"), text highlights, freehand drawings, lines, arrows, rectangles, ovals, cloudy shapes, text underlines, strikeouts, text insertion marks.

GoodReader not only supports massive PDF and TXT files, but also handles the most popular file types:

MS Office - .doc, .ppt., .xls
iWork
HTML and Safari webarchives
High resolution images
ZIP and RAR archives
Even audio and video!

http://www.goodiware.com/

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Answer 2

fredrikb81 Author

Level 1

8 points

Nov 23, 2015 12:58 AM in response to rccharles

Hello

Yes, I have seen GoodReader but it does mot handle office documents properly as far as I can see? It opens them up in the same crappy preview format as when they are opened in Mail - i.e the formating, tables etc are all messed up.

Any other options?

Thanks

Fredrik

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Answer 3

fredrikb81 Author

Level 1

8 points

Nov 23, 2015 1:59 AM in response to fredrikb81

I Find it really odd that there is no good solution to this. I get emailed documents in various formats for meetings (word, ppt, excel, pdf) and I need a workflow where i can pick these up, make some notes on them and then save them locally so that i can access them at the meeting. No cloud storage as it is highly confodential material.

Seems like there is no way to do this? Is the best option maybe going for a good pdf annotatiom software, and then do the rest in the office apps?

Converting all documents to pdf would also do the trick but there seems to be no simple way of doing this either? The office applications does not allow for PDF export, there is no "print to pdf"-solution available? Wow, they are really making hard to use the ipad for work, even if uou have no need of actually producing stuff on it..

Am I missing something?

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Answer 4

rccharles

Level 6

12,957 points

Nov 23, 2015 12:25 PM in response to fredrikb81

There are other all-in-one apps around.

FileExplorer

at least you will have one place to look, if you forget what type of file they are. I read that Apple has/will implement some more app to app communications. Perhaps this will improve.

For the files the app doesn't display well, you can export them to another app.

tap on export icon

tap on open in another app

tap on app.

It opens in the other app. Great.

downside. every time you open in the other app. the file is copied to the other app. you need to close out the file. need to select delete.

Maybe you want to get MS Office on your ipad.

R

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