More Experimenting with Focus Modes and Home Screens
Yesterday, for the first time since getting my 2021 11-inch iPad Pro, I took it off the Magic Keyboard. I did so because I am experimenting with Focus Modes and dedicated Home Screens while in a Focus Mode.
I’ve been thinking about creating a Focus Mode that I could use when I want to read on my iPad Pro. I decided to implement the Personal Focus Mode for this “use case” and created a dedicated Home Screen that has 6 different widgets I can choose from.
Here is a description and pic of the set up...
Top Left-I have a large Apple News widget set to show me Top Stories
Next to the Apple News widget I have 2 Shortcuts widgets, one that opens Tech RSS feeds and another one that opens up Apple News so I can go to a few magazines I’m following.
Top Right-I have another large Apple News widget set to show me news just about Apple.
Bottom Left-I have a large Headlines widget that is focused on Tech.
Next to that I have another large Headlines widget that is focused on Music.
Personal Mode Home Screen
My reasons for this experimentation are simple. I want to know if creating this Focus Mode and Home Screen will make me want to read more on the iPad Pro? Right now most of the Internet reading I do is on my iPhone XR. I’m also curious about whether or not taking the iPad Pro off the Magic Keyboard to read will encourage me to use the Apple Pencil more as I like jotting notes down while I read.
To give this all a try I used the Shortcuts widget to open Apple News. From there I went to Rolling Stone magazine. One of the first things I noticed was how lightweight the iPad Pro felt in my hand. I’ve been so used to carrying it around in the Magic Keyboard I didn’t realize that so much of that weight was coming from the keyboard itself. The next thing I noticed was how nice it felt reading things on a bigger screen.
I did just get my yearly eye examination and the doctor was impressed that my prescription did not change and that my eyes were very healthy. That said, reading on the iPad Pro’s screen felt like I was being kind to my eyes. Ok, enough about how healthy I am, back to the experiment.
This particular issue of Rolling Stone includes the Hot Lists of the Summer. My chance to use the Apple Pencil and Quick Note feature came as I began to read about the magazine’s pick for Hot Band: Crown Lands. After reading about the band I opened a Quick Note, wrote a few things down, added a link, and went on reading. Very seamless, very comfortable, I could get used to this.
I’m dedicating some time later today to more reading and will look for moments to jot notes down. If this continues I may have just found my “use case,” at least one, for the Apple Pencil; which was a concern of mine earlier in the summer.
