If your organization has personnel who need to share information on their computers during in-person meetings, (such as sales reps showing products while talking with prospective clients, or doctors showing diagrams while talking with patients), tablet computers may offer a good alternative to laptops. In a post at InformationWeek, Chris Murphy looks at the advantages of tablets in these scenarios.

The most obvious benefit is that laptops can be rather clunky to use as a display screen if you're not seated with people in the right kind of venue. "If I'm standing and talking with someone and need to crack open a laptop to show some data, it feels about as natural as a waiter using a toaster oven to serve a bagel," Murphy writes. "With an iPad, it's as natural as handing someone a plate."

The size of laptops can obstruct communication as well, he maintains. "When you're sitting across from someone, a laptop creates a visual wall, where the other person can't see what you're doing. Not a great atmosphere for building trust and opening communications," he writes.

For a counter opinion, Murphy includes some views from his readers. One network architect points out that if tablets aren't so useful  for creating content, then they're really made for one-way communication. "[W]ithout equal content creation power, it's not collaboration but rather pontification and exposition...About the only use an iPad has in business is to bring a copy of a presentation closer to the user, carry handout material etc."

For more:
- see Chris Murphy's post at InformationWeek

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