How to turn your iPad into a notebook

One of the easiest ways to get "desktop-like" productivity out of your iPad is to access your PC's full suite of apps and processing grunt through it. Over a decent network connection like Telstra Next G, or Wi-Fi, it's surprisingly snappy.

TeamViewer HD app for iPad (free) provides VNC-style screen-sharing with some clever twists. You run a small TeamViewer software agent on the computer at all times, and, much like Skype, it avoids the issue of having to know your home internet connection's IP address and configure your router's port forwarding to allow the VNC traffic.
 
After a few initial set-up steps, you can connect to your PC at any time with a couple of taps on the iPad's screen.

Setting up TeamViewer

You need to install the TeamViewer Host software on your PC/Mac, not the standard TeamViewer app. This makes your machine available at all times rather than needing someone to be there to start the session. Grab it here.

STEP 1
When you install the TeamViewer Host app, it will ask you to create a password for access to your computer. Make it a good one for obvious reasons.
 
STEP 2
Open the TeamViewer Host app (right click on the taskbar icon, or click on the Mac menu bar icon) and select "show status dialogue". It'll give you an ID number for your computer, which will stay the same permanently.
 
STEP 3
On the iPad app, click on the 'partner list' tab, and sign up for a TeamViewer user account. This is totally separate to the ID/password you just created on your computer - this account keeps a list of one or more TeamViewer Host IDs and passwords (in case you have multiple computers you want to control).

STEP 4
Once you've created the user account, you need to log in and add an entry for your PC, using the ID number and password you created earlier in step 1 & 2. In the ‘Partner List’ tab, click the ‘+’ sign, then click the picture of the computer monitor with a blue screen. It should then show a panel that allows you to enter an ID number and password.

Making the connection

Once you've created the entry in TeamViewer HD for your computer, you can make the connection.
 
Controlling the PC is easy: you drag your finger to move the remote mouse pointer, and tap the screen to click the mouse button (so, to be clear, it's a simulated mouse pointer interface, not a direct-touch interface like iPad native apps).

Right clicks are available via a two-finger tap on the touchscreen. You can even drag and drop, by double-tapping a single finger and dragging.

Mouse wheels are simulated by dragging two fingers, and you can zoom in and out of the screen using the standard iPad pinch/expand gesture.

It even has multiple monitor support - you shake the iPad to switch monitors. You can watch videos and use Flash web sites, but of course, the smoothness of the updating is dependent on how much bandwidth is available on your connection. There's no support for sound.

If you will be using your iPad to access a PC remotely on long commutes, it's worth investing in a Bluetooth keyboard. Avoid the official Apple keyboard dock, as it only allows you to use the iPad in portrait mode, which isn't ideal for screen sharing with landscape-orientation displays.