I will happily admit that nerdiness is in my genes. A couple of weeks ago, while out to breakfast with my dad, he was showing me a new app he was using on his iPad to remote into his computer back at home (an doing some programming). I was blown away that it had all of the functionality of using a mouse and keyboard while remoting into your own computer. I was thinking about how great it would be to go on a trip and only haul my iPad to accomplish work things that needed to be done on the road. Then, suddenly my mind started swirling with all of the OTHER things I could do like scrapbook in Photoshop, tag photos in Lightroom, and so much more!
TeamViewer allows you to access your desktop (even if it is asleep or locked) from your tablet or smartphone (I don’t want to try and scrap on my iPhone though). With it, you have access to everything that is on your computer: programs, files, external harddrives, etc.
TeamViewer is Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, and Android compatible. It was really easy to set up, I just downloaded and installed the software from their site, and it walked me through everything. I downloaded the app and entered the code TeamViewer on my desktop gave me along with my login information that I had previously set up.
When I came home from visiting my parents, I downloaded TeamViewer to my laptop as well as my iPad. I scrapped one whole layout via TeamViewer (see my video below of me scrapping my very first layout on my iPad using TeamViewer), here it is:
Supplies used: Template from Star on Top by Amy Martin (collab with One Little Bird), kit is Little Miss Sunshine by Erica Zane, fonts are Lobster Pro and Fontologie Printing Primer
Some Tips For Scrapping On Your Tablet Using TeamViewer
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I had a folder of layouts with photos already placed in them that I had put together for the Album Builder post that still needed scrapping. This turned out to be very handy for scrapping using TeamViewer. (Anna is no longer selling her scripts in a store, but has said she will sell them if you contact her. Also see Katie’s post on Power Scrapping).
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At first, I tried to scrap with all of my usual programs running, I found it much better to close everything except PhotoShop (having Photoshop open on my computer before remoting in via TeamViewer worked best).
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If I was going to scrap more than one layout, I might have Lightroom open as well, so I can look for supplies. I got lucky on the layout in the video, I honestly had NO idea what I was going to use and the first kit I went to worked perfectly, as if it was planned.
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At first (in the video below) I had my iPad connected to an external keyboard via bluetooth. It actually caused greater problems with TeamViewer. Once I disconnected it (at the end of the video), I was able to easily use keyboard shortcuts via the TeamViewer interface. So I don’t recommend using an external keyboard.
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I remembered the tip of using File> Place to open a product and have it placed directly on the layout at the very end of the video. That would have saved TONS of time if I would have used it the whole way through.
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I wasn’t able to enter values in any of the boxes that allow it, I had to use the sliders. I’m not sure if it was because of the external keyboard or not, but I kind of think it wasn’t.
Here are some screenshots:
This is what the screen looked like on my iPad. Notice the keyboard button on the bottom right and the TeamViewer tab on the right side in the middle.
Here are the gestures you can use for various tasks (it shows this everytime you start the app):
To drag the plaid paper onto the template, I just tapped and dragged it over:
When I tap the keyboard button the above is what comes up. Each icon has a different menu it will bring up. The keyboard button gives us this:
To clip the paper layer to the shape layer below it, I can now tap on ctrl+alt and then tap G and voila! It’s clipped! (If you were using Photoshop Elements, you would only need to tap the ctrl button). Here’s what it looks like when ctrl and alt are selected:
You can see in the image above there is another keyboard button at the top of the menu. If you tap on that keyboard, this is the keyboard you will see:
Now, you can arrow to move stuff around, which is super helpful when scrapping on a tablet. I didn’t figure this out until I was almost done creating the layout in the video below.
To create the video below, I recorded my computer screen as I was scrapping on the iPad (if you are in email or a reader, you will need to come to the site to view the video). I don’t know of a way to record the screen on the iPad (outside of screenshots). But I think this does a great job as well. There is no audio because…well…it’s just not necessary. The layout took me just over an hour to create from start to finish. I sped the video up just a little, so it’s about 40 minutes long.
The video is me creating my first layout on the iPad using TeamViewer, so I do make some mistakes as I go. Hopefully, they will help you do a better job. It’s also my first time creating a layout from start to finish in CS6 and as I go through Character settings in the Character menu toward the end of the video, I was super excited with what I saw!! I can’t wait to start using it more!
I am really excited to think I can sit and tag photos while waiting for my kids to finish school or lessons. I also have the very perfect vision of sitting on vacation, by the pool, and scrapbooking on my iPad using TeamViewer to access my laptop back home. The other day, I was getting my hair done and got an email from Wendy about some files on the server that needed to be moved for my team. So, I hopped on TeamViewer and was able to move the files (mostly successfully) on my laptop that was back home. Now that I am getting used to the gestures and remembering to move the mouse to select and then tapping, instead of just tapping before moving the mouse; I’m really enjoying using the apps.
It is slightly slower than using the computer directly, but the portability is a really great tradeoff!
What do you think you might use TeamViewer for? Are you going to give it a try?
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I cannot thank you enough for this article. I was one of this people scrapping in low definition to get my scrap fix while waiting for the kids soccer practice to end and I’m so thrilled to have stumbled across this article. I can do everything I’ve always wanted to do and MORE! You’re a blessing!
I just wanted to thank you again. I can’t tell you how much I love this. Not just for scrapping but for everything. I am largely paperless and much of my life is in the cloud, but there are gaps. And this solution bridges nearly all of them. I have never been so productive. Honestly, I haven’t been this excited since I got my first iPad. Love it!
I like the idea of scrapping on my iPad. I previously tried and liked Splashtop2, so I wanted to also try Team Viewer since you said you could use it remotely even if the home PC was in sleep mode. Both apps worked good if my PC was running, but told me my home computer was not online when it went to sleep. Can anyone lead me to instructions on how to get the remote option to work? Nothing I tried would get me to an option to wake the PC, and I am hesitant to leave it running constantly. What am I missing?
When scrapping on an iPad, I found that it is definitely easiest to start with a template and pre-edited photos. (Like Steph did.) You could use Pic-Tap-Go, but when I tried it, it reduced the resolution size — so only good for small clipping masks. I suppose this makes sense that Totally Rad would only want it used for web photos so people couldn’t use it instead of Rad Lab.
Thank you so much Steph for keeping us informed of new possibilities!
(ps…. Love the podcast – I keep learning things every week. I even like to go through the old episodes because things that were over my head when broadcast often make sense to me now.)
OMG Steph, I am totally, totally blown away!!! I would’ve loved to maybe scrap simple layouts while killing time (I’m not much of a gamer) on my iPad Mini, and this looks perfect! Off to check TeamViewer!
Great post! I have used remote login before and am not a fan. Used to the speed of my iMac and the lage screen, seeing everything scaled on my iPad does not work for me. I get frustrated.
I purchased Photoshop Touch(new, not Photoshop Express)last week for iPad with lots of functionality, enough to work on photos or cards for PL. With layers, filters, effects etc. Really loving it. It’s super fast and comes with nice tutorials.
Pic-Tap-Go looks nice but I don’t like it either. I hate to wait between shots and just want to take a couple of shot and edit then later. Of course you could do this in Pic-Tap-Go but I have great fav’s apps, that do a lot more. Pic-Tap-Go doesn’t add anything imo.
Terrific post. I would love to see a follow up post in a few months on how things are going and how you are using it after a period of time. I have been kicking around Renee Pearson’s iScrap class and now this. It is crazy how in touch you are with your audience. Please keep up the great work!
I LOVE Renee’s class and have so much fun using Keynote. I just recently downloaded a huge bunch of free templates during an action and having a lot of fun with them.
It was cool to see that one of the designers was using Keynote as well for templates for PL. Now, if I could remember who it was, that would be great. Terrible brain fog.
I tried it out and very cool, would love to be able to tag while at sports events for my kids. One question, is the id always the same? Otherwise how would I know the id in order to log in if it changes all the time. Thanks!
You only have to enter that code the first time, after that, it’s only your username and password.
YAY!
Awesome, thanks! I tried it out last night and loved being able to tag and organize from my laptop or tablet.
OMG this is fabulous. I have been so frustrated because my pics are all on my desktop, and I want to tag all of my photos in Lightroom. I tried using a portable EHD but that was just too much work for me. This solution is perfect! Thanks
so totally awesome!! So exciting! I dont have an ipad but to be able to access stuff from my computer will be awesome! I had heard you could do that but never put much research in. So fun!!
Holy cats! I can’t wait to try this! My computer is tucked away in a corner of our house so this would be a nice way to work on layouts while hanging out with my family. Thanks for the post!
Mind blown! I can’t wait to try this!
LOL – Thanks!!
My laptop recently broke so I’ve no choice but to scrap on my ipad. I use Photoshop Touch and it doesn’t do a perfect job but it gets the job done. I have the 3rd generation ipad and for the most part it runs smoothly. It’ll get slow from time to time but that’s to be expected with an app that is handling 3,600 pixels. I usually only try and work with 8×8 or smaller.
I absolutely LOVE TDD….I’ve been wanting to scrap on a tablet and even took Renee Pearson’s ScrapIt class, but I had a hard time scrapping on my iPhone (the screen is just too small) and I had a cheapie Droid tablet. Between TDD’s Art Journaling posts and this, you are keeping your readers on top of exciting things and definitely get my vote for Blogspot of the Year!!! The monthly kits are the dessert of a dedicated team…HUGE THANK YOU!!
Leslie
This is awesome! I use remote login apps on the PC for work and tech support for distant family. But it never occurred to me to look for an iPad app to log into my own PC. I’m not primarily digi but my Project Life is hybrid with a lot of computer work. And I love the idea of being able to tag in LR in my spare time from anywhere. I am so doing this! Thanks!
I immediately set to downloading the software this morning and I am loving this. I especially like your idea of working on photos while not at home. Thanks for all the great info you guys share.
Steph, this is so cool! My husband just got an iPad, so I’m going to have to borrow it!
Cathy Zielske did a blog post this week about a photo filter app from Totally Rad called Pic-Tap-Go (which made me think of you — it’s like Rad Lab on your phone!), and she used another app called Reflector to do a screencast video of her using the Pic-Tap-Go app on her iPhone, which would have worked great for this post also. 
Here’s the URL for Cathy’s post:
http://cathyzielske.typepad.com/my_weblog/2013/03/i-choo-choose-you.html
Awesome!! Thank you!! I have such a hard time finding apps in the App Store since they changed it with iOS 6 I can’t even find apps I search on by exact name
I’ve received lots of emails about PicTapGo, which I downloaded, but I don’t love it so far. Surprising? I know! Surprised me too!
There are a number of companies that offer remote access programs and apps similar to this one. I have used Go to my PC and currently use Log Me In. They will both work in similar ways. I primarily use this for a different work related application and discovered that of course they would work for scrapping as well. They both work well. My only reason for changing from one to the other is because at the time I changed, Log Me In had an iPhone/iPad app and Go to my PC did not. They both have them now.
You are right, there are a lot of apps out there that do the same thing!
you don’t need to use this exact one to make it work. This is the one I shared because its the one I used 
I don’t have experience with any of the others.
I was already using LogMeIn for tech support on my mom’s computer. So I just setup my own computer in my account. This is awesome!
I can hear your intro music and then nothing. Can you check .
It talked about it in the post. The audio isn’t necessary. Who wants to listen to 40 minutes of me telling you exactly what I do on the screen? LOL I figured I would spare everyone that!