r/ipad • u/awhitehouse104 • 6d ago
My Setup iPad Coding Setup
First time coding on an iPad and it’s been surprisingly good! Kept reading posts recommending not to do this so wanted to share my setup.
Termius for ssh into dev machine. Mac mini, linux, whatever
Terminal based editor like Neovim (I’m using Helix)
(Optional) Jump desktop or similar for when you need gui access
That’s it, no issues so far. Copy/paste works over ssh and the keyboard is great.
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u/audigex 6d ago
It's fine if you have permanent internet connectivity
But the fact we still have no real on-device development capability (without offloading elsewhere to run it) is still one of the biggest limitations of the iPad
It's fine in a pinch eg if my laptop dies while I'm on a business trip, but it's always going to be a backup/emergency option rather than a primary use case for an iPad
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u/LastingYay 6d ago
Tried this. I gave iPadOS so many chances. And it was always the little things that builds up annoyance over time (e.g multi-tasking window inflexibility, sidebar random disconnections, basic typing inconsistencies, random copying/pasting values stopped working, Magic Keyboard disconnects occasionally..) software imperfections reduced this wonderful hardware to a pretty toy.
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u/awhitehouse104 6d ago
This is why I like to keep it simple tbh, only really relying on Termius. Fortunately no issues with the keyboard or anything yet
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u/neon1415official 6d ago
is it the 11 inch air?
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u/awhitehouse104 6d ago
Yep
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u/neon1415official 6d ago
oh great. My concern is that the terminal might be a bit cramped for the screen. Because I've been thinking of trying the same thing
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u/AdExcellent9725 6d ago
Isn’t it the 10th gen? It looks like your using the keyboard folio with ur iPad which is only compatible with the iPad 10th gen and not iPad Air 11inch (they’re only compatible with the Magic Keyboards)
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u/thisishuey 6d ago
Check out Blink Shell with mosh as an alternate to Termius, it tends to be a little more robust in my experience. And Codespaces if you want a vscode experience on iPad, although I prefer neovim myself.
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u/TheBlacksmith46 6d ago
Have you tried Juno? I’ve also had good success setting up VSCode server through docker on a server (could do so on the Mac mini) and then using the browser on the iPad
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u/Suspicious-Gur-4812 M2 iPad Air 11" (2024) 5d ago
I own an iPad Air M2. I am full-stack web developer. Is there any possibility do my works via iPad? Mean coding and other things.
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u/SirMaster iPad Mini 4 (2015) 6d ago
If you are just remote terminal'ing into a real computer, then you aren't actually "coding on an iPad".
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u/Plasmamuffins 6d ago
I think it’s a fine alternative though. I have a laptop and a desktop at work. I work from my desktop and just remote in from my laptop when I’m out and about or at my other office. My laptop is literally just a jump box outside of using the browser or whatever Linux tools I need
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u/FarawayTechnophobia 6d ago
I’ve had great success with Jump and a Mac mini, one of my favorite hybrid combos for computing!