The multi-window mode on the iPad, called Split View, was first introduced with the release of iOS 9. During this time, Apple developers have changed the principle of operation several times. We will explain how it works now in this article.

Why you should try Split View on iPad

With the release of iPadOS 15, users never got the long-awaited, serious update for the iPad they had been hoping for. After all, Apple’s tablet had virtually no apps and no desktop-class multitasking. Fortunately, iPad multitasking has now been improved in the new iPadOS 15 after all.

In a nutshell, when you run an app on an iPad running iPad OS 15 (or later), you’ll notice that there’s a three-dot button in the middle of the top panel. Tapping on this item will give you access to the multitasking menu.

As soon as you click on this new multitasking menu button, three more buttons are displayed. Pressing each of these buttons activates the next function.

Split view essentially has two apps open at the same time, each taking up half the screen. You can resize the apps by dragging the slider between them. Split View on iPad allows you to work with two apps at the same time (view content, copy links, text and images between windows) on your Apple tablet. As an example, below you can see two windows of Safari and Safari + Notes.

What is Slide Over

In slide-over mode, an application is displayed in a small floating window that you can drag to the left or right edge of the screen.

Split view on iPad

If you want to know how to enable the Split View mode, here is a short tutorial on how to do it:

• Press the center button to switch to Split View mode.
• Your current app will move to the side and you can now select another app to open next to the first one. Just tap on any app on the home screen or in the dock.
• You can even open Safari twice and see two pages at once in Split View. Or you can open the Files app and work with Safari in the other window at the same time. Note that each of the two windows has its own multitasking menu – the three dots at the top center of the app.
• You can click on it and try again to start full screen mode (for the selected app), split view mode (nothing happens because you are already in this mode) or crossfade mode. This will open the corresponding app in a popup window and the other app will switch to full screen mode.

There is also an option to close the split view.

How to create a quick note in iPad OS 15

Quick Note is a new feature that requires the Apple Pencil. It allows you to quickly and easily take notes regardless of which apps you have open on your iPad at the time, if any.

Simply take your Apple Pencil or finger and “draw” a line from the bottom right corner of the screen to the center.

This gesture opens a pop-up window for quick notes over any app (or simply on the home screen). But that’s not all! Your Quick Note can stay open when you switch to other apps, such as Safari.

If you have an open page and an open quick note, you will get the “Add link” option (to the current page) inside the note. You can also select the text on the open page and get the “Add to Quick Note” option.

This new feature of iPadOS 15 should be invaluable to many students and professionals, saving them a lot of time when taking notes and doing research.

You can slide a note to the edge of the screen like a pop-up video, so it stays open and doesn’t take up screen space.

When you are done with the short note, you can also move it back to the lower right corner of the screen or click Done to close it permanently.

By the way, if you add a link to a page in Quick Notes and then go to the same page in Safari, a corresponding note will appear in case you need the link again. All this makes the Notes app in iPadOS 15 much more intuitive, easier and faster.