Let’s just get this out of the way, I love how Apple’s handling multitasking on the iPad in iOS 11. I like how you can easily share items between apps, I like the new multitasking view, I like that you can have floating windows, reposition items, do split screen in Safari, and generally use the iPad more like a Mac. However, there’s still one big issue with split screen multitasking, and that’s how Apple handles bringing apps in from the home screen. It’s still a little awkward to use apps that aren’t in your dock, as you can see in the video below. While trying to make that tutorial, I actually screwed up twice before finally getting the app I wanted sitting next to Safari. There’s got to be a more efficient way to do this, Apple, right?
Three attempts! Fortunately, I did get it on the third try, but this is a little ridiculous. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to pull in apps from search results or Siri suggestions? What about an alphabetical view like that from watchOS 4, or perhaps a more iOS 10-like design, with the most recently used multitask apps available in the side panel. Almost anything would be more intuitive than this.
Split screen multitasking is great, and iOS 11 improved upon it in many ways, but it’s still not perfect. What do you say, Apple, give it a third try?