iPAD Reality Check

Sometime ago I was lusting after an iPAD (jan 2010). I could envisage lots of uses for such a device around my home, at work and generally as a mobile device instead of lugging a laptop.
Now I've got one, or should I say, my library has bought a couple of devices for staff use. Yeah!! I have been bringing it home and figuring out the pros and cons of the device.
Dealing with "the Apple Way" was the first learning point. From a person who has used PC's her whole life, the Apple Way of doing things is a little different. Downloading iTunes onto my work PC, authorising it and syncing iTunes with the iPAD was relatively easy, if somewhat counter-intuitive to 20 years of PC using.
Downloading Apps from the iStore was easy - very similar to my Android Phone.
Paying for iWorks Apps such as Pages, Keynote and Numbers has enabled the device to be used with office files but it hurts that I need to download the three apps separately. Perhaps my systems admins can use a different, networked approach?
The interface with iTunes Apps File Sharing is workable but cumbersome. However, the document I transferred from the iPAD  to the appropriate folder and then opened in Word 2007 worked like a dream. No importing problems or formatting problems so far.
So far I have avoided as much of the "cloud" as possible, for reasons to do with privacy and security, but I will have to approach that issue sooner or later.
I have downloaded eBooks, podcasts and iView programs - all good. More on eBooks later!
I have used the iPAD at a planning meeting, taking notes as the discussion evolved. I have loaded photos and used it as a photo slideshow, and I used the device in a particular Library Program.
The inbuilt camera is useful for Skype but does not have high enough resolution to use it as a camera. The size of the iPAD makes it difficult to focus as well.
I have also projected the iPAD screen onto a data projector.
The BAD part is the lack of Flash support - none of the Children's online databases subscribed to by my library work as all need Flash!
The interface is intuituve, easy to use and of course a little bit limiting.
But it is a fine piece of engineering and great to use while sitting on the couch in front of the fire!