The Mobile Presenter

So I wrote a checklist of things that you should take with you to your presentation. Here's how I handle that.

I originally started this blog to document my search for the best (for me) portable equipment that would allow me to give presentations easily without having too much to carry around. I soon settled on an iPad and haven't looked back since (although I'm still keeping an eye out, in case even lighter alternatives would show up).

My iPad goes with me on every trip, so I needed to find a good bag for it. I'm not a backpack person, so I settled on a Tom Bihn Ristretto for iPad bag that I can carry over my shoulder. I realise they changed the bag slightly since I bought mine - it now has a zip to prevent contents of the inner pouches from falling out. I never really had that problem with my bag, though.

I like that bag since it isn't too big but you can still pack a lot into it if you have to. Most of the time, though, it only holds the following items:

• my iPad (currently an iPad 3, i.e. the full-size version)
• my iPod touch, which also doubles as my remote control
• VGA adapter cable
• a small foldable iPad stand
• power adapter and cable

In case you're missing the USB stick on that list: It's on my keychain, in my pocket, so I still have it even when I lose my bag.

I have these items with me all the time. So if you meet me and I'm carrying my bag, you could ask me to give a spontaneous presentation :)

Other stuff that I also usually carry around in that same bag:

• Post-Its
• at least 2 pens
• a digital camera
• an umbrella (not related to presenting, but just to show that it's not a problem having one with you all the time with this bag)

The Ristretto bag is actually a tad too short to comfortably hold standard A4-sized paper. So when I'm bringing handouts to a presentation, I have to be extra careful not to crease them. But that's about the only problem I have with this bag.

Sorry, this post ended up reading like an ad for Tom Bihn - which wasn't my intention. I just wanted to show that it's a good idea to spend some time (and money) on a good bag; one that you can rely on. You probably don't want to carry a full-size laptop around with you all the time, but with a smaller device, it is actually possible these days to have all your equipment with you all the time; which makes it less likely that you forget to pack something when you're actually going to give your next presentation.

"What I'm taking with me. An example" by Dirk Haun is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.