# Need help moving files from PC to iPad **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 23, 2011, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064 "2011-07-23T04:08:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2011, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064/1 "2011-07-23T04:08:22Z")
Okay, I realize this is probably a _really_ stupid question :obut… Husband just got an iPad. He got it primarily to use as a book reader; he’s already got a million gaming books on .pdf on his computer, and the iPad is so that he can read them when away from that. The problem is that he can’t figure out how to move the files from the PC, where they’re all in a folder on his desktop, to the iPad. I think iTunes is probably involved in there somewhere, but I’m not sure exactly…:smack: Help? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2011, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064/2 "2011-07-23T04:53:41Z")
You are right about iTunes, there are 2 ways to get PDFs onto the iPad with iTunes and one other. On the iPad, files are ‘owned’ by an App so you need a PDF reader App like iBooks or Goodreader. So get a copy of of one of them from the App store. For iBooks, you need to click on Books in the Library list on the left, they use the file menu ‘Add to library’ item to add the PDF files. Then make sure they are checked for syncing to your iPad, just as you would for music or videos. For Goodreader, go to the ‘App’ panel and scroll to the bottom. You should see a ‘File Sharing’ section with Goodreader and can add files to it. Another way would be to get Dropbox on both the iPad and your PC/Mac. It has a built in PDF viewer. ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2011, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064/3 "2011-07-23T04:57:07Z")
Find folder of PDFs. Drag folder into iTunes at top of left bar (under “Library”). Alternatively, choose File \> Add to Library… and select the files from there. Next connect your iPad to iTunes. Select the iPad on the left bar under Devices. Choose the “Books” option near the top of the main part of the screen. Make sure “Sync Books” is checked. Use the other options to select “all” or “selected” books, and if the latter, then select which ones below. Sync. (these instructions are to use your PDFs with iBooks, which is free and “the Mac way”. Goodreader is an inexpensive app that offers a lot more options, but as **jasg** notes the process is a bit different) ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2011, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064/4 "2011-07-23T05:27:06Z")
Got it! Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064/5 "2011-07-23T17:08:53Z")
> **[Dropbox.com](http://www.dropbox.com)** > > Dropbox helps you simplify your workflow. So you can spend more time in your flow. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2011, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-moving-files-from-pc-to-ipad/590064/6 "2011-07-23T18:46:32Z")
> [@xash](#): > > [www.dropbox.com](http://www.dropbox.com) I’ll second that. I know there are other methods to getting things from one device to another, but nothing’s as easy as dropbox.