Multitasking is a bit of a chore on the iPad. Users must double-tap the home button in order to switch between applications. While certainly not complicated by any stretch, many users out there are looking for alternative solutions for fully embracing the Post-PC era that Apple is hoping to usher in while still maintaining some PC familiarity. One thing many of us enjoy on our desktop and laptop machines is multi-window management.
While our PCs allow us to seamlessly change between screens and feature multiple different programs running on a single window, most tablet computers such as the iPad do not, at least not until now. Pedro Franceschi has built Quasar, an application for jailbroken iPads that allows users to resize, toggle full-screen, and rearrange multiple apps at the same time on your desktop, in both portrait and landscape orientations.
Quasar is extremely helpful for applications built for iPhone only (looking at you, Instagram), which force you to run the app full screen even though it takes up about 1/9th of the screen’s real estate. Quasar will let you run multiple iPhone and iPad apps alongside each other in largely the same way you’d manage windows on a PC or Mac device.
As you can see from the video above, Quasar appears to work pretty well on the iPad, though we haven’t yet been able to test it for ourselves. Quasar will set you back $9.99 on the Cydia Store, so you’ll want to make sure it can meet your needs before making the purchase. If you do give Quasar a run for the money, let us know how your experience with Quasar is by leaving a comment below.