23 Mobile Things, Thing #5: Notetaking

I downloaded Bamboo Paper on my iPad and I LOVE it!  I have to confess that I haven't used it for anything official or work-related (yet) but I am having loads of fun scribbling and drawing and writing on it!  I love being able to use my finger to write things and my stylus too.  I think kids would like this one.  Anyone have great ideas about how to use this for work?  The only thing I can really think of is having it as a place to jot down a note when you can't find a post-it or a piece of scratch paper.  This happens to me quite a bit actually.  And the older I get, the more I find that if I don't write something down right when I think it, the idea is often lost forever...

I didn't check out Springpad because it sounds too much like Pinterest and I already spend WAY too much time on that.  I'm curious about the Dragon Dictation though because I often use the speaker function on my phone to "write" my text messages.  I'll give that a shot next.

23 Mobile Things, Thing #4: Keeping Up

This Thing just made me feel sad.  I was an avid user of Google Reader and I miss it so so so much.  It was an excellent way to keep track of all the food blogs I follow, as well as a great way to scroll through news headlines on various sites and then you could click on whatever you wanted to read more about.  I like that it had a button you could put on the tool bar to subscribe on Reader and to share on Reader.  I didn't really use the social function of it a ton because I didn't really know anyone else that was using Reader, or at least, not to the extent that I was. 

I've used Flipboard on my phone and didn't really like it.  I'm still on the hunt for something that is more like Reader was to use on my computer.  I recently purchased a Chromebook so I'll have to see if it came with a RSS feed reader installed and how it compares to my beloved and now defunct Google Reader.

I will download Zite on my iPad and use it to track all things library, but in all honesty, for reading anything in depth, I still prefer print vs. e-format and I'm not sure that will ever change.

23 Mobile Things, Thing #3: Utilities

I downloaded an app for both of my devices.

On my Samsung S3, I downloaded Google Goggles.  It is super cool.  I can see how it would be useful in a library setting as well as in your own regular life.  I tested it on a few things I found around the house - a bag of Doritos, a couple of books, and a bottle of vitamins.  It scans the item and then brings up the exact text printed on it.  From there you can have the text translated using Google Translate --- very helpful if you're ever in a foreign land and/or any time you need to read text in a foreign language that's on something.  You can also copy the text to a clipboard and then paste it wherever you like (an email, a text message, a blog post, etc.)  Goggles also brings up any and all websites (no matter how remotely related to the item).  This is a super cool app and I can tell I've only scratched the surface of the possibilities it allows.

On my iPad I downloaded the Stand App.  I'm very excited to put this into use.  (I've been sick for the past two weeks so I haven't yet).  What is neat about this app is that it gives you a gentle reminder to take a standing break at any interval you choose.  This is important because we all sit too much (except when we're sick) and there is no reason I can't stand to do a good many pieces of my job - it's just getting used to doing it that's tricky.  The other part to remember will be to have my iPad near me at all times, which is isn't always possible.  But a healthy person is a happy person (as I've had to learn, yet again, the hard way).

Here's a bonus app for you that I downloaded to my phone:  Fooducate.  With this app you can do tons of things - track your food intake, calories, and exercise - but even better and possibly more important than that, you can find out what's really in your food.  You just scan the UPC on whatever you're about to eat and it tells you what's in it and if it's good for you.  It even gives the food item a letter grade using a grading system designed by "scientists, dieticians, and concerned parents."  In my case I was about to make a flatbread pizza, so I scanned the UPC for the new "Flatouts" I was trying.  I was delighted to learn this product had a B rating!  I picked something good for me (yay - mini miracle!)  :)  You can download it free from the Google Play Store or on your iPhone at the app store.  Not sure if it's available for the iPad...

Anyway, this was my favorite "thing" so far.  I'm tempted to look into the iSleep app too but I'm not sure how I feel about sleeping with my iPad... ;)