Thing 6: Creating & Editing Documents

As part of my work, I travel around to several different libraries every week for work. I enjoy this, but it also means that I try to leave a lot of my documents, email, etc. "in the cloud" so I have access to them no matter which location I may be at for the day. While looking through the three suggestions for Thing 6, I must say that I was surprisingly intrigued by all three. Cloud on intrigued me because it was touted as being just like a desktop version meaning it would be very easy for me to pick-up and use. Quick Office looked interesting because it works with your Google Account which means it syncs with Google Drive. I had decided to explore SignNow, but apparently the app only works for Android devices running version 4.0 and up. I run a 2.3 so wasn't able to check out this app as I would have liked. 

In light of this, I decided to explore Quick Office. I was immediately impressed because upon opening the app, it looked very, very similar to Google Drive. As I dug further I could easily find the documents I already have uploaded to Google Drive, view them on my computer and make new documents. Everything syncs with my Google account which means that I can easily view files that are created, or edited from any computer (personal, work, friends), or from my mobile device. I think this is great because it fits extremely well with my "in the cloud" lifestyle and need for documents to be easily accessible no matter where I am at or what device I am using. 

Especially impressive is the fact that one can do documents, spreadsheets and presentations. Font style, color, highlights, and some special symbols can also be adjusted and there is even spell check!

Holy cowabunga, does Quick Office have it all and earns an A++ in regards to ease of use, flexibility, ability to customize, and extra features. Add the fact that everything syncs to your Google account or your SD card and you really couldn't ask for a better app, especially at just the right price –free. 

5 Badge

Thing 5: Notetaking

Thing 5 is oh so timely. I have been searching for an app that does note taking, but is not just bare bones. While I'm not normally too picky with most things on my phone, I am finding myself being very particular about finding a good note app just because I tend to take quite a few notes and use the note function more than any other app on my phone. 

I tried a free app called "memo" for awhile which wasn't bad, but it wasn't exactly what I was looking for. After trying "memo" I switched to "Color Note" which hasn't been bad either, but something is just not quite right in Denmark (or shall I say the library?). It has some to do list functions which is nice and a function for text, along with a few other features such as spell check and the ability to send the notes to others, but I'm still not 100% sold on "Color Note."

Bamboo paper looked more what I was looking for, but when I was reading more about the app and reviews it was apparent that it is more stylus friendly than typing. I would like to be able to use the app I select on my mobile phone so I'm seeking more of a typing friendly app as I don't use a stylus.

After looking through the remaining apps I decided to try "Springpad." It is nice because not only does it have the notepad feature, but it also lets you have a place to store info bits and sort them into categories such as recipes, notes, books, etc. which could be kind of handy. My favorite feature is that it is Google friendly meaning I can log into my Google account from my pc and be able to sync items from my pc to phone which is really nice. So far it seems very easy to use and intuitive which are big points for users. While the app has many nice features such as being very user friendly, ad free, a variety of choices for background and accent colors, ability to customize privacy options, add files, etc. I did not like the fact that you had to go into the app and then into a book and sort through the list just to see your notes...it seemed like a lot of extra organizing that wasn't necessary. 

Remember the Milk was nice because it was cloud accessible, however, I found the app to be much more of a to do list, which could be useful for others as it is very easy to navigate, has reminder options, etc., but wasn't exactly what I was looking for unfortunately. 

I ultimately decided to go with a free app called Note Manager that wasn't recommended by 23 Mobile Things, but was recommended at the Google Play Store when I went to download Remember The Milk. Note Manager isn't fancy, but does have the features I'm looking for such as just regular notes, reminder notes, picture notes and the ability to share notes. Thus far, I've been very happy with it. The great part about Thing 5 is that I had the chance to experiment with different note taking providers and explore what I was looking for, especially since I use notes in my personal and professional life quite a bit. 

Happy Noting! 

Thing 4: Keeping Up

Social Media is all the rage these days (and has been for awhile). Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Youtube, etc. RSS feeds can be useful for individuals who want to access all of the social media quickly, easily and in one spot instead of visiting each and every individual website. As you can probably guess, the power that RSS feeds can have in saving time, energy and every annoying password you've ever had to set up is incredible!

Personally, I'm not a huge social networker. Sure, I do my fair share of Facebook, Linked In and the occasional Youtube, but not enough that I'd consider a RSS a huge improvement to my life (because checking Facebook a few times a week doesn’t really warrant an RSS feed).
I can see how RSS feeds would be useful for the professional side of my job. A lot of times libraries exchange ideas across systems and counties to try and learn how to better provide services, save money, new programs, etc. It would be great if all of the different sites I browse for programs, bulletin boards, events, etc.  (such as different facebook pages, Pinterest, and ALA message boards) could be easily compiled in one spot.

Out of the two apps recommended by the 23 Mobile Things Page, I chose to look at Zite. I like the fact that I can tell Zite what interests me and it will pull up articles and suggestions for reading. The more I read, the more intuitive Zite becomes in picking out what I like (I wonder if there is any way I can transfer that skill to other aspects of my life?? Maybe Zite could pick out my next book!).

As I was browsing through Zite I decided to take a look at books and libraries to see what would pop up. Surprisingly, there are a lot of interesting results that were presented to me. Suggestions included articles about e-books, early literacy, free books, etc. Zite even suggested more search queries based on my original query.

On top of all of this, I could also link my Facebook, Twitter or pocket to have everything all in one place.

I find the idea behind RSS feeds and Zite a useful idea and I can see where it would be really convenient to help sort some of my professional pages and compile them all in one spot, especially across three jobs. Bonus points for the fact it is on my phone and/or in the cloud so travels easily with me (you do NOT want to see the back seat of my car).

While I can see this perhaps becoming a useful professional tool, I can't see myself using this in my personal life as I find that I am happy with my current level of social media and get addicted to news articles way too easily (especially when they're customized topics!) so it's a REALLY, REALLY bad to have them just keep popping up with no end in sight. They're kind of like M&M's, you think you can always eat one, but before you know it, half the bag is gone! Drats.

Nonetheless, I think Zite could be an excellent resource for many patrons as well, especially patrons who are interested in articles and magazine types of services on their mobile devices and are seeking something a bit more than the library sponsored Zinio product and it's free to boot!

Thanks to Wikipedia for the image.