Joining the 21st Century

[ladysprite]

So after years upon years of resisting the pressure, and insisting that I don't need one and couldn't afford one, and generally hiding from technology, I have finally broken down and gotten a smartphone.

I didn't mean to. But Sprint finally offended us one too many times (this time they charged us for data usage that our phones were *physically incapable of performing,* acknowledged that this was the case, and still refused to remove the charge), and we started looking around for other providers. And we realized that, for about $10 more than we were paying with Sprint, we could get a data plan and a couple of smartphones.

And now... I have the internet in my purse. I'm just not quite sure what to do with it.

I don't get a lot of phone calls or texts. I'm not someone that people generally make an effort to contact or keep in touch with. I don't use twitter. And I'm generally convinced that I'm bad with technology, whether I actually am or not.

I've gotten it set up, and I've got Overdrive on it so I can listen to audiobooks, and it'll at least let me check my email and facebook, and have internet access when I'm at clinics without wifi.

But other than that.... any suggestions on what the heck to do with this thing?

Comments

[leanne-opaskar.livejournal.com]

Yelp. If nothing else, portable Yelp is a godsend.

[alexx-kay.livejournal.com]

Know that Wikipedia is seconds away at any time.

[joannahurley.livejournal.com]

I use it for my GPS, specifically Waze, which is crowd sourced GPS. Kinda nice to be able to flag the random road closure or accident that just happened, etc. But you really need a mount of some kind for that.

Other stuff: I play a lot of games on mine, right now it's Marvel Puzzle Quest (a match 3) and Farmville 2 (yeah, I know, but it's pretty). I have an RSS reader on it for blogs, etc, I use it for reminders and a calendar. Camera that's always with me. Just being able to look up random stuff on the go is nice. Out of Milk is my shopping list app, which can be shared with other devices, so I can add something to the list and Jon can see it or vice versa. There's a gazillion productivity apps, etc. Google chat (hangouts) and other instant messaging. I have a cross stitch fabric calculator. :) Linked In has an app, as does meetup, etsy, and pretty much everyone. Pandora or other streaming music (which can eat up data, so watch that one) or load your MP3s on it. You name it, someone has an app for it.

[lisagw.livejournal.com]

I use an LJ app on my iPhone. Do not know if they have one for a android etc.

Lj app for Android

[blaisepascal]

I sure hope so, otherwise I don't know how I read and replied to this. :-)
There are several. The one I use is called ElJay.

[aishabintjamil.livejournal.com]

I have a database of my book collection, and a list of my music collection. I dump both to Excel, and installed an Office app on my smart phone, so I can have them handy if I stop at a used bookstore and can't remember which book of that series with the similar titles it was that I'm missing. it's handy for all sorts of other lists too - everything from part numbers for vacuum cleaner bags to my address book.

I also scan most of my important information like insurance coverage, our marriage certificate, etc. and keep copies of the PDF on the smart phone.

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

Gas Guru app. Finds the cheapest gas price within a reasonable distance of your current location. This is especially good (1) if there are several nearby stations that switch off being the lowest-priced, and (2) if you're traveling.

Welcome to the teens!

[tafkad.livejournal.com]

I use mine for music, podcasts and a Public Radio app, among other things. I also downloaded an app called 2Do, which helps me keep multiple to do lists for multiple topics (household, writing, working groups, etc.).

Bitch with wifi -- Felicity Smoak (Arrow)

[mamatiger.livejournal.com]

Hi, I'm Leslie, and I'm an App Hoarder. I currently have 150 apps on my Droid Maxx. Because you know I MIGHT need them. SOMEDAY.

(All of these apply to Android phones, but I'm pretty sure iPhones aren't that different.)

Ask around if there are any good veterinarian-specific apps. They may well be worth paying for. What are your hobbies? There are apps for that, I guarantee it. Install the Amazon App Store App, they offer a paid app for free every day, it could be one you'd like to try, but were balking at paying for. Weatherbug, for your weather and radar needs. Boston Public Library app. And I believe it'a a law that you're required to have a flashlight app, just be careful to get one that's highly rated and not full of malware. Pandora. Spotify. (Both better used with wifi, they do use up data.)

You don't need to send tweets yourself to use twitter -- use it to follow the people you know and like, or, for example, Emergency Kittens ‏@EmrgencyKittens for your emergency kitten picture needs.

Hulu Plus. 9 bucks a month (and if you use wifi, no data charges), you can watch all the movies and TV shows your little heart desires. Ditto for Netflix. Also look for the apps associated with your home internets & TV. (I do get a kick out of setting my DVR from work via my phone.)

Your comment reminds me of a reddit saying I ran across just the other day -- If a person from 1950 showed up today, what would be the one thing that would be hardest to explain? The answer being "I have in my pocket a device giving me access to all of the combined knowledge of humanity, and I use it to look at cat pictures and get into arguments on the internet."

[twilightbanana.livejournal.com]

I have a simple stopwatch/timer app on my phone to make sure I don't forget stuff when I get distracted, like the pot of tea I have brewing or the grilled cheese sandwich in the toaster.

Other than that I use the alarm, navigation, music player, notepad, calculator, camera (just to take a quick picture of stuff I need to remember) and e-mail client.

[cristovau.livejournal.com]

I have a voice recorder app that I like a lot. The flashlight app is also disturbingly useful. (I have a $100 flashlight in my pocket!)

Mostly, mys smartphone is my main mp3 player... or really, my mp3 player happens to be a phone.

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

One thing to mention: look at the permissions for apps and determine if they should need them. That flashlight app should need something like two permissions (power settings and display settings) to work correctly. There's a famous one that has some other permissions (track your location? view your contacts?) and the user agreement might even spell out that their intention is to collect marketing information.

A flashlight app is so easy there should be good, free ones that just use the LED to provide some light.

[fenicedautun.livejournal.com]

J persuaded me that I needed to upgrade to a smartphone because calling him when I'm lost was somewhat hampered by the lack of street signs in Boston. And I will say that maps is still the feature I'm most grateful for.

[ninjarat.livejournal.com]

I got a Droid Incredible a few years back. I eventually stuffed it in a static bag and went back to my Moto K1. It was neat having the whole Internets at my fingertips until I realized that it was intruding on EVERYTHING I did. That bothered me.

[mermaidlady]

I'm not someone that people generally make an effort to contact or keep in touch with.
First, I'm calling you out on that kind of negative thinking. Knock it off.

I mostly use my iPhone as a calendar, address book, camera, photo album (all Albert all the time), music player, video watcher (I ripped some of my favorite exercise DVDs), alarm clock & timer, ticket holder (it was super-easy flying with an electronic boarding pass), notepad, to do list, credit card swiper (for my little business), fitness tracker, back-up Kindle, and not-getting-lost tool.

That last is usually a combination of maps and the NextBus app.

[z-gryphon.livejournal.com]

My "Oh. That's what it's good for" moment came a few weeks after I got my first Droid, when I was at a store looking for a new memory card for my digital camera and then couldn't remember what kind it wanted. I was grumbling to myself for forgetting to bring the camera and resigning myself to driving home (a nontrivial distance) to get it, or just abandoning the expedition and buying the card another time -

- and then I suddenly realized, Wait a minute, I brought the Internet. Checked the manufacturer's website, dug up the specs, voilà. That little scene has repeated itself several times, with other products and necessities, over the last few years.

(In my experience, it's a little like a 3D printer - you can't think what you might do with such a thing until you have access to one, and then, suddenly, every problem becomes a 3D printing problem. :)

[johnpalmer.livejournal.com]

I had a similar moment - I had just bought a Honda Fit and couldn't find the gas cap release. Well, there isn't one - you just push it in and it pops out. But I would never have thought of that if I hadn't found it on Google :-).

[jducoeur]

Some things I use that you might find useful:

-- Maps. Totally worthwhile. I even use it sometimes even when I know where I'm going, to check the traffic. Knowing whether 93 is a mess *before* I set out is sometimes a godsend.

-- Kitchen timer. Dumb little feature, but having an app in my pocket that keeps track of up to three alarms at once is mighty useful: I use this one several times a week.

-- Shopping list. In my case, it is of course written in Querki, so I can use it from both my phone and my desktop, and share it with Kate. But there are plenty of easy-to-use bespoke apps for this.

-- Note taking. Often with text, but often, I've found, with the camera: since I *always* have a camera with me, I often find that the easiest way to "jot" a quick note is simply to take a picture of something.

-- Keeping up with news. I have Feedly set up to track the various tech blogs that I follow, and I check on them when I'm on the T.

And of course email...

[mindways]

My "use every week" functionality:
* Real-time MBTA locations (the reason I got a smartphone);
* Check/send email while not at my computer;
* Texting. (Combines the immediacy of a phone call without demanding the instant attention of a phone call; a win-win for any sort of short-term message that doesn't require discussion.)
* Photos. Moreso since my actual camera went AWOL, but even then, I always had my phone on me.

My "sometimes" functionality:
* Check products or services online (consumerreports.org subscription, Yelp)
* Look up answers to random questions online.
* Notes to self. (I can do this entirely by voice with my current phone - it sends me an email with whatever I said after "Note To Self".)

[tpau]

the qpps i use (as in they are currently open) :

calendar
email
trillian
mbta app for commuter rail tix
facebook
jetblue (flew today)
camera
youtube
dropbox
fitbit/pedometer
AP mobile
amex (paying bills)
open table (restaurants)
quick tip calculator
google drive
weather chanel
boston street foods - food truck locations
cvs (renew perscriptions etc)
wikipedia
music player
gas cubby (keep track of gas use)
paypal
google maps
kickstarter
flickr
skype
joann's (cupons on phone)
michaelse (ditto)
4 more bank apps for various banks and cards
amazon
linked in
npr
calculator

ps

[mamatiger.livejournal.com]

Don't forget to let us know what you decide! :)