Love a Library

L is for LibraryThing and other Library apps

A-Z challenge 2016: Apps in April

LibraryThing

Keep track of all the books you read and all the books you own, your very own catalogue of books. Add to your list by scanning a barcode on a physical book or enter an ISBN or search for the book by author or title.
Organise your books into collections, rate with stars, add a review, add tags, view recommendations from other readers.
I’ve been a member of LibraryThing since 2006 and find it is an excellent way to keep track of my reading and receive recommendations based on books I’ve enjoyed
This app is currently only available for iOS with the promise of an Android app to come. Visit LibraryThing on the web.

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Check with your library to find out which apps they have that provide lending services. My excellent local library provides e-lending through these apps.

BorrowBox

Browse, borrow, read or listen to a collection of ebooks and audiobooks. Log in with your library member’s card details to access the library’s own collection. Preview titles, borrow instantly or reserve for later if the title is currently loaned to another user.
Search by title, author or genre. Titles can be renewed or returned at any stage and they automatically expire once the borrowing period is exceeded so no library fines are generated.

BorrowBox is available for iOS and Android Check your library to see if they have it.

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OneClickDigital

From your library site, register on the OneClickDigital site. Once you download the app find your library and enter the details registered previously through your library site. Now you will be able to see a tutorial to get you started. The search will launch your library’s digital collection, some libraries may have both ebooks and audiobooks others may have only audiobooks. Preview titles by description, information and length of audio chapters. Listen to a short excerpt from the book before making your decision.

This is a great app for borrowing audiobooks.Available for iOS and Android.

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ePlatform by Wheelers

Wheelers is ebooks only. Browse by category or search for a title or author. Wheelers has a strong Australian and New Zealand collection with my library exhibiting 354 books in the AU, NZ, and South Pacific collection. Wheelers also concentrate on children’s titles so is a good option for those with young family members.
Available for iOS and Android.

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Your library may have a different collection of apps including OverDrive. Do check out your favourite library site to find out if there are options for e-borrowing.

Next up M – Map a museum

This post first appeared on http://librarycurrants.blogspot.com/2016/04/love-library.html

Keeping and Kindling

K is for Kindle, Keep and a Keyboard

A-Z challenge 2016: Apps in April

Kindle

You don’t need a Kindle to read Kindle books. I include this because what is obvious to some, is not to others. Download the app for iOS or Android to have access to more than a million books. There are plenty of free books too.

From the app, you can shop in the Kindle store, add bookmarks to books being read, change the size or font of the text, search within the text, go to a particular page and sync where you are up to in the book on another device. Tap and hold text to reveal definitions.

Your Kindle account comes with an email address so you can send personal PDFs and documents to be read here.

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Keep

Google Keep is an app for adding notes, editing, sharing, and collaborating on any device. As well as notes one can add lists, photos, and audio. Organize the notes with labels and colours. Keep incorporates with reminders and I find it excellent for short term things. I use it for shopping lists, to take note of where I have parked in multi-storey parks, I use it to record prices in various outlets. Tap the microphone to record a note and see it rendered as text. I use Evernote for long-term storage and retrieval of information but Keep fills in as an everyday tool.

For my book club where we read paper books Keep is a great tool to snap an image of a memorable page or quote then tap on the menu (three dots) and choose Grab image text. The OCR text is then added at the bottom of the note. Keep for iOS and Android.

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SwiftKey Keyboard

This app replaces the built-in keyboard and learns the way you type and the words you use frequently so the text prediction is excellent.
On Android phone, one can choose a variety of coloured themes. Enable the keyboard in Settings – Language and Input.
In iOS head to Settings – General – Keyboards.

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Next up - L Love a library

This post first appeared on http://librarycurrants.blogspot.com/2016/04/keeping-and-kindling.html

Just Journals and Junk

J is for Journals, Journeys and junk

A-Z challenge 2016: Apps in April

Journals and diaries have similar functions but some distinguish between the two. My take is that a journal is what you make it, perhaps a record of your day or a tool to capture your thoughts and ideas.
The ideal journal has a calendar built in so that it opens on the current day and presents a clean easy interface for entering text, adding photos and indeed drawings. It should also have easy export options should one wish to use the information entered elsewhere.

Maxjournal

The fate of discontinued apps is my lament today. This is/was Maxjournal which I have been using for several years on iPad but it has now been withdrawn from the App store. It is still working with the latest software update. I’ve exported my content as with each new iOS update I fear its demise. Export options include choice of start and end dates and PDF or text options.

I’ve been pondering a replacement and Day One 2 Diary + Journal + Notes has good reviews however since I’ve been using Evernote more and more my need for a specific journal app has waned.

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Journeys toolbox

Tripit

Tripit is my number one app for keeping track of travel and accommodation bookings. As emails arrive confirming bookings they are forwarded to plans@tripit.com Tripit then creates and itinerary complete with times and transport options.
Maps show exactly where accommodation is located complete with check in and check out times. The itinerary can be shared with a travelling partner and interested parties can be added as viewers. Tripit is available across all platforms iOS, Android and web.

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Evernote

Before a trip, create a notebook containing a note for each day of your journey to store photos and notes. This can be accessed on phone and added to by voice, camera and text. The date last edited is the date that shows on the note so be sure to put the day’s date at the beginning of your note. Tag with location, name of trip or some other keyword for easy retrieval later.

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J for junk those apps

With new apps appearing constantly one is tempted to try new tools and toys. Delete those apps you downloaded to try but now never use. No need to clutter your device with unused apps. If your device came with bloatware, apps from the manufacturer that you never use, consider dragging them into one folder out of sight if they can’t be deleted.

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Next up – K for Keeping and Kindling

This post first appeared on http://librarycurrants.blogspot.com/2016/04/just-journals-and-junk.html