There’s a APP for THAT!

Are you a techie geek?

I’m not, really, but might have been in another life. I’m 44 years old, and saw my first computer when I was in the 9th grade at the Department of Defense Middle School in Curundu, Panama. The teachers brought in three full classes to crowd around one computer after which they executed a few simple DOS functions. I think we were all supposed to be amazed, but instead were underwhelmed, not realizing how much computers would evolve, and become an everyday part of our lives.

And then there are smart phones! My kids laugh at my big honkin’ Galaxy Note III “phablet” (phone + tablet). I’m a published author but I also work full time, and I use my phone to try and keep up with all the moving parts in my world. My husband has an iPhone, as do both of my teenagers. My mom used to write down a list of chores she wanted me to do before she got home from work. I text my kids theirs. Texting also serves as our dinner bell, to tell them to come home from their friends’ houses down the street because it’s time to EAT!

We’ve inevitably downloaded some “apps” from the applications store. We’ve got the funny PhotoBooth effects where the kids can take pictures of us and put mustaches and big eyebrows on our faces and snort and giggle in the orthodontist waiting room, and then, because we are Walking Dead fans, we’ve got another to transform the grandparents and cats into zombies. More recently, the kids have been having fun with an app called Smule AutoRap that turns anything they say into surprisingly great rap music. My first thought after hearing some of my son’s raps about chemistry and our pet cats was: it’s THAT easy?

As for me, my favorite new app is Evernote, which is just a really great personal note taking system. You can type in your notes, take pictures, or input voice recordings and even video and organize in all into subject notebooks (if you like). I keep story ideas here, interesting names I might want to use and revision reminders—because all the best story tweaks come to me when I’m occupied doing something completely unrelated to writing, and I don’t want to forget them later when I’m back in front of my manuscript. It’s perfect for compiling business receipts. Pictures of wine bottles so I’ll remember them later, and recipes I want to look at when I’m at the grocery store. The best thing is that you can sync with the same app on your computer, so it comes in handy at tax time for easily organizing your business expenses.

What about you? Do you have a smart phone and a favorite app that you can share with us? Or is phone technology not your thing?