App-lause

I have an iPad and find it to be a very useful tool for my lifestyle. I picked out the top 12 most useful -- for my life -- to tell you about. I'll talk about them starting from the top row, left to right.

1. JESUS FILM MEDIA (free)

I downloaded this app for fast and free. The high-quality videos have turned many hearts towards Jesus, and I am happy that I now have a portable copy -- in the language spoken in the country in which I live! Lots of languages are available. (Though the app download is fast, the actual movie download -- which is also free -- could take half a day, so plan ahead.) The Magdalena movie and four other short videos are also available from this same app.

2. NIV BIBLE

I have several Bible apps, but I like this one the best. You can highlight text in four different colors.

3. E3 (EVANGECUBE)

If you are familiar with the Evangecube, you'll like this app that has the same pictures that briefly tell the story of Jesus and the cross. You can turn on text and voice if you like, or turn them off to tell the story yourself.

4. FLASHONARY

Make your own flash cards as you study Chinese. I wish this app had been around about 17 years ago. It would have saved me hours and hours and made language learning more efficient. It is still helpful to me, though, as I learn new vocabulary.

5. ACCUWEATHER

I have four weather apps, and so far I like this one best. It has unusual but helpful graphics, and all the weather information I need.

6. HEYWIRE

I hate text messages. Receiving text messages doesn't bother me (much), but I detest having to type them out to send them. Heywire helps. It is free, and you can send and receive texts for free (it even works to, from and within foreign countries). What makes it better than typing messages on a phone? The print size. The main thing I like about the iPad is that it is big enough to see without hunting down reading glasses. Heywire text messages work with an Internet connection -- no phone service required.

7. KINDLE

I'm sure everyone has this app, but I use this one a LOT so I had to mention it here. I love not having to load my luggage down with heavy books when I travel. A real Kindle is better than the iPad, in my opinion, because the iPad is too heavy to hold up for long. But I still like the app.

8. EARTHQUAKE LITE

As I type, the most recent earthquake was magnitude 1.6 in Consenza, Italy. There have been 2355 earthquakes worldwide in the past week. This free earthquake app is useful to those traveling around the Pacific Rim of Fire (as I often do), and for the rest of you, it makes you feel smarter when you spout off stats. It does not, however, predict earthquakes! (Can you believe those Italian earthquake scientists were imprisoned for not predicting earthquakes accurately?)

9. FREECELL CARD GAME

I first got addicted to this solitaire game over a decade ago. I refused to download it to my last two computers, because it has a way of taking over my life. But this free app was irresistible, and I am trying hard not to let it become a time waster. It helped kill time on the Pacific flight at the end of August. I think this game is good as a brain exercise too, kind of like crossword puzzles are.

10. BETTY CROCKER COOKBOOK

I have two or three Betty Crocker cookbooks, and find them very easy and user-friendly. So when I found out that I could get a free Betty Crocker Cookbook app, I didn't need much convincing. 

11. ACT PRINTER

If your computer and your iPad are both connected to the same Internet connection,  you can wirelessly transfer computer files to your iPad with this app. Works like a charm.

12. SCANNER PRO

This is one of the few apps I paid for, and it's excellent for scanning receipts and other documents on the go. It does more than just "take a picture" of your document, but it adjusts the layout so that it is saved as a true rectangular shape. It looks like you scanned it flat on a printer/scanner. You can save the scanned documents in different files on your iPad, and you can easily transfer them to your main computer. I have used this one a LOT, although if I am at home, I usually find the flatbed scanner just a bit easier to handle.

What about you? Do you have any useful apps you can recommend to me?