The Boston Globe this morning had an interesting piece in the Ideas section about some iPhone Apps for “ideas on the go” that I thought I would share for us literary-minded folks. A few apps I know but most, I don’t.
- Instapaper — this app allows you to bookmark articles from various online newspapers for later reading. I have heard about this one (it’s free, so worth a try) but I am not yet on the level of wanting to read my news on my iTouch. Do you?
- Newstand — This is an aggregator of RSS feeds for newspapers. The app costs $4.99, so my question is: why buy an app when there are plenty of free RSS collectors out there? I guess the draw is that it focuses in on publications, but free is the way to be (although many are now saying that the wave of free content is exactly what is killing the newspaper industry).
- Stanza – This is one I have used. It’s a free ereader and it comes with access to tons of free books. You have to get past the small reading screen but it works fine. And did I mention it is free?
- McSweeney’s Small Chair — I do love Dave Egger’s McSweeney’s publishing house and this app pulls from the various publications there. Is it worth a $5.99 investment? Not sure. But this is one I will be checking out and consider the purchase, if only to keep supporting Egger’s publishing efforts.
- Electric Literature — It seems like I have read about this one before. The app costs $4.99 but it features anthologies of “named” writers. I would prob avoid it for the cost. Sorry.
- IndieBound — This is an app (free!) that uses GPS to find independent book stores. That is something I can support. I do try to mix up my business with books between the small book stores in our area with the Barnes & Nobles. (And Amazon).
- There was a mention of something called Scrollmotion’s First Things Last, which is free, and which apparently showcases an interactive serial story. What is that? Now, I need to know.
Peace (in the app),
Kevin
I have the IndieBound app, even though I rarely buy books these days, choosing instead to borrow them from the library. It’s a good app.
As for reading the news on my iPhone, I use GoogleReader for that but if I want to link to the article or post it on FB, I end up going on my computer anyway to do it. It’s good for on the go, though.
For an eReader, I use the Kindle app, which is also free and since there is an Amazon app, it’s pretty easy to download books to it. I don’t really like reading books on my iPhone, though.