Tag Archives: apps

Six-Pack (56)

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Way too long away! I have missed every one of you, AND I’ve missed posting. Time to re-establish order in our post-sickness lives. Cheers to new days and new starts!

So let’s jump in: Here is the first Six-Pack of 2014 — the best pieces that have kicked off my year. As usual, selections are generally centered on faith or ministry, though we leave sufficient license to include who-knows-what as we discover it!

If six ever feels overwhelming, start with my two *Picks of the Week*, and move out from there.

For a steady stream of such links, follow me on Twitter to the right of this post.  Sharp quotes and solid articles are tweeted 3-4 times daily.

Today’s edition:

1) My Advice to Married Couples After Divorcing My Wife of 16 Years (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
 Married, single, divorced, engaged, want-to-be-married, couldn’t-care-less — if you know another human being, read this. It might change the way you see or touch those lives.

2) How I Rediscovered Faith
Relevant Magazine‘s latest issue involves Malcolm Gladwell recounting a life-altering trip to Winnipeg as part of the research on his last book.

3) The Absolute Best iPhone Apps for Pastors
I do love being a pastor (most of the time), and I do love having an iPhone (most of the time). This list, from ProPreacher provides an interesting read for any other preacher trying to wield smartphones productively.

4) SATAN: Old Testament Servant Angel or New Testament Cosmic Rebel?
This is a LONG read. But if you’ve ever been interested in the person of Satan as Scripture describes him, this is fascinating stuff that will have you asking new questions and re-reading familiar old passages with fresh eyes.

5) Interview with the Ultimate Warrior (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
This is a fun article, filled with childhood flashbacks for this former WWF fan. The former superstar chats about everything from career challenges to the business side of wrestling to being in a video game still today to slamming Andre the Giant.

6) Why Atheists are Angry at God
Joe Carter, of TGC, observes that some atheists approach non-faith in a strictly logical and rational way. But he notes what he considers to be far more atheists whose stance is emotionally charged. His question: What are they mad about? That might be good to know.

May your week ahead be filled with life, as you seek the One from whom it flows!

leaveacommentYOUR TURN: Your input makes this post better!

  • Which link above was today’s best-of-the-best?
  • Why that one?

Direct others to the best of the bunch with a quick comment.

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Three iPhone Apps You Should Consider

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The old adage encourages, “Shake what your mama gave you!”

Beyond the mamas and the shaking lies a sentiment about using what you are given.  But what if what has been given is not all that it could be?

This is the question for many iPhone owners: Which of those preloaded apps could be improved upon? Which upgrades are worth the change?

Here are three moves that I am glad I made:

1) Camera
One of the most significant upgrades from the iPhone 4 to the iPhone 4S revolves around its photographic capabilities.  That said, why not push that progress even further?  My experience at trying to do this revolves around two apps:

Camera+
This is one of the most highly-reviewed apps in both the official App Store and in other sources I have read.  One review I read said that Tap Tap Tap, the app’s developer is so skilled at advancing the photography of iDevices that Apple frequently incorporates their developments into later releases of their own stuff.  What’s that quote about that the highest form of flattery?

If you plan to use your phone for any form of image-capturing, spend the buck on this one.  Seven million people are already on the wagon!

Camera Awesome
If I didn’t already use Camera+, this would likely be my next choice.  For the cheapies out there, this one rings in at the optimal price of FREE.  I am not a huge fan of the generic “awesomize” feature, though if you are looking for a mindless way to improve most photos in a single click, this may meet your desire.  Something I DO like is that Camera Awesome allows you to toggle over to video mode, whereas my app of choice, Camera+, leaves you stuck in strictly-stills mode.

2) Calendar
Initially using the built-in Calendar on my 4S, I had no real issues with the app.  More than anything, it was the multitude of alternative calendar apps available that got me to wondering how many different ways there were to design a digital calendar.  Make no mistake, there are MANY, my friends!

After some online homework, I settled on Week Calendar, primarily because I agree with their premise that the primary look that most of use in day-timers or agendas is… wait for it… a WEEK.  Surprisingly, this feature is not available on many of the calendar apps.  With some minor tweaking of the settings, one can craft this app into exactly what you need to stay organized, without having any unnecessary features cluttering up the process.  I have continued to check out other apps but have settled quite happily on Week Calendar.

If you want other alternatives, you could start with investigating Calvetica Calendar or QuickCal Mobile, to name but two of the options out there.

3) Twitter
My Twitter frequency and  usage increased markedly when I purchased my iPhone.  For starters, Twitter is just a lot more enjoyable to use on my phone, so much so that I seldom even check it on my computer anymore.  A couple reasons come to mind: 1) I love being able to rifle through the latest tweets when I just have a minute or two to spare.  Those quick peeks, spread through the day, allow me to stay on top of the pile, quickly starring favourites for later, and never feeling much burden in the task of keeping up.  2) Tweetbot.

Like my journey with Calendar, I had no real beefs with the pre-loaded official Twitter app, aside from wanting the ability to schedule and disperse tweets over time.  The search for that feature led me to Tweetbot, which does NOT possess that feature at all!  (If Tweetbot ever adds the ability to schedule tweets, they will have perfected this creation.)  However, if there is a better app for my Twitter-life than Tweetbot, I have yet to find it.  The cheapskate in me balked at paying a couple bucks for an app to replace  the  free-and-not-obviously-flawed Twitter app.  The rest of me has never looked back since growing accustomed to the sleek design and smooth usability of Tweetbot.  If you’re looking to enhance your Twitter experience, join the Tweetbot team.  You will not be disappointed.

How about you?  Any “app upgrades” that you would deem most worthy?  Any moves you made that you ended up undoing afterward?

Comment below to share.  I would love to learn from you.