23 Mobile Things: Thing 13 (Presentations)

I was really excited to try out Haiku Deck, even on my modest little iPhone 4, until I saw this in the introductory materials . . .

Coming soon? Well, this surely is disappointing for a non-iPad-owner. Why does an app for this exist for my iPhone to purchase if it's not fully-functional yet? Can someone in software development explain this one to me? Please?

Now, let's hit the Deck . . .

I used Deck to create a presentation. Considering I did this all on my almost-outdated iPhone 4, I thought it turned out pretty well -- I was able to type my points, add pictures, add charts, and I thought it looked pretty good and that I could proudly show it off here on my blog. Until I tried uploading it to SlideShare. After one failed attempt, I tried again five more times, using both the PowerPoint and PDF formats, and was unsuccessful in getting the presentation uploaded. Also, each time I went into my presentation after shutting down Deck, the photos I had selected for certain points were deleted, so I had to reinsert them each time. Super frustrating.

This is probably a great idea and a great app when it works, especially for busy professionals on the go who need to make and give and update presentations, but I found it to be especially frustrating in its non-working mode.

Seeing this allegedly-uploading-to-SlideShare screen was getting really old, really fast.

Sigh. On to the next thing . . . 

23 Mobile Things: Thing 12 (Books, Books, & More Books)

For Thing 12, I tried Wattpad (Who names these apps?), which offers access to free books. The app itself was simple and straightforward to use. On the iPhone, it uses a finger swipe or tap to turn pages, it is customize-able, and it offers some of the considered-literary-classics that are not bound by copyright, along with some free titles. However, there are some features I don't quite understand; for example, I think the star icon indicates one can vote on the popularity of a book's section -- why? There are lots of opportunities for social networking features while reading a book, and that might be really desirable for some people who like reaching out and making reading a book into a more communal experience; however, I am a very private reader. I don't always like to share my thoughts on a work until I'm done, and sometimes not even then, so a feature like private notes might be nice in a reading app. Also, this app seems almost overly-customize-able, if that's a thing. For example, if you want to read the words of James Joyce's Dubliners as if they were written on a Packers fan's chest:

That somehow seems very wrong to my eyes. However, the customize-able aspect gives the reader the option to personalize, if not optimize, his or her reading experience.

23 Mobile Things: Thing 11 (Library & Reference)

Dakota County Library's Boopsie mobile app (DCL Mobile) is a pretty standard-feature, standard-functioning public library app. I was able to log into my account with my library card number and PIN, I was able to renew one of my items, I was able to get into our library calendar and link to the event and registration details on our EVANCED calendar, and I saw what was featured for our "Cool Stuff" (Mango Languages, Medline, Novelist Plus, and Zino -- all very cool). The app did not run as quickly as I would have liked, but, then again, I may have mentioned that I have a nearly-out-of-date iPhone 4. I have talked to patrons who have and who use the DCL Mobile app, which is great, as it's another way to make the library experience more convenient for and connected to our library users, but I wonder how many people realize the cost attached to these apps. Also, I would like to see what a really innovative, customize-able, homegrown library app might look like, just to compare to the cookie-cutout library apps.

At the 2012 Minnesota Library Association annual conference, I attended a really great, really interesting session on the Electronic Library for Minnesota mobile website design. Minitex librarians Jennifer Hootman and Matt Lee discussed how the ELM site was streamlined and specifically designed for mobile and tablet use and the rationale behind creating a mobile-friendly website (like, oh, how mobile web traffic from smartphones and tablet devices is exponentially increasing over traditional larger screens of desktop and laptop computers).

ELM: smartphone view versus computer view

23 Mobile Things: Thing 10 (Sharing Photos)

Today, we learn . . . 

Instagram - I have a sometimes-used Instagram account, because I tend to share most (okay, all) of my pictures unfiltered through Facebook. (Seriously, have you seen my cat? She doesn't need to be filtered.) I find that Instagram, like some of the previously-explored apps like Flipboard, are for people who are strongly visual people, people who are visual learners, people who are visually literate, people who are visually artistic, and that's great. I tend not to be so strong in my visual skills, and I get easily overwhelmed with the onslaught of imagery on Instagram. However, that being said, I do like the effect some of the filters have on my pictures, and I like being able to share "artsy" shots back and forth with friends. This is my long-standing favorite of my personal Instagram photos:

I've heard of the new trend of "shelfies," and I have to say I'm rather fond of the idea for marketing library materials, especially read-/view-/listen-alikes.

Snapchat - Snapchat seems to be visual ephemera shared among friends. I use it to keep in touch with two friends of mine, Marie and Ryan. It feels a little like the e-photo equivalent of passing notes in school. I'm not the biggest fan of Snapchat, but I am a fan of both Marie and Ryan, so I'll keep using it. I have a feeling this is an app that drives people who are curators to their core absolutely bonkers.

23 Mobile Things: Thing 9 (Taking & Editing Photos)

Picture of superstar feline extraordinaire, Miss Zelda Miervaldis, taken by me but newly created with Aviary
("Dean" effect, "Grit" frame, two stars, and some text)

And, now, we've come to it. Thing 9 has provided use with more tools (and more excuses) to add to the vast collection of Internet cat pictures. (You're welcome, rest of humanity.)

Aviary - Fairly easy and straightforward to use. Unfortunately, no undo button as I could find. I am familiar with the filters through using Pic Stitch, which has the same filters with the same names. (I'll extol the virtues of Pic Stitch in a bit.) Here is another example of a photo creation using Aviary:

It's like micro-scrapbooking for techy (or lazy) people! 

LINE Camera - I had trouble creating and finding my first photo edit. This:

By this point, I was getting overwhelmed with possibilities for photo editing and manipulation, so I wanted to do something simple and create a collage:

LINE Camera is also straightforward and easy-to-use. There are plenty of opportunities to delete and reselect photos in the respective collage spots without having to scrap the whole collage, unlike Pic Stitch.

Pic Stitch - My friend Susan introduced me to this app, and it's maybe my favorite one because it combines filters and collages. I made a couple of mini-collages, complete with assorted filtered photos, from my library school BFF Gillian's and my vacation last year to Virginia Beach:

Did I mention photo editing apps might be great micro-scrapbooking for the tech-savvy or lazy? Definitely.