It’s Monday! We hope you have a hella-good one. One of the things we’ve chatted about this past weekend in the garden are our favorite apps and we thoughts we’d share them with all of you. So, without further ado, here are 20 super-useful apps for a mix of platforms and devices.
Music
- Audacity: When you’ve got to do some detailed audio editing, there’s nothing cooler than Audacity. This open source app has been around for years. It’s reliable, fairly easy to sort out, and open source. That means–you guessed it–free!
- Media Monkey: Media Monkey is simply the best tool for tagging and organizing audio files in one place. It’s built-in file renaming capabilities mean that you can skip third-party apps when cleaning up your music collection. This is the main reason Aaron occasionally runs Windows
- Apple Music: This app is Apple’s fore into the world of streaming music. With a three-month free trial and a whole host of offerings to list to, it’s really taken on giants like Spotify. But, even if you don’t subscribe, listening to your iTunes music on your Android phone is awesome. Plus, iTunes has come a long way since it’s hid your music by giving it cryptic filenames. Now everything is organized for you in an easy-to-locate format.
Text
- TextMate: There’s something to be said for a plain, old text editor. TextMate is one of those. With simple numbering and an easy-on-the-eyes background, it’s one our top choices for Mac.
- Notepad++: This is, hands-down, one of the best text editors out there. It is only available on Windows. If you’re running that OS and just want a neat editor for your code or other notes, this one is the way to go.
- Geany: If you just can’t stomach Windows, Geany is a cross-platform, text editor that will definitely do the job.
- Bear: Steph is already loving Bear as a new note taking app. With Markup and HTML support, it’s easier than ever to export your work to any format you might need. It could also work as an affordable writing solution. Plus, it’s just a gorgeous UI design.
Geek Tools
- Filezilla: If you do anything where you need to move files back and forth to websites, Filezilla is a must-have. You can quickly drag and drop files from one system to another.
- 7-zip: If you frequently download compressed files from the Internet, this a handy tool. Plus, it doesn’t just unzip .zip file extensions. It will uncompress any file type you throw at it.
- Team Viewer: If you’ve ever had to fix your mother’s computer before, this tool is a life-saver. Free for personal use, it allows you to remotely control or view another person’s computer.
- Virtual Box: Aaron loves Virtual Box! This tool allows you to install a complete operation system in a single, segmented portion of your hard drive. The best part is, it doesn’t require a partition. It’s useful for testing out operating systems and other programs without messing up your machine.
Productivity
- Timely: Steph has become a connoisseur of alarm clock apps. After many tests, her favorite is Timely. Not only does it have a reliable alarm setting that never seems to fail, but the “Night Mode” on the desktop clock is calming and unobtrusive.
- Tasks (Astrid To-Do List Clone) Steph’s tried a bunch go these, too. There are tons of task apps out there, but if you aren’t looking to buy before you try, check out Tasks. If offers all of the basic task tools and even some advanced recurring features. So if you only have a task on MWF or the weekends, you can specify it.
- Ebook & Document Converter: A couple of weeks ago, Steph got an email from a friend who said he couldn’t open a file of his, It turned out to be from…wait for it…WordPerfect. Holy Flashback, Batman! This little app converted it quickly and accurately. For free. Sweet!
- Task Timer: Constantly running late? Enter all of your tasks into the timer and set it to go off before you begin your chores. You’ll always know how long everything takes.
- Gimp: We love Photoshop, but the idea of forking over $30 a month for a membership to the Creative Cloud is too much to handle for our occasional use. Enter Gimp, or *G* NU *I* mage *M* anipulation *P* rogram. It’s a robust tool than can compete with Photoshop in many respects, but without the price tag.
- Pushbullet: Ever wanted to send files to your computer without email? Or send a text when your phone is two floors away? Pushbullet is your app. Connect your phone to your main computer for texting capabilities and even invite friends for simplified communications.
Family
- Chore Monster: Every had a Monday morning where you’re practically tearing your hair out, trying to get your kids to remember to feed the dogs? That’s where Chore Monster comes in. Parents can use the parent companion app, Mothership, to set up customized chores for their kids, track completion, and even grant rewards.
- Overdrive: Can’t make it to the public library? Got a library card? Download the Overdrive app! You can choose from thousands of ebooks from your local public library, borrow them, and read them on your own tablet.
- NextCloud: For sharing photos between family members or just keeping your info stored on a private cloud, nothing beats NextCloud. Check out our demo on this tool, here.
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