Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Note Taking App Reviews!!

I finally wrote out my rubric and scored the apps, so now without further fanfare...

*Note: These are all iPad apps I have tested on a 16GB iPad mini. My opinions are my own, unsolicited views.

Well first, an overview:

Name of App

My Rating (out of 4 o's)

Price

Page/Book Limitations

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection

Writing Accuracy

Notes/Comments

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Bamboo Paper

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My Rating: o o o o

Price: Free, Full Version Costs $1.99

Page/Book Limitations: I don't remember how many books I got with the free version, maybe 3 or 4, but I had about 15 pages of notes for Biology. The full version is, of course, with unlimited books and pages.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: 9 colors to choose from, can choose pen or highlighter and only 3 sizes, but I only use one size most of the time and it's perfect for me.

Writing Accuracy:Pretty accurate, especially with my magnificent new Boxwave stylus! (Thank You, PaperDesk!) (That thing is SWEET.)

Notes/Comments: I love that I can lock one of my notebooks, as it is specifically for dream captures. Can change paper type. Also skips occasionally, but only around edges. Bought full version. Can you tell this one is my favorite yet?

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the note, Moka!

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My Rating: o o o c

Price: Free, Full for $4.99

Page/Book Limitations: Not totally sure...it updated and I've been able to add a ton more books and pages than I initially could...and I know I didn't get the full version of this one.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: a whopping 14 colors to choose from!!, can use pen highlighter, or crayon. - 6 size choices as well as different eraser sizes.

Writing Accuracy: pretty accurate, almost same as Penultimate, though.

Notes/Comments: I feel bad I underestimated this app, and only rate it the way I do from my initial testing. I can tell it has way more to it now, but I haven't explored that, so I cannot rate based on that. Also, you can't delete books in the Lite Version.

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Evernote Penultimate

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My Rating: o c

Price: Free

Page/Book Limitations: Not sure...The interface was a tad confusing for me.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: 10 colors, 1 type of pen with a slider to change size.

Writing Accuracy: slight lag but writes OK

Notes/Comments: can change paper type, smooths letters as you write. overall, an OK app, but I agree with the other reviews in the App Store.

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PaperDesk - I had to bring it back for the multi-app review. It's only fair. 

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My Rating: o o o o

Price: Free; Full Version is $3.99

Page/Book Limitations: In Free Version, only 1 folder, 3 notebooks with 3 pages each. In full, unlimited.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: Pencil or highlighter - colors pretty much infinite and size changes with a slider. you can preselect a color or slide the slider around to pick the perfect shade and adjust it with the other sliders.

Writing Accuracy: sometimes skips when drawing, but very accurate representation.

Notes/Comments: Type, record, and draw! My only wish is that you could type from any spot, instead of keying 'Enter' after I draw a diagram to make notes beneath it. My touchscreen writing isn't so great, and I like to have the legible print of typing. I also discovered I can type into my professor's PDF formatted powerpoints!

Overall, these apps are all pretty good and the free versions are basic and do what needs to be done, which is draw and take notes the way I like. My favorites are PaperDesk and Bamboo Paper, of course. Now back to Amazon.com to peruse more cases so I can better enjoy my note taking! (My current one does not rotate...I was waiting to get one that did. Can't beat Amazon's prices, for sure!!)

Monday, February 18, 2013

More App Reviews Coming Soon...

I will be posting another App Review post soon, this time with some more attention to handwriting apps in particular. I've been testing them for about two weeks and have even bought the full version of one of them, I loved it so much! I'll need to come up with a rubric for rating, though and go through them again so they can be scored equally. 

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Craft Show Prep #2

I thought I would do a second post detailing my sources of certain products I use at shows. I am doing a women's symposium at a college next month and want everything done before hand. My inventory is no where near done but I have a lot of things cut out to sew.

For now, though:
Fabric Labels: Spoonflower (I got a fat quarter printed with my logo and pressed the edges under, stitched around each one, and added it to my products. I used this tutorial.

Business cards: moo.com - LOVE their mini cards! They shipped them so fast and the little QR code on the back links to my Etsy shop.

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Banner: Wal-Mart - I bought a paper pack for five dollars along with double sided tape. I made a paper banner like the ones seen on Pinterest. Way easier than fabric/felt and way cheaper than vinyl (I ended up sewing the second two together after I took this picture).

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Photo Price Signs: anywhere.....I have 20 free prints from Snapfish for purchasing HP ink, so I will getting my next set through them. My last ones were from Walgreens for about two dollars. How ironic that I don't have a picture of these yet. But I have designed them!

Bags: my mom and Etsy. I got some big clear plastic merchandise bags from my mom, who is a Scentsy consultant. I got some zebra print t shirt bags and purple merchandise bags from two different Etsy sellers. Talk about pops of color!

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Stair-step Display: Dollar General/Wal-Mart - I used the same paper pack and bought foam core from DG. Found the tutorial on Pinterest!

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And since I'm sharing, here are my other two DIY Display pieces - no tutorials, just sitting there playing with materials.

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Friday, February 8, 2013

This is my therapy

This blog is my therapy. Typing a new post helps me some days. I had a thought about being able to finish my novel that way. I even had an idea for another one surface while going through some old pages where I had penned a random chapter or two. I keep ignoring my diet and coming back to it. I keep starting to exercise and then stopping again. I started eating things I had stopped eating.

I have got to stop relapsing. It's not fair to me or my body. I have to ignore my cravings and replace them with something healthy or just drink a bottle of water. I keep the same bottle around as long as I can and then replace it. I love those sparkling waters, and they only cost 1 dollar and I can walk to the store to get it - 20-30 minutes of exercise right there! I hope you will continue to follow my blog and I hope I can get better with posting more. I promise, I have a notebook full of ideas, I just to have to get it typed!