Apps and Services That I Actually Use! (Part 1)

I'm going to skip ahead of my blog with this post and simply list all the useful tech 'stuff' that I use in my (church) work life. In future posts I shall go into more detail about each one. 

There is a slight Mac bias here, but a number of them are certainly available cross-platform. Most of them are free with a charge for some. I list them in no particular order, but just as they come to mind as I write:

• Buffer (bufferapp.com) - A great way to bring your social media life into line with free or pay monthly accounts.
• Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net/download) - Don't pay for an expensive audio editor when you can get an amazing one for free! For putting together podcasts this is ideal.
• iMovie (apple.com/uk/imovie) - Simple, easy, does the job of editing video really well with a few hidden surprises that can give your finished movie a professional look. Depending on platform and when you got your Apple device this app is free.
• Keynote (apple.com/uk/keynote) - Don't get stuck with a steep PowerPoint learning curve and wonderful transitions and effects that you'll probably never use. Get stuck into Keynote and begin preparing professional looking slides in seconds. (Just try and avoid using bullet points right... right?)
• Sermon.Net (sermon.net) - With various account packages which include a generous free account this is the easiest way to get your (Audacity) edited podcasts online. You've also got the option of releasing video podcasts into the wild also!
• Clipping Magic (clippingmagic.com) - Available for free, but only for use on the Chrome browser (google.com/chrome) this is an incredibly simple way to get rid of any pesky backgrounds from your images. You may not need to use it often, but when you do it's a time saver.
• Feedly (feedly.com) - Although you can pay for some extra features the free version of this news aggregator does the job for most folks. Access, share and save all your favourite websites, RSS feeds etc in one place.
• Pocket (getpocket.com) - Come across a website article, but haven't time to read it? Send it to Pocket. Find yourself skimming through stories using Feedly, but not really taking them in? Send the ones you're most interested in to Pocket. With offline access for all the stories and articles you save you'll find this is a real boredom buster, or something to help catch-up with the world when you've got that spare few minutes. Pocket is free.
• IFTTT (ifttt.com) - 'If This Then That' proclaims to "get the internet to work for you..." and it does, with aplomb. Hard to explain IFTTT in a few sentences, easier just to visit and experiment. You'll understand when you give it a go. IFTTT is free.
• Evernote (evernote.com) - Quite simply the best note taking tech out there. Available on pretty much any platform, and integrated into many other apps and services, this will (if you let it) quickly become your second brain! Choose the free account or pay yearly for more options.
• Fantastical (flexibits.com/fantastical) - This app quickly replaced my default calendar on all devices. It's not so much that it looks good and displays information well, it's more it's easy to input style of event and to-do list creation. Using natural language to input your information and syncing smoothly with your devices default calendar you'll never look back. Fantastical isn't free, but it's worth the cost.
• Blogger (blogger.com) - There are other good blog providers out there, but I found Blogger (from Google) to be the easiest to set-up with little fuss. Customisable to your unique tastes you'll be sharing your nuggets of wisdom with the world probably within 15 minutes. Best of all - it's free (okay, okay I know you've had to set-up a Google account and they want to advertise stuff to you so in a way you're the product, but... it's free!).
• Squarespace (squarespace.com) - Squarespace isn't free and at its heart it's a fancy blogging service, but the reality is that it's the easiest and simplest way to set up a modern (on-trend?) website with little or no coding needed! Their customer service is second to none and it will ensure you always have a neat, tidy and fresh looking website adaptable to all devices and platforms. Check out their two week trial offer and see what you think.

That's enough for now I think. In a few months I'll generate another list with more great apps and services!