APPS FOR THE NEW YEAR!
The turn of the calendar is a
great time for a fresh start. Whether your New Year's resolution is to get
fitter, be happier, or just organize your life, lists some cool free apps
that will do the heavy lifting...
KEEP A DAILY JOURNAL DIARO
Web, Android, iOS | diaroapp.com
In a 2005 study, published in the science journal Advances in Psychiatric
Treatment, psy chologists noted that writing your thoughts in a diary and
revisiting them can help deal with stressful events. Other studies have shown
it can encourage you to stick to new habits, and even raise your happiness
levels.
Diaro is a free app that works
like a personal journal. Its cross-platform nature ensures you can update
your posts from any device. Entries can be categorized in folders (business,
friends, love, vacation) or by tags (dreams, ideas, movies) and location. You
can also add photos to your jottings especially useful if you're using your
phone to click those pictures too.
If you are an Android user, you
might also want to take a look at Journey (2appstudio.comjourney), another
free app that works with Google Chrome on desktops.
For Apple users, no journaling app
comes close to Day One (dayoneapp.com), but it costs Rs 300 on iOS and Rs 500
on Mac.
PLAN YOUR SCHEDULE SUNRISE
CALENDAR
Web, Android, iOS, Mac |
http:www.sunrise.am Google Calendar is a fantastic tool, but it locks you
into the Google ecosystem. This means you aren't going to get Facebook noti
fications, or your TripIt travel itinerary at a glance. Well, try Sunrise
Calendar.
This serviceapp, essentially, is a
more beautiful and open version of Google Calendar. Sign in with your Google
account and it will import all the data. Then, you can connect other accounts
like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, TripIt, Todoist, Trello, iCloud, Foursquare
and more.
Sunrise will import the relevant
data from everywhere.When you wake up in the morning, an e-mail will tell you
whose birthday it is on Facebook or what deadline you have planned on Trello.
Before your scheduled meeting, Sunrise will show you the latest tweet or the
LinkedIn profile of the person and it does all this in a clean, gorgeous
interface, on both mobile and web.
START NEW HABITS HABITRPG
Web, Android, iOS | habitrpg.com
Habits are hard to form, whether you want to quit smoking or finally get
serious about saving money. So why not turn these New Year resolutions into a
game, complete with level-ups and quirky characters? Meet HabitRPG, a
role-playing game that you play in real life.
Under the surface, HabitRPG is all
about tracking what you do. But “gamifying“ these mundane tasks is what makes
it cool. So whenever you complete a task or reinforce a good habit, you get
rewarded with XP and gold, which you can use to unlock features, new
characters or virtual pets.
You can also set real-world
rewards, like allowing yourself a dessert if you have stuck to your diet for
three days.
On the other hand, if you have
missed a task or failed in keeping up your habit, then you'll lose health and
eventually die in-game, costing you the progress you have made. So, for
example, if you have been maintaining your routine, you could use your XP or
gold to upgrade your armour, so that when you fail in your routine, you lose
fewer health points.
HabitRPG has all the elements to
make your New Year Resolutions more fun, and since it's cross-platform, it's
also easy to update.
CREATE YOUR TO-DO LIST WUNDERLIST
Web, Android, iOS, Windows Phone,
Windows, Mac | http:www.wunderlist.com While your calendar takes care of your
schedule, you will still need to create a set plan of the things you need to
accomplish each day. Wunderlist is one of the oldest and most popular to-do
list apps, and with good reason.
With Wunderlist, you can browse
your tasks, add due dates and reminders, write detailed notes, add hashtags
to sort them, get notifications on different devices, share a list with your
team mates or family, and even comment for collaboration. It works on every
platform and it's completely free.
There are two great alternatives
to Wunderlist that are also worth checking out, and are similarly free and
crossplatform. Todoist has most of the same features, but throws in colour
coded prioritization for tasks; however, reminders are a premium service
here. The other good to-do service is Any.do, which again has all these
features and adds a daily “Any.do moment“ to review your tasks and plan your
day.
TRACK YOUR FITNESS FITOCRACY
Web, Android, iOS |
http:www.fitocracy.com If your big goal for 2015 is to get in shape, then
Fitocracy is made for you. This workout companion app is great for both
beginners as well as fitness buffs. It's all about choos ing your current
level and then starting a workout accordingly .
Fitocracy will recommend several
different workouts based on your fitness goal. Choose a regimen that works
for you and hit the gym. Each exercise comes with a YouTube video and
instructions so you can learn the right form to do it. You can track your
progress every day, and there's nothing like looking at that calendar of
successful workout days to keep you motivated.
The app also serves as a mini
social network. Add your friends or make new ones, based on those doing
similar workouts. A little encouragement can go a long way .
BOOST YOUR BRAIN
ELEVATE
| Android, iOS | elevateapp.com ust like your body, your mind needs
its own J exercise. Brain-training apps have been grow ing in popularity, and
the new king is Elevate, ranked by Apple as its App of the year and by Google
as one of its best apps in 2014.
Elevate is a series of brain
games, designed in consultation with neuroscientists and cognitive learning
specialists.
Every day, you will receive a set
of games based on the mental facilities you want to improve: focus, memory,
eloquence, math, clarity, and more. The games are well-designed and fun, and
while it feels like you are “playing“, you are actually learning. As you get
better at any one skill, Elevate will up the difficulty level. You can track
your progress at any time through charts and data. The app makers recommend
training at least four times a week for best results.
Mihir Patkar TOI 3JAN15
|
Thursday, January 15, 2015
APP SPECIAL................ APPS FOR THE NEW YEAR!
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