More Writer's Best Friends: Android Apps For The Writer

17.1.12 The Reporter 0 Comments

Writing is more than a career, it's a vocation. While some learn the trade of writing along the way, most writers are born that way and hewed by their jobs. That is why wherever you find a writer, you will be able to find either a collection of pens, diaries, or, in the case of techie writers, a slew of diary-keeping software and devices to journal with.

Earlier, we talked about the Samsung Galaxy Note, the Blackberry and the iPod Touch and how they can be used as the writer's best friends in recording thoughts and memories. Now, we'll talk about Android Apps that are useful for the writer and other avid thought-catchers.

The diary app is not only handy, it also sets the mood for note-taking and thought-catching. Today, we'll discuss two diary apps I've grown to love: UltraMate and Memoires.

UltraMate/UM Diary



The Good:

This is the first diary app that I've downloaded and installed. It has an aesthetically pleasing look, and it does serve its intended purpose very well: entries are archived on the day, and there is even a Calendar View to the app. Each day marked on the calendar comes as a cute Android logo head. The Calendar view also shows the post counts for that day.

Categories can also be set, so if you want to use the diary app for notes other than an actual journal, you will be able to classify by Category.

A password can be set, and backups may be made and restored from. You may even create Templates as formats for specific types of entries. Neat, huh?

Photos may be embedded in entries, and there's even a "Portraits" section, which can be accessed from Menu > Toolkit. Great for taking photos and notes when you're out on town, or hiking through fields, where you're bound to see something interesting at every turn.

All of that is housed on a beautiful wood background, which makes a journaler feel journal-ish.

You know those ornate, antique backgrounds, right? They always inspire that feeling of home, that feeling of being artsy, and it never fails in causing a writer to get in the mood to grab a cup of coffee, a pen, and his journal and write. In this case, the writer-journaler only needs to grab a cup of coffee, find a good, comfy chair to sink into and type away.


The Bad:

Being a typing-intensive exercise, one may find journaling via the Android a tedious task, indeed. So I recommend using a physical keyboard-powered app to use this one.


Memoires



The Good:

Being content with UltraMate, I didn't really think about downloading another journaling app. Not yet, anyway, because I felt like UltraMate was enough.

There was a day, though, when I wanted to jot down something else, and just keep UltraMate as an app to post quotes and verses that I wanted to meditate on, for that specific day. So I downloaded Memoires and Diaro.

I kept Memoires, because Diaro wasn't as aesthetically pleasing as Memoires, or even UltraMate.

What I discovered later was how much more awesome Memoires was:

• I could take photos and embed them on the entry
• I could take an audio recording in lieu of an entry
• Smileys to mark the entry's mood! Just like LiveJournal!

My first use of Memoires was to take photos of books I want to buy in the future. I went around the bookstore I used to hang out in, and snapped photo after photo. Thanks to that, I discovered that I could tag the entries and keep them separate from my journal itself.

So now, thanks to Memoires' tags, I now have book wishlists and a journal, which I can filter when I fire up the app. The user can choose which of his tags he will be able to see upon startup of Memoires. Fun function!

Memoires handles three forms of media essential for memory- and thought-capture:

• Photos
• Audio Recordings
• Good Ole Text Entries

There is also the "Flow of Thoughts" function wherein you can link entries to each other. You can do this by: Go[ing] to the Entry > Click the Menu button (Top Right/Arrow pointing down) > Choose the option "Follow up..."

This links a new memory/entry to that particular memory you posted. An innovative function!

On the whole, if I had to have JUST ONE diary app on my Android, I may give that space to Memoires, because since I own a touch screen Android (for now), the audio recording function will eliminate the need for me to tap on it. Thus, since I sometimes run out of time to record my days, this function is very handy, indeed.

If you're one of those folks who doesn't have qualms about using GPS to identify his location and weather data, Memoires also has this function that allows you to add your location, and even your weather data. Not for the squeamish about GPS!


The Bad:

Nothing beats journaling by stringing written words together and fleshing them out in black and white. Thus, if you're still old skool that way, Memoires will have the same limitation I cited for UltraMate: you may want to find a QWERTY Android or a Slider Android for this.

Another downside that I see in this app is that you will need hefty storage to maximize its use. Good thing that it "lives" on the SD Card, so just get the max that your phone can handle, and record your thoughts away! (Look mom, no hands! Or, more accurately, Look mom, no touchpad-typing!)


The writer does have a whole slew of "toys" and "toys within toys" to add to his life nowadays. Thus, there's no excuse for writers or aspiring writers to beg off on journaling: your tools are all laid out for you to use!


This just discovered (after I wrote this article): Upon seeing the Developer's Page of the Ultra Mate Diary, it even tops Memoires because it can insert a video and an on-the-spot video record, a sound recording or an MP3, and even text from another app. There goes your SD Card. :p