I wanted to find out what apps people consider absolutely essential. I couldn’t call Ghostbusters, so who did I call? The TCEA staff, of course. I put the call out in our general Slack channel in BIG BOLD capital letters. You might be wondering, what is Slack? Read on to find out who recommends this fine app.
Miguel – Of course, Miguel wanted to give me 10 apps, but I escaped out of his office, with only one: Overcast. He comments, “I use this app every day. But more importantly, it helps me maintain my sanity on long commutes.” This free podcast app doesn’t force you to navigate through tons of ads or pretty images; it just plays podcasts. iOS
Jennifer – Our Director of Governmental Relations also has an hour commute in to work and she uses her time wisely with the YouVersion Holy Bible app. Jennifer said, “I let it read Scripture passages to me on the way to work. I love to use it to look up the same verse in different versions so I can see how different editions interpret the same verse. It also has Bible reading plans you can follow and it has a social component that allows others to see what you read and highlighted.” Google Play and iOS
Meaghan – Right away, our Conference Services Coordinator said “The one with the light bulb.” “Hmmm,” I told her, “ I need a little more info.” Come to find out, it is the Google Keep app. Meaghan uses Keep for work, events, groceries, to-dos, and reminders. She loves her lists, so this app is #1 on the list-lover list! Ha! Google Play and iOS
Katie – Waze, the GPS, Maps & Social Traffic app is an easy to use and very handy app. Katie states “It helps me navigate traffic showing me three different routes, with all the obstacles, time, and distance to my destination, all while being user friendly.” Google Play and iOS
Bruce – Our Senior Director of PD states “I mainly use Pushbullet from my iPad to my laptop or my phone to my laptop. It lets you push files to your other devices. I can take a picture with my phone and push it to Chrome, my iPad, my phone, or laptop. If I select Chrome (and Chrome is open on my computer), the picture opens in a new tab. I can then copy/paste into a Powerpoint, Google Doc, etc.” Google Play and iOS
Alexis – For our TCEA Publications Manager, Alexis uses an oldie but a goodie: Evernote. I can’t imagine how many words she has stored in this app! Google Play and iOS
Matt – The TCEA IT Guy doesn’t believe in paper money. As usual, he is on the cutting edge of future technologies that are already here. Matt uses the free app Square Cash to send money directly to his friends’ bank accounts. It is secure and attaches to your account via a debit card. Google Play and iOS
Carrie – A couple of us at TCEA have banded together and are tackling Weight Watchers together. “The Weight Watchers app rocks. You can scan bar codes on packages to find their SmartPoint value and it’s so easy to track your points for the day,” our Membership Concierge states. Google Play and iOS
Sammy – I tracked down Sammy just as he was headed out the door on a Friday afternoon, which is kind of ironic, considering his go-to app is Nextdoor. Our Events and Exhibits Manager uses Nextdoor to stay in touch with his neighbors. Google Play and iOS
Lori – Our Executive Director uses the Kindle app on a daily basis to read away her stress. She especially loves getting ebooks for free from Amazon. Google Play and iOS
Diana and Peggy – In January, TCEA switched over to Slack from the Gmail Chat. Slack is an instant messaging and collaboration system. The communication system is two-fold:
1. You can send direct messages to one another.
2. People can create channels for different topics, groups, or events. TCEA has several channels for our events: Tots, Convention 2017, General, PD Team, Robotics, and of course, Random. (You have to have a spot to talk about potato chips, quarter-size hail, and restaurant suggestions!)
We could easily see this used at the campus level. Channels for all staff, by subject areas, grade levels, or electives, duty-related, library, etc. You name it: channels for all. Google Play and iOS
Featured Image by Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke from Pixabay
