An Apple a day

When it comes to the crunch I really am a bit of a technophobe. I much prefer a hand written list, and keeping track of dates and events in an actual diary. I'd never had great experiences with computers or laptops and my bulky Dell was old, slow and unreliable. I was in dire need of an upgrade and I soon realised when I was graduating from uni that my chosen career path in Film and Television was very much an Apple orientated industry (more so for the Design department) A dent in my bank balance and a shiny new white Macbook later, it is true what they say, 'once you're Mac you'll never go back'.

Fast forward 3 years and I'm feeling very blessed to still be earning a living from working in the Art Department for Films and TV shows. My Macbook is still doing me proud in my day to day work as well as personal life, and last year I made an addition to my little Apple setup. An Ipad!

My Ipad is the third generation one with wi-fi, which has been perfect for me but the likes of the Carphone Warehouse do ones with cellular connections too (that you pay for on a monthly basis, just like a phone contract) I was initially a bit nervous when I bought it to see whether I could actually justify having one. But I take it everywhere with me in my handbag and I don't regret buying it at all! I don't have an Iphone so I'm still fairly new to all the applications etc you can get for it. So here's a wee insight into what's sitting on my screen and my favourite app's so far.

As you can see, I don't actually have a lot on there. I have started using their Notes programme lately but I still like to carry a proper notebook and diary in my bag with me. Still not 100% confident that technology wouldn't fail me one day and leave me in a sticky situation with information disappearing into oblivion. From the other applications listed above, here are my most used (and why):

1. Relax Melodies

This app contains 3 pages of recorded sounds on loop to help you relax or get into a proper state of meditation, or even sleep. The sound of thunder and rain is really comforting to me for some reason, so I'll often put it on if I am not feeling well, or are a bit stressed and need some time to myself for ten minutes. You can set an alarm just in case you fall asleep (which I have done)

360 is one step further from taking a normal panorama picture. You stand in the one position and can actually stitch together a picture of a whole room! It stores as a preview like the bars listed above, but once you select one you can go back inside it and spin the photo around as if you were in a room again. It has been great for me for work, and is much more useful for going on location than just normal flat photographs. I am still pretty rubbish/untidy at using it but hopefully I'll get better with practice.

A very simple one, but totally golden again for work! This Documents application is a really clean and useful way of storing scripts, call sheets, schedules, prop lists and script breakdowns etc together. Means I always have a copy of them on my person downloaded from an email, just in case I don't have access to wi-fi. Keeps all essential paperwork together for me when I'm constantly on the move - on set, in meetings, and out prop buying.

Just because :) The I Can Haz Cheezburger application is the ultimate collection of internet meme sources! Lol Cats is my favourite (one guess why...) and I Actually read in the news today that there is a Lol Cats inspired art exhibition on in London?! Power to the internet!

I have been using the Smart Alarm to track my sleeping patterns and any noise disturbances that unsettle me during the night. It is meant to analyse the quality of sleep you have had and wake you up and the appropriate time to avoid under or over sleeping. There are various different modes you can use and it is quite funny listening back to all the noise disturbances from during the night. Pretty much all of them catch me snoring! I did a complete reset of all my statistics in the new year and haven't started properly using it again yet, but the snippet above gives you an idea of how it works.

Are you an Ipad or Iphone user? I'd love you to share your favourite app's with me :) Android Marketplace users please don't feel left out, I'm still a loyal Blackberry user through and through!

Ayden x