hAPPiness

It's been a year now since I received my iPad for Christmas, and since I figure some of my friends may have received one as a gift recently, too, I thought I'd share some of my favorite apps. These are basically the ones that I use on a daily basis, and all but one are free.

Bible (Free)

This is quickly becoming my go-to Bible. I love the fact that the iPad is small enough to take anywhere, and with this app, I have access to any number of versions of the Bible that I might want to check out. I often find myself switching from one version to another in the context of a Bible study or sermon, just to see how different passages have been translated.

DirecTV (Free)

This is a killer app. Obviously, you need to be using DirecTV but if you do, it's a must. The interface is basically 3 columns: currently watching, live TV streaming, and guide favorites. You can configure the streaming channel to display what's currently playing on a wide variety of channels. If you see something that looks interesting, you can watch that show directly on your iPad. Guide favorites shows what's currently playing on the channels that you set, and so if you want to switch your tv to one of those shows *or* set up recording for that show, it's just a simple press of the button. You can also use the search function to find shows happening in the future and set them to record. It's been invaluable to me as a tool for setting up recording because it's much simpler than tracking down the tv remote and going through the menu system there. Also, I can set the tv to record something while members of my family are watching something completely different--I don't have to interrupt what they're watching to hurriedly set up another show to record before I forget! I can't say enough good things about this one.

My Fitness Pal (Free)

I became hooked on the Android version of this app last spring, but they've recently released an iPad version of their calorie/exercise tracker. The user interface is great and they make it easy to keep up with the ins/outs of your calories on any given day. No matter where you update your stats--online, on your phone, or through the iPad--they are always synced. Nice.

All Recipes (Free; upgrade available for $4.99)

I've used All Recipes for many years now online, but I love being able to access their database from my iPad, because I keep it docked in my kitchen. It's super simple to find a recipe and refer to it while I'm doing the cooking, avoiding the necessity of having to print out the recipe on paper (which I then have to figure out where to file). The free version of this app is adequate, but I did choose to upgrade so I could save all of my recipes in a recipe box. It's got some neat features like "Inspire Me" where it displays photos of recipes that you can then click to read more about, and "Featured," where they feature 12 recipes that are generally related to the season. For example, the ones there now are titled "New Year, New Start" and are healthier versions of standards. One more note: All Recipes has another app called the Dinner Spinner that's super fun to use. You may want to check it out, too (designed for iPhone/Android). 

Pandora (Free)

This works just like the website does: pick a genre of music and get an instant stream of it delivered straight to your device. Again, the upside of this for me is that I generally have my iPad docked in the kitchen and so this expands my music options while I'm busy in that part of the house.

ABC Player (Free)

Admittedly, I don't watch that much TV. But it seems like the shows that I do watch happen to be on ABC more often than not. You have to wait a day until after the original air date, but this app basically brings you ABC's lineup to your iPad: find your show and you can watch back episodes on demand for free. I was able to keep up with Dancing With the Stars last season by using this app!

This American Life ($4.99)

This is my favorite radio program, hands down. I have no idea when it actually airs in my area, though, because I've set up iTunes to download the most recent podcast and I can access older ones using this app. The way I use it most often? I love finding interesting-sounding episodes just before we're going to be traveling in the car: by using an adaptor, I can listen to up to 3 episodes (1 hour each) without being connected to Wi-Fi. And when Loys and I went to Orlando ealier this week, we were able to download 3 new episodes at our hotel room before heading back home (because we got free wi-fi there). The app has a feature where you can press a button to play WBEZ live on your iPad (this is the home station for the show), along with a countdown clock to when the next episode airs. As I type this, it looks like the next episode will air tonight at 7 pm Central time: "Where Your Crap Comes From." Sounds like a winner to me! :)

So, that's my shortlist for iPad apps that are not child- or school-related. What's on yours?