45 Most Exciting Apps For Librarians
Although this is the information age, one of
the most common places for people to seek information is still the public
library. Fortunately, modern libraries have kept up with technological
advancements and have integrated computers, the internet, and other important
tools as a normal part of this dynamic hub where paper media meets electronics.
In fact, many people view the library as the central information center of the
city, and in order to retain this title, librarians now find themselves faced
with the need to utilize smartphones and tablet apps to complete their tasks and
perform jobs more quickly and efficiently.
There are various applications on the market
for librarians, each with their own uses, and although not all are helpful in
the library, you might be surprised to learn of how many do serve a literary
purpose.
Check out this list of 45 of the best apps for
librarians:
For Better Reading:
on
the market, and was created by Amazon. Due to its connections with Amazon
it
has a huge selection of books to choose from in a multitude of categories.
many
new releases for sale as well as a small selection of free reading materials.
is
the second most used e-reader in the world after the Kindle. It's most commonly
used
in Canada, and hosts a large assortment of books.
and
allows for highlighting, notes, dictionary support, and bookmarks, which make
it
an asset for any library.
variety of reading materials.
it's more of an academic tool than some of the other e-reading apps on
this list.
It
allows you to access scholarly articles and other documents and save them to
your
mobile device for later viewing.
devices and is used by over 700,000 Windows phone owners to browse and
read
their favorite books.
scan
a page; luckily, the Audiobooks application offers free books that you can
listen
to
for multitasking and hands free enjoyment of books.
books from other places and sites, as well as translate text.
font and color, and accepts text formats like EPUB, HTML, TXT, and FB2.
For Boosting
Productivity and Organization at Work:
of
mobile devices.
12. Outliner - This application assists with the
organization and maintaining of the appropriate structure for projects and
planning while at the library.
13. Pages - Create documents for many purposes
including library newsletters, documents for handouts and other pages that may
need to be printed later with this mobile word processor.
14. World Book: This Day In History - This app is perfect
for posting a history fact of the day on a library webpage or in individual
library departments.
15. iNapkin - iNapkin is an app for iOS devices and
allows you to take notes, organize them and access them later.
16. CalenGoo - CalenGoo is made for mobile Android devices
and can be used to sync Google calendar and other Google apps with your phone.
17. Evernote - This free note making app organizes and
saves ideas by giving you the opportunity to snap photos, take notes, make
voice reminders, and even scan business cards.
18. Things 2 - Things 2 is available for iPad, Mac, or
iPhone, and manages tasks by planning your day, saving important dates,
customizing workflow, and organizing e-mail.
19. LanSchool Teachers Assistant for iOS - This is a free
classroom organization and management software that allows librarians to block
certain content and monitor patrons in a digital loan setting.
20. History: Maps of World - This app is perfect
for libraries to have on hand during presentations or children's learning
events where geography is being discussed.
21. Dropbox - Dropbox is a cloud app that allows you to
share files between your tablet, mobile phone and computer wherever the app is
installed.
22. Docs Anywhere - As the name suggests, this app allows
librarians to take their Word and image documents anywhere. This is done
through USB transfer and it works with Word, PowerPoint, Excel, PDF and other
kinds of files.
23. Keynote - For librarians who make group presentations
for management purposes or during patron events. Keynote supplies animated
charts and many other features.
24. eClicker Presenter - Another
presentation application, eClicker doesn't just provide standard presentation
guides and tools, it also gives librarians the ability to send out questions to
the audience with the click of a button.
25. Moodboard - Moodboard is a way to put together all of
the events and interests going on around the library into one neat display.
Print your page and post it up in the library, or have it uploaded to the
library website so that patrons can see what's new and interesting.
26. Offline Pages Pro - Although most libraries
have wi-fi, there isn't always access on the journey between home and work.
Offline Pages Pro will give you the opportunity to take information and
webpages with you to read or work on while you're not connected to the
internet. It also includes PDF reader support.
27. Dictionary - Reading is no fun if you don't know meaning
of all the words that you are reading, which is why having a dictionary on the
go is a great tool for a librarian. This app also works as a thesaurus and
offers a word of the day for each day of the week to strengthen your vocabulary
and keep things interesting.
28. Wikipanion - Wikipedia may not always be 100% guaranteed
correct information, but it's an excellent resource for librarians in a pinch
who need to look up an answer to a question of a patron. It is one of the
largest online information sources across the globe, so it has a little bit of
everything, and Wikipanion was designed to easily access the information in
Wikipedia.
29. Osfoora 2 - Twitter is a huge method of communication
for many people globally, so tweeting to patrons from a library twitter account
is a perfect way to keep in touch. Osfoora 2 lets you use more than one account
at a time to send tweets for work.
30. Quickoffice - Quickoffice combines Word, Excel, and
Powerpoint into a great mobile app for librarians who need to open, edit, and
send documents on the go. This is wonderful for presentations, reports, and
other paperwork that have to be processed from time to time.
31. Wolfram Alpha - This multi-functional application can help
answer questions through a variety of educational tools for math, history,
geography, and more. Different features of this app work with different
subjects, which could help to better understand various subject matter within
the library.
32. ReferenceUSA - This application is only available for iPad
at the moment, but it's a wonderful app for librarians who need real time access
to research databases across North America. You must have a registered library
card to use this app, which is highly convenient if you happen to work at a
library.
33. ArticleSearch - This is a free app that, like ReferenceUSA,
gives you access to a wide selection of scientific papers, academic journals,
and other publications. It is great for research related to academic projects
going on within the library, and it is also helpful as a library patron aid for
those who come to do school work.
34. Farlex - Farlex provides a free and professional
level dictionaries for librarians and other users who not only want to look up
words and find their meanings, but also listen to their correct pronunciations.
As a librarian there are always going to be kids and young adult readers who
have questions concerning book titles and other difficult words throughout
reading material, and this can really help.
35. Mango
Mobile - The Mango Mobile Library Edition helps with language learning
and is free for both iPhone and Android users. With this app you can take
cultural lessons and hear the proper pronunciation of words by native speakers.
This is a wonderful way for librarians to enjoy books with other languages
featured throughout them, and also to share those books with children in
reading programs and other events held at the library.
36. TurboScan - This application gives librarians an edge
by allowing them to scan multiple documents using their mobile devices. This
works well for receipts and business cards and also for other reading resources
that you might like to store.
37. CamDictionary - CamDictionary lets you translate text into
different languages and also provides the correct pronunciation. This app is
particularly neat because you don't need to type the word with text, but you
simply point and click, and a photograph will be used to determine the meaning
in other languages.
38. Google Goggles - This is an Android application that can be
great for librarians who want to look up a certain person, place, or item, but
can't think of the name. You simply take a photo using your mobile device and
then Google Goggles will search for it in its database and give you some
information about it if it is found in its database.
39. Adobe Reader - This app works for most mobile devices and
helps read pdf files without any of the trouble that some pdf readers cause.
This is available for a large selection of handheld phones and tablets.
40. iAnnotate PDF - This is another pdf reader that gives
librarians the added advantage of editing their pdf files from their mobile
devices.
41. Offline Pages - For librarians working without access to
the net, Offline Pages will store entire web pages so that you can look at them
while out of the reach of wi-fi. This is a great way to store info on the go to
look at while in transit, or even just when you need a quick glance at
something, but don't want to wait for the entire page to load online.
For Staying Up To Date
On The News:
42. The Guardian Eyewitness - A very well-known
European news source, The Guardian has developed this application to connect
users with the world on a whole new
level. Unlike other world news programs, this application is designed to bring
you strikingly beautiful images from across the globe that visually reflect
current events. There is an image of the day, as well as a themed archive of
photos that can be sorted through.
From this application a librarian can stay in the loop of different
global subjects and factual information that might be required for later
projects and for personal knowledge.
44. NewsRack - NewsRack is an RSS reader for global news
which include crucial top stories from many countries and can be used by
librarians to stay informed on an abundance of subjects. This is a great way to
connect with the news before work or to look up a top story for research
purposes.
45. USA Today - For news affecting the United States, the
USA Today app is available on nearly any handheld device or mobile unit. This
news app also follows world news and includes subjects like money, sports,
travel, life, tech, and weather.
Each of these applications has some really
great qualities to offer librarians at work or
at home to stay organized, up-to-date, and, of
course, do some reading. Although some
apps might have similar attributes; each
individual tool tends to have its own specific
advantages to look forward to.Source | http://www.mastersinlibraryscience.net/most-popular-apps-used-by-librarians/
Regards!
Librarian
Rizvi Institute of Management
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