Useful iPhone apps?

[iamchristuffin]

Anyone else finding the ability to create folders on your iPhone now a little too addicting?

YES! Pretty much every app I have is now in a folder! I was shocked and ashamed to realise I have 6 full folders of games! 

Chris

[nick_tochelli]

One of the most useful Time related apps I've found is Time Calculator. For those of you who may not use a stop watch and go by the analog time on your computer or watch, simply subtract your end time from your start time and voila: Instant Run Time. Yes, not entirely necessary if you use a stop watch, but nice tool for the alternative SM time keeper.

[sealyons]

I found one the other day that I thought was interesting but haven't really tried it out yet. It's called ShowTool SM and it has a Show Timer, a thing for Spike marks, check list, props list and then something to help send out emails. It looks pretty neat but again haven't messed around with it a bunch and it costs $4.99

[missliz]

I found one the other day that I thought was interesting but haven't really tried it out yet. It's called ShowTool SM and it has a Show Timer, a thing for Spike marks, check list, props list and then something to help send out emails. It looks pretty neat but again haven't messed around with it a bunch and it costs $4.99

It's been mentioned here before...a few reviews/comments here:
http://smnetwork.org/forum/index.php/topic,5191.msg31610.html#msg31610

[bex]

I got an iphone for Christmas, and now that I've run one show completely using it, I feel like I can weigh in with which apps I have found most useful-

Todo List
I really like this app- I did my preshow & postshow lists with it (hard copies in the book, of course) and LOVED it. It wasn't free ($1.99 maybe?) but totally worth the price tag, I think.  You can keep multiple lists (I had one for preshow & one for postshow), and within the list you can make notes on individual tasks, color code, and sort by priority (I divided my preset list in half- "preset before house open" and "preset after house open"). I just check off the tasks as I go, and they don't get deleted- they just move down to a separate "completed tasks" section, so then when it's time to start preshow the next day I go back in and uncheck all the little boxes, and voila! So much easier than lugging around a clipboard, using a laminator, etc. Greener, too!

Time Adder
I read this thread & got the time adder app, and I've used it pretty regularly to add up overtime hours & to give a rough estimate of a run time when we've blocked scenes individually but haven't actually run the show yet. Pretty useful.

HeyTell
Basically it turns your phone into a walkie-talkie. You record a message by holding the button & speaking, and it pops up on the other person's screen like a text message alert; they can listen to the message by just clicking on it. It's faster than typing out a text message. The rest of the SM team at my theatre discovered it during the prep for the first tech of a show where we were all scrambling around trying to get props moved form the rehearsal room to backstage and sorted out & such, and it was really useful. Use the iphone headphones with the little microphone & you're like a secret agent, I swear. Also a free app.

ShopShop
Not strictly a stage management app, but I probably use it more frequently than any other app. It's a grocery list app- you can keep multiple lists (I have one for groceries and one for everything else) and every item you type into the list is saved in a master database. You can go in and edit out one-time purchases, but then it makes typing in a grocery list really easy, because everything you buy on a regular basis is already saved. I am prone to forgetting what I needed to buy by the time I actually make it to the grocery store, so this way I just have a constant grocery list going & I add things as I think of them. Best of all, it was free!

[bex]

Does anyone have an app they use for weather alerts? I have The Weather Channel's app, but it is fairly unreliable and slow to update. We've been having some crazy weather lately (it's tornado season...) so I'm looking for something a bit more reliable. Someone told me that The Weather Channel also has a text message update service you can sign up for, so I'm going to do that and see if it's any more reliable than the app. Anyone have something they've used under pressure?

[nick_tochelli]

Does anyone have an app they use for weather alerts? I have The Weather Channel's app, but it is fairly unreliable and slow to update. We've been having some crazy weather lately (it's tornado season...) so I'm looking for something a bit more reliable. Someone told me that The Weather Channel also has a text message update service you can sign up for, so I'm going to do that and see if it's any more reliable than the app. Anyone have something they've used under pressure?

I use weatherbug elite on my ipod touch. It's decent and I'm pretty sure it's $0.99 so cheap as pretty much all the other iphone apps. It does pop up alerts for any weather service advisories so you'll be able to be alerted to any change in the weather.

[malewen]

I would second what has already been said about flashlight and the Shakespeare apps.  I recently did a three act play and found an app called time:calc by Dr. Phil's Apps (www.drphilsapps.com/timecalc) that let me total up the acts.  I think it costs $1.99 and is well worth it if you're like me and really have to think about adding up a series of run times...

[kmc307]

Another program I've just discovered is Drop Box. Basically, it's an online filing cabinet. You download it, and it creates a folder for your desktop, and you can move any and all documents you want into this folder. And it is constantly synced with their online server, so it's always up to date. Basically, you can access this folder from any computer any time with internet. I love it. And it has an iphone app so you can see all of it there as well.

Just recently made the switch to iphone myself and drop box is one of the first things I set up.  This app would be incredibly useful for stage management (especially if you're a free-lancer and frequently on the go).  You can essentially store all of your important docs in drop box's "cloud" and have it automatically sync between multiple computers and your phone.  Eliminate annoying USB sticks, external hard drives, etc...

Best of all the basic plan and mobile apps are free which allow you up to 2gb of storage.  More than enough to keep couple of current/upcoming shows worth of paperwork. 

I've found a lot of mobile apps (regardless of platform) are gimpy, clutter and really not all that useful aside from the ONE thing for which they're designed; this is one of the rare "home runs".

Furthermore - this service is incredibly useful even for those without smartphones, sync between home/office/theater computers easily. 

[pedroleitao]

I see that you like dropbox.
another option if you want try.
I use ubuntu one it gives you 5GB: New Member Link: https://one.ubuntu.com/ [nonactive]

[ambrosialx]

covert units- when working internationally metric to imperial, temperature, power, weight...almost everything
and world clock which s great for touring as it has all the different time zones
i again go with myLite for a flashlight as you can pick your colour, igobo is great, i also like River...helps me sleep

[Amandanellb]

I do not have an IPhone. I have an IPad. I think the Rehearsal 2 App is available on both. I am completely addicted to this app.
You can load your script into it, write on it in multiple colors, Highlight things in multiple colors. You can record scenes and individual sounds and add pictures.
It is primarily for actors but I have found it more useful as an SM.
It isn't free, but it is worth it.

[bnowicki]

Some useful iPod apps that I use include the following:

Flashlight
iTriage (great for the rare emergencies, more of a 'just in case' application)
Convert Units (there are ALL SORTS of things that it will convert, angles, currency, data, temperature, length, etc.)
Battery Magic (I have the free version, and it's really helpful for figuring out if I need to plug in my iPod so I don't completely kill it)

I hope some of this is useful!