We have these amazing little computers in our hands. What are some beneficial things we can do with them? Websites, apps, tinkering… anything you can think of or things you already do. I’m tired of doom scrolling.
Rejecting calls
Forgetting to reply to messages
Ignoring emails
Writing comments then deleting the text without posting
Unlocking your device only to immediately forget why you needed to check it.
Please stop spying on my phone.
Theyre essentially the swiss army knife of tools:
- Flashlight
- Camera
- Level
- Calculator
- Phone
- Flashlight
this
Map your local area.
Use StreetComplete or SCEE to fix parts of OpenStreetMap data in your area. Fun to do when walking around areas you know.
Or use a higher level editor to add missing paths, services and buildings.
I agree. That app sadly eats battery like no other I have. So the walk isn’t too long.
The higher level editor: https://f-droid.org/packages/de.blau.android/
StreetComplere? I have 47 minutes running time with 5% battery use now, I think it’s okay
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Find something you really want to study and learn, that requires retaining a lot of facts
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Download Anki
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Download or build a flashcard deck for what you want to learn
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Do your flashcards every day, and trust Anki to know what cards to show you, and when, and how often. It’s just a few minutes per day.
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Spaced repetition just made you much smarter!
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Repeat, forever, learning all the things.
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Anything’s a dildo if your brave enough. Plus, it vibrates!
I think you can get dildos that can be controlled by an app.
Bit hard to control an app if the phone’s up your bum, innit?
LOL! Some of us have skills and can achieve the challenge. OOps, someone’s calling…
Bluetooth earbuds, if you can use an app you can answer a call. Might need that mute button though
Easy. Mute is just a slight turn and one muscle contraction.
My phone turns on the flash light if you shame it intentionally. You know, the ole twerk for light
But then you have to deal with connectivity issues every time your butthole goes to another room.
There’s no reception inside a person though, so you can’t call the phone to make it vibrate.
I started looking into cozy games on my phone so anytime I get the urge to doomscroll I turn to that instead.
Any suggestions? I used to play Solitaire but the app I was using at the time had ads and no option to pay. I also played cribbage but that was a long time ago.
Balatro, it’s like solitaire but more addictive than fentanyl.
I play solitaire with open source free polysolfc on f-droid. No ads and no bullshit
Fishing Life is pretty fun, and Seabeard (although this one does have ads.) If you like card games, maybe something like Hearthstone, which is a strategic card battle but you don’t have to take it too seriously.
Make phone calls.
I’m an independent contractor, and I basically run all of my business from my phone. Aside from making calls and sending texts, I have templates in Google Docs that I can edit and then email out as quotes and invoices. I keep spreadsheets of my inventory. I scan into Notes the repair slips so I can keep a copy. I use the navigation apps to route me to my stops during the day. I have a template that I edit to create my timesheet to submit and get paid.
I run almost my whole business off of a small handheld phone, something that was unimaginable just a few years ago.
That’s pretty cool. I’m still waiting for my tricorder.
Calling your loved ones
I have a tuner app, drum machine, and recording apps on my phone. I like to pretend I can play trumpet, mandolin, piano, hammered dulcimer… which means I practice something nearly every day.
A unified remote\console for displays, ACs, PCs and whatever
On-hand manuals and checklists/
Podcasts\books player
Mine’s pretty great at reading a 1400-page manual for an 8-bit system. Whether or not my habit of reading a 1400-page manual for an 8-bit system is actually beneficial is up for debate.
I love emulating old Gameboy games on my phone. It can play things all the way up to Switch, but there’s sort of a nice mix of nostalgia and simplicity to just go monotone. No micro transactions, no server connecting, nothing. Just me and the bits.
I guess that’s not terribly beneficial, unless you count my mental health.
Where do you get the games from. I have a switch and an old gameboy carriage but I’m too out of it to bridge that gap
Fractional calculator: TMC (Tape Measure Calculator). Invaluable for working out tape measure fraction math. Yes, I use metric when it makes sense. Not all materials are metric and this app makes division trivial.
Banking app. Fucking magic.
Airplane boarding passes. I only use a couple airlines, have both apps installed.
Personal news. I have recently discovered TTRSS which is a tiny RSS feed that you can selfhost and then the client on your phone shows you news from your computer
Bitwarden. All the passwords, all the time.
OpenStreetMap. Almost enough to replace google maps. I also use HereWeGo (TomTom corporation) when I need traffic data.
Transit apps for your (or any other) town. Can be pretty invasive, I recommend siloing them in the “work profile” all Android phones now include.
UnCiv. Wonderful time waster
Oh yeah, audio. I’ve been listening to news and narrative history podcasts for years. I finally put the Pimsleur files for learning Spanish on the phone, I don’t remember which app I’m using to play them back, maybe Rocket? It’s helping I think.
I would suggest CoMapps.app instead for better privacy. Can be downloaded with F-droid.
Was that the fork of OSM a couple months ago? Do they have gravity yet?
It is, and I don’t know if they do.
I can’t remember offhand the privacy implications of OSM but I do remember thinking, “I can deal with that”
Fork of Organic maps, both are still OSM
