Why I bought an iPod touch

Mathematician, Linux user, already had an iPod (iPod nano), recently bought a netbook. Why did I buy an iPod touch?

Papers for iPhone (7.99€): an organizer for research PDF’s with integrated PDF reader (allegedly optimized for research articles), with the ability to sync with the desktop app (29€, less with the 40% discount for students… still waiting for it to buy it). Well, it lives up the expectations, although the desktop version is strange (used it only once so far) and the syncing can be hard as the network settings may keep you from syncing. Anyway, a must.

TouchTerm Pro (6.99€): A terminal application, developed for iPod/iPhone. It is great, although it has so many options, and gesture commands I am still learning. Steep learning curve, but I have used it to see if the programs I’m running are over, and merging images from the command line. A must, but depends if you do something on terminals.

Sketchbook Mobile (2.39€): Drawing on the iPhone/iPod… I haven’t tried the competition (Brushes, although I’m thinking of buying it, 3.99€.. well, just bought it), but it is a damn good application. The feeling is almost as good as pen and paper, and the range of tools is mindblowing. Here is an overview of the application, with a promotional video at the end: Autodesk puts the fun in your pocket: Introducing Sketchbook Mobile.

In addition to these, there are a loot of “goodies”… iNethack is the first to come to mind, but if I open up the ‘pod I see Stanza, Evernote, DoBot Todo’s, Inkiness, Pianist (really good one), Facebook and Google apps as “must” applications.

•  iPod
•  Mac
• Maths