Tuesday, 25 November 2014
Image via Ash Kyd.
When a friend gets a new Android phone, the first thing they ask you is what apps you have installed on your phone. Then they ask you why. And you do your best to tell each of them individually about all the great apps you’re using and why they might want to use them as well.
You do this to the extent of your memory, but unlike the memory on your Android phone, yours isn’t that good. You miss things. You tell them the wrong names, only to realize it later on.
Well, now there’s an app that will solve these problems for you. It will catalog your apps and also provide an explanation for you to share with your friends. Meet List My Apps.
How To Use List My Apps
The app’s home screen lists all the apps on your device. On the top there’s an option to always link to the Play Store even if the app wasn’t downloaded from there. You should check this because even if you’re smart enough to have F-Droid installed, your friend might not be.
Start checking the apps you want to share with your friend, or select all.
On the top you’ll see options for Copy, Share and the Format. The app can generate the list in plain text, HTML, or my favorite, Markdown.
Related: Learn more about markdown writing tools and how they can benefit you.
Tapping the Copy button copies the list in the selected format to the clipboard. You can then paste it anywhere you want. For example, to a shared note or to a WhatsApp message.
The Share button brings up Android’s default sharing menu. From here you can share the list as an email and more.
Annotating Apps and Adding Tags
Press the three dotted menu and go into Annotations. Here, again, you’ll find the same alphabetized list of apps. Tapping will bring up two text fields for annotations and tags.
The annotations field is great for adding notes to the app. For explaining why you like an app or how it’s better than some other well known, but not as useful app.
The tag feature can be used for organizing if you have dozens of apps.
Verdict
List My Apps is a great for sharing apps on your phone with your friends. The fact that it adds links to the Play Store is a nice add-on.
But at the end of the day, it’s just a list. List My Apps doesn’t let you share the screenshots of your home screen or specify if the app is free or paid.
But it does get the job done and the annotations feature can be really helpful. Using that, you can avoid a myriad of questions from your not-so-tech-savvy friends.
What’s On Your List?
What apps do you have installed on your phone? Share the best of the bunch with us in the comments below.
