12 January 2013

Get Creative With Evernote: 10 Unique Uses You Haven’t Thought Of



Evernote is one of the ultimate tools in productivity, and with a wide variety of multiplatform apps, there’s no limit to the way that you can use the service. We’re big fans of Evernote here at MakeUseOf, for lots of reasons, so we’ve written a list of 10 unique ways you can use the service – with some tips and tricks you might not have thought of.


Whether it’s taking advantage of Evernote’s checklist feature, or the fact that you can save photos in the app on the go, using the mobile app, don’t be afraid to get creative with your Evernote use. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to download our Evernote Manual for free.


Save Classified Listings Before They Expire


How many times have you bookmarked a Craigslist listing only to find that the post has expired next time you go to check it out? With Evernote, you can save the entire listing, with all of the information, contact information and photos by using Evernote’s Web Clipper. This feature can come in handy on sites like eBay, Craigslist, or just about any online classified site you can think of.



Take Notes While Reading a Book


If you’ve already made the switch to eBooks, making digital notes while you’re reading is nothing new, but if you’re still attached to reading books, and don’t want to put your notes in the margin, why not use Evernote? Create an individual notebook for each book, take photos of the page you want to jot a note down about with your phone, and type in the note with the image.


By using Evernote, you have a digitized and easy to search database of your notes – just make sure to include the page number in your typed up notes.


Keep Measurements, Sizes, etc. Handy When Shopping


Whether it’s measurements for your furniture, clothes sizes or even your printer’s ink type, you can take that kind of information with you everywhere you go. That way, next time you’re at the store, you’ll always have that information handy if you happen to find something that you want to buy.


Create Lists Of Everything From Goals To Groceries


Because Evernote allows you to create checklists, there’s no end to the kinds of lists you can create using the app. Whether it’s for day-to-day tasks like groceries, to life-long goals that are on your bucket list, or even just a list of movies you want to watch, you can take your checklists with you everywhere using the mobile Evernote app.



Record Your Prescriptions


If you have a lot of prescriptions, you can keep them organized using Evernote. Take photos of the doctor’s prescription, of the pill box or bottle, and even how each individual pill looks. Keep track of how often you take them, and how often you need to refill the prescription.


Save Photos Of Your Takeout Menus


Rather than keep a drawerful of messy takeout menus, why not take photos of the menus and save them to Evernote. Create one notebook for all of your takeout menus, and use one note per restaurant. While the images aren’t searchable, you can at least put in relevant tags making it easy to look up all the menus for certain types of cuisine, or better yet, searching for specific restaurants by name.


Save Your Favorite Meals At Restaurants


While it does require an additional Evernote app, in this case Evernote Food, you can keep track of your favorite meals, drinks and more while you’re out and about. Recently updated to add an awesome set of features and iPad support, Evernote Food can be the ultimate alternative to Instagramming your food.


Rather than share it with others, using Evernote Food is all about making it easy to remember which restaurant serves your favorite salad and where to go to get the best cup of coffee.



Save Important Documents: Warranties, Contracts, Birth Certificates, etc.


Any kind of important document that you want to keep track of, you can simply save in Evernote. Whether it’s an important contract, your birth or marriage certificate, or any other important papers, take photos of them, or save them as PDFs and save them to Evernote. That way you have important information handy with you no matter where you go.


Create a Virtual Library Of Your DVD, Video Game Collections, etc.


If you have a large collection of DVDs, video games, books, or anything else, you can take photos of each item, add notes about them, and even make a note of when you lend them out and who you’ve lent them to, and you can keep track of your personal belongings. Nothing is more annoying than lending a book to a friend and forgetting who you gave it to, so why not let Evernote help you remember?


Use Evernote As a Rolodex


While there are a lot of great apps that make it easy to exchange contact information simply by touching phones, the traditional business card is far from dead. Rather than keep a messy box of business cards, take photos of the individual business cards and save the note with the contact’s name.


Are you looking for more ways to get the most out of Evernote? Check out 3 more ideas here.


The post Get Creative With Evernote: 10 Unique Uses You Haven’t Thought Of appeared first on MakeUseOf.



What Is USB Debugging Mode On Android? [MakeUseOf Explains]



If you use an Android phone and you’ve searched forums for solutions to problems, you’ve probably heard the term “USB Debugging” every once in a while. You may even have seen it while looking through your phone’s settings. It sounds like a high-tech option, but it really isn’t; it’s quite simple and useful.


One beauty of Android is that it has a lot of built-in features, many of which are advanced. If you want to supercharge your phone with mods and whatnot, you can; if you want to use it just as it was out of the box, you can ignore the advanced stuff. USB Debugging is a feature that all users can benefit from, though, so you should know what it does and when to use it.


What Is USB Debugging Mode?


USB Debugging Mode is a mode that can be enabled in Android after connecting the device directly to a computer with a USB cable. The primary function of this mode is to facilitate a connection between an Android device and a computer with Android SDK (software development kit). As the name might suggest, Android SDK is a software suite that’s designed to aid in the development of Android apps.


Ever wondered how a programmer creates apps on the Android? They definitely don’t code them straight on the phone device! That would be nightmarish at best. Instead, they utilize the environment of the Android SDK to code apps on a computer, use USB Debugging Mode to transfer those apps to a device for testing.



But, again, here’s the takeaway: USB Debugging Mode establishes a direct connection between an Android device and a computer and readies it for deeper-level actions. That’s the important part.


In some versions of Android, the USB Debugging Mode feature may be called Developer Mode. With such a name, it can be easy (and reasonable) to think that you’ll never need to deal with this aspect of Android if you never plan on developing anything. That’s not exactly true.


Why Is USB Debugging Mode Important?


USB Debugging grants you a level of access to your device. This level of access is important when you need system-level clearance, such as when coding a new app. However, there are a few non-development-related benefits from this new level of access that can give you much more freedom of control over your device.


For example, with Android SDK, you gain direct access to your phone through your computer and that allows you to do things you normally couldn’t, like snag instant screenshots of your device or run terminal commands with ADB. These terminal commands can help you restore a bricked phone–a useful tool for any adventurous Android owner. Without it, you’d have to get a replacement phone.



USB Debugging is also necessary if you ever want to root your Android device. Before an app like One-Click Root can dig into your system and deliver the exploit that roots the device, USB Debugging is necessary to allow that function in the first place.


Yes, the original intention for USB Debugging Mode was only meant for developers who needed to copy data between their computers and Android devices, to install apps on the phone without notifications, and to read log data off the phone. But even if you aren’t a developer, you’ll probably run into a few apps that require USB Debugging Mode to function properly, so this mode does affect you and you should know about it.


What You Need to Know About USB Debugging Mode


By this point, you may have noticed that USB Debugging isn’t used all too frequently. You’re right. This feature of Android isn’t something that you take advantage of on a daily basis unless you’re coding an app. However, when it does come in handy, it really saves you a lot of time, effort, and even money.



Therefore, it’s best to keep USB Debugging Mode disabled and only enable it when you really need it. When running an app, for example, it’ll let you know if it needs you to enable the mode before it can do anything. When that happens, you can enable it, let the app do its thing, then disable it again. Few apps will require your phone to constantly be in debugging mode.


Lastly, starting with Android 4.2, access to the USB Debugging Mode option has been hidden by default. I’m not entirely sure why the development team thought that move was necessary, but fortunately it’s not too much of a pain to get it visible again. Read How to Enable USB Debugging on Android 4.2 if you need to know how.


Conclusion


Just know that USB Debugging is not a super-high-tech feature that you need to be afraid of. Think of it as yet another tool that gives you full control over your device. This kind of power does invite abuse, though, so keep it disabled at all times and only enable it when you know you need it and you’ll be fine.


If you have any questions about USB Debugging, please ask in the comments. I’ll try my best to answer them.


Image Credit: USB In Phone Via Shutterstock


The post What Is USB Debugging Mode On Android? [MakeUseOf Explains] appeared first on MakeUseOf.