Vol. 34, No. 3, 62. Information Connection.

• Author: by Amy Pearce Public Services Librarian George W. Hopper Law Library

Wyoming Bar Journal

2011.

Vol. 34, No. 3, 62.

Information Connection

Wyoming Bar JournalIssue: June, 2011Information Connectionby Amy Pearce Public Services Librarian George W. Hopper Law LibraryLaw on the Go

Have you ever heard the phrase, "There's an app for that!"? There really is! Among the many apps out there, there are apps that can make your work life easier to manage.

So what exactly is an app? "App" is an abbreviation for application. An app is a computer program that can run on your cell phone or other mobile device. Apps can be merely entertaining (e.g., the game Angry Birds), a program that can assist you with productivity (e.g., a time sheet app that tracks your billable hours) or a utility (e.g., a WiFi locator). Apps can also help with social networking (e.g., Facebook or Twitter) or searching (e.g., Google Mobile).

Wyoming residents now have many options available for smartphones. Each smart-phone operates on its own operating system and has its own set of apps from which to choose. The operating systems currently available are: Android, BlackBerry OS, iPhone OS, Palm webOS, and Windows Phone.

Each operating system has different numbers of apps available, due to reasons such as how long the system has existed and how the company regulates the creation and sharing of apps. A recent article by Ced Kurtz in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette (How Many Apps Does it Take to Change a Light Bulb?, April 3, 2011, page C-3,) gives the numbers: Apple has more than 350,000 apps in its store for the iPhone, while there are approximately 150,000-300,000 Android apps. BlackBerry apps number around 10,000 and there are very few apps for the Palm webOS. According to Microsoft, the newer Windows Phone has 11,500 "quality" apps. Microsoft's use of the adjective "quality" refers to the fact that Microsoft does not count wallpapers, does not include multiple versions of the same app and does not count free versions (also known as "lite") in its count. The point to be taken from this is that any list of recommended apps may be iPhone heavy, since the most apps currently exist for that phon.e.

I have compiled a list of recommended apps from several Web sources, including iPhone J.D. (Jeff Richardson; http:// www.iphonejd.com/) and Mobile Applications for Law Students and Lawyers (Darling Law Library, UCLA School of Law...