Apple iPhones, iPads, and Macs are capable devices right out\r\nof the box. But if you add a handful of business applications, the devices\r\nquickly become powerful productivity tools. Here are the five best business\r\napps professionals should ensure are loaded and configured on all new iOS and\r\nOS X devices.
Note: This gallery is also available as an article.
Attractive templates are included, making it easier to\r\ndesign winning reports, letters, resumes, charts, spreadsheets, slideshows, and\r\nsimilar material. And Apple’s integrated iCloud service simplifies sharing\r\ndocuments, spreadsheets, and presentations between multiple devices, including\r\niPhones, iPads, and Macs.
When you need to draft a sensitive email, write a\r\ncomplicated memo, prepare report text, or record notes and similar information,\r\nyou can turn to WriteRoom as an inexpensive ($9.99) method of blocking\r\ndistractions and focusing on the task at hand. Whereas other word processing\r\nand note-taking applications can be frustrating and unwieldy due to the\r\nhundreds of additional, often superfluous features (such as equation editing,\r\nmail merge operation, and table of contents and footnote creation), WriteRoom\r\ntackles the basics well.
Scapple lets you change note shapes, font colors, and\r\nbackgrounds. Using a handy right-click menu, you can add or edit arrows to\r\nindicate the relationship between items and elements. Anytime you’re struggling\r\nto understand or refine a process, hierarchy, or complex relationships, Scapple\r\nis a handy tool for recording thoughts and ideas and making easily reversed\r\nchanges — a critical action when performing brainstorming activities.
Word processing programs, spreadsheet applications, and\r\nslideshow software are essential tools in business — but professionals often need\r\nto create organizational charts, diagrams, wireframes, and workflows, too.\r\nCommon business applications don’t lend themselves well to such tasks. That’s\r\nwhere OmniGraffle comes into play. The graphic document program is a powerful tool for\r\ncreating arresting diagrams and workflows.
Many users are stuck in a rut with the linear document,\r\nspreadsheet, and presentation programs they’re used to. Using the graphic\r\ncapabilities of a tool such as OmniGraffle can help them develop more free-form\r\nthinking. Roger von Oech, in his\r\nseminal book A Whack on the Side of the Head,\r\nnoted the importance of breaking out of mental blocks. OmniGraffle provides\r\nbusiness professionals with a tool for doing just that.
Erik Eckel is a managing partner at Louisville Geek and president of Eckel Media Corp. He previously served as Executive Editor at TechRepublic. He received Microsoft Engineer accreditation from Sullivan University and earned his Bachelor's Degree in English from the University of Louisville. He's earned Network+, Windows NT 4.0 MCP+I and MCSE, and Windows 2000 Professional MCP accreditations.
