Daily iPhone App: Grid is an idea organizer for the visually oriented
Organizing your ideas and keeping them tidy can be a challenge. Sometimes you just have to try different apps and different methods until one sticks. If you are in the market for another idea organizer and want something different, you should check out Grid by Binary Thumb.
As its name implies, Grid uses a grid to organize your ideas, your tasks or pretty much anything you want. It reminds me a lot of the good old days when you would clear off the kitchen table, lay down a stack of colored index cards and arrange them until they were organized just right.
When Grid launches, you are presented with an empty grid and are prompted to fill it in with blocks of text, photos, contacts or location information. You can create columns to help manage your tasks or add photos and texts to prototype the layout of a blog post. I used the map data along with a photo of my house to create a visual map that I sent to a friend who was visiting for the weekend.
Grid has an interesting UI that takes some patience. Before you can add items to your grid, you must select the squares in the grid that will house the content. You tap a square, and then drag your finger to select adjacent squares to form a block, as shown above. The app does a nice job of following your finger, but it is very easy to accidentally select a block of squares that is too small or too big. You can't resize your grid selection and must start over if you make a mistake.
Once you have your block selected, you swipe up to select the media you want to insert into the grid. You can add photos from your camera, contact information from your address book, a map of your location and text that you can format. You can move the block around and place it wherever your want. You can also change the background color of a blocks, which is handy if you want to group blocks by color.
To take full advantage of Grid, you need to sign up for an account. If you share your grid, the recipient must have the Grid app installed on their iPhone or iPad. Using an account lets you share your grids with other Grid users. An account also allows you to create multiple grids within the app.
Grid is a unique idea organization tool for people who prefer a visual layout over a text-based list. Its movable and customizable blocks allow you to get creative with your layouts and arrange your info in a way that is both visually appealing and helpful to you. Grid by Binary Thumb is available for free from the iOS App Store. It works on the iPhone and iPad. It requires iOS 6.1.
