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Ask HN: You're on bathroom break, what productive phone app do you use?

6 points by fouc 9y ago

Bonus: What productive app do you use when you don't have internet access? Note: Productive could be anything like learning, reading, planning, etc. Not work-specific.

gvb 9y ago
The Sears Roebuck catalog. Ref: http://mentalfloss.com/article/23210/toilet-paper-history-how-america-convinced-world-wipe http://mentalfloss.com/article/23210/toilet-paper-history-ho...
abawany 9y ago
Well, not necessarily during a bathroom break (sometimes, I just don't multitask) but I use Cool Reader, which is an eReader app. My phone contains all of the books that I have, some of which I haven't read yet, and I use the app to resume reading.
halfnibble 9y ago
Helium IDE for BlackBerry10. ;-) In conjunction with Term48 terminal emulator and GCC. crap and code https://crackberry.com/helium-blackberry-10 https://crackberry.com/helium-blackberry-10
patatino 9y ago
I solve half my coding problems on bathroom breaks so no distraction for me :)
danreed07 9y ago
Brilliant. Math problems that can be done without a calculator; separated by domains such as probability, group theory, number theory, physics, AI, etc. Wonderfully stimulating really.
threesixandnine 9y ago
When in bathroom I play chess on my phone.
Jugurtha 9y ago
My normal bathroom breaks are very long when I'm home and I have my laptop with me, but I can't do that at work (small startup, one bathroom) so my breaks are short and I just sit there collecting my thoughts. Bonus: Alkido. I've installed Alkido and read a bunch of books (epub) on my phone. I read during commute. I haven't found other apps that don't suck (they all ask for way too many permissions, access contacts and information like WiFi, etc, which I find ridiculous).
AznHisoka 9y ago
I used WebMD to learn new health facts like how sitting in the toilet and using the smartphone can lead to hemorrhoids.
afarrell 9y ago
I use anki, a Spaced Repetition flashcard app. When learning a new tool/framework/etc, I make flashcards asking why it does things a certain way. This helps me learn the mental model of the tool more quickly. I also make a flashcard if I spend a long time debugging something so that I make sure to keep the knowledge that I gained from the bug hunt.
SirLJ 9y ago
Safari browser to read HN
coding_animal 9y ago
True Skate for iPhone. I had a job that I hated and I played this game for fifteen minutes. It helped me relax.
chuck32 9y ago
Wow this thread is depressing..
wmboy 9y ago
Pocket or Kindle
WillKirkby 9y ago
Forgive my cynicism, but why do you feel the need to be productive every second of the day? It's called a 'break' for a reason :)

6 points by fouc 9y ago

Bonus: What productive app do you use when you don't have internet access? Note: Productive could be anything like learning, reading, planning, etc. Not work-specific.

gvb 9y ago

The Sears Roebuck catalog. Ref: http://mentalfloss.com/article/23210/toilet-paper-history-how-america-convinced-world-wipe http://mentalfloss.com/article/23210/toilet-paper-history-ho...

abawany 9y ago

Well, not necessarily during a bathroom break (sometimes, I just don't multitask) but I use Cool Reader, which is an eReader app. My phone contains all of the books that I have, some of which I haven't read yet, and I use the app to resume reading.

halfnibble 9y ago

Helium IDE for BlackBerry10. ;-) In conjunction with Term48 terminal emulator and GCC. crap and code https://crackberry.com/helium-blackberry-10 https://crackberry.com/helium-blackberry-10

patatino 9y ago

I solve half my coding problems on bathroom breaks so no distraction for me :)

danreed07 9y ago

Brilliant. Math problems that can be done without a calculator; separated by domains such as probability, group theory, number theory, physics, AI, etc. Wonderfully stimulating really.

threesixandnine 9y ago

When in bathroom I play chess on my phone.

Jugurtha 9y ago

My normal bathroom breaks are very long when I'm home and I have my laptop with me, but I can't do that at work (small startup, one bathroom) so my breaks are short and I just sit there collecting my thoughts. Bonus: Alkido. I've installed Alkido and read a bunch of books (epub) on my phone. I read during commute. I haven't found other apps that don't suck (they all ask for way too many permissions, access contacts and information like WiFi, etc, which I find ridiculous).

AznHisoka 9y ago

I used WebMD to learn new health facts like how sitting in the toilet and using the smartphone can lead to hemorrhoids.

afarrell 9y ago

I use anki, a Spaced Repetition flashcard app. When learning a new tool/framework/etc, I make flashcards asking why it does things a certain way. This helps me learn the mental model of the tool more quickly. I also make a flashcard if I spend a long time debugging something so that I make sure to keep the knowledge that I gained from the bug hunt.

SirLJ 9y ago

Safari browser to read HN

coding_animal 9y ago

True Skate for iPhone. I had a job that I hated and I played this game for fifteen minutes. It helped me relax.

chuck32 9y ago

Wow this thread is depressing..

wmboy 9y ago

Pocket or Kindle

WillKirkby 9y ago

Forgive my cynicism, but why do you feel the need to be productive every second of the day? It's called a 'break' for a reason :)