Used with permission By Francis Flinch (CC-BY-3.0)
My first introduction to what would become “the cloud,” happened eight years ago, when a small start up company called Delicious (formerly del.icio.us) made its debut. This new service allowed us to store our bookmarks in a whole new way via tagging and descriptive text. It didn’t take long before various mutations of the ‘cloud based’ bookmarking craze began to crop up vying for our business. A few notable companies stepped up to the plate, and some made their mark, however, I was never able to find one application that could truly “do it all.”
Like every other new application that pops up with a lifespan similar to that of a snail trying to cross any given street in Manhattan, I was leery to give up my current work-flow, however, being the geek, I decided to give it a try, and have never looked back. Recently surpassing the two million user mark, and reviewed by the likes of The Wall Street Journal, TIME, and Lifehacker, Springpad oozes features and tools that invoke flashbacks of ripping open presents on Christmas morning, all the while remaining robust, intuitive, and professional.
I had the honor to sit down with co-founder and CEO Jeff Janer, who along with Jeff Chow (Product Development ), and Jason Horman (Chief Architect ), launched Springpad in 2009, and discuss some of the features of Springpad, as well as what is in store for future releases.
The first stop on the “question express” was regarding Springpad’s “free” service, and how long before we were presented with a new choice to upgrade to a premium subscription, which would allow us to take advantage of increased space or “member only” features? To my delight and surprise, Mr. Janer’s answer was plain and simple, “We have no plans to charge users for this service.” Although we discussed how this was possible, it is beyond the scope of this article.
The tables turned briefly as I was asked how I use Springpad, which I was more than happy to answer.
From a photographer’s viewpoint, I use Springpad as a “scouting” tool. I am constantly on the prowl for a new location to shoot, and whether I come across it by accident or intentionally, the chance that I will have my high end gear along for the ride is slim to none. A perfect example of how I used Springpad to record a location happened just last week. One evening as I made my way home from work, I encountered a major traffic jam. It looked as though it would be a good hour until things were cleaned up, so I decided to try an unfamiliar back road. As I rounded one of the windy turns, there it was; A small, almost hidden cemetery, with headstones dating back to the seventeenth century! This was definitely a spot that needed revisiting, but I wasn’t sure when I would be able to swing back, or the exact location.
Springpad to the rescue!
Using my iPhone, I opened up the free Springpad app, and navigated to my notebook called “photo scouting.”
Notebooks make up the core functionality of Springpad, and are extremely powerful as you will soon learn. With my “photo scouting” notebook open I chose “search nearby.” This is especially helpful if I am completely unfamiliar with the area, as it will generate a map using nearby places as a reference.
If I want to further detail the directions, I will try to record a street name, or in this particular case, the name of the church. Next I chose the “add a photo,” function from the drop down menu and began taking snapshots of the cemetery from different angles. The native camera launches within the application, so there is no need to take the photos, save them, and add them later, although that is an option.
With the photos automatically saved to my notebook, the next step is to add a voice message using the “record audio” function, also launched from within the application, describing the shots along with anything that may stand out (ie this headstone would make a great HDR, etc.)
The remainder of my work-flow includes tagging, typing additional notes, or choosing an additional function. The entire process took under 10 minutes, which included the photography, and I barely scratched the surface of what this app is capable of accomplishing. For a deeper look into Springpad and all the features available, check out the main blog as well as their YouTube channel.
Mr. Janer shared some other ways that photographers are using Springpad. For instance, photographing your gear for insurance purposes in the event of theft or damage. You can also use the built in barcode scanner to grab the details of the model and brand of equipment you are using! Speaking of bar codes, anything you scan into Springpad becomes a bargain hunter’ dream come true. Springpad integrates an alert system that will let you know if the brand of equipment scanned happens to go on sale. This goes for anything you scan into Springpad; it’s like having your very own personal assistant keeping an eye out for a price drop or a special offer specific to anything you save.
As if Springpad hasn’t already made it a breeze to save stuff you want to remember and organize them into notebooks, another exciting feature, which was announced the day after my conversation with Jeff Janer, is the ability to customize each notebook. Imagine having twenty or more notebooks, each one with its own look and feel, including custom sidebars, “add menus,” and backgrounds! FYP readers will be especially excited to know about the ability to upload your own photograph to be used as wallpaper for your Springpad desktop, and it carries over to your mobile device be it a smart phone or tablet. Talk about complete personalization!
Lastly, staying on the topic of personalization, Springpad is rolling out what Mr. Janer termed “True Collaboration,” which will allow you to share out entire notebooks. Think Google circles on steroids. My first thought of how this might be used is the ability for wedding photographers to share photos with newlyweds. The photos can even be arranged on a “cork-board” style wall, allowing anyone with “share permissions” to drag and arrange the photos, make notes, add their own photos, etc.
The most impressive part of Springpad for me is the endless features and options, while remaining uncluttered, and intuitive. As my title implies, Springpad is your virtual Swiss army knife. As it continues to grow and new features are added, I cannot imagine needing anything else to keep my creative life in check. Be sure to visit the Springpad on Twitter and Facebook, as well as their blog and YouTube channel for in depth ways to use this amazing tool.
Now if you will excuse me, it appears I am being pulled over by the local police for writing and driving! This may take a while, so in the meantime, head over to Springpad and check out this amazing software for yourself.