Going away and want to stay connected? The Apps I will using next week.

On Wednesday, the ‘Gang of Four’ will travel on the Eurostar to Lille for the next few games in Pool D of the Rugby World Cup. It is something that the four of us have been saving for since the final of the last World Cup. You know, the one where England got spanked by the South Africans. We’re going out there for the first week and then resting back here before leaving for the second week.

We have been getting excited about having some time away, particularly pertinent, as on Wednesday, I got sent home from work after testing positive for COVID-19. I’ll leave that there. I can have a rant about that another day.

OK, a writer is going away for a week to France. Idyllic, but how can I maintain connectivity with my novel in the cloud? I’m sure the Air B&B we have for the first week will have wifi, but is that something the French give away for free? I have my data allowance on my phone plan to toggle my MacBook to my phone. 

A little bird then emailed me about an app called Holafly. It is an eSim you set up on your phone after purchasing mobile data from the company. I downloaded the app and had a bit of trouble setting it up, and I went on to their website and chatted to a lovely chap called Santiago ( it’s a Spanish company), who not only sorted me out but also gave me a discount. Wonderful.

Right then, I’m connected anywhere, but what happens if the wrong person sits at the back of the coffee shop? 

I’ve more than likely mentioned this before, but no apologies. I subscribe to Setapp. It is a curated collection of apps for Mac, Web and IOS. You can access all of these apps for a monthly fee. One app I use regularly is Clean My Mac, which is worth the subscription. A writer friend recommended a VPN to me the other day, also available on Setapp ClearVPN. It has an 86% appreciation rate. It does have its knockers, but with the many positive reviews and the recommendation of a reviewer I trust, I have it here on my MacBook. It’s working, and there are no problems whatsoever.

There are a couple of apps that I like to use in conjunction with my trusty ideas notebook are Apple Notes and Drafts. Both of which are available on my iPhone and Apple Watch.

Apple Notes is an app that I don’t utilise enough. There is so much more to Notes than just…notes. It can be a handy productivity tool. I need to get on YouTube to get up to date with its intricacies.

Drafts is another excellent app for both writing and research. I often save news articles onto draughts for research work. I know writers who use Drafts exclusively for their writing, and it is a bonus that you can work from your phone. If I’m anywhere, I can work from my phone, as even Apple Pages, where I am writing this piece, is on the iPhone. I can even use Drafts on my Apple watch if needed.

There are not a lot of excuses for not writing, and I’m looking forward to putting these apps to good use whilst in France, not foregoing the Wine, Bread and Cheese, Beer, frites, chocolate…

Back next week from Lille, France, or wherever I am on an app.