nearly that time of year again. Time to think about your technology needs which will consist of a laptop, iPod and of course a smart phone, you can’t write that perfect essay or dissertation on a broken or non-existent laptop. Everyone has a book inside them, but how can you possibly write a Trotsky esque novel on a burnout piece of technology. Normally you shouldn’t blame your trade on the machinery, but in this case you definitely can! Buying a laptop is a stressful and sometimes complicated process, but don’t shy away from the challenge.

All of the departments at your university or college will either have their own computers that you can use, or they will tell you where you can access computers. However, as most students will be able to tell you, no matter how many computers there are, there will be shortages at finals time. All the panicked students who have done little to no studying will pile in, take over the computers, and inevitably sit on Facebook all day.

You can either grin or bear the intrusion by these students, usually freshmen; it’s not their fault they don’t have the same work load as the final year students. Or you can employ the tactic used by many people desperately looking for a computer to print off their 30 page term papers, you can ask them to hand over the computer. But in the end it is simpler, easier and quicker just to buy your own laptop or Apple Mac. Then everyone is happy.

With the modern age finally reaching the dusty institutions that are universities and colleges, there are now many Wi-Fi points scattered across the campus and there may even be wireless printers.  Make sure whatever laptop you chose has Wi-Fi capability so you can take advantage of this.

The team over at GradeGuru are back with another list of tools to help you during college. This time they present a list of 10 great iPhone apps! So get the app store open and get downloading!

1. gFlash + Flashcards and Tests:

Create your own flashcards and share them with classmates as you study.

2. Study Tracker: (soon to be launched)

Created by GradeGuru, Study Tracker helps you track your effort at school to help you achieve your grade goals. You can monitor your performance in each of your classes to see where you need to invest more of your time.

3. Alarm Clock Pro:

No need for that annoying alarm clock sound, with this app you can create an alarm clock with customizable themes and the app lets you set an ITunes playlist to wake up to.

4. iTranslator:

You can use this tool to connect to Google Translator, Babel Fish or Free Translation to help with your language courses.

5. NYTimes:

get news from the New York Times online for free while your on the go to make sure your up to date before heading to class.

6. Graphing Calculator:

Not only does this app have all of the functionality of a graphing calculator, a screenshot of the work can be taken and emailed to anyone.

7. Convertbot:

This app converts currency, length, mass, time and much more. It supports over 440 units of conversion to help with any assignments.

8. Periodic:

This app offers a complete reference to the Periodic Table of Elements, it also offers useful information such as an element’s atomic weight, electron configuration, melting point, boiling point, atomic radius, ionic radius, and discovery year.

9. Skype:

Download this app to make free Skype-to-Skype calls from any WiFi zone. See who is online, and send and receive instant messages on the go.

10. MyGPA Calculator:

Calculate your GPA per semester and cumulatively.

1. Skype- traditionally a software application that allows users to make free voice calls to one another, professors and students are beginning to use its BETA group video-chat service to engage in classroom discussions and host virtual office hours
2. Google Docs- Google applications such as Google Documents, Calendar and GMail have become a standard suite of tools for college students to collaborate – really hits the spot for group work
3. Twitter – no longer just a social network, students and academics alike are starting to leverage this network to crowd-source questions, gather research and increase classroom engagement levels
4. GradeGuru Citation Manager- a bookmarklet & FireFox Add-On that helps students collect and manage citations in APA, MLA and Harvard style straight from their browser – a real time saver for essays, papers and assignments
5. BookRenter- #1 textbook rental site
6. Studyrails – online study tool that helps with time management by allowing students to schedule their study time and block out access to sites that might distract them
7. Study Tracker – the iPad app by GradeGuru that helps student track their performance – students can record their study time and grades per class to monitor their effort and outcomes
8. Mindmeister- online mind mapping and collaboration tool that helps with group projects and presentations
9. Quizlet-  students can browse and use millions of flashcards created by other students and teachers, or create their own
10. DYD -a web-based 3-D dorm room design tool that allows college students to customize their dorm room interiors and purchase their favorite room selections online

So Summer vacation is in full swing and the new term seems like a light year away. But little by little, we all know that the end of holidays is getting closer, yet our to do list for the new term is still gathering dust.

So, why not get ahead and get ready for the new school year with your iPhone/iPod Touch!

Below, we list some apps ranging from finding student accommodation to finding discounts to becoming the life of the party which we hope will get you ready for, and get the most out of your college life!

Classifieds

Need to find an apartment to rent? These apps may help:

Apartments By UDR (Free) – Search UDR owned apartments by location and by GPS to find apartments near you. (US only)

Apartment Search – NearBuy (Free) – Search apartments by location and by using the iPhones locate me technology. An added feature allows you to tweet an apartment to your followers and ask them what they think. (US only)

CraigsReader (Free) – Search the classifieds of CraigsList on your iPhone! (US and Canada only)

Coupons/Discounts

Save money on your books, food and more!

Shopping Coupons – The Best Deals Online (Free) – Browse and find the best coupons from the Internet. (US only)

Coupon Sherpa Mobile Coupons (Free) – Huge range of online and in store coupons. (US only)

Local Services

Pizza.net (Free) – Find the nearest pizza places to you – College would not be college without pizza! (US only)

WiFi Trak (99c/59p)- Find free WiFi near and around your campus.

FastFood – Top Restaurant Finder app (Free) – Find your favorite eateries in one useful app.

Local Concerts (Free) – Discover concerts playing near you.

Take Me Home, I’m Lost (Free) – Find your way back home after one of those long nights…..

Student-Scope : The Campus Radar (Free) – Find out where your friends are on campus and see the news feed of the activities on campus.

Food and Drink

AllRecipes.com Dinner Spinner – Recipes, Drinks and more (Free) – A really fun and useful app with drinks and food recipes.

Drinks and Recipes Free (Free) – Over 5,000 drinks recipes for free! Be the life of the party!

Organization

iStudent – The best schedule keeper for students

Blackboard Learn – Access your school’s Blackboard system from your iPhone with this app.

Got another app to add to the list?? I’m sure they’re are loads more to add – Leave a comment below and I’ll add it to the list.

Spotify is, at the moment, the hot topic across most parts of Europe. For those who have never heard of it, Spotify is a peer to peer streaming music program with virtually no buffering. It’s easy to use interface allows you to create playlists in a second and it’s huge (and growing) song base means that they probably will have your favourite song.

As of yet, it is unavailable in the US, but the latest news suggests that it will be released by the end of the year. However, it seems alot of people can’t wait that long and have managed to find ways of downloading Spotify outside of Europe.

Here’s one way – thanks to Techcrunch.

Invite yourself from anywhere:
1) go to http://www.daveproxy.co.uk/
2) enter the following URL: https://www.spotify.com/en/get-started/
3) Create your account, for UK postcode – check http://www.postcodesearch.org.uk/

Note: I tried it and it does work – leave a comment if there are any problems.

Ok, so you’ve downloaded Spotify. Now, how to get rip/download some songs from it? Thanks goes to Spotify Ripping

Note: Do this at your own risk please…..

Download Spotify Ripper

The program was written by Swedish programmers, and thus, is in Swedish – But it is easy to use.

1. Start Spotify and make sure their isn’t a track playing. Then start Spotify Ripper by launching “Spotify Ripper.exe”. Start off by ticking the “Logg” box. By doing that you will get a small window which tells you the status of the ripping.

2. Now press “Hitta Spotify”. This will connect Spotify and Spotify Ripper so that the files will be named correctly. If everything works as it should the message “Spotify hittat” will appear in the log.

3. Now press “Rippa”. This will make Spotify Ripper wait for Spotify to start playing a track and start ripping it while it plays. When a song ends Spotify Ripper will convert the track to a mp3 file which then is named automatically and simultaneously rip the next song in your playlist. You will find the ripped music in the same folder as Spotify Ripper is placed in. Spotify Ripper will keep ripping all the tracks you play on Spotify until you press “Rippa” again.

4. Now switch back to Spotify and start the playlist or album you want to rip. Spotify ripper will do the rest for you. Just leave Spotify playing until the album or playlist is finished. But beware that any background sounds from other applications from your computer will also be recorded by Spotify Ripper so make sure the sound is off on any IM’s, e-mail programs or any other program that might make a sound.

5. If Spotify Ripper doesn’t work for you you could try starting Spotify Ripper before you start Spotify and restart booth Spotify and Spotify ripper. If it still doesn’t work Spotify Ripper probably doesn’t support your soundcard and it won´t work until a new version is released.

Thanks again to Spotify Ripping for making this possible.