QuickAdvice: Keep a Personal Journal on Your iPad with Chronicle
Chronicle for iPad - A personal journal ($1.99) by Steven Romej is a personal journaling app made specifically with the iPad in mind.
If you follow the QuickAdvice posts, you may have noticed that I did a review of the iPhone version of Chronicle. While that version needs some improvement, I think that the iPad version is nearly perfect the way it is (just some minor quirks).
When the app is first launched, you'll get the default first entry that will explain to you how to use the app, whereas the iPhone version just had a simple bubble that would disappear after you do something.
The layout is great, with a split view in landscape with a listing of entries on the left and the selected entry on the right. In portrait, you get to view the entire entry, with the drop down menu at the top to jump to another entry.
There are also arrows to allow you to scroll through all of your entries, and a calendar icon which will pull up a calendar and allow you to jump to specific dates and view all the entries then. The search bar is just a tiny screen pull downwards, and works just like the iPhone version, so you need to type out the entire word before it will start searching. You can search from the past week, month, or all entries.
When creating a new entry, you start by typing it out and hitting Done when finished. Then the option of changing the default font and inserting photos is opened up, as well as the option to insert photos and change the entry icon or even emailing the entry.
The way the iPad version handles photos is much better than the iPhone version. You select the photo you want, and then you can drag it around the entry, even zooming it in/out and place it where you want. The best time to insert the image though, is after you've done all your writing, since the image can actually cover up the text; the text doesn't reconfigure itself to fit the image.
It also seems a bit glitchy when you switch between portrait and landscape. It may not end up in the right place once you start switching between the two views, so be warned about that.
The images can be viewed by themselves as well, though it doesn't seem to take up the screen like on the iPhone. Instead, it's in its own centered window, with an option to delete as well.
Finally, like the iPhone counterpart, there are these export options: Google Docs and emailing all entries. However, there's also an additional one, which will let you export all your entries as a website file. So if you have the necessary components to do that method, it's open to you.
The iPad is a perfect journaling device, and this app helps it become such a device. It's fluid and easy to use, but without the shortcomings of the iPhone version. It was built specifically with the iPad in mind.
The only real issue I had with it is how images are handled - it will just cover up text if you place it so. If there was a way for the text to be moved around so it can wrap around the image instead, that would be fantastic. But currently, placing the photos below the text isn't bad at all.
If you're still looking for a journaling app for your iPad, give Chronicle a shot - it's a strong contender.
