Instapaper
Instapaper facilitates easy reading of long text content. We discover web content throughout the day, and sometimes, we don’t have time to read long articles right when we find them. Instapaper allows you to easily save them for later, when you do have time, so you don’t just forget about them or skim through them.
Almost everyone who’s sent me a list of their favourite simple software has mentioned Instapaper, and with good reason. For many of us, Instapaper has improved the web, stripping away distractions, encouraging us to spend time reading instead of skimming, and letting us build an archive of good articles instead of an unwieldy pile of bookmarks.
And then there’s the app for iPhones and iPads: an exercise in restraint that stays out of the user’s way so they can get on with the business of reading, but still innovates with features like tilt scrolling. (Version 2.2.3, released over the weekend, adds a slew of subtle improvements, especially for you lucky iPad owners.)
If you already use Instapaper all this is old news, but do keep an eye on the ‘Extras’ page, where new features are announced with little fanfare:
- There’s an ‘Instapaper Text’ bookmarklet that lets you view any web page Instapaper-style without adding it to your account.
- Browse the web through Instapaper’s text engine on your mobile device with the ‘Instapaper Mobilizer’ at
http://instapaper.com/m. - Email any text to Instapaper for later reading.
