What would the end of the year be without another list for something? Right. So here are my twelve favorite apps for 2011. A couple of these are also available for the iPhone or were originally created for the iPhone.

I’ve included links to the developers’ sites for your convenience when using a desktop. But to download the apps (and see more reviews), it’s best to use the iTunes app on your iPad.

1. Flipboard. $Free. It’s like having a magazine or newspaper written just for you. Flipboad aggregates postings not just from Facebook and Twitter, but also from news sources that you choose. It includes multimedia content in a flip-book format.
2. HootSuite. $Free or $5.99 a month for premium service. The iPad’s built-in Twitter app is adequate at best, and Twitter recently made it worse. HootSuite makes it easier to manage multiple Twitter and Facebook accounts, and with more features than I have space for here. The free version is ad-supported and gives you up to 5 profiles, and the paid version has no limit. It also includes analytics and other features.
3. Lynda.com. $Free to download the app; subscription to the service is from $25/month to $375/year, all unlimited service. Yes I get paid for content I created for them, but I spend a lot of time using the service, too. If there is a software application or technique you want to learn, chances are Lynda.com has a lot of expertly-created videos for it.
4. Facebook. $Free. The app makes it easier to use Facebook on your device rather than going to the web site.
5. Pulse. $Free. It’s the best aggregator I’ve found to read blog and Twitter feeds of people you follow. Pulse is easy to configure and you can sync it with the Google news reader, which you can also use for free on your desktop.
6. Skype. $Free. Pay inexpensive Skype charges to call regular phones. Use all the text, audio and video features of Skype on your iPad. Attach a headset (wired or Bluetooth), and your iPad works like a mobile phone, but almost for free, especially when using your iPad in Wi-Fi mode.
7. The Weather Channel. $Free. There are plenty of weather apps, but this one is fast and no-nonsense. When you start it up, an animated screen shows you what the weather looks like right now (wind, sun, clouds, etc.) and quickly transitions to a 5-day forecast.
8. Rhapsody and SiriusXM satellite radio. $Free to download the apps, uses your existing service. OK, so I have 13 favorites, but Rhapsody and SiriusXM both let you stream the same content you would at your desk or in the car, and for no additional fees. Get yourself a pair of Bluetooth speakers, and stream your music wirelessly. Note: these apps work in iPhone mode on your iPad. Press the 2x button in the corner to make them fill the screen.
9. National Public Radio. $Free, relies on donations. It isn’t always easy to find NPR, especially if you aren’t near a major metro area. This app brings you all their shows, including All Things Considered, Morning Edition, Science Friday and Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me. Listen to shows either live or archived.
10. Dropbox. $Free to download app and for basic service. 50 gb and 100 gb throughput for $9.99 and $19.99 a month. Since iPads don’t have USB connections, how do you move files on or off? You can sync photos and videos using iTunes, but it’s a tedious process just for one or two files, and those go only to two pre-determined folders. And what about other files? Dropbox gives you storage space in the cloud, and integrates with many other apps. Note: you’ll want to install the free Dropbox app on your desktop also, but don’t let it run automatically or it will slow your system down. Run it when you need it, then exit.
11. Yelp. $Free. Read and write restaurant reviews. If you allow, Yelp uses the iPad’s geo-locator service automatically to display restaurants and maps near you. How can you tell Yelp is good? When Zagat got spooked, Google bought them and started dissing Yelp. They wouldn’t have cared, otherwise.
12. Star Walk. $4.99. This is the #1 coolest app I’ve seen. Hold the iPad’s camera up to the night sky, and Star Walk will show amazing graphics of constellations, galaxies and stars, over 20,000 objects. Tap something on the screen to get more information about it. Star Walk works best with the iPad 2 and allowing it to use GPS. Its database is self-contained, so you can use it without an Internet connection. One day, I hope to find my home planet with it.

In the last few years, multimedia (video) projectors have come way down in price, and gone way up in quality. If you’ve been putting off buying one — or maybe you know someone on Santa’s list who has been especially nice — here are some general guidelines that can help you decide what to get.

• Buy a DLP unit, not an older-style LCD.
• Brightness is measured in lumens; the more a projector has, the brighter the image. Minimum you should get is 2100 lumens, and 2500-3000 are increasingly common and can be used with room lights on.
• Like a computer screen, resolution is measured in pixel width x height. Bare minimum size to get is 1024 x 768 (a/k/a XGA resolution), but to if you want to be future-proof (read: more expensive), then get one that supports hi-def, which is 1920 x 1080. A projector that displays 1920 x 1080 and also supports the 1080p format is one you can use for Blu-ray DVDs. That’s what you’d use in a home theater.
• Some projectors are listed as “short throw”, which means they can display a full-size image on the screen from only 1 or 2 yards away. That’s great for doing demos or training or where space is tight, so you don’t wander in front of the screen and block the image.

There are many brands and models to choose from, but here are a few typical examples.

The BenQ W6000 has all the goodies, and will set you back $1400 at Amazon.com. Think that’s a lot? It wasn’t long ago that a device like this would cost thousands:
http://amzn.to/saaghE

For $500, you can get the Acer H5360, which is 2500 lumens and 1280 x 720 resolution:
http://bit.ly/vHboha

In between those two is this one, which goes up to 1280 x 800 resolution, 2500 lumens, supports 1080p and does short throw. Lowest price I found is $850:
http://bit.ly/v5kKgc

If you want to search on your own, a good place is B&H, which is a reputable place in New York. You can choose prices, resolutions, lumens, etc., and they’ll show you what’s available:
http://bhpho.to/d0mrfK

If you listen to many so-called “security experts”, they’ll tell you that to protect your identity online, your passwords should all be a random jumble of letters, numbers and symbols, the more characters the better, use a different password on each site, don’t write any of them down or keep them on your computer, and change them often. So if you have a lot of passwords – and if you’re in the IT industry, you easily have several dozen – you need to keep a whole lot of Hjk5&#rwY< in your head.

No problem…if your name is Data and you fly on the Starship Enterprise. For everyone else, here are two realistic suggestions you can actually do.

1. Use a password manager. Browser plug-ins like KeePass, LastPass or RoboFormwork in all browsers, and when you need to log in somewhere, they will automatically enter the info. They’ll fill in forms, too, so you don’t have to keep typing your name and address everywhere you go.

   The downside to password managers is that you still need a strong master password for them, and not everyone feels comfortable storing their passwords in the cloud. Earlier this year, LastPass was hacked and a few people had their info stolen, but only those who used a weak master password. Password managers also tend not to work very well on mobile devices.

2. Use a phrase. Instead of trying to remember ridiculous jumbles, use one password for multiple sites, but make your password the initial letters of a phrase that has meaning to you. For example, my phrase might be Flemington is on Highway #202. Taking the first letters and symbols, my password would be FioH#202. (Maybe include the period for good measure.) That’s easy enough for me to remember without writing down, but hard for anyone to guess. And it should satisfy the requirement that some sites have for including uppercase, lowercase, numbers and symbols in a password.