Clutter

[i0Nic]

So I have many apps on my iPad.
I have my main apps on my home screen, then on the second screen I arrange the rest of my apps in folders according to category - news, social, lifestyle etc.

I am astutely aware that I only use about 10 apps on a regular basis (the ones on the homepage), with another 5-10 that I want to keep 'just in case'.

I still have another 40 apps on my iPad, and while I've culled it down a bit, I can't seem to bring myself to delete them.

Yet I have this desire to delete all apps I don't use, to clear the clutter. I feel if I do this, I'll only be left with what I need. No bloat.

I try to subscribe to the philosophies of zen habits, living with less, but I seem to battle a behaviour akin to hoarding or even OCD where I *have* to have that app installed.

Do you like to hoard lots of cool apps and keep them in folders, regardless if you use them much? Or do you like to keep a clean 'slate' with only the apps you use often?

Do you use folders extensively? Does it ever feel like you 'lose' apps? Do you ever feel the need to purge the apps you don't use often in order to make the hidden gems more visible?

Can anyone else relate? What is your app strategy?

 

[IrishVixen]

I'm down to one homescreen on my iPad and just two on my iPhone, though each device has more than 100 apps installed. I use the same setup on both--both are jailbroken, so I can either nest folders within folders as needed, or put more than the normal number of apps in folders than Apple stock firmware allows, so my categories can be fairly broad. This allows me to have fewer visible folders. I felt both devices were pretty cluttered before I could do this. Now, both devices have a certain amount of "whitespace" (icon free zones) on the homescreens, and everything is sorted in a way that works for ME--even if the almighty Jobs would disapprove. LOL

On the iPad, the top 16 apps I use are directly on the home screen, along with seven folders. Another 10 commonly used apps are in my "Favorites" folder that I'll add to if necessary. The rest of the apps are sorted into folders by category--things like "Utilities", "Photography", etc. I move certain more commonly used apps into certain positions on the screen so they're easier to find as well. I tend to look at my homescreen from the bottom up (probably because the dock has my most used six apps), so the next row up of icons is where I put Favorites, Utilities, and the apps I open multiple times daily.

Fifteen apps and two folders are on the first homescreen of the iPhone. The two folders are "Favorites" and "Utilities". Five additional folders are on the second page, again sorted by category.

In neither case is any app more than three taps away (or a swipe-tap-tap on the phone).

Other than games, which I keep around more of than I really need, I do purge apps routinely if they don't suit my needs or something better comes along. But there's still plenty on there that I may only use every few months or so. Tucked away in folders sorted by type, I don't lose them, and yet they can't distract me by adding to the clutter either.