So too is Stanza.

Thanks, Gary Chide.

*Shredder – Chess app

*PocketMoney – Finance/Checkbook app

*iDisk – Requires MobileMe account but lets me access my online disk from anywhere

*Personal Assistant – Basically an RSS reader for online accounts. Quick updates on bank accounts, Netflix, twitter, e-mail. Its all read only but centralized into one place.

*Ambiance – White noise app that lets you download and mix tracks. Helps me focus when working.

*Car Care – Tracks mileage and service reminders for your car.

*Molecules – Not for everyone, but given what I do its cool to be able to render proteins and nucleic acids in 3D

*ChemTouch – Complete Periodic Table. Again, I’m a science geek.

*MotionX GPS – Best GPS app I’ve found. Turns the iPhone into a true Garmin. Good for running, boating, hiking, and other activities that might take you off roads.

*SnapTell – Take a picture of a book, CD, or other similar object and it uses character recognition to locate and compare prices online.

*Air Sharing – Turns the iPhone into a protable hard drive for computers that share a WiFi network

*ShoppingList – In addition to being a shopping list, it remembers the order in which you check items off at the store and starts to reorder your list according to how you move through the store. Saves time on wandering back through the store to get that thing you missed because it was on the bottom of your list.

*OmniFocus – Particularly helpful To Do app since it can be configured to use the GPS and only show you those To Do items which are possible where you are. Functionality is greatly increased if you run the desktop app at the same time, but it’s Mac only.

*TwitterFon – Mentioned before

*EverNote – Mentioned before

*Remote – Mentioned before

*Shazam – Mentioned before

*TED – Mentioned before

*Kindle/Stanza – Mentioned before

*Urban Spoon – Mentioned before

*Yelp – Mentioned before

*Coin Flip – Mentioned before

*Oblique Strategies – Mentioned before

The cases are tricky, because I hate to spend $$ on a case that isn’t really ideal, as they’re often more expensive than you’d like.

It’s incredibly tough: Mine took a gouge from the keys in my pocket* but the screen is still just fine, and because it uses static cling rather than adhesive, you can actually position it.

Cases are a bit more idiosyncratic. The Speck Pixelskin style cases probably give the best protection and short of a hardcase, but they do not cover the face of the phone. Thing is, an open face is either a help or a hindrance, depending on how you use it. If you’re looking for a particular style, I would definitely suggest you look at Amazon – the third party producers all sell there, and the competition keeps prices much lower than the apple store. It’s good they’re cheap, though, since they can be a crap shoot.

One thing to look out for with the leather/faux leather cases, To wrap around the iphone, the need to come around the sides of the screen. For a tight fit (which the silicon cases have) this is no problem, but if it’s not tight, then it makes the touch screen hard to use on the very edges of the screen. It’s not a huge thing, just something to look for.

-Rob D.

* If you keep it in pocket, start training yourself now to be aware of your keys, or it will someday end badly. If you go with a belt clip it’s less of an issue, of course.

I saw that Birdhouse thing a while back — crazy, not yet necessary for me, but curious enough to ponder.

I am going to start picking through the meat and bones of your suggestions!

– c.

-Rob D.