Data Science on the Run
Is your commute and/or travel a gigantic time suck? Do you spend hours a week stuck in public transit or the ride-share of your choice? Do you spend that time wishing you could be more productive than just answering emails? Would you rather be writing code, solving pressing questions, organizing/updating your task list, monitor your data and\or your computation tasks? Read this if you want to learn about the best Mobile Apps for Data Science.
Did you know you can do all of that with your phone or tablet?
You heard right. Mobile apps have added immense capabilities to do actual data science and analytics on the go. Whether are in a bus, car, train, restaurant, airport or anywhere else. All you need is your mobile device and you can get going.
In this article, we’ve shared some of those apps, and they are much more powerful than you would expect. We’ve included different versions of apps if their applications relate to different coding languages or products.
1. Stack Overflow
This one is almost self-explanatory. The mobile version of Stack Overflow has to be an essential when it comes to Data Science on your phone. Every code has its issues and Stack Overflow is an excellent platform to solve them with the help of a network of experts. Post and answer questions while on the run and arrive at work already knowing what to do.
2. CodeHub
The mobile add-on to Github is an excellent tool to not only manage your own repositories but also explore others. Whether or not you want to manage issues & pull requests or clone something interesting thing you saw, you aren’t constraint to your computer. Just take out your phone and get started.
3. Jira/Asana
Nobody likes to walk into work unprepared and having these project-management tools with you at all times can keep you informed on what is going on at the moment. This does not only help you with your own tasks, but also gives you a great overview on what everybody else is up to. Surprise your colleges by checking of tasks before even sitting down in your spot.
4. Airtable
This relatively new database tool can be incredibly useful for almost anything. As a 21st century alternative to Excel, Airtable can be invaluable for keeping and understanding you information. Being child of the digital age the mobile app is off high quality and can be invaluable for organizing and storing information.
5. PowerBI/Tableau
These Visual Data Apps are made for mobile use, so it only makes sense to use them. Not only can you monitor Terabytes of information in real time, you can also make last minute adjustments while waiting for your ride share to pull up.
6. Jupyter Notebook
Yes, you can access Jupyter Notebooks from your mobile device. You can even code and run them. Nothing says “the future” more than manipulating big data for your ML tasks while sitting in your self driving car (that last part we might have to wait another year for).
7. Azure/AWS Console/Google Cloud Console
Most Cloud provider also have an app that let’s you oversee your resources and current jobs. Having these on your mobile device can help you respond in real time to problems that may occur and will let you look at results as soon as they come out. Being able to set up and manage your tasks without being bound to your computer or wifi is really incredible.
8. Evernote/Todoist
Next to a project management tool it is often useful to have a good notes and checklist tool. This will help you sort through all of the todos for a day and help you stay organized. There are dozens of good task managers out there. Just pick the one best suited for you.
9. Qpython/R Code Compiler
These sort of mobile compilers exist for most languages, but I mention the two most major ones for data science. With these you can write and test your code before throwing it into your test environment.
10. Wolfram Alpha
This amazing mathematics tool will help you if there is ever any complex mathematical problem you want to find out more about. Does this series converge? How can I guarantee a global maximum exists? Don’t worry, you can be a math wiz while saving money by taking the bus.
Now you are ready to go. Might as well take advantage of that flexible work time and start clocking in on your commute. I have had a great experience organizing setting up my daily workflow while on the bus or train. Being able to prepare and start off large tasks on Azure/AWS and/or trouble shooting issued with applications before even arriving at work has saved me countless hours already. Did any of you have any similar experiences? Is one of your favorite apps not listed? Please, let us know and contribute to this list!
Oh and one last bit of advice, don’t forget to put your phone down every once in a while.
If you like this blog post, please check out our other Data Science content at our blog.
Note: We do not intend to promote any mobile app using this article. These apps have been selected on the basis of their ratings and performance.