We’ve reached the end of another year. How was 2011 for you in terms of reading? As for me, it was a more productive year compared to 2010. I managed to finish just below my annual target of 1 book a week. 51 books in total, with another 3-4 in progress. No trees were harmed in my book reading this year – it was all ebooks and audio books.

I also spent a lot less money this year. The secret weapon : National Library Board of Singapore. They have a public lending library (powered by Overdrive) which offers a decent selection of ebooks and audio books. You can get Overdrive apps for both iOS and Android.

Here’s the list of 51 books (with the usual Twitter reviews). If you click on the Amazon links, that will help me buy and read more books next year.

1. Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden. Young adult survival story – what happens when Australia is invaded by an (unnamed) Asian country? (audio)

2. Catching Fire (Hunger Games Trilogy Book 2) by Suzanne Collins. Young adult survival story. (ebook)

3. The 4-Hour Body by Timothy Ferriss. Lose weight, gain muscles, interesting experiments in bodyhacking. (ebook)

4. Gang Leader for a Day by Sudhir Venkatesh. True story Indian sociologist befriends a black Chicago gang boss. (ebook)

5. Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins. Drama overload. (ebook)

6. SS-GB by Len Deighton. A fast paced whodunit set in 1941 Nazi-occupied Britain 1941. (ebook)

7. Dreadnought by Cherie Priest. A rollicking steampunk adventure set in the US Civil War. Plus, zombies. (audio)

8. Ill Wind (Weather Warden, Book 1) by Rachel Caine. A fun lightweight paranormal story. (ebook)

9. The Hangman’s Daughter by Oliver Pötzsch (ebook)

10. Clementine by Cherie Priest. Steampunk + civil war spies + airship battles (audio)

11. The Simple Dollar by Trent Hamm. Practical advice on spending less and living more. (ebook)

12. The Gun by CJ Chivers. The history of the AK47. (ebook)

13. Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel by Rolf Potts. Inspirational reading for all travelers (ebook)

14. I am Number 4 by Pittacus Lore. If you can get through the teenage melodrama, there’s an actual adventure in there. (audio)

15. Cryoburn (The Vorkosigan Saga) by Lois McMaster Bujold. Good fun revisiting an older Miles Vorkosigan. (ebook)

16. On Writing by Stephen King. Inspiring, insightful & still (mostly) relevant practical advice. (audiobook)

17. Poke The Box by Seth Godin. Short summary for a short book: go and do something. Now. (ebook)

18. Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey. Fast paced, action packed tale of revenge and Hell. Tastes good, less filling. (ebook)

19. Chinatown Beat by Henry Chang. (ebook)

20. A World I Never Made by James Lepore. (ebook)

21. Do The Work by Stephen Pressfield. Makes you want to create something now. A short version of The War of Art. (ebook)

22. Kill The Dead by Richard Kadrey. Continuing adventures of Sandman Slim. (ebook)

23. Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card. Time travel that hurts your brain. And he’s just getting started (ebook).

24. Pandora’s Star by Peter F Hamilton. Long epic SF, watch out for the cliffhanger. (audiobook)

25. Hounded by Kevin Hearne. Like Dresden Files, only with a centuries-old Druid instead of a Wizard. (ebook)

26. The Playbook by Barney Stinson. If you’re a fan of HIMYM, you’ll love it. (ebook)

27. Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. A book that inspires action is rare, one that inspires me to run, is one in a million. (ebook)

28. Ex-Boyfriend’s Handbook by Matt Dunn. Chick lit for guys. Who’d da thought? (ebook)

29. Judas Unchained by Peter F Hamilton. Conclusion to the long sprawling SF epic. (audiobook)

30. The Friend Request by Alex Ford. Facebook isn’t just for fun anymore. (ebook)

31. Blood, Bones and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton. Love reading secret origins of chefs. (ebook)

32. A Clash of Kings by George R R Martin. 2nd book in A Song of Ice and Fire. Long, epic, makes me want more. (audiobook)

33. Deadworld by J N Duncan. Lightweight, forgettable urban fantasy with a western twist. (ebook)

34. Linchpin by Seth Godin. Inspiration for leaders. (ebook)

35. How to survive the end of the world as we know it by James Weasley Rawles. Teotawki, wtshtf and other good survival info. Not very deep though.(ebook)

36. Ghost Story by Jim Butcher. Dresden lives, sort of. (ebook)

37. Naked Heat by Richard Castle. If you like the TV series Castle, you’ll like this one. (ebook)

38. Tribes: We need you to lead us by Seth Godin. Typical Godin: manifesto-esque, inspirational, not a lot of practical advice. (ebook)

39. 100 Thing Challenge by Dave Bruno. Makes you think about priorities and dependency on stuff. Dry, but useful. (ebook)

40. When All Hell Breaks Loose by Cody Lundin. Urban survival manual written with the layman in mind. (ebook)

41. The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. Inspiration for all artists, struggling and aspiring. (ebook)

42.Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt. Finally a straightforward discussion on strategy that will not make you fall asleep. (ebook)

43. The Art of Non-conformity by Chris Guillebeau. Yet another guide to rethinking your life. (ebook).

44. Wired by Douglas E Richards. Starts out as a very strong thriller, fizzles out quickly. (ebook)

45. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. Lots of little stories, inspirations, design tips, and crying. (ebook)

46. Ready Player One by Earnest Cline. A fun adventure story, chockful of 80’s pop culture references. (ebook)

47. The Night Eternal by Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan. Fast paced, ultimately unsatisfying conclusion to the cinematic vampire horror Trilogy. (ebook)

48. Switch by Dan Heath and Chip Heath. Presenting a decent framework for effecting change in an organization. (ebook)

49. Make It Stick by Dan Heath and Chip Heath. Formula-based approach on getting your ideas out. (ebook)

50. Sex on The Moon by Ben Mezrich. Based on the true story of NASA moon rock heist. Overly dramatized, but compelling. (audiobook)

51. One Click by Richard L Brandt. The rise of Amazon. Geeks will cringe at some of the technical mistakes made by the author, but it’s a good story. (ebook)

I used to think that I knew exactly why people buy apps. In the case of iOS apps, there are several obvious places where an app could get highlighted :

1. The App Store – either as a featured product, or through one of the Top 10 lists.

2. App review websites – for example Touch Arcade.

3. Magazine reviews – yes, people still read paper magazines.

4. Friend recommendations.

The #4 point has always been mentioned as the most effective way to get people to download and use an app. After all, a friend would know what you like (or can make a good guess of it).

Sometimes, a good friend of the app developer can make an honest, persuasive case for the app. I have been using Instapaper Free for ages on my iPhone. I’ve always considered buying the full app, however the $5 investment seemed a bit too steep for something that just allows me to read more. (Disclosure: I already read a lot). I bought Instapaper yesterday. The reason? This argument by Merlin Mann. I love that the it’s not just a review of Instapaper listing the features and specifications. Instead, it’s about the act of reading and choices that you make.

So – for app developers, don’t overlook the value of a good friend who really believes in you, and what you are doing.

Precentral has the goods on the new Web OS 3.0 tablet operating system from HP.
They have some interesting screenshots of the new interface, showing major apps including the web browser (renamed Browser), Maps (which now uses Bing instead of Google Maps), Instant Messaging and an iTunes-like Music app.

We’ll see Web OS 3.0 in the upcoming HP TouchPad tablet device, slated to be released sometime this summer.

target again this year, with only 39 books done. If there’s anything at all to blame, it’s probably the iPad – I’ve used it as my main media consumption device this year. The iPad is definitely distracting – with movie to watch, games to play, and other stuff to read (primarily magazines).

Here’s 2010′s reading list – mainly fiction, with a few exceptions.  The one-liner reviews were sent out via Twitter.

1. Paranoia by Joseph Finder (audio)
2. The Survivalist #1 :Total War by Jerry Ahern http://bit.ly/5Qvwx6 (audio)
3. Hearts, Keys, Puppetry by Neil Gaiman (audio)
4. Makers by Cory Doctorow (ebook)
5. Prayers for the assassin by Robert Ferrigno http://bit.ly/8erWXq (audio)
6. Free by Chris Anderson http://bit.ly/cuiTs5 (audio)
7. Freedom(TM) by Daniel Suarez. http://bit.ly/bRfefB (audio)
8. A long way down by Nick Hornby http://bit.ly/9MG6cN (audio)
9. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson http://bit.ly/cjPcth (audio)
10. The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson. http://bit.ly/cMqSKv (audio)
11. Boneshaker by Cherie Priest http://amzn.to/aHqqbx (audio)
12. Agincourt by Bernard Cromwell http://amzn.to/93gEZG (audio)
13. Changes by Jim Butcher http://amzn.to/92oyht (ebook)
14. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman http://amzn.to/c3d12W (audio)
15. Abraham Lincoln : Vampire Hunter by Seth Graham Smith (audio)
16. Heart of the Assassin by Robert Ferrigno. http://amzn.to/aQZKKV (ebook)
17. Jericho’s Fall by Stephen L. Carter. Mainstream political thriller, ultimately unsatisfying. http://amzn.to/d0bsmJ (audio)
18. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson. Hardly any action in this one. http://amzn.to/aasCN4 (ebook)
19. River of Gods by Ian McDonald. Big, impressive scope: India 2047, AIs, aliens, time travel, oh my. http://amzn.to/99aggD (ebook)
20. Hide by Lisa Gardner. Straight detective procedural. Switch frm 1st to 3rd perspective distracting. http://amzn.to/cXBPmk (ebook)
21. The Mark by Jason Pinter. Fast moving thriller, forgettable summer reading http://amzn.to/byhqha (ebook)
22. Tongues of Serpents by Naomi Novik. <3 the Temeraire series, but this latest installment was disappointing http://amzn.to/9tt5mw (ebook)
23. 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill. Touching & mindbending collection of short stories, not all of them horror. http://amzn.to/dcYPmZ (audiobook)
24. For the Win by Cory @Doctorow. Another YA novel. 2 books in 1 : 1 tells the story, the other explains it. http://amzn.to/9VViCM
(ebook)
25. Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain. Funny, sarcastic, sober. Food descriptions are mouthwatering. http://amzn.to/d3RZoD (audiobook)
26. American Gods by Neil Gaiamn. A roadtrip+mindtrip novel. Still so good after nearly 10 years. http://amzn.to/c2gZcN (audiobook)
27. The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi. Bangkok in a post-oil world, topics very close to home http://amzn.to/cfPVI6 (ebook)
28. Billy Boyle by James R Benn. WW2 whodunit. Light and fun. http://amzn.to/cFrti0 (ebook)
29. Skinny Dip by Carl Hiaasen. How not to kill your wife, and what not to do when it fails. Lightweight. http://amzn.to/delv34 (audiobook)
30. Zero History by William Gibson. While some authors get more Gibson-y, he’s moving to normal. Worth a read http://amzn.to/ahtahX (audiobook)
31. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Young adult (audiobook)
32. The Fall: Book 2 of Strain Trilogy by Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan. Fast paced vampires invade NY tale http://amzn.to/bYjvcg (ebook)
33. Repo Men by Eric Garcia. Tale of a repo man, his 5 ex-wives, & his artificial heart. A fun ride. http://amzn.to/fCwrav (ebook)
34. Side Jobs by Jim Butcher. Short story collection to satisfy the Dresden fix until the next book in April ’11 http://amzn.to/gJsRcV (audiobook)
35. Suck It, Wonder Woman! by @OliviaMunn. My 1 indulgent, trashy mindless & fun read for the year. http://amzn.to/hW1Vx9 (ebook)
36. Sh*t My Dad Says by Justin Halpern Some good LOL-moments, infinitely quotable http://amzn.to/fWdrAQ (audiobook)
37. Rework by @JasonFried & @dhh. Nothing really groundbreaking, but lots of useful little ideas http://amzn.to/eEYBTN (audiobook)
38. Emergency: This Book Will Save Your Life by Neil Strauss. A cookbook for surviving when TSHTF http://amzn.to/hNsC1x (ebook)
39. Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History by Scott Andrew Selby, Greg Campbell. Not Ocean’s 11, but a great real life heist story http://amzn.to/hnu7jG (audiobook)

Have fun reading in 2011!