This is my first Research article so I figured that I would first describe some of the tools and methods I utilize for doing research primarily with my Android phone over a spotty and unreliable cellular data connection while living off grid.
First off I should mention that it is well worth having multiple web browsers on an Android (or any type of) phone because some pages that do not render well on one browser will sometimes render better when loaded in a different browser. Some useful browsers to have installed on a phone (or tablet) are Opera Mini, Chrome and Brave but there are plenty of others like UC Browser, UC Browser Mini and Firefox among others but I mainly use the first three listed.
One great feature of Opera Mini is that by loading the mobile site for Facebook I can send and receive messages with the platform without having to install the Messenger App or any Facebook Apps which in my experience rapidly drain battery life, use a lot of my phone's storage and consume my limited data plan at an alarming rate.
There is also some functionality that Opera Mini provides that is not present in other browsers like the ability to natively download embedded media files like video and audio instead of just streaming them in the browser itself which is often difficult to do because of poor cellular connectivity. Opera Mini is also great for remotely caching and compressing websites so that they do not use as much data nor require as much bandwidth to load.
I like using Chrome for bookmarking websites and also for printing websites to file as a PDF document which is super handy because then I have a copy of my research that I can reference without having to use my data plan to load a webpage that I have already visited before. Having my research in PDF form also allows me to be able to copy the documents to my netbook for viewing or an external hard drive for storing in my ever growing archive of useful information and reference material. Also being able to view documents on my netbook allows me to relieve eye strain, zoom in and out easily and search both for and within the documents easily.
For managing Chrome's Bookmarks I use an App called Super Backup that allows me to export all my bookmarks as an XML file which I then copy to my netbook and upload to an online XML to HTML converter to make it where I can import my mobile Chrome's Bookmarks into Chromium (the Linux version of Chrome) on my netbook. If there is an App for conveniently converting XML to HTML I have not found it yet. It is a bit of a tedious process but one well worth the time involved especially for furthering my research and for getting the links that I want to include in articles, comments, or replies without having to manually type them, email them to myself or having to do research from my netbook that I have already done on my phone and thus wasting not just my data plan but also my limited electricity.
When I am managing the various forms of media (that results from doing research) like user manuals, specification manuals, document files, PDF files I have printed to file from websites, images, videos and audio I do my best to rename everything in such a way that when I look for it on my hard drive I can easily find what I am looking for and the files are not just a jumble of randomly named items.
Having a PDf viewer App on my phone is also incredibly handy because when I am doing any sort of 'field work' I can view a needed PDF file (like a repair manual) while working on the project at hand even if I am in a place where I do not get cellular service or service is intermittent. There is nothing quite so frustrating as waiting for a website to load while sweating under the sun and just needing to figure out what order the bolts need to come out of a piece of machinery in or consult a specification sheet to see if a device is operating accordingly while testing it with a multimeter.
The last and final App that I find to be incredibly useful is a good Notepad App where I can create text files on my phone that contain links, notes about a single topic or otherwise correlate information on a specific topic into one place. A Notepad App also comes in handy for using as an expanded 'copy and paste' clipboard while I am doing research so I do not have to repeatedly type the same phrase, term, part number, model number or whatever into the phones browser. I also like using a Notepad App because I can export all of the 'notes' to individual text files that can be copied to my netbook or stored on an external hard drive.
In closing doing research is often a tricky prospect and I have found it best to just keep it all as clear, concise and organized as possible and at all cost avoid having to redo research that I have previously already done online and wasting my limited data plan and equally limited electricity.
Some articles that I have written in the past that may be of interest:
How to fix broken glass on a solar panel: https://steemit.com/off-grid/@jacobpeacock/how-to-fix-broken-glass-on-a-solar-panel
A simple spring water capture: https://steemit.com/off-grid/@jacobpeacock/a-simple-spring-water-capture
A few Android Apps that I find helpful living off grid: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@jacobpeacock/a-few-android-apps-that-i-find-helpful-living-off-grid
Basics For 12 Volt Electric Generation The Easy Way: https://steemit.com/diy/@jacobpeacock/basics-for-12-volt-electric-generation-the-easy-way
Twin Micro Hydro Turbine Generator: https://steemit.com/diy/@jacobpeacock/twin-micro-hydro-turbine-generator
Devices For Off-Grid Electricity Generation: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@jacobpeacock/devices-for-off-grid-electricity-generation
Simple Off Grid Communication Options: https://steemit.com/off-grid/@jacobpeacock/simple-off-grid-communication-options
Some of what I learned recently doing passive gravity fed water systems: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@jacobpeacock/some-of-what-i-learned-recently-doing-passive-gravity-fed-water-systems
How To Build A Simple Check Valve: https://steemit.com/diy/@jacobpeacock/how-to-build-a-simple-check-valve
A downloadable wealth of information about how to do things: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@jacobpeacock/a-downloadable-wealth-of-information-about-how-to-do-things
Don't homestead if...: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@jacobpeacock/don-t-homestead-if
Two of my favorite signs to dissuade trespassers: https://steemit.com/homesteading/@jacobpeacock/two-of-my-favorite-signs-to-dissuade-trespassers
My first seventeen days on Steemit & D.Tube....Has it really been 'worth' it?: https://steemit.com/steemit/@jacobpeacock/my-first-seventeen-days-on-steemit-and-d-tube-has-it-really-been-worth-it
My first month using Steemit & Dtube: A Crude Analysis: https://steemit.com/steemit/@jacobpeacock/my-first-month-using-steemit-and-dtube-a-crude-analysis
Two months of using D.Tube and Steemit...Thoughts and Reflections: https://steemit.com/steem/@jacobpeacock/two-months-of-using-d-tube-and-steemit-thoughts-and-reflections
Formating a video for D.Tube with an Android device: https://steemit.com/dtube/@jacobpeacock/formating-a-video-for-d-tube-with-an-android-device
Oh No! I drank the DTube Kool-Aid!!!: https://steemit.com/dtube/@jacobpeacock/oh-no-i-drank-the-dtube-kool-aid
