GoodLinks: The Paid App That's Worth Every Penny
I've been using GoodLinks for a LONG time. Here's what I've learned.
Introduction
For the past few months, I've been using GoodLinks, a paid Safari browser extension that has transformed how I read and analyze articles.
While I usually don't cover paid apps, GoodLinks is good enough (and cheap enough) that I can recommend it to most iPad users.
Here's what I've learned from using GoodLinks.
The App
The app is currently priced at $4.99. While the App Store does point out that the app has in-app purchases, these in-app purchases are simply tips for the developer, not any upgrades to the app itself.
The Core Features
The app itself is easy and simple to use.
Once you add it to Safari as an extension, all you need to do is tap the extension icon to save a webpage to GoodLinks. In addition, you can change the title, write a quick summary, and add a tag to the article when you save it.
When you open the GoodLinks app, you can quickly see an organized view of your saved pages. By default, GoodLinks organizes pages into Unread, Starred, Untagged, and Read categories. Additionally, you can also organize pages by creating tags.
When you open an article, users can view the webpage in a way similar to viewing a webpage with Reader View in Safari. Additionally, users can access a tool bar at the bottom of the screen to access an action menu. From here, users can share the article, delete the article, export the article, open the article through an in-app browser, print the article, and more.
While this isn't necessarily a feature, users should note that the app doesn't require an account and syncs across devices.
The Cool Features
Where this app starts to stand out is with its extensive customization features.
For instance, the app offers great theme customization settings. Users can change accent colors, app icons, adjust the settings to switch between light and dark modes, and adjust which themes are set for light and dark mode.
Users can also choose when articles are marked as Read. I personally kept in on manual during the time I used it, but I'm going to test out the On Open setting soon.
User can edit how articles open up in GoodLinks. I keep it on the Reader Mode option, but users can also choose to open articles in their set default browsers. Additionally, you can edit which browser should open when you open an article in GoodLinks. I keep it on the in-app browser, but users can change the settings to include Safari, Chrome, etc.
Another customization feature is the ability to customize swipe commands in the app.
The most powerful options are also the two I haven't tested yet: adding custom actions and connecting GoodLinks to Siri Shortcuts. Without using these yet, I can't make a comment on how they work. Despite this, I'm intrigued by the possibilities they could provide to users like me who extensively use the app.
How I Use The App
Speaking of using the app, let's talk about how I use the app. As you may have seen in some of the pictures, I use GoodLinks as a research system for debate competitions.
I organize these articles by using an acronym of the tournament I'm competing at (like lcc for La Costa Canyon or kci for Kansas City Invitational) and the topic I'm discussing. The final product ends up with a tag such as kci-disconnect or kci-education (this is actually my only issue with the app - I wish users had the option to create subtags so that I can make the app look a bit more organized).
The benefit of using an app like GoodLinks is that I can find prep materials I used for tournaments that happened months ago. That way, I can be prepared in case different tournaments have similar topics.
I also want to try using GoodLinks for personal browsing, but I'm planning on keeping it focused on debate for right now.
Use Case Ideas
I honestly feel that GoodLinks would be a great app for anyone who either reads a lot of articles, wants to start reading a lot of articles, does significant research, or any combination of those three.
Conclusion
Without a doubt, I can say that GoodLinks is a fantastic app for most people. It's genuinely changed my life in terms of organization for debate competitions, and it's worth every penny.