Since I got word of my ideaLab selection, I have been paying more attention than ever before to what people think are some of the most useful mobile applications for Apple's iPhone and iPad devices.

With more than 250,000 apps to choose from, this is far from a comprehensive list of the best tools available, but rather a small number of apps that I'm anxious to try when Journal Register Company sends out our tech gear to experiment with.

Do you have suggestions for great apps that aren't on this list? Leave a comment below with your suggestion and why you think the app is of particular interest or value.

My top choices so far:

Flipboard (Credit: Apple's App Store)

Flipboard -
Since I first saw it announced last week on the day it came out, Flipboard has been at the top of my list for apps I'd love to try and think I would really enjoy using.

When managing several social network accounts each day for work and personal use, the endless Twitter update pages, even on TweetDeck (my go-to Twitter client for my MacBook), can be a strain on the eyes and the brain after a few hours.

This application creates a "social magazine" and seems to display content from Twitter, Facebook, and other services in a much nicer, customizable format.

All of the reviews I have seen so far are pretty positive and it looks like it will make the online social experience that much better.

Dropbox (Credit: Apple's App Store)

Dropbox -
Another app that I have heard great things about so far. The ability to have all my files managed in one place and accessible no matter where I am or what device I have with me, will be a big benefit and could be especially useful in the news industry with reporters in the field or ad reps out trying to land their next big sale. I keep making notes to try it out at home, and one of these days I'll actually remember to do it.

iBooks (Credit: Apple's App Store)

iBooks -
I have two bookcases lining one of the walls of my apartment full of books that I would like to read, either for the first time or again, and there never seems to be enough time to squeeze in relaxing with a book during most weeks.

When the Kindle came out a few years ago, I considered getting one, but its price tag kept me away for what it could do.

I've used this briefly a few times in my trips to the local apple store and it seems like a really beautiful design (the shelves are pretty much identical to Delicious Library - which I love for keeping track of my ever-growing media collection) and could be enjoyable to sit and use for a few hours while reading whatever I'm interested in that day.

I'd also like to compare it to Amazon's Kindle app and see which is more fun and more reliable, to use.

Kindle (Credit: Apple's App Store)

Kindle -
As mentioned above, I'd like to compare this and iBooks. Also, this could be good to use since I know there is an iPhone version as well.

Also, with both applications, I'd like to see how they perform for reading digital editions of newspapers - how clunky things are, if at all, and what kind of potential there is there for publication.

WIRED Magazine (Credit: Apple's App Store)

WIRED -
As a longtime fan of all things tech, hearing that this iPad app is well-designed and highly functional makes me very interested to give it a try. I'm anxious to see how much content from the print version of the magazine they port over into the application and how everything looks.

Mashable! (Credit: Apple's App Store)

Mashable! -
Everyone's favorite social media blog. They pretty much keep up on everything that has to do with mobile tech, the most popular online social media tools, and just about anything else you can think of online. They have a great design for the their main site, so I'd like to see how everything comes together in the mobile ports.

Pandora Radio (Credit: Apple's App Store)

Pandora -
A highly entertaining place to listen to free music and discover new artists. I have always been a big fan of the web-version and one to take on the go would be even better.

Echofon for Twitter (Credit: Apple's App Store)

Twitterific (Credit: Apple's App Store

Echofon, Twitterific,  Twitter

While I mostly have used Tweet Deck on
my laptop and on other desktop computers I use for work, I figure that I might as well try out some of the other most popular clients and see what they have to offer.

Twitter (Credit: Apple's App Store)

WordPress (Credit: Apple's App Store)

WordPress -
After dealing a lot with Blogger, I was pleasantly surprised when I tried WordPress with the back-end functionality, smooth layouts, and tons of theme options. I think being able blog easily from an iPad while on the road or at a news conference/event will be quite beneficial. Of course, you could always enter the site through the iPad/iPhone browser, but I have to believe the app will make things easier.

That's it for now. As I said, feel free to leave any suggestions you may have in the comments below.

- Next time, more on trying iPhone app code and learning more HTML so that I can gain more experience.