When I first heard about Wakoopa I wondered what the point was, but having actually used it, I find it strangely addictive. Wakoopa describes itself as “a social network that helps people discover the best software, games and web apps on the market.” In an increasingly open online environment, it had to be worth a look.

Tracking Your Apps

To use Wakoopa you have to install a small tracker application on your PC or Mac. After that it starts automatically, works invisibly and keeps track of the desktop and web software you are running. If you enjoy keeping track of stats for their own sake, then you will enjoy knowing how much time you spent running Gmail, Google Chrome or Twitter.

It’s a great way to get a snapshot of what you actually do, without any need to tie it to being productive, as most time trackers do. The evidence speaks for itself, showing me that I use Seesmic more often than Hootsuite to connect to Twitter. The charts about usage are also interesting.

The Social Side

There’s a social side too, though you will have to know someone on the network to get started with this. You can share your top applications and uses with other users and see theirs as well. You earn points for your use of Wakoopa, whether that’s using software for a certain number of hours, adding reviews or submitting suggestions.

So what is Wakoopa good for? In addition to showing how you spend your time, it’s a good place to discover other apps you might not have known about. Click on the name of any app and it gives you a ranking within its main category. Click on that category name to find other applications that you might not know about. If you’re looking for a replacement for your favorite freeware program which you now have to pay for, this could be the place to do it.

Would your life be poorer without Wakoopa? Not necessarily. There are other applications out there that track software usage such as RescueTime and Slife, There are other sites that help you to find replacements for applications you like, such as AlternativeTo. But are they as much fun and as social as Wakoopa? I don’t think so.

This post has been submitted by Sharon Hurley Hall from Get Paid To Write Online.com.

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