Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Top 3 (+1) FREE iPhone (and iPod Touch) Apps

Since it seems like everyone has an opinion as to the best new apps to hit Apples third-party Application store, I thought I'd chime in with my two cents.
Please note that (contrary to many opinions out there) my suggestions are provided without any nefarious motives to get you to support one company or another, they simply reflect my experience in browsing the iTunes application store for the past several days and trying out as many apps as sounded interesting. Unfortunately I couldn't take any screenshots myself, as the pwnage utility has yet to be released; but I will update the post later.

1) Remote - You've heard a lot about this free Apple-signed app since even before the release of FW 2.0, and it IS worth at least some of the hype. The application allows you to control your iTunes library (and/or AppleTV, Apple speakers, etc) via the existing wi-fi connection when both devices are connected to the same network. The app is incredibly easy to use with updated iTunes software (just install the app on the iPhone, follow the instructions to type in the code on iTunes, and you're on!), and very useful. Personally, I have a laptop with an IR remote as well as a bluetooth keyboard with remote media control; but wi-fi range knocks these two methods out of the park! (IR is line-of-sight only; and BT 2.0 is still only good for about 30 ft when there are walls or other obstructions). You get to observe the album art on your handheld device (even if the song is not present on the device!), and access any of your playlists or song info remotely. The only room for improvement which is readily evident is that they require a router to connect thru, and cannot be used solely from device to computer (all signals are routed through the wireless network).

2) BoxOffice - For a 'cinephile' like myself, this app is just what we've been waiting for. A succinct summary of movies playing in your area (as far as I know only US zip codes are supported) is readily available whenever your device is connected to the internet. After entering a location you can search for local theaters within a certain radius, find show times at all of the theaters, and even order tickets online (at supported theaters). In addition, you can switch to movie mode to see all of what's playing in your area by title or even by rating (provided by Rotten Tomatoes).
Truly a one-stop-shop for movie-goers!!!

3) Tap-Tap Revenge - If you've ever played DDR (Dance-Dance Revolution) then you've probably become addicted. Well now you can take that addiction on the road with your iPhone or iPod Touch; working on- or off-line, this game plays a hot new song (provided by the producers of the game) and displays 'beats' coming down three different strings. As you may have guessed, you need to tap the beat when it hits the bottom of the screen (on time!) to earn the points. But a new twist, in the "Hard Tracks" level and above, integrates the accelerometer of the touch and asks you to 'shake' the device in a particular direction as though you were striking a drum. I might look like an idiot on the bus, hitting imaginary drums surrounding my IPT, but I have to tell you it is GREAT fun for the musically inclined... [Just make sure you learn the lessons from the Wii controllers, and hold on TIGHT!!!]
(P.S. The version of TTR on the Jailbroken 1.4 FW allowed users to write and upload their own song patterns, and play user-uploaded patterns to songs in the users own iTunes library. Presumably updated versions will begin to integrate this feature, if its ok'd by Apple...)

and finally, the last +1...
PhoneSaber - Really much more applicable to the iPhone than the IPT, this app displays a light saber on your phone (choose between yellow, purple, red, green, or blue) and plays the saber sound effects as it detects motion using the accelerometer. Despite having to plug mine in to speakers (and consequently having only a finite radius with which to 'duel), I still got a really big kick out of this app as would any self-respecting Star Wars fan. Truly worth the price of download (free).

Once again, all these apps are free for download from the Application store, so go out there and enjoy!!! I will post a follow-up with my favorite paid-for applications in a week or so, once I sift through the myriad of crap out there...

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Money can buy happiness... but not how you think!

Want to buy happiness? Spend your money on someone else!
At least that's what researchers at UBC and Harvard Business school report in an article (from March, sorry for the delay!) in Science magazine. They asked subjects to rate their happiness on a scale of 1-10, for a baseline. Then they gave them some money and told half of them to spend it on themselves, and the other half to spend it on someone else. The results?
Subjects who spent money on others were happier than those who spent it only on themselves. Even spending just $5 on someone else made individuals feel happier than whatever they could've bought for themselves....
Surprised? Well perhaps its gotten lost in the hubbub of modern society, but the naturalists understood this concept just 100-200 yrs ago:
"It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life that no person can
sincerely try to help another without helping themselves."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=news-bytes-can-money-make-you-happy
http://www.livescience.com/health/080320-happiness-money.html
http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/yes-money-can-buy-happiness/

Science Article:
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/sci;319/5870/1687?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&andorexacttitleabs=and&fulltext=money+happiness&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/319/5870/1687?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&andorexacttitleabs=and&fulltext=money+happiness&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT




http://www.compassionate-touch-training.com/