iGoiPhone – Page 3 – …Reviews, Tips and How To

iPhone gives you word definitions of print words using the camera, no typing needed

There are many iPhone dictionaries I have used over the last few years. Trying to think of a word or need a definition of a word in a print article is pretty easy with the iPhone. Pop open an app and type the word in. Results are usually pretty quick. The actual longest step is trying to type the word into the iPhone. If I type two handed, the book will close. If I type with one hand to be able to hold the book open, time is taken as I eye what I type and the print word.

Today I was playing with Linxy, a 400,000 offline iPhone (4 and 4s only) dictionary with a visual twist. The app brings Augmented Reality type of technology to answer the need to look up print words. When Linxy is running, your look at a page of text through the iPhone’s camera via the screen. In the middle of the screen is a box and a varying underline graphic. Place the line under a word and a dictionary definition appears on the screen. Notice the ‘pause’ button on the bottom of the screen… since Linxy is constantly looking for words, choose the button when you have the word you need defined to avoid being jumped to another word while reading.

Tapping the Linxy pop up box of text will take you to a online extended Word lookup screen.

Select a short description from the list to be taken to the site that provides the dictionary information. The default included online source is wikipedia.

There is an ‘in-app’ purchase option ($1.99) to unlock all of the additional provider areas. Making the in-app purchase changes the initial Linxy pop up information box to include a mix of definitions from more sources.

Tapping the now longer dictionary text results in the Word Lookup showing description text for each of the options that were blank before. Each can be selected to have Linxy take you online to show that provider’s extended text.

Simple interface should not mean lack of features, Solar Weather does effective UI right

I was reading an interview last week from a popular writing app author where they made the statement that a simple interface shouldn’t even be noticed. How their app does have clutter or extra things that makes a person think about using it. While I do use the writing software, on the iPhone and iPad, as well the Mac, it simple interface isn’t making it simple to use. The app just lacks many features a person needs beyond simple writing. It even requires a person remember the symbols used in Markdown language. The app doesn’t offer the equivalent of bullets and bold, instead you have to remember if your to type a character like a ‘+’ to get what you need. I use it because the interface is quick to get into, not because it does the job correctly. So, the software is quickly replaced with slightly, more robust competitive products when available.

The new weather app Solar: Weather struck me as a weather app that is easy to use, does what I need and wont be replaced with anything needing more taps.

Launching the app, you get a screen of information about your home city, local time, date, observation data, current temp and color backgrounds representing the weather and temperature. The color coding is important as it can be dark and gloomy outside yet the temperatures feels nice or even warm. It might just be me, but areas I have lived have very deceiving looks to what you see if you look out a window. The color coding tells you more information than simple numbers can.

Also more important to some areas than others is what will the weather be doing later today into tomorrow. Rather than presenting me with a list of numbers for the day, Solar: Weather shows the color information and temp number changing with time as I sweep my finger up the screen. Releasing my finger’s pressure returns me to the current time of day.

If I need a quick glance at the next couple days, I pull my finder down on the screen to review the high/lows information.

Since I travel and communicate with others in cities around the world, Solar: Weather does allow for more than one city to be viewed. A pinch on the screen shows the cities I have identified as needing the information about.

Much like the iPhone’s built in Weather app, swiping my finger side to side does cycle through the city weather information too. The colors, minimal numbers and simple swipe of my finger means that Solar: Weather has the information I need to know, what is going on outside and will be going on in the future, without extra taps. Simple interfaces that work and still offer a full feature set is the right way of doing a iPhone tool, don’t make me think and give me light info in order to brag about having an interface that isn’t noticed.

Getting creative thinking unstuck with the help of your iPhone

Wow… that is one white piece of paper on the screen. It has a title, project name, who is involved, what needs to be delivered, and then a lot of white. At this point, the idea was either in your head before you sat down or you are now in a place to get creative… and start typing.

Some folks sit and stare at the screen, some will go for a walk, others will wander about the office looking for anything to kickstart the idea creating part of the brain. If non of those are working for you, it might be time to download the free Oflow app for your iPhone.

The app is actually a different view of the content of a book called Think Unstuck. The book version is a couple bucks in eBook format if you prefer having a ‘book’ to read. The Oflow app has the same content, but instead of being a long list, the information is given to you randomly.

The information? It is over 100 ideas to help you get creative. Each text bit Oflow provides is a method you can try to get the creative parts of the braining being more productive. Then, when in that mode, shift over to your project thinking. Oflow has enough content to use over and over again… just launch the app to gain access to the list of Methods, items you have marked as Favorites and any notes that you have attached to individual Creative Flow Methods.

Unlike the book, the Oflow iPhone app provides the creative idea methods to you randomly via the upper right button. If you want to just read through the list, you’ll want to grab the eBook. In the app, use the buttons across the bottom of the screen to Star an item as a Favorite, Attach a Note, or have the text inserted into an email.

A rethink on location based tasks on the iPhone

There is location based tasks built into the iOS Reminder app. I have met with a few challenges using it. Everything is in one list, things happen only at time or arrival or leaving a location and location pinning could be easier.

A new app in the location based Task Manager group is Checkmark. Right off upon launching the app, you will see that tasks can be decided into groups by type of task. The groups are accessed through buttons rather than lists within lists that can be fun to get through when trying to understand tasks that are personal vs work based.

Tasks created in Checkmark are set to a particular location that is important to that task. The addresses are much easier to add than other location based task managers. Checkmark lets you choose the current location, choose from a contact or even pin directly from the iPhone’s map.

Not only will Checkmark let you choose if the task alert happens when arriving or departing a location, there can be a delay set too. So, you arrive at the office, check in, check email, get your coffee, and then your task pops up saying you need to make a call. Other apps alert you when you first arrive and then you have to remember the task to do after you settle in for the day. Leaving the house, have the alert about a task a few minutes down the road, when your closer to available options.

FourSquare app update becomes The Map to the Stars Home app

FourSquare on the iPhone has been updated to FourSquare 5.0. The changes include a updated UI, more maps, and more info about where you might like to visit around you. While I have yet to test the depth of the suggestions, the talk is that they are based on your likes and check ins. FourSquare is leaning more toward letting you know what is near you that you may find interesting, moving away from it being an app for showing everyone where your checking in at. Checking in got old for a lot of people after time as Businesses where not jumping in with discounts or promotions for those checking in, thus it became just a tool for folks to watch where you are at and have been. Time will tell if the new direction for FourSquare will be enough different from Yelp or other location information apps on the iPhone.

As a reminder, here is a couple screen shots of the previous version showing what you and your friends have been up to as well the check in screen… basically a list of places around you.

Checking into a location is now done through a ‘drop pin’ icon in the upper right corner of the screens within FourSquare 5.0, no longer an extra button along the bottom of the page. Taping the icon will result in a list of locations your near as well a map to see where those places around you are.

Suggestions in FourSquare has an updated view of the list of nearby locations as well a nicely pinned map to tap for more info and directions.

Viewing a person’s (including yours) overview is much easier to use. The earlier version had you tapping on list items that opened new lists, the buttons still require tapping but having all of the information on a single view through graphic buttons makes FourSquare 5.0 quick to navigate. A big win for regular users.

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