Sunday, March 11, 2012
Patch's guide to essential mobile apps for weary travelers.
I'm kind of a travel app junkie. I don't use just one, as a consummate deal-seeker and tech nerd. So this week, I thought I'd share four of my favorites and ask you for yours. Earlier: Stuck in Atlanta with the Delta App So, which travel apps do you find my useful? For me, I use: TripIt: More than just a booking site, TripIt is an all-around travel organizer with one key feature: It recognizes confirmation emails sent from airlines, Amtrak, etc. and turns them into calendar invites. No more looking for booking numbers or confirmation codes, because TripIt will take the information from my inbox, then turn it into useable information that my wife can see on our shared calendar. TripAdvisor: I use this not only to book hotels, but find out …
Sunday, February 5, 2012
A longtime Shazam user tries another music app to find songs — and loves it.
Have you ever been in a store or a bar and wondered what exactly is that song coming over the speaker system? In the past, I've solved that problem with Shazam, a mobile app that captures a bit of audio, then spools up the song's title — and the opportunity to buy a copy on iTunes. That's all been well and good, but I've been frustrated with Shazam lately. (Sometimes it take too long to load, or isn't as accuarate as I need it to be.) So I broke my fidelity and started seeing other music indentification apps. My favorite, by far, has been MusicID (99 cents). Not only does it return results fast, as it did when recognizing The Black Crowes' "Ballad of Urgency," but it also provided lyrics, a band biography and recommendations for similar …
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Aggregating the best of deal sites, the Yipit mobile app lets you find deals near you.
With the huge boom in deal sites led by Groupon and LivingSocial, it was only a matter of time until someone started aggregating all the coupons and deals in one place. The Yipit mobile app offers a clever, interactive solution. Earlier: Finding the Best Mobile Apps for Your Needs Not only can you sign up for Yipit like any other deal service, but you can also search by category and location. Taking advantage of the iPhone's "Where am I now?" functionality, Yipit can show daily deals near you. The rub for suburbanites: Deals are much more dense the closer you get to the city. (See the slideshow for examples.) Still, it's worth it. Yipit aggregates 802 daily coupon sites, with more coming online. (Patch has its own Patch Deals, and Amazon …
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Tool offers help finding knitting supplies far from home.
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Emily Stone
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Sunday, December 25, 2011
I’m spending the holiday weekend in Ohio with my in-laws. Which means 14 hours of round-trip driving. Which, for me, means a whole lot of time to knit in the car. Was it overkill to throw three half-finished projects in my knitting bag? Probably. But better safe than sorry, for a knitter. And with that mantra in mind, I decided to check out the Knitting and Yarn Shop Locator app. Because what if I arrived in Ohio and forgot my size 3 circular needles or grabbed the wrong size crochet hook? The horror! The app, which costs $2.99, lets you type in a location or opt to use your phone’s GPS device to tell you where the nearest knit shops are. Much like Yelp, it links to the store’s website, phone and email, and can get you directions there. …
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Business Card Reader eliminates that pesky step of typing information into your phone.
In this job, by the end of the week, I collect a ton of business cards. In fact, it's not unheard of for me to put on jackets I haven't worn in awhile to find business cards in the breast pocket and do one of those Homer Simpson forehead slaps—doh! When I first started this column, the folks at SHAPE Services suggested I try their app: Business Card Reader ($4.99), which will take a photo of said card and convert it to the fields in your iPhone address book. Perfect! I thought. Well, near perfect. I've been using this app for a few weeks now, trying to convert business cards to contact files. Mostly, it's been a success. Previously: Forget Watches—Try An App For Running I recently met Kathryn Auerbach at an event for Hacks/Hackers—a group …
Robert K. Elder
10:38 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
Thanks, Charlie. I should have said that, yes. You can usually tell who they are by the hyperbole. more ›