Tuesday, October 6. 2009

There's a Map for That: Verizon Takes on AT&T

One of the big complaints of iPhone users is the variance in AT&T 3G coverage across the US. Some areas are fine, some uncovered and some, like San Francisco are notoriously poor. So, Verizon, which may itself host the iPhone, once's AT&T's exclusive deal runs out, is making waves. It riffs on Apple's "there's an app for that" in a campaign launched Monday. It includes the slogan, "There's a map for that" to highlight its more complete coverage map. Clever? Perhaps. Petty? Some think so. Will it matter? It's unclear if it will help or hurt Verizon's chances of getting an iPhone deal here in the U.S!

- Digital Daily (All Things D) - includes video of the ad

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Apple at 06:00 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) |

Friday, October 2. 2009

Many Say Apple Buys Placebase

The San Jose Business Journal has the story. And, Caitlin at GISLounge cites the path of discovery. I knew Placebase was gone and I knew Jaron Waldman was at Apple. But I've still not seen confirmation from Apple that this true and have contacted the company for confirmation.

If true, this is pretty cool - I was a big fan of Placebase. (1, 2, 3) Does this mean Apple will have its own in-house mapping apps for all its devices? And for developers to use?

via @gletham

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Apple at 06:00 | Comment (1) | Trackbacks (0) |

Thursday, October 1. 2009

Update: MotionX GPS App for iPhone - NAVTEQ Data and Low Cost

Updated 10/1: Title and text updated per comment from FullPower to note the app does not use OpenStreetMap (below).

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I'm trying hard not to get too wrapped up in all the iPhone nav apps, but I am interested in the reaction of the planet as each one appears. When the TomTom app came out for the iPhone the folks on Buzz Out Loud (BOL, the C|net podcast of indeterminate length) criticized the price and attributed it to the cost of the data (provided by Tele Atlas, which it owns). Now, InformationWeek previews MotionX-GPS for iPhone in part because of its low price $2.99 and $25 annual subscription.

The app uses deCarta tech and NAVTEQ data (from FAQ), so that's not what dropped the price. Another of the company's products does use OpenStreetMap.

---- original text --- errors included -----
I had to dig a bit on the website, but it seems the app uses OpenStreetMap. (I'm a bit confused since GPS Business News says it uses NAVTEQ.) Also noteworthy: the company behind it is FullPower and headed by former Borland CEO Philippe Kahn. Gosh I loved Borland! My first real job, at a consulting firm, used Quattro. One of my colleagues, a programmer, won a big award for automating the processing of data from our Gas Chromatograph all in Quattro.

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Open Source, Apple at 19:29 | Comments (3) | Trackbacks (0) |

Thursday, September 24. 2009

Bionic Eye - Augmented Reality (with no connection required)

I've been keeping an eye on augmented reality and the apps are getting better and better. Consider Bionic Eye from Presselite. it's an update of app originally announced as "Nearest Subway" for iPhones (iPod Touch, and old iPhones, too - but with limited functionality since those don't have the compass of the 3GS). The video says it best:


One point not made: only POIs with in 1km are shown in the augmented reality app.

The cool part, for me, this requires no interactivity (cell phone connection or wi-fi). All the data, including POIs which come with the app and pub transit stops for NY, Chicago and DC, which are available in app for an additional fee, are stored locally. Now, that's great when you don't have a connection, but it does mean the data are static. That in turn means the company (or another one) can provide updates for a fee. The app is available now, for $1.

- Wired

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Apple at 11:45 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0) |

Thursday, September 17. 2009

Autodesk Releases iPhone/iPod Touch Supported SketchBook Mobile

There's a free and $2.99 version of the "professional-grade paint and drawing" program. Its counterpart on the desktop is Autodesk SketchBook Pro, a package you can buy at Amazon for $75 (list is $100). Data created in the mobile version can be opened on the desktop.

- press release

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Autodesk, Apple at 07:49 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) |

Monday, September 14. 2009

Would the ideas of Gov 2.0 work for business?

Watching the Gov 2.0 Summit presentations this past week tweaked my mind about what technology should do, not just for government agencies, but for business. Tim O'Reilly's model of "government as a platform" goes directly to some of the business process improvement methodologies that businesses have longed to attain.

O'Reilly uses the analogy of the Apple iPhone as a platform for applications developed by programmers outside of Apple as his vision for what government should be able to facilitate for citizenry: build the platform...let the citizens take it from there. And he is not just hoping that federal agencies will find ways to work better together but for intergovernmental agencies as well such as federal to state, state to local, local to citizens, etc.

Would this model work for business? Would businesses share data and some of their internal IT platforms with partners, perhaps in a cloud computing environment? Some already put data "outside the firewall" for sharing but how many businesses build their IT model with the idea that shared data is a foundation for business expansion and efficiency?

Walmart was first recognized for using RFID technology to monitor inventory and "advising" their suppliers to adopt ways to conform with its inventory and logistics control procedures. Inventory data was shared with suppliers; orders were automatically placed and shipped to distribution centers. But for O'Reilly's vision to be transformed into standard business practice I think an entirely new level of trust might have to be developed between business partners.

That's not to say that it can't be done and in this economic climate it may be a necessity. It's a model that needs more thought and exploration. Andrea DiMaio of Gartner provided the reasons why government cannot act as a platform and you can use these arguments as a check list as to why business platforms may or may not work.

Posted by Joe Francica in Location Intelligence, Apple, Cloud Computing at 11:12 | Comment (1) | Trackbacks (0) |