All posts in Software

Thanks to Gas Cubby from App Cubby

by Dave Caolo on May 17, 2013 in Software, Sponsors, Travel with No comments

Big thanks to Gas Cubby for being this week’s sponsor. This handy app records milage for you, which is fantastic if you’re often taking business trips. I used to use a notebook for this, but I’d either misplace it or forget to transfer a certain trip to my spreadsheet. Not any more, as Gas Cubby lets me export directly to an Excel-friendly format via email.

The app also records your service history and even offers service reminders reminders, which is great. You know those plastic clings that the mechanic puts on your windshield? The ones that always fall off? Forget about them. I won’t forget to get that 7,500 mile checkup done when Gas Cubby reminds me.

The app’s search feature is also well-implemented and there’s ample support for international units, like MPG (Canada), MPG (UK), MPG (Imperial), L/100km, gal/100mi (US), gal/100mi (Imperial), km/L, km/gal (US), km/gal (Imperial), and mi/L, for all of you folks who drive on the wrong side of the road.

Do you like charts and graphs? I know you do. Tilt your iPhone to the landscape orientation and view data on your vehicle’s average MPG, typical gas price you pay, automotive expenses and service expenses. Nice!

Gas Cubby has been in my travel folder for years. It’s fast, good-looking and, most importantly, useful. Go and grab Gas Cubby now.

!Emergency! for iPhone: when trouble strikes abroad

by Dave Caolo on May 14, 2013 in Links, Software, Travel with No comments

Johnny Jet’s travel app of the week is !Emergency! ($0.99). As Johnny notes, not everyone realizes that “911″ isn’t the emergency call number in many countries outside of the US. !Emergency! lists them all, and puts them just a tap away. Not only that, it can automatically detect the country you’re in, so you don’t have to spend precious time searching when something is really wrong. That’s a pretty handy app.

Travel app tweaks reduce frustration

by Dave Caolo on May 14, 2013 in Links, Software, Travel with No comments

Gadling has a nice list of iPhone travel apps that have recently had small updates with big results, including TripIt’s new GroundLink feature. It lets you coordinate ground transportation from your phone, and will even let your transportation know if your flight is delayed. Pretty cool.

There’s more at Gadling so go check it out.

Gas Cubby from App Cubby

by Dave Caolo on May 13, 2013 in Articles, Links, Software, Sponsors, Travel with No comments

Huge thanks to Gas Cubby for being this week’s sponsor. David Barnard and his crew build iOS apps that I’ve been using for years, including Gas Cubby.

Gas Cubby is a fantastic companion to anyone who often travels by car. It records milage for you, which is fantastic if you’re often taking business trips. I used to use a notebook for this, but I’d either misplace it or forget to transfer a certain trip to my spreadsheet. Not any more, as Gas Cubby lets me export directly to an Excel-friendly format via email.

Gas Cubby has been in my travel folder for years. It’s fast, good-looking and, most importantly, useful. Go and grab Gas Cubby now.

Rego for iPhone, a traveler’s companion

by Dave Caolo on May 10, 2013 in Articles, Links, Software, Sponsors with No comments

Big thanks to Rego for iPhone (free for the first 10 places, $2.99 for unlimited use) for sponsoring the site this week. I’ve been using Rego since launch day and it’s earned a spot on my iPhone’s home screen. It lets me create a record of my favorite places, both those I have seen and those I hope to visit someday. With a few taps I can mark it on a map, write some notes, take photos and add useful, searchable categories.

Rego is like a contacts app, but for locations. It has become the place where I store the places I care about. But Rego is more than storage. Before your trip begins, create a new collection and add all the places you want to visit — either by positioning pins on a map, or by searching on names or addresses. Rego searches Apple and Foursquare location databases, and your Contacts. Plan your itinerary by re-centering the map on any pin. For example, set your hotel as the “Active Location” and watch all your places sort by distance to that pin.

While traveling, use Rego to visit the places you planned, and add new places you discover along the way. Rego uses the iPhone’s GPS, so you don’t need Internet coverage to capture new places. Also, in most cases, your maps will have been cached during your planning, so they’ll still be available when you’re in the middle of nowhere.

Rego is private by default, but you can selectively choose to share places. This creates a web page for your place on the Rego server, that you can show the world. Other Rego users can directly add that place to their Rego, by visiting the page. I actually like keeping it private, as I use Rego is my personal travel log and wish list.

Don’t take my word for it, Apple loved Rego so much they featured it in the New & Noteworthy list on the App Store home page in 127 countries, and gave it a big banner in the Travel section. It’s truly one of my favorite travel apps.

By the way, see “Catalano’s” in the screen shot above? That’s one of the greatest places on earth, baby.

Here’s how you can sponsor the site. It’s a great month for those with travel apps.

Apple expands Maps 3D flyover coverage in France

by Dave Caolo on May 9, 2013 in Software, Travel with No comments

Good news, folks. Apple has expanded 3D flyover coverage in its Maps app for France. Specifically, Paris, Versailles, Aulnay-sous-Bois, Disneyland Paris, and to L’Hay-les-Roses have gotten the 3D treatment. Before this update, only Lyon had 3D flyover coverage.

“Flyover” means you can view a photograph-quality, interactive view of a city. Zoom in our out, pan around and explore an area in fine detail. I found the Eiffel Tower earlier on my phone, was able to zoom in on the tower itself and trace the route I walked along the sidewalk back to my hotel.

Apple’s Maps app was dramatically revamped when iOS 6 was introduced, and the result fell flat for a huge number of users. Apparently, the folks on the Maps team are working hard to make the application a viable choice for users once again.

Travel tip: create, send postcards with your iPhone or iPad

by Dave Caolo on May 6, 2013 in Software, Travel with No comments

Who doesn’t like getting postcards? It’s fun to buy them, too. Turning that rickety, squeaking metal turnstile in some far-away destination. When you’re in the middle of nowhere, a post office can be hard to find. Or, the mail delivery can be unreliable, as my wife and I found out when we beat some postcards home that we had sent from rural Italy. Fortunately, it’s easy and inexpensive to create real-world, paper post cards with your iPhone and send them to family and friends. Here are two apps that do just that, each with its own pros and cons.

Cards (Free)

Apple’s Cards app for iPhone is a great place to start. It lets your create a nice-looking letterpress greeting card that will ship anywhere in the world ($2,99 within the US, $4.99 internationally). I’ve sent a few cards with this app and can vouch for how good they look. It’s very easy to work with, even on the iPhone’s tiny screen.

Pros:

Universal, so it looks great on both the iPhone and iPad
At least one postcard-style theme included
You can customize the picture
Write your own greeting

Cons:

Option for three photos per card is restricted to holiday-themed cards
Keyboard commandeers much of the screen while entering text

Felt (Free)

Felt is an iPad-only app that helps you make and send paper cards to friends and family. It’s very good looking and mimics your own own handwriting on the printed card and envelope. Plus, the iPad’s larger screen makes it very easy to write, which can be done with stylus or your finger. This one is iPad-only, but it looks great.

Pros:

Your own handwriting
Great-looking results
Beautiful UI makes it easy to use

Cons:

iPad only
Photo not customizable
No real postcard-style theme
Writing legibly will be difficult or impossible without a stylus.

There are apps to create virtual post card, and they can be fun. But I still like getting a paper one in the mail that I can stick to the ‘fridge. It’s just nicer. I’m old fashioned that way.

Rego for iPhone stores your favorite places

by Dave Caolo on May 6, 2013 in Articles, Links, Software, Sponsors, Travel with No comments

Here’s how you can sponsor the site. It’s a great month those with travel apps.

The iPhone Traveler Pt. 3 – Pre-load bookmarks in Maps

by Dave Caolo on May 6, 2013 in Articles, iPhone Travel, Software with No comments

Note: I know that many of you dislike Apple’s Maps app. If that’s the case, consider this week’s sponsor, Rego, as an alternative when pre-loading map bookmarks. It does much the same as I’ve described here, with the added benefit of itinerary planning. For example, identify your hotel as the Active Location, and then all of your other bookmarks are automatically sorted by proximity. Very cool. –Dave

Traveling with an iPhone is like having a hotel concierge with you at all times. Just as you can approach the concierge desk in the hotel and ask for directions, for recommendations, or even for a cab, your iPhone is happy to provide the same services. I like to add points of interest as bookmarks in Apple’s Maps before I go.

Why should you do this? There are several reasons. As you travel, you could find yourself with a poor data connection just when you need some information. Also, it saves time. You don’t want to be searching for the hotel while you’re on the airport shuttle, for example.

This goes beyond the hotel. A few years ago my family was in New York City when we suddenly needed to get to a pharmacy. If I had added one that was close to my hotel before leaving, that would have soothed a potentially stressful situation.

Be prepared and gain peace of mind by adding points of interest to your iPhone before you depart. That way, you’ll have each location’s address, phone number, website and directions (driving, walking and public transportation). Here’s how to stock your personal concierge desk with answers to go.

Continue reading →

iPhone travel tip: follow airlines on Twitter

by Dave Caolo on May 3, 2013 in Articles, Software, Travel with No comments

Summer storms can disrupt your travel, and spending the night on the floor of an airport is no fun. A great way to stay on top of the latest alerts, changes and notices from the major airlines is to subscribe to their Twitter accounts. Having a Twitter app on your iPhone puts access to that information into your pocket.

In these situations, being connected to your airline on Twitter can offer more than simple news delivery. In 2011, brutal winter storms left hundreds of thousands of people without a flight. Many stranded travelers who shared their predicament with their airline via Twitter (along with the reservation number) were rebooked faster than those who waited in the customer service line or called the 800 number. Here is a list of Twitter accounts as used by several major airlines:

On your iPhone, choose a Twitter app that supports notifications (I use Twitterrific, but there are many others available). Enable notifications for mentions. That way, if you send a message to your airline’s account, your phone will let you know when you’ve received a reply. Happy flying!