Big Nate Stays Old School in a Digital World

Lincoln Pierce may be the most reluctant success in comic book history.

Ok, so he may not be so reluctant as an artist and writer; Pierce is the creator of “Big Nate”, the comic book franchise that first arrived on the syndicate two decades ago. Big Nate hit the big time in the mid-90s, and since then the strip has gone from being a newspaper favourite to a “Big Nate” book series that spent a year on the New York Times bestseller list, selling more than 3.5 million copies.  It also became part of the wildly popular Poptropica site as “Big Nate Island”, debuting on the site on Valentine’s Day 2009. (It promptly crashed the site’s server after millions of readers flocked to the site).

A year ago, Pierce’s book publisher approached the artist about creating his first app.  And when the publisher had a developer follow that up by developing iterations of the app, there was one small problem. Pierce was incredibly low tech. He had neither the knowledge nor the technology to view the new creations.

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Tweet Speaker a Bargain For Twitter Users

Tweet Speaker, the app by App Cubby that lets you listen to your tweets is now on sale for a limited time on the App Store.  The app was originally released last October for $2.99 but is now available for just 99 cents.

Do you remember what an answering machine is?  It was a device that you connected to your archaic house phone. You came home pressed the play button and it replayed all the calls you would have otherwise missed while you were out.  Tweet Speaker takes that basic concept and builds on it to create an app that Twitter addicts will surely love.

Tweet Speakers does not simply read out your tweets. It gives you a variety of tools to customize the experience. You can choose to create what amounts to a custom podcast or you can use the smartly designed timeline dial to simply play back all your content.

Tweet Speaker Packed With Perfect Features

The app has a slick feel to it. Its design is well done and the interface is very intuitive. At the bottom there are three main buttons:  “Voice,” “Play,” and “Airplay.” Above that there is a classic radio dial style depiction of your timeline. You can use this dial to move back and forward in your timeline and choose a starting point for Tweet Speaker. Above your timeline dial you will find your tweet stream.

You can choose any of your lists, or you can choose to start at any point in your  overall timeline and then press play. Tweet Speaker will then read out your tweets in a human sounding voice. The app is specifically designed for Twitter and understands its jargon. It will for example know that RT means “re-tweet.”  It will also recognize and read out links that are embedded. Various options (including the ability to change the speech rate) round out a very well-designed offering. The app also has integration features allowing you to link it to other twitter clients. That feature allows Tweet Speaker to pick up where you left off so you don’t have to listen to tweets you have already read.

One Tweet Deal

Tweet Speaker is one of those apps that just seem to work. If you are heavy Twitter user you should definitely give it a try.  Available for 99 cents at the App Store, for iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch.

Keep on Top of Current Conditions — With Lock Screen Weather on Your iPhone

Adding Lock Screen Weather to your iPhone or iPod touch can make a difference. After all, who wants to arrive at the meeting – or anywhere for that matter – soaking wet or freezing cold?

You’ll never have to with Lock Screen Weather on your iPhone or iPod Touch. The app gives you instant access to current, custom weather conditions as live wallpaper. All at the tap of a button. No need to start up or even unlock your device. Just launch Lock Screen Weather once and set your preferences. After that the weather forecast for your hometown (or pretty much any other city in the world) will be at your finger tips.

 No Jailbreak Required

There’s a complete range of icons and temperatures are given in both Fahrenheit and Celsius. The reports are updated regularly and the app includes an optional five-day forecast. Best of all, this clever little addition doesn’t require a jailbreak.

So what’s the downside? According to numerous comments sprinkled around the web, this app drains battery power at a mind-boggling rate. The system plays a silent track that allows the screen to be updated regularly but also plays havoc with your battery life.

Fortunately, Lock Screen Weather app isn’t as hard on your pocket book as it is on your battery. It’s available at the App Store for only $0.99.

Never Miss Another Appointment — With Do Date!

Do Date – the latest app offering from Law On My Phone — is the easy answer to all your scheduling problems!  With Do Date, you’ll never have to worry about missing another appointment or event, because daily reminders of birthdays, anniversaries, meetings – all your important dates and times — are sent directly to your iPhone or iPod Touch.

Once you have the Do Date app, scheduling is simple, effective and worry-free. Using the notification center, Do Date ensures that all the information you need for the day is on your iPhone/iPod. Even better – this app counts down the number of days left before the important event so you are free to concentrate on what else is important – and fun – in your life!

The Simplicity of Do Date

Updates are automatic. You can’t set your reminder times individually but what you can do is make sure your iPhone/iPod is set to “show 10 recent.”  Then, at 12:01 AM every day reminders will be on your device, waiting for you. Or, if you want, you can change that time to better suit your schedule. Now that’s flexibility – which translates to freedom for you!

Do Date means you’ll never have to wonder if Katie’s birthday’s the 11^th or the 12^th.  And why should you have to when you can let Do Date do it for you – perfectly!  You can even turn the notification off so that Katie doesn’t accidentally discover that you’ve ordered a special present for her.

Why Not Do Do Date?

Do Date makes it so easy that even the most disorganized person can keep their life clicking along. When something new comes up, simply enter the time and date of the event, hit save, and relax — knowing that you’ll be reminded in plenty of time. Your responsibilities are all but over. No syncing requirements and absolutely nothing complicated. What could be better? How about the low price – just $0.99 at the App Store!

Commit App — Commitments Were Never So Easy!

The new Commit app helps you commit to your goals—and stay committed. For only 99 cents, you can set the tone for the rest of 2012.

A New Year

So, the New Year has rolled around. You have a fresh batch of resolutions. And this year, you really want to stick to them. You’re not lazy. No, of course not! Maybe just a little forgetful.

Well, if this sounds even a little bit like you, the new Commit app by software and web experience design firm Legend is just the app for you. Commit makes setting big and small goals as simple as sliding a finger across a screen.

When you open up the Commit app, you get a card with a very alluring legend on it that reads: “I will ______ every day.” Not only is goal-setting as easy as filling in the space but it also, with this simple phrase, challenges you to decide what you will do every day.

Part of the problem with changing habits and setting new goals is that we do not ask ourselves the very simple questions, like, “What do I want today…every day?” The Commit app cajoles us into doing just that. Like nudge from a friend, “So what do you want to do?”

Commit to Commit

Once you have typed in your goal—say, learn Spanish, write a screenplay or a poem, drink a glass of water—the Commit app then asks you to set a time to be reminded. Once you do that, simply tap the “commit” button, and the app takes care of the rest.

If you have made the commitment, each day Commit will prompt you to answer the following question:

“Did you ______ today?” (the blank is filled with your goal for the day)

If you select “Yes,” it will be replaced by a very cheerful and affirmative green check mark. Now you can feel good that you accomplished your goal for the day. Commit also tracks the numbers of days in a row you have stayed on track. Of course, you can have more than one card, depending on the goals you have set.

So for 2012, help yourself stay committed to your New Year’s resolutions with Commit. The Commit app can be downloaded at the App Store.

A fresh snowfall is lovely to look at, but it creates havoc with the morning commute.  At least — it used to.  Now there’s “Winter Wake Up,” a smart new alarm clock app from Boondoggle that knows you need a few extra minutes on mornings when the weather’s not the best.

It’s easy to use — you simply specify how much earlier you’d like to be awakened in the event of inclement weather.  You might need an extra ten minutes to scrape the windshield of your car if there’s frost.  Maybe an extra twenty minutes to shovel the walks, in the case of a snowfall.  Just set it — and forget it.  During the night, Winter Warm Up monitors local weather conditions and then “decides” whether they warrant giving you an early wake-up call.

There’s even a check-box option for extreme winter conditions, which says “Don’t bother to wake me if the weather’s too bad.  I’ll work on Saturday.”  But before you select that one, you may want to consult your boss.

Winter Wake Up is available now, for both iPhone and Android.  It’s the perfect app to have in these dark days of winter.  The only downside is that you can no longer use the weather as an excuse, when you show up late to work.

If you hate reminding friends when they owe you money, you need SpotMe, a handy new cash management app from Boomerang Digital.  With SpotMe, your iPhone can take the social awkwardness out of friendly financial transactions by reminding those who owe you, so you don’t have to bring up the uncomfortable subject yourself.

SpotMe is proving especially popular among college students and roommates, but is a great tool for anyone who finds himself splitting a restaurant bill, sharing travel expenses, or lending small amounts of money.  The app takes over the unpleasant chore of reminding others to pay up, by sending out friendly, automatic email notifications.  Now the person who owes you has no excuse to forget the debt – but you won’t appear to be personally nagging.

The SpotMe service, which was launched last July, has already been updated with new features.  They include email summaries, the ability to view partial payments and payment dates, as well as private messaging.

It’s easy to get started with SpotMe.  After installation, simply sign into your Facebook account and start adding your contacts.  You can input the information manually, if you prefer.  Once that’s done, managing your friendly financial transactions is as simple as the click of a button.

SpotMe is currently one of the top ten mobile apps in the finance category, and is prominently featured in Apple’s “App Store Rewind 2011”.  It’s a free download from iTunes.  There is no Android version of the app at this point but there is a web version available.