Posts tagged lbs
Geocaching with Geooh
Feb 13th
According to Wikipedia, geocaching is an “outdoor activity in which the participants use GPS or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called “geocaches” or “caches”).
I learned of an app alled Geooh today from its developer, Mobiltect. According to them, their application far exceeds that of others designed for mobile platforms. They even boast it might best GPS devices that run more than $400 a pop. I took a look around the website, and from what we can tell, Geooh looks full of features.
Disclaimer: I’ve never done any geocaching before. I’ve considered it, but didn’t realize how easy it could be until just recently. The screenshots of Geeoh alone have me curious enough to give it a shot though.
Integration with Google Maps Navigator almost seem like pure cheating, but hey, we all like the occasional walkthrough in a pinch. Of course, there is also radar view, compass view, plain coordinates and more. If any app were to get me going, it might be this one. So, with that, I am going to see what I can (literally) dig up around my town!
According to the features page, Geeoh offers:
- Opens GPX, LOC, and KML formats
- Bulk downloading and local storage of multiple files with delete capabilities
- Paperless geocaching
- Deleting of individual waypoints
- Sorting and filtering
- Speech input
- Displays geo-points on Google maps
- Street and map views
- Rotating compass overlay on maps
- Navigate to location
- View overhead GPS satellites
- Multiple language support
- Launch web browser
- Touch screen interface
- Post field notes via SMS
- Google Maps Navigation!
You can find Geooh in the Android Market today for $11.99 US. Download it, try it out and let me know what you find! You can also scan the barcode below with your Android handset to get taken directly to the product page.
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Opens GPX, LOC, and KML formats
-
Bulk downloading and local storage of multiple files with delete capabilities -
Paperless geocaching
-
Deleting of individual waypoints
-
Sorting and filtering -
Speech input
-
Displays geo-points on Google maps
-
Street and map views
-
Rotating compass overlay on maps
-
Navigate to location
-
View overhead GPS satellites
-
Multiple language support
-
Launch web browser
-
Touch screen interface
-
Post field notes via SMS
-
Google Maps Navigation!
Might We Suggest…
WHERE Update Encourages User-Generated Content
Jan 25th
WHERE, a popular location-based app that helps users find cheap gas prices, movie showtimes, and more, has been recently updated. Now, rather than simply giving you relevant information, they have made it possible to add your own content. For instance, if you arrive at a gas station and find the price to be different than expected, you can submit your own finding. Show up at an address expecting some good Mexican food only to find they’ve moved? Let WHERE know!
WHERE V1.8.6 is available (for free) today in the Android Market. According to their blog, there are four changes/improvements that are meant to foster a community spirit.
- WHERE reviews button – You can now easily rate or read reviews about local restaurants and businesses with the click of a button.
- “Flag Venue Incorrect” option – A convenient link now lets you easily flag a venue if you notice any incorrect information, enhancing the quality of our real time information.
- “Report a Price” gas feature – Spot a change in price at your local gas station? Share your findings with other users.
- Expanding avatars – Take a better look at the people in your area. WHEREwall users can now zoom in on other users’ avatar pictures.
Other Great AndroidGuys Posts
Google Suggest Gets Location-Aware, Too
Jan 15th
Ostensibly to save you time typing in your search query on mobile devices, the search suggestions are now based on your phone’s current or last known location. Ideally this will improve the relevancy of those suggested results by optimizing them based on where you are.
In order to take advantage of the new feature, you’ll have to turn on “Save recent locations” and “Allow use of device location” under the Settings link on the google.com home page. You may also have to refresh the google.com page on your phone’s browser in order to see the location-optimized suggestions.
It’s another step in Google’s march into local territory. Anyone have predictions on what will be next?
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Near Me Now: Google’s Mobile Homepage is Location Aware
Jan 8th
The U.S.-only functionality uses GPS on your device to pinpoint your whereabouts and sort nearby results — right on the Google.com mobile homepage — into the following functional categories: Explore right here, restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and ATMs and banks.
In fact, the “Explore right here option” serves up an instant drop-down menu, providing you with results that are literally right in front of you. You’ll immediately get a quick glance at a venue’s Place Page rating and its distance from you. As a result, the simple and smart addition to the mobile
It’s no mystery that Google is trying to
If you’re not clear about how Near Me Now works, you can watch this rather hokey video demonstration:
Near Me Now Screenshots
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Top 10 Mobile Social Apps Judged by Mashable Readers
Dec 23rd
If you’ve tuned in previously, you’ll know we throw out a Lunchtime Poll topic weekly to get a zeitgeist of Mashable readers’ opinions on your favorite software and services out there. Recently we saw your top blogging platforms, and next we took a look at your favorite mobile social apps.
We took a broad definition of social app, so specifically mobile apps like Foursquare and Gowalla went up against mobile components of more concretely web-based apps like Facebook and Twitter. The results are in below, so head on past the break to see what Mashable readers chose as their mobile social apps of choice.
Although Foursquare made a strong showing in the number 2 spot, Facebook and Twitter emerged the big winners overall. Facebook’s mobile app took the first place slot, with various flavors of Twitter app splintering an overall Twitter vote that rivaled the number of Facebook votes.
Is your favorite mobile social app not represented in the list? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to tune in every Friday to make your vote heard in the latest edition of the Lunchtime Poll!
Top 10 Mashable Reader Mobile Social Apps
10. Twidroid
9. Gowalla
8. Flixster
7. UberTwitter
6. TweetDeck
5. Tweetie
3. Hootsuite (iPhone)
2. Foursquare
1. Facebook
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, ericsphotography
Reviews: Facebook, Flixster, Foursquare, Gowalla, HootSuite, Mashable, TweetDeck, Twidroid, Twitter, iStockphoto, tweetie
Tags: facebook, flixster, foursquare, gowalla, hootsuite, lbs, lunchtime poll, mobile social, poll, tweetdeck, tweetie, twidroid, twitter, ubertwitter
Flook Takes a Playful Social Approach to Location Discovery
Nov 26th
There are a number of different services blooming as location-based mobile technology finally hits its stride, from Foursquare check-ins to augmented reality-enhanced surroundings courtesy of Layar and others. Flook (warning: iTunes link), a new entrant to the iPhone app store, takes a different, more whimsical approach to social location information.
Users are prompted to create “cards” at interesting locations by snapping a photo and adding a title and caption. You can find cards nearby you or around the world, “collect” them, comment on them, and follow the cards of people posting interesting locations. Plus, email a card or get directions to the location depicted from your current location, and track your total “Flook score” based on your activity within the app.
The interface is playful and fun to match the type of content Flook is hoping to capture: interesting, beautiful or otherwise curious tidbits in the world around you. Upon launching the app, “a colorful landscape of robots guides the user to browse or create,” which is just as unusual as it sounds (see thumbnail above right). Finding and creating cards are both easy processes, with the former handled by a simple finger swipe mechanism. Cards are automatically ordered by both “nearest and “best” so you’re more likely to stumble upon something good.
When creating cards, a simple photo snap and a bit of text is all that’s required. If other users comment on your cards, you’ll see a notification (from a robot, of course) in the “Find new” home screen. If you start a card and want to finish it later, you can leave it in draft mode and come back to entries under construction. You can hook your Flook account into your Twitter account to automatically tweet new cards you create.
Flook is a free app that’s an interesting and creative twist on location-based services. It’s social, fun, interesting, and can help you learn new facts and places to go in your local world or while traveling. It has that simple yet useful and potentially addictive game-like mechanic to it that’s bolstered by its playful design.
Let us know if you have a chance to check out the app and what you think. Have you spotted any interesting new locations?
Reviews: Flook, Twitter
Tags: discovery, flook, iphone, iphone apps, lbs, location, Mobile 2.0
Now You Can Tell Twitter Where You Are
Nov 20th
Twitter announced it would be adding locations to your tweets back in August, and they’ve been making changes to their API to enable the functionality since late September. The geolocation functionality is now complete, and a number of developers of third-party apps who have been working on building location support into their applications should begin rolling out the new features soon.
As we reported earlier, all of the location information is completely opt-in. To enable it and allow Twitter to attach geographic information to your tweets, head to the Account section of your Twitter settings and scroll down to the location section. There’s a checkbox for enabling the geotagging, and a button that will allow you to delete all the historical location data from your tweets if you want to erase your tracks.
Along with enabling the geolocation support, Twitter tweaked its privacy policy to explicitly include geotagging and to remind users that what they post to Twitter is (unless protected) public in nature. In a world where tweeting can get you robbed or sued, it’s a not superfluous reminder that we should participate in our own sensible privacy policies when using social media tools.
Will you be turning on geolocation support for your tweets? Let us know in the comments.
Reviews: Twitter
Tags: geolocation, geotagging, lbs, location, privacy, twitter
