Users Buying iPhone Applications based on thier Icons? – [Briefly]

App Store users surveying icon before functionality?

App Store users surveying icon before functionality?



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We all know the iPhone is seen as a status symbol, or a highly desirable object, but in a recent growing trend, style might just be swaying the deciding factor of application purchases by App Store users.

In a quite controversial trend, It seems users may be looking at the one thing which hits you first, when buying any application from the store – it’s icon. With recent threads popping up on numerous message boards over the internet, App Store users seem increasingly more conscious of how the application icon will look on their home screens, without actually weighing up the functionality of the application, first.

According to TheSpaz of Mac Rumors

“If the icon doesn’t look good… I don’t buy the App… I don’t want a beautiful home screen with an eye sore on it.”

I find this interesting. If you base your App Store purchases on the quality or aesthetic look of the icon, please do tell me about it in the comments section. What makes you ultimately buy an application for your iPhone or iPod touch?

R-Fly



Jaadu VNC: Remote Intuative control of your PC or Mac – [Updatedx5]

Jaadu VNC for iPhone is just, phenomenal.

Jaadu VNC for iPhone is just, phenomenal.



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[Updatex5 - 04.09.08] – (02.12am GMT)

Connected via 3G and Edge thanks to Jugaari Support! It is recommended to load a webpage (fully) in Safari before attempting to connect Jaadu VNC through 3G or Edge. Jaadu VNC needs a push to realise you’ve switched out to Edge or 3G – Jugaari are aware of this bug and promise a fix soon.

[Updatex4 - 04.09.08] – (01.35am GMT)

Currently in talks with Jugaari support, and they are excellent. Manually setup port forwarding .. still a little hitch … but nearly connected via 3G and Edge 8) – I now get as far as ‘Authorising’.

[Updatex3 - 03.09.08] – (18.54pm GMT)

I’ve yet to get Jaadu VNC to connect to my iMac using 3G or Edge.
I have e-mailed technical support and am expecting a reply shortly.

[Updatex2 - 03.09.08] – (17.19pm GMT)

Here’s some useful information on how to use Jaadu effectively:

– Click
with a quick tap
Right-click with a quick two fingered tap
Double-click with a quick double tap
Drag with a quick double tap, followed by a drag
Scroll with two fingered vertical swipes
Navigate through your application (e.g. PowerPoint) with two fingered horizontal swipes
Zoom by pinching with two fingers
Type by clicking on the keyboard icon

Original Article:

Jaadu VNC [App Store] is a VCN Client aims at bringing you one touch access to entire desktop, from your iPhone. The application requires no setup what-so-ever, due to Jaadu Connect, a new automated setup application for Mac or PC by Jugaari.

New to VNC?

According to Wikipedia

“In computing, Virtual Network Computing (VNC) is a graphical desktop sharing system which uses the RFB protocol to remotely control another computer. It transmits the keyboard and mouse events from one computer to another, relaying the graphical screen updates back in the other direction, over a network.”



Jaadu VNC Setup Panel and Teleportation animation.

Jaadu VNC Setup Panel and Teleportation animation.

Basics
Jaadu VNC, offers full access to your desktop, remotely, using iPhone. When launching the application you’ll be met with a list view entitled ‘Servers’ and a plus button (top right). Choosing the plus button brings you to a manual setup panel where you enter an identifier, i.e. ‘Home iMac’, the IP address of that device and the pass code required for screen sharing to take place.

Setting up Jaadu VNC for Mac
Setting up Jaadu VNC for a Windows PC

Note: Please make sure if you are using a Mac, that you goto:

System Preferences > Sharing > Enable Screen Sharing > Computer Settings >
“VNC viewers may control screen with password” > Set a password.

.. before using Jaddu VNC.

Once setup, simply tap the device you wish to connect to, and you’ll be ‘teleported’ through to a live VNC representation of your entire desktop. Jaadu VNC was formerly known as ‘Teleport’ but changed it’s name due to legal reasons.

Connected to Home iMac through Jaadu VNC for iPhone.

Connected to 'Home iMac' through Jaadu VNC for iPhone.

Features
Jaadu VNC can seem, at times, to be lacking … but fear not, as the application is being updated on a regular basis and the developer states that all future updates will remain free to those who have purchased an original version of Jaadu VNC. As it currently stands, Jaadu VNC offers all of this:

- You want to control your PowerPoint presentation using your iPhone as your clicker. You also want to see your presenter notes on your iPhone.
– You want to control your media center using your iPod touch while you’re watching a movie
– You forgot an important file on your home computer and you absolutely need to have access to it, or you need to email it to someone else urgently
– You want to check on your kids to make sure they’re asleep at home instead of on the computer
– You want to walk your significant other / parent / child through some complicated set up process on the home computer while you’re traveling
– You want to access websites that just don’t work on your iPhone like you’d want them to — or you want to use Flash-enabled websites which don’t work at all on Safari

– Supports iPhone & iPod touch with an active network connection (3G / Edge / WiFi)
– Connects with Windows PCs and Macs
– Control your computer’s mouse and keyboard wirelessly using your iPhone / iPod touch
– View your computer’s screen on your iPhone / iPod touch
– Natural Touchpad interface for mouse controls
– Supports multi-display, high resolution desktops
– Remote Control provides access to numeric keypad, arrow keys, and function keys
– Fine-grained control of media player using the free Jaadu Server (coming soon!)

Along the top you have your main toolbar. This is where you can takeover your keyboard or mouse remotely, or send quit or esc and other commands to the device itself. The righter-most button on the toolbar calls the iPhone’s built in keyboard, and the second to right – keyboard and mouse commands.

Just a selection of some commands available within Jaadu VNC.

Just a selection of some commands available within Jaadu VNC.

Commands can also be held down. To hold down a command or button, simply double tap. The third button from the right, calls a menu of essential keyboard shortcut keys. These include CMD, Option, Shift and Function.

Blind spots
During my time using Jaadu VNC, I was unable to find how-to operate the ’second-click’ support for mouse commands. This is the only issue I’ve experienced so far. I have e-mailed their support teams, and am expecting a reply very shortly on the matter. [Update] – To right click, tap the screen with two fingers simultaneously (Jugaari Support).

Price
Jugaari know they are onto something good here, and the price reflects it. At £14.99, some people may be scared off at first look, but look again and you may just the see the awesome potential of this little application. If you wish to try Jaadu VNC for yourself, drop 59p for Jaadu Click [App Store]. Jaadu Click offers VNC accessibility to your device, as well as left click clicking ability. Jaadu Click does not offer keyboard or second click mouse support.

Jaadu VNC Global Settings and Desktop View.

Jaadu VNC Global Settings and Desktop View.

Overall
Jaadu is a sleek new way to access your Mac or PC while away from home. As it functions over Wifi, 3G or Edge, Jaadu VNC is the perfect companion for your iPhone, in case you need direct access to your home desktop immediately. Over the past three days I’ve been using Jaadu VNC, it has worked every time and surprisingly never crashed on me.

Supports iPhone
& iPod touch.

Rating: 8/10 (Recommended)

App Store: Jaadu VNC

R-Fly



Apps being “Modified” – [Updatedx2]



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[Updatex2 - 02.09.08] – Now the app is 5.99 and I couldn’t get it all last night.

[Update - 01.09.08] – Still being “Modified” and I can’t buy it. Very frustrating.

Pangea Software recently released Bill Frontier [App Store] for $2.99. I just clicked through to buy it, and strangely I get a message as shown:

The alert reads:

“This item is being modified. Please try again later.”

They could be making it $5.99 right now – but we wouldn’t know – and If so, then would I be getting ripped off for paying 3 dollars more, because I was doing something 5 minutes earlier?

Bad management on Apple’s part, or popular companies got too much control over their apps?
Who knows.

Zym



Breaking: Peter Boctor’s ‘Tomatoes’ Pulled from the App Store?



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Tomatoes, designed by Peter Boctor [More information ...] was a client aimed at bringing the ever popular film review site
Rotten Tomatoes to the iPhone in a user friendly, clean interface.

Originally available here [App Store], Tomatoes is no longer available.
It is not yet known what caused Apple or Peter to pull this application.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen a slurry of applications which have been pulled from the store, due to copyright claims or stability issues. One current example of this is ‘Tris’ [YouTube] which was pulled by the developer last Wednesday. Tris was said to be pulled from the store, due to the company owning the original intellectual property rights to ‘Tetris’ threatening legal action. Tris and Tomatoes were available on the App Store for free.

R-Fly



Lumen for iPhone. – [Updated]

Lumen for iPhone. Addictive, Delicious Fun.

Lumen for iPhone. Addictive, Delicious Fun.



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[Update - 02.09.08] – (14.26pm GMT)

It seems Bridger has gone one step further. In an attempt to get people interested in Lumen’s new revised UI, he is now including it within the free version of the application, Lumen Lite! [App Store].

[Update - 02.09.08] – (12.27pm GMT)

“Thanks for the coverage! Your review is great.
It is always cool to hear from someone who enjoys playing Lumen.

I have to give credit where it is due though. Adam Betts was the artist who redesigned the interface. To be honest I didn’t even give him any guidelines on what needed changing on the interface. He completely came up with everything himself. He spotted many UI flaws that Lumen had and fixed them without any instruction from me. He also was great about communicating his progress, delivering very on time, and charged a very reasonable price. I would definitely recommend him to anyone.”

Thank You,
Bridger Maxwell

Source – Mac Rumors

Original Article:
Puzzling and addictive, Lumen [App Store] designed by Bridger Maxwell forces you to use that brain of yours, once again. Lumen recently got a huge update in the form of version 2.0. This offers a new gorgeous interface (much more polished) as well as quick control options for easier game play. Lumen 2.0 is a charged update for everyone, including people who owned version 1.0 of the game.

UI Changes. Lumen 1.0 - Left. 2.0 - Right.

UI Changes. Lumen 1.0 - Left. 2.0 - Right.

The Objective
The objective of Lumen is to light up coloured checkpoints by firing lasers through them. The thing is, sometimes the lasers are not the right colours for the checkpoints and therefore won’t pass through. Also, checkpoints may be placed in highly difficult places, and therefore you must re-direct the lasers in order to pass them through the checkpoints successfully.

Level 1.

Level 1.

Five Steps to Understanding Lumen
Lumen consists of five objects which you need to control, in order to successfully complete the game:

The Emitter
This is the object which emits the original laser. There may only be ONE of these on the board at a time. Also new with Lumen 2.0, you can now tap any piece on the board to change it’s colour to either Red, Green or Blue. An emitter can only be placed on an outer wall of the current board.

The Filter
This object changes the original colour of the laser. Once the colour of your laser has been changed, it cannot be changed back, so choose carefully. Also new with Lumen 2.0, you can now tap any piece on the board to change it’s colour to either Red, Green or Blue.

Mirrors
Tap anywhere on the board to place a mirror down, or drag one from your inventory (found at the bottom). Mirrors have four directions and you can choose the direction of your mirror, by tapping it.

Checkpoints
Pass your laser through all the checkpoints to win. Sometimes you may have to change the colour of the original laser to pass through the checkpoints successfully.

Obstacles
Metal blocks can disrupt the path of your laser, stopping you from completing the game. Wangle your lasers around these to complete the level.

The Lumen library of Puzzles.

The Lumen library of Puzzles.

More Levels?
If your bored with the 60 or so puzzles that come pre-installed with Lumen, no worries – Just go online and you’ll be subject to over 1,200 user-submitted puzzles, just waiting to be solved by you! – Suffice to say, the levels get harder as you progress.

Advanced Levels.

Advanced Levels.

Price
If you wish to try Lumen before dropping the £2.39 ($3.99), you can now do so by downloading ‘Lumen Lite’ [App Store]. Lumen Lite now also features the new revised UI, as well as a limited selection of puzzles. At £2.39 ($3.99), Lumen is visually stunning, and addictive enough to open it up for a second helping. Lumen 2.0 is a charged update for everyone, including people who owned version 1.0 of the game.

Overall
Lumen 1.0 proved the concept. Lumen 2.0 brought it to life. With it’s visually strong user interface, great game play and a user-created library of over 1800 puzzles to choose from, Lumen is a puzzler to be reckoned with.

Rating: 9/10 (Highly Recommended)

App Store: Lumen

R-Fly



Breaking: Gameloft’s Asphalt 4 Elite Racing, Now Available for iPhone!! – [Updatedx3]

Asphalt 4.

Asphalt 4.



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[Updatex3] – 31.08.08 (12.52pm GMT)

The game does support “steering”:

“The game does indeed support iPhone “steering”. Once you have started a game, click the iPod icon in the upper left corner of the screen, and you can choose from one of three different playing modes.

Enjoy!”

Thanks JW (Comment)

[Updatex2] – 30.08.08 (18.17pm GMT)

Ok, on first launch it sent the iPhone into a soft reset – but that’s not to say that was Gameloft’s fault, just yet, it could be instability with software 2.0. Secondly, the App Store description states you can control your car by steering the iPhone – based on the accelerometer. Now, it may just be me, but I’ve yet to find that functionality – Game play is currently controlled by touch gestures.

Has anyone been able to figure this out? – Maybe Gameloft can chip-in at this point?

[Update] – 30.08.08 (15.16pm GMT)

The application weighs in at 92.8 MB (Yes, I’ve bought it!)

Original Article:
Yes, the most highly anticipated racing title for iPhone, has finally hit the App Store. It is, non other than Asphalt 4: Elite Racing by Gameloft. The application is currently selling for £5.99 and was released onto the store yesterday. I’ll be picking this up in the coming week, and a review will shortly follow here on the blog!

The link you need: Asphalt 4: Elite Racing

R-Fly



The Ultimate list of ‘Noteworthy’ iPhone Applications – [Updated]



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Ok, this is it. A few weeks ago I said I would sift through the App Store for you, ignoring the badly designed and find you the cream of the crop. Below you’ll find ‘The Ultimate List of ‘Noteworthy’ iPhone Applications’.

The list will be updated in real-time, and any suggestions sent to me, may also be added to the list.

The List (So far ..):

R-Fly



Apple confirms September iPhone update. (2.1, Push?) – [Briefly]

Apple tells iPhone users to stay calm, fixes on the way ...

Apple tells iPhone users to stay calm, fixes on the way ...



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It’s not a secret that, we as iPhone users have been having major problems. Since Apple changed the frameworks and launched an entirely new version of the iPhone OS, iPhone 2.0, users of the iPhone have been less than satisfied with the performance and stability of their device.

The recent 2.0.2 update partially addressed 3G connectivity issues, as well as plugged various bugs to make the platform half stable again (the 1.X.X days). While the update brought stability in the form of reducing the amount and frequency of system crashes and resets, the stability of iPhone’s third party application’s, have yet to be addressed.

In a very rare occurrence, Apple has actually confirmed in advance, that this security fix is coming.
In an e-mail sent to MacWorld – Jennifer Bowcock, an Apple representative, outlined:

“The minor iPhone security issue which surfaced this week is fixed in a software update which will be released in September.”

This update is also said to come at the same time that Apple completely revamp their ever popular iPod product line. Expected, is a minor re-design to iPod touch with the addition of GPS, as well as a revised design to the “most popular” iPod in the world, the iPod nano. At this special event Apple will be holding in September, it is expected that iPod touch will be the first device to get the 2.1 update, shortly followed by the iPhone later in the month. This major update also includes full push capability for third party applications, which need to sustain a persistent IP connection in situations when an application is closed and needs to deliver alerts to it’s users.

Finally the update will address the huge security flaw found in iPhone OS, just a couple of days ago.

Highly anticipated, in summary, the update should:

- Plug the ‘passcode’ security flaw
- Fix iPhone app crashing
- Include 3G connectivity improvements (partially addressed by 2.0.2)
- Include “Push” background services for applications.

Via: Mac Rumors / MacWorld

R-Fly



iPhone Application ‘Movies’ Acquisition.

Jeffery Grossman’s app store venture, Movies [App Store] recently caught the attention of a major player. Flixster, the movie social networking site, has bought the application and it’s rights from Grossman. This is the first ever acquisition of an iPhone application. The exact figure Flixster stumped up for the application, is not being publicly disclosed.



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Last night, the application re-launched onto the App Store, bringing with it, version 1.5. This new update includes a totally re-designed user interface and many more new features. Among the new features are:

- Expanded list of theaters and movies
- Movie posters and descriptions for all movies
- Trailers for all box office leaders and upcoming titles
- Search a library of over 50.000 movies with detailed information
- Support for Canada and UK

Shots of new UI:

Movies new UI.

Movies new UI.

R-Fly



Rapid Review: Colour Tilt for iPhone.



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A unique application for drawing on iPhone, is Color Tilt [App Store]. Change colors by tilting your device. You have many choices of colors, and you can adjust the opacity and thickness of the line you draw. Shake to erase, or you can even erase it all with your finger!

A fun, cute little drawing app:

.

.

.

.

Zym