Apps

Update 2 (9/27): RunKeeper’s updates this week reversed course on this, sharing is no longer an extra tap if you always bypass it! It sounds so dumb, but it is genuinely appreciated! 

458 activities. 851 miles. So much beautiful data… it is all as good as gone. Let me back up a few steps. I really enjoy data. I have tracked every mile, minute spent in my car, and thousandth of a gallon of gas put into my car, all because I love data. I have used RunKeeper for years to do the same with my walking. In fact, I have been a member since 1969 according to their records, who am I to argue that? 

Thanks to ProductHunt.co I’ve been made aware of a site that embodies the passion for incredible design. Subjective-C, a wonderful word play on the software language that iOS apps are written in – Objective-C, is a site that finds little details of apps where the designers spent a tremendous amount of time to perfect a small detail.

These types of details enhance the user experience, though many people will never even explicitly notice them. The site is new, but hopefully will grow quickly. There are many apps that deserve the recognition and designers/developers that deserve the recognition for the time and passion they spent sweating the details.

I’m a slave to Outlook and OWA for work, no way around it. I use the native iOS email app on my (work-issued) iPhone. On my personal iPad, which is rarely used for work, I use the official Microsoft OWA (Outlook Web Access) app. I launch the app 0-4 times per day, usually 1 or 2. Approximately 10-25% of app launches result in this update state where I cannot do anything, I must wait (look at the banner along the bottom):

Apple has made a strong business on trusting that consumers are willing to pay good money for great products. This WhatsApp deal demonstrates the exact same thing. People are willing to spend what they consider to be a fair amount of money for a great product with a great user experience. Obviously some people don’t call Apple’s prices “fair,” but that’s a topic for another time.

This $19B WhatsApp deal makes me extremely happy (and I don’t use WhatsApp or Facebook) if only for the reason of demonstrating that a customer experience focused product still has tremendous value. We don’t need free products with ad support to make the world spin.

Cheers to the folks at LogMeIn for taking care of existing customers. Several people, myself included, purchased the Ignition app for $20 (before they had a free app and a $99 app, there was a single $20 iOS app), and these people will retain full control via their mobile app whether or not they ever upgrade to the Pro tier of service.

We hope as a LogMeIn Ignition customer you are enjoying your complimentary 6-month subscription of LogMeIn Pro. We’re reaching out to help clear up any confusion surrounding the recently announced change to LogMeIn Free and clarify what the changes mean for Ignition app users.

The Pro version of the Kayak.com app is free for a limited time. I have no affiliation, but this gets you airport terminal maps (compared to the free version). The price is right.

Direct Link

Apple has a tradition where they release a 12 Days of Gifts app then each day around Christmas they give people a free version of some paid content - apps, music, books, or videos.  You’d think people would be grateful.

Many people are grateful, presumably. However, there is an increasing number of people that are leaving one star reviews on apps, movies, etc. if the free content of the day isn’t an app they personally wanted. Angry people leaving one star on a children’s game because they don’t play it sounds absurd, but sadly, is a reality.

If you’re a Twitter user, you need to be using Tweetbot 3.0. It isn’t just the best Twitter client, which it is by a long shot, it is my favorite iPhone app period. The iPad version is still on 2.0 with the pre-iOS 7 design, and even that is a league above most other Twitter clients. When I did a trial switch to Android, the lack of Tweetbot was among my top complaints, I found myself not wanting to use Twitter anywhere near as much without it.