Modality Inc.

Posted 10/09/2009 at 3:00pm | by Michael Simon We had no doubt iPhone would be the best smartphone we ever used, but we never could have imagined just how many ways it would take over our lives. From tools we’ll never need again to places we won’t be going back to, iPhone’s versatility never ceases to amaze us--and we’re not just talking about pocket fishermen, paperbacks and newspapers. Want to avoid sleeping on the couch after a fight with your better half? There’s an app for that. The day the music died When we got our first iPhone, we had an inkling it would be the last cellphone we’d ever buy, but we never thought it would be the last iPod, too. But iPhone is so good at being "a widescreen iPod with touch controls," we can’t find a reason to drop any more money on another music player, even if it might offer higher capacity or an extra bell or whistle. And based on last quarter’s sales figures, we’re not alone. It blinded us with science It might not have the TI-83 geek chic, but we sure wish we had iPhone’s handy horizontal scientific calculator for our sine, cosine and tangent needs back in high school trig class: It fits in our pocket and doesn’t need solar power. Oh and if the bundled Calculator app isn't enough for you, there are ton of calculator apps in the App Store. The trouble with scribbles As diligent cub reporters, we were taught to never leave home without our trusty pocket notepads, but now that iPhone has Voice Memos to go along with its landscape Notes app, we’re not sure if we’ll ever feel the same way about lined paper again. And pens. Who ever heard of a digital ink leak ruining their brand new jeans? Lost and found Thanks to Google and Apple, we’ll never have to struggle to fold another oversized map of Oregon or pull over at a San Leandro gas station after getting lost for 45 minutes on the way to Lake Chabot while your wife repeatedly asks you why you’re always too macho to ask for directions and gives you the silent treatment for the rest of the ride and makes you sleep on the couch once you finally get to your hotel room. Generating buzz The clock radio certainly had plenty of competition before iPhone came around, Read More

see also:  Sure, the semester is coming to a close, and you’re probably in the midst of finals week, and you’re thinking – well, why would I read this article now? The reason is quite obvious - statistically speaking, most students don’t do nearly as well as they planned in a semester. Finals – being the last chance at improvement – typically don’t go too well for most students. So unless you’re a young Feynman, you’re probably thinking about what you did wrong, and how you can improve. While the real key to improvement lies in your approach to studying, technology must not be neglected as a means of assistance. The iPhone – your most portable computer – is an unbelievably helpful tool when it comes to educational organization, studying, note taking, staying connected with other students, data reference, and more.  Organization myHomework This application is all you need to keep track of your homework and reading assignments. Simply enter your full class schedule, along with course number, building, room number, professor, days, and start/end times. Then, when entering an assignment, choose which class the assignment applies to. Also specify the type, the due date, and add any additional notes.  The application notifies you of any late or upcoming assignments. Late assignments are red, next day upcoming assignments are orange, and all other assignments are blue. Swipe accross the assignment iPhone style to delete, and flick the screen to flip between the pages. Price: Free iHomework iHomework is essentially a more grownup version of the app above, but it costs a buck. In addition to all the features of myHomework, iHomework extends past the realm of homework, and serves as a general to-do list as well. Also, iHomework allows you to record your grade on each assignment, allowing you to keep track of how your doing in each class.  In addition, this application allows contact integration (great for professor contact info.) Price: $0.99 GPA+ This application keeps track of your grades so your GPA isn’t a mystery until the semester comes to a close. Knowing where you stand is crucial to success. While everyone is capable of doing these calculations on their own, most students aren’t organized enough to keep track of all grades.  GPA+ allows you to calculate your GPA based on your current grade, or you can input grades for every assignment to get a cumulative score. You can imput grades as Read More

All parents know it’s always a good idea to have a few things on hand to distract the kidlets in the car when you’re going for a long ride or get stuck in traffic. And let’s not even talk about plane flights, where you basically have to bring an entire carry-on filled with diversions (never mind diapers/bottles/food if they’re still that young). Say hello to the newest weapon in your arsenal: The iPhone. A growing number of iPhone applications, both games and educational, are being developed for children, and most are pretty reasonably priced. Heck, these can even help distract the little ones if you’re in line at the store or in the doctor’s office waiting room. We’ve taken the liberty of tracking down several such applications, breaking them down by age, for the pre-school and elementary-aged set: Age: 2+ iKids Play ‚Äî Developed with input from teachers, parents and children, it’s meant to replace storybooks, coloring books and crayons in one app. There are six activities ‚Äì rub, color, read, story and paint. Warning: It involves touching the screen, so you’ll want to make sure to bring plenty of screen wipes along. You can find out full detailshere.   Price: $2.99 (called an ‚Äúintroductory price,‚Äù so that may be going up soon). Download it here. Peekaboo Barn ‚Äî An animal makes a sound. Your child guesses what animal it is and taps on the barn doors. A critter pops out and your child finds out if she was right. The animal names also pop up, written in English or Spanish. And the illustrations are by frequent ‚ÄúNew Yorker‚Äù contributor Divya Srinivasan. You can find out full details here.  Price: $1.99 Download it here. Or, there’s a free, truncated version, Peekaboo Barn lite, you can download here. Age: 5+ iBear Flags ‚Äî With 206 flags in the database, your children can use the application in three modes. Learn: Random flags pop up, displaying facts about the flag and the nation it represents. Guess: A flag pops up, and the user guesses which country it represents. Map hints are available. Flags guide: Check out flags by picture or country name. For extra fun, run it in Russian. You can find out full details here.  Price: $1.99 Download it here. There also are free, smaller versions available in iBear’s App Store ‚Äì Flags CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States, more or less the former Read More