apps

Toodledo – Perpetual Beta

| trent

When Tim O’Reilly wrote his famed article “What is Web 2.0?” in 2005, it is likely he could see where applications have evolved to today. His vision was the end of the software release cycle; a form of online software development and distribution where the user had seamless access to a service managed by a provider. O’Reilly posited that to be successful, software and service providers must follow some basic rules when it comes to using the End of the Software Release Cycle pattern. Primarily, these rules are: operation must be a core competency (a company must excel at what it does or what its product does), make use of “instrumentisation” (make software capable to returning implicit user testing results to developers for relentless improvement), involving users as co-developers (tapping into customer needs, wants and suggestions), release often and using lightweight tools.

Web 2.0 is full of examples of services leveraging this pattern. Google is a major proponent of this ethos; Gmail bore the Beta name-tag for the first five years of its life, which was finally dropped in 2009, but not after Google made statements which back up those sentiments expressed by O’Reilly. There is clear advantage to responding to customer needs by reducing the barriers to meeting said customer needs.

Toodledo is a nice example of how web developers and web service companies may derive value from the End of the Software Release Cycle Web 2.0 pattern. The tool is a cross-platform, web-based tool for to-do list and task management. The tool has been around since 2006 (according to the Toodledo website) and has been expanding across platforms up to this day.

Toodledo Main Web Version (Folder View)

The providers of Toodledo make use of several of the aspects described in O’Reilly’s work on the relevant design pattern. First and foremost, updates to the software and service are consistent and frequent. Toodledo’s own Blog is a testament to their continuos release of bug fixes and new features. This is important, as it allows them to take feedback directly from user requests, which is another part of the pattern. Toodledo’s release notes are testament to their responses to their user community. This is important, as feature additions keep users coming back on a repeat basis. Toodledo also manages to balance these changes by spreading changes over time. This means users have time to adjust to features and are not greeted by a new interface each time the use the service.

The company also uses lightweight mechanisms to create their software. The API offered by Toodledo allows connection via eXtensible Markup Language (XML) and JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), both of which are publicly accessible and lightweight languages for data communication. Developers from the Toodledo community are empowered to create plug-ins to the service due to the use of these open frameworks (empowered by Toodledo’s use of the Data is the Next Intel Inside Web 2.0 design pattern). External developers and users may be connected with internal developers using Toodledo’s forum community, further enhancing the use of the design pattern at hand.

While Toodledo makes good use of the pattern, there is room for the service to improve. While the web service is lightweight, making use of light frameworks and open-sourced tools and languages, the iOS application is written in Objective-C, a  language attributed to Apple and required for iPhone development. While there is no way to avoid this in terms of distributing the iOS application through Apple, there is a market for releasing the app using the same frameworks and languages used in the full web version. Toodledo’s Slim version goes some of the way. It would also be possible for Toodledo to make use of shadowed software and implicit user testing/instrumentation to improve their development by collecting usage data. This requires some overhead and it may be possible Toodledo already does this without telling the community clearly.

Toodledo iOS (iPad) Version

Toodledo is an interesting example of the End of the Software Release Cycle. Heavy reliance on the community for ideas and feedback, frequent updates and seamless updates exploit the design pattern well. While there is room for improvement, Toodledo is an innovative company that is embracing the design pattern well over time and running with the ideas that are generate from this pattern.

Toodledo is a powerful cross-platform tool powered by the End of the Software Release Cycle. How else could Toodledo exploit this pattern to derive competitive advantage?

References

  • Apple. (2011). iOS Application Programming Guide. Retrieved April 22, 2011 from http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/
    iPhone/Conceptual/iPhoneOSProgrammingGuide/Introduction/Introduction.html
  • Coleman, K. (2002). Gmail leaves beta, launches “Back to Beta” Labs feature. Retrieved April 22, 2011 from http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/gmail-leaves-beta-launches-back-to-beta.html
  • O’Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0?. Retrieved April 22, 2011 from http://oreilly.com/web2/archive/what-is-web-20.html
  • Toodledo. (2011). Developer’s API Documentation: Tasks. Retrieved April 22, 2011 from http://api.toodledo.com/2/tasks/index.php
  • Toodledo. (2010). Toodledo Blog: News, Updates and Changes. Retrieved April 22, 2011 from http://www.toodledo.com/info/news.php

My iPhone in 16 Apps

| trent

I live 24/7 with my iPhone. It is my constant, unwaivering companion. I fell for my iPhone the second I got it (sorry for the romantic twist, it is Valentines time after all). Therefore, by extention, I fell for the App Store.

I have six and a half pages of apps on my iPhone 3G (old school, represent), and more sitting on my Mac. Seeing I have so many apps, I thought I would share my favourite 16, or one full iPhone page’s worth (excluding the dock) of apps. So here they all are, with a quick review.

Facebook
This app needs no real explination. Being the Facebook tragic I am, it’s only logical that I have an app that let’s me read my news feed, post content and chat IM-style. If you have an iPhone, and have a Facebook account, you should have this app. It costs AU$0.

Bejeweled 2
Bejewled simply has to be the most addictive game ever invented. So simple to pick up, Pop Cap Games has done a fantastic job adapting the game to the iPhone platform. Bejeweled Blitz is my favourite mode, because I can compete against Facebook friends, taunting them with my skills by built-in Facebook publishing. Replay value is extremely high. It costs AU$3.99, but is worth every sent.

TweetDeck
As with Facebook, I have hopped on the Twitter bandwagon. TweetDeck for iPhone is a beautiful adaptation of the powerful desktop client of the same name. Syncronisation of columns across the iPhone and desktop clients makes this app perfect for extremd Twitter social media (much like myself). Like the desktop app, this one is free.

Flight Control
A fun little game where you act as flight controller. What is especially important about this game to me is where it was created and written: Australia. The game is simple, with that ‘one more try’ factor that makes this game so alluring. It is also very affordable: AU$1.19

Stanza
Stanza is a nice little app for reading on the iPhone. It understands most-to-all of the major eBook formats. Adding books is done via the built-in store, or via Wi-Fi for books on your computer. Best of all, it’s free.

FourSquare
If you enjoy partying, this is for you. A native application for the web app, FourSquare allows you to find parties, gatherings and new places hang out. Find where your friends are, and compete against them to rule the week. This one is free.

Trailguru
If your a data obsessed geek like me, and you enjoy walking/running, then this is for you. Track your speed, distance, elevation and lots of other pieces of data, which you can then upload to the web for vieweing. The whole service, including the app, is free.

Sleep Cycle
Keeping the theme with well-being apps, Sleep Cycle allows you to sleep with your iPhone. But not how you are all thinking (shame on you!). Sleep Cycle is an alarm clock that detemines you phases of sleep through the night. It uses this data to wake you up at the optimal time before your set time, at which the alarm goes off anyway. This costs AU$1.19, but is amusing and informative.

Convert
The single most beautiful and powerful unit converter, Convert has it all. It handles all your normal conversions, plus typography and data size conversion. A calculator is also included. A little expensive at AU$2.49, but you get top quality for your money.

Google Mobile
We all know Google. You search with it by typing. We’ve all been there, done that. But this app allows you to search by voice! It is incredibly accurate in my experince, and great if your lazy. Also has direct links to all of Google’s mobile apps. It’s free, so just get it. It impresses everyone.

Shazam
You’d have to have been living under a rock to not have seen this in action. Don’t know the name of the catchy song playing? Open Shazam, hold your iPhone near the source, and voilà, now you know! Available in two versions, one free (with tagging limit), and a paid version (AU53.99, no limitations). This one impresses too.

Wurdle
Are you a word game nut? Wurdle is an addictive mix of find-a-word, and Boggle. You can choose to have a time limit or not, grid size, minimum word length, board colour, and so much more. It makes funny noises, which somehow makes words fun. It is AU$2.49 from the Store.

WordPress
This app is how I write basically all of my blog posts (including this one). It is free, and offers all the tools you need to write, categorise, organise and upload posts to multiple blogs. It is free, and is the premiere app for anyone with a WordPress blog.

UrbanSpoon
Like FourSquare, UrbanSpoon helps you find new places, but this app speialises in places to eat. I used it in a recent trip to Sydney, where I had no idea of places to eat. UrbanSpoon found three fantastic places to eat when I urgently needed it. It provides ratings and contact details, and is location aware, so the app has everything covered. It is free from the App Store.

CameraGenius
If your into multimedia as much as I am, then CameraGenius is a good buy. It adds some basic functions to the photography experience on iPhone. Things like alignment grids, timed shots, burst mode, zoom, tips and an easy to press button make this app what it is. At AU$2.49, it’s a cheap way to a better camera.

iVideoRecorder
If like me you’ve hung onto your iPhone 3G, and are still mad about no video capture, calm down and take a look at this. It’s still early days, but this app already blows my mind. The developers have manged 10fps at 320×240 resolution from a still-only camera. it looks middling in full light, not so much in low light, but improvements have been quick, so I expect this to get even better even faster. AU$1.19 will get you this app, which is really worth it.

Hopefully this (lengthy) insight into my iPhone has introduced one of two new apps to you (and told you way too much about myself). Please support the App Store and it’s developers by buying and providing positive comments and constructive feedback on the store.

DISCLAIMER: Prices shown above were correct at time of publication. Issues with support are of the concern of Apple and application developers. No responsibility is accepted for data loss or any other kind of issue caused by using the suggested iPhone applications.