Tag Archives: Apps

Apps that do the same thing, but can be branded for different businesses under a licensing agreement or for a large fee are white-label apps.

Major brands, universities, chambers of commerce, and businesses are all in need of certain types of mobile apps that don’t need to be redeveloped, just re-branded. Appetyte makes trivia and location based guide applications for the iPhone.Whiteapp is “a directory of mobile applications (apps) that serve as building blocks for yours. Starting from an existing application saves a lot of creative and production cost.” Their white label apps directory featuring a shopping cart app, not 1, but 2 augmented reality apps (1 and 2, a QR reader, desk clock, and a GPS store finder – just to name a few. One other example is FormEntry, which is an app that handles forms that can be what they call “private labeled”, which is another word for “white label”.

How the white label app purchase and rebranding process works

Your marketing or technology agency inquires about or identifies an app that is currently available to be white-labeled and the price for re-skinning it. You then propose the idea and it’s price to your client. The client is delighted with your proposal and price and says, “Yeah, go!” Everybody discusses objectives over beers or coffee. The best method of implementation is discovered. The details are written up and agreed to. You provide the clients relevant assets (pictures, logos, text content) to the developer. The developer makes it shiny, new and awesome. The application submission and acceptance process with Apple or Android is started and once accepted, you’re published for a fraction of the cost of a totally new app development.

Both Appetyte and WhiteApp are located in the UK, but we use an iPhone developer in the US called Orange Group Apps who we are currently in discussions with creating a white label app to reskin and sell to prospective markets all over the US. If you are interested in developing an iPhone app in Indiana or are willing to work remotely with the developer, consider Orange Group Apps. We have been really pleased with their work and they are a great couple of guys on a personal level. They have helped us through the app development process all the way through helping us manage ad networks and the Apple app submission process.

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It may seem counter-intuitive to some to forward a SMS message to an email address when most devices that can receive text messages can also receive email, but sometimes you don’t have access to your phone, yet you still need access to the text messages.

This could happen if you lose your phone, leave your phone at work or in the car, or simply not be able to bring it to work or some other restricted location.

I personally started using it when customers started texting me long requests that I’d have to retype or manually forward to get into a usable form on my computer. For whatever the reason, you’re probably here looking for the answer, just like I was before I found the solution.

Below are solutions for how to auto-forward your text messages to email for Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Palm Pre, and Apple iPhones.

Android Phones

TextBusy by Gatehill Software - $1.23

I use TextBusy, which works great. It requires you to use a Gmail account to forward the emails so all of the SMS messages will be coming to you from whatever address you specify. Whatever bad reviews you see out there from August – disregard as those have been fixed by now as you can see by the latest review on September 15th. For $1.23 it’s well worth the money. It currently has 9 reviews on the Android Market.

txtForward by Electric Pocket – $3.19

txtForward txtForward automatically sends a copy of your SMS text messages to any email address you specify, for backup or as a handy way to get your messages at your desk.
Send your SMS messages automatically to any email address, and easily back them up or read them from your desktop email client. It’s available for BlackBerry and Windows Mobile too. It currently has 38 reviews on the Android Market.

SMS2Gmail by EireApps – FREE

SMS2Gmail forwards SMS and missed call information to Gmail account. This application allows you to forward your SMS messages and missed calls to a user defined gmail account, and you can activate it remotely. If your phone is at home for example and you are not, send it an SMS from a friends phone or webtext and activate this service. It currently has 57 reviews on the Android Market.

Blackberry Phones

SMS Auto Forward to Email Pro by Value Apps – $3.99

SMS Auto Forward to Email lets you forward all incoming SMS messages to an email address automatically. Very handy if you keep changing your handsets or like to delete your text messages. Keep a log/backup of all your text messages. Once installed and running, you don’t need to do anything. The app runs in the background and send every incoming text message automatically to an email address of your choice.

txtForward automatically sends a copy of your SMS text messages to any email address you specify, for backup or as a handy way to get your messages at your desk.
Send your SMS messages automatically to any email address, and easily back them up or read them from your desktop email client.

Windows Mobile

txtForward automatically sends a copy of your SMS text messages to any email address you specify, for backup or as a handy way to get your messages at your desk.
Send your SMS messages automatically to any email address, and easily back them up or read them from your desktop email client.

Palm Pre

SMS Auto Forward/Reply by Grabber Software

NOTE: This app does not work on webOS 2.x. SMS Auto Forward/Reply forwards text messages to the mobile number of your choice (number must be in your contacts). You can also send an auto-reply message to the sender. Your phone must be turned on and in coverage for this application to work. While this isn’t text-to-email, it may be the best a Palm Pre user can get. If you know of another app for Pre’s let us know in the comments.

Apple iPhones

Unfortunately, there are no apps to auto-forward text message from the iPhone (this is an opportunity for app developers!). For iPhones using firmware 3.0 or higher, manual forwarding of SMS messages is a built-in feature. To manually forward a text message, simply:

1. view the SMS text message you’d like to forward
2. select EDIT at the top of the screen
3. check off the message(s) you’d like to forward
4. tap FORWARD at the bottom right of the screen

iSMS/weiSMS

For those using older firmware, there is a third-party application for the iPhone, iSMS/weiSMS, with which it is possible to send text messages to multiple individuals as well as forward text messages.

SMSD

SMSD is a free and easy to use iPhone SMS management application which lets you delete individual Messages, backup all message through mail, manually forward messages, and manually Send/Forward messages to multiple contacts.

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MID Tablets had a post on how to add the Android Market app to a Coby Kyros tablet without rooting, but I wanted to revise the article to be about different ways to install Android APK files in general.

Different Ways to Install Android APK Files

There are various ways to install Android apps, which are really just “APK” files, besides using the Android Market. APK stands for “Android Package Kit”, which would be like an “EXE” on Windows PCs. While Android Market is the most popular and most trusted way to add and install APK files to your Android device, there are other ways to go about it. Here are some of the most popular:

• Android Market – an online software store developed by Google for Android OS devices. Its gateway is an application program (“app”) called “Market”, preinstalled on most Android devices, allows users to browse and download mobile apps published by third-party developers. Users can also search for and read detailed information about apps on the Android Market website.
• Amazon Appstore – a mobile application store for the Android operating system that includes a “free app a day” feature. Every day, an application, frequently a game, is offered for free. The Amazon Appstore is currently only available in the US and no official announcements have been made about increasing availability to other regions.
• AppsLib – A marketplace aimed at all kinds of android devices; Appslib specializes in android devices that can’t get google certification; tablets, eReaders, PMPs and more. With over 30 thousand applications available, worldwide, it has a simple, hassle-free certification process, and all updates to Appslib are automatically pushed to users.
• GetJar – GetJar is the world’s largest free app store with over 2 billion downloads to date. The company distributes more than 350,000 mobile applications across a variety of operating systems including Android, Blackberry, Java, Symbian and mobile web. 395,000 developers have registered with GetJar to distribute their apps.
• Android SDK – a comprehensive set of development tools for Android. These include a debugger, libraries, a handset emulator (based on QEMU), documentation, sample code, and tutorials. Currently supported development platforms include computers running Linux (any modern desktop Linux distribution), Mac OS X 10.4.9 or later, Windows XP or later.
• Easy Installer – a free Android app from Infolife, LLC that installs apps from APK files on SD cards. It lists all the apk files on the SD card, allowing you to select apps that you want to install. Click the “Install Selected Apps” button for easy installation.

Read more

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Have you ever lost your phone or laptop? It’s a horrifying feeling. Thankfully there are some things you can do about it before it happens to you.

The following apps or services will help you find your smartphone or notebook if they are lost or stolen. They can also be used to find the person using them if you’ve lost them – whether or not they want to be found.

Some of these are free and some are not. Whichever one you choose, it must be enabled before your phone or laptop is lost – and you must understand the security risks you’re taking to make your mobile devices more secure.

The Hidden app, whose name itself makes it hard to find, got notoriety when a blogger posted pictures online of the man who allegedly stole his Macbook laptop (below), but for Android, Blackberry, and Windows users, GadgetTrack does something similar. Hidden is only for Mac operating systems, OSX.

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Get more out of your Android cell phone from Verizon, Sprint, or AT&T with custom, one-on-one training from Watershawl

Learn how to best utilize your powerful new smartphone with a one-on-one, personal lesson to teach you how to use your mobile device. There are many things your phone can do that you may not even realize. Today’s smartphones are capable of so much more than most people use them for.

We will help you learn to use the programs that already exist on your phone and help you download programs you may find useful in everyday life.

Lessons include, but are not limited to:

• basic usage tips on how to use the market and voice recognition
• troubleshooting common problems
• recording audio and video
• extending battery life and managing open programs
• and apps

I have direct experience with the Motorola Droid, HTC EVO, and the HTC Hero, but I can help you with any Android phone.

My name is Erich Stauffer and I have experience helping people with computers and their cell phones. Ask about our exciting referral discounts.

Services start at $75/hour, but right now we are running a sale for one hour of training for $100.

We accept all major credit cards, paypal, and cash. Call 317-572-7521 or contact us for an appointment.

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iOS apps for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and the iPad are in strong demand right now, but not everyone knows how to make one, or even how to find someone to make one for them.

A friend of mine pointed me towards Mobile Roadie, which has made apps for “the world’s top publishers and brands,” like Taylor Swift and the Miami Dolphins. Their main selling point is that they make making an iOS app easy using templates. The trade-off is that you may end up getting an app that looks like a template – or worse, just like someone else’s app. But this is how web design got started once it became more accessible and popular to make your own web sites. Not everyone could code their own web sites and not everyone can code their own iOS apps, so then, like now, template businesses are helping users create things that they couldn’t otherwise do.

Other sites like Appiction will make an app for you using their designers and coders, but the price is higher. Expect to pay in the thousands for a custom-developed web app, much like you would for a custom-designed web site. Remember, the app is going to be used by hundreds, if not thousands of people – and if you’re lucky – millions. So you want your app to work well, be pleasing to the eye, and have a good interface – basic rules of design there. To compare different iPhone app developers and get a quote, visit iphoneappquotes.com.

If you’re interested in developing your own iOS app, The Daleisphere has an article about how to start. He goes over the hardware, software, and knowledge you’ll need to get started. Basically, it takes a Mac (you can’t write iOS apps on a PC*), an Objective-C (Cocoa) writer, and an iOS app compiler. He references several books and guides to help you get started and has several key links you’ll need like where to get signed up to become a developer. The most popular iPhone development book on Amazon.com is Beginning iPhone 4 Development: Exploring the iOS SDK so that is something to get you started.

*You can write iOS apps on a PC, but it violates the EULA with Apple (because you have to jailbreak an iPhone), however for those willing to accept that risk, there are programs like DragonFireSDK that will help you write iOS apps on a PC as long as you know C/C++.

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Did you know there are Android apps made just for the city of Indianapolis and it’s attractions?

Visit Indy

The Indianapolis Convention & Visitor Association’s official handheld travel guide to the city. Discover where to eat, drink, sleep and be entertained, and with the help of your device’s GPS, you’ll see how easy it is to get around. Here’s what you can do with it once you’ve downloaded and installed:

• Search hotels, restaurants, attractions and events based on your location and interests You can also search using Augmented Reality for a street view of what’s close by.
• Plan your travels by adding preferred destinations to your favorites and generating customized maps.
• Redeem cost-saving coupons directly from your phone at top Indianapolis restaurants and attractions.

Whether you live in Indianapolis or are just visiting, the city offers something for everyone – and this Android app can help you find it.  From awesome hotels to delicious dining, the city that has is home to the NCAA and the Indianapolis 500 welcomes you to discover something more. Read more

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