Apps

Software layers BP oil spill over your home

Using freely available government data, a new Web site helps people quantify the BP oil spill in local terms.

IfItWasMyHome.com uses a combo of Google Maps and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite tracking data to place the parameters of the BP oil spill--the result of the April 20 explosion of an oil rig--over any area in the world.

The spill can be moved to center on any location of one's choosing by simply entering location data (such as a city or postal code) as one would usually do for Google Maps.

Playing with the tool is devastating.… Read more

Can apps make kids smarter?

A new study finds that educational iPhone apps can increase a child's vocabulary acquisition by as much as 31 percent within two weeks. The study is part of a larger look at the relationship between technology and education, administered by PBS and funded by a grant from the Department of Education.

To glimpse the potential of mobile apps as a new educational medium, the study first tested the vocabulary level of a group 90 Title 1 school children, ages 3 to 7. Then, the children were each given two weeks with an iPod Touch loaded with the Martha Speaks … Read more

Google edges into the mobile download game

With nearly every smartphone manufacturer and carrier creating its own application storefront for downloading mobile apps, we suppose it was only a matter of time before Google got into the game one way or another.

Starting Wednesday, searching Google.com for iPhone and Android apps--from your iPhone or Android phone--will likely yield a mobile app as its result. The trick, it seems, is to enter the magic word, "download," before the name of the app you seek.

The resulting link and surround context, like a star rating and number of user reviews, isn't a direct download URL … Read more

Free Motorola app details hands-free driving laws

Motorola kicks off National Safe Driving Month by launching the Smart Handsfree mobile app for Android that helps users to navigate the often confusing local hands-free driving laws.

Upon downloading and launching Smart Handsfree, the app will use the Android handset's location service to discern what state the user is in and display an overview of whether there exists a handheld or texting ban or if there are any special conditions for novice drivers. Having this sort of information at your fingertips is fairly useful. For example, while we knew that the state of California has bans on using … Read more

Audi A2 to get app store

For a car that doesn't yet exist, it has a solid marketing plan. The Financial Times reports that Audi is targeting its rumored all-electric A2  toward megacities with populations of more than 5 million people.

And, of course, there will be an app store.

The hypothetical app store will let A2 owners download upgrades for their car from the comfort and convenience of their home, Peter Schwarzenbauer, Audi's head of marketing and sales, told the Financial Times. The apps will let drivers customize their car's interior, driving style, as well as add features.

Potentially, Audi may … Read more

2 million iPads sold in under 60 days

Apple has sold more than 2 million iPads since the device debuted April 3, the company said Monday.

It's safe to assume that the vast majority of those sales came from the U.S. market, as the iPad went on sale less than four days ago in Australia, Japan, Canada, the U.K., Spain, France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. Apple didn't say how many of the 2 million iPads were sold internationally.

Speculation that Apple is having a hard time keeping up with demand for the iPad seems to have been confirmed by Apple CEO Steve Jobs in … Read more

Reporters' Roundtable: App stores are good for software biz (podcast)

The working title for this show was, "How app stores are killing software." But the conversation, with Evernote CEO Phil Libin and SoftTech venture capitalist Jeff Clavier, painted exactly the opposite picture. These two execs, both of whom are making money from software in the current economy, say that the gated, paid app stores are in fact the best things to happen to software developers in years. Watch the show to learn why.

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Show notes and talking points… Read more

Car Tech Live 170: Electric car reality check (podcast)

Tesla looks like a real car company all of a sudden; lifetime free traffic looking like the norm for GPS; new Pioneer AVIC gets married to Pandora mobile; TV broadcasts in your car have hit a snag; and we roll in our favorite sports sedan: the AMG C63.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) EPISODE 170 SHOW NOTES

• Toyota, Nissan make big moves on electric car factories

• We drive--and love--the Mercedes C63 AMG

• New Pioneer AVIC adds Pandora mobile app

• 85 miles in the Mitsubishi i-Miev

• Magellan Roadmate 3065 GPS worries about commute so you don't have to… Read more

Kindle, Kobo apps follow iPad international launch

With the Apple iPad's international launch on Friday, consumers worldwide gained access to Amazon.com's Kindle app and Kobo's e-reader--apparently ahead of Apple's own iBook store.

Amazon's free Kindle iPad app is now available to all countries where the iPad is offered, Amazon said. The app lets people download and read e-books from Amazon's online bookstore without need for Kindle hardware.

Meanwhile, Kobo announced Friday that it has expanded the reach of its free iPad app to Canada, the U.K., and Australia. The regional versions offer local content and merchandise, according to Kobo. … Read more