Playman Track & Field App for iPhone...and some other goodies

When the App Store was launched last year it completely changed the way I used my phone. For several months I was very successful in my "don't pay for apps" policy. It was all new, and there were so many free apps to choose from that it was a pretty easy rule to live by.

Early this year the success of my policy began to waver. The first app I bought was Koi Pond from the Blimp Pilots. At only 99 cents, the graphics, sound effects and the sense of equilibrium achieved through playing with the little Japanese fish, the app was well worth the cost. In fact, I was so thrilled with the app that I searched for other Blimp Pilots apps and ended up purchasing the Distant Shore app. At first I really liked this app. I thought it opened up a yet to be explored social networking niche. Whereas most social networking sites focus on your friends, Distant Shore focuses on connections based on chance and anonymity. I don't think I've launched the app in a month or two.

Back to the apps.

After those first two, I still attempted to follow my no-pay policy. I still felt pretty good about scrolling through my screens for friends and saying I'd only paid for two. It helped that some fantastic apps were released for free, the best possibly being the google earth app. The useful apps from the big guys were almost always free, AIM, google voice search, facebook, seadragon etc.

Over the last month or so my policy has more or less evaporated. So much so that I usually check the paid apps before the free ones. I've realized that, big boys excepted, you get what you pay for.

I wanted to share with you one in particular today (and I have the feeling more will follow), the Track & Field App from Playman. Unbelievably intuitive, you can participate in five different events, 100m dash, 110m hurdles, long jump, pole vault and javelin. The game's "fun factor" reminds me of the original Nintendo games. The graphics aren't breathtaking but they get the job done. There are only two buttons to press and some timing. It's one of those easy to play, impossible to master apps that seem to be a rarity in the app store.



The other thing worth mentioning about this app is it is great for quick play. It loads quickly and you can pick up right where you left off as there is a top notch auto-save feature. So, you can whip out your phone on the can, pass a level or two and feel like you accomplished something...you know, multitasking.

If you happen to have an iPhone or iPod touch and end up getting the Track & Field app I offer perhaps THE tip to help you do well: The alternative green dots you have to press are a seemingly randomly generated sequence, switching from left to right and back again. However, the green light will never appear on one side more than twice in a row. As such, if you get two green lights on the right side, you can immediately click the left side and gain some valuable time. You WILL need to use this strategy to get past the second round!

I'm looking for some more app buys, let me know of any you recommend!

The Ubiquitous Billy Mays

Given my previously stated mainstream-ism, it should come as no surprise that I was a big Billy Mays fan. I never gave any serious thought to buying any of the products he's endorsed, with the exception of that amazing impact gel, but I found Billy to be a great entertainer and a hell of a marketer.

Recently I was intrigued by the not-so-made-up rivalry between Billy Mays and Vince the Shamwow guy. The competition between them was great to read about.

Upon hearing the news of his death, I was reminded of a facebook status and resulting thread talking about Billy. I thought I'd share that thread with you.


Ryan Buck is wondering who would command the room were both Billy Mays and Vince the Shamwow guy around...what do you think?

Darrell Harden at 7:17pm February 7
I'm giving the nod to Billy Mays. He's louder. Then again, Vince the Shamwow guy would clearly insist that Billy can't do that all day.

Ryan Buck at 8:21pm February 7
yes...only for the next thirty minutes could he keep that going!

Jessica Jones at 11:57pm February 7
I think you'd just set it and forget it.

Ryan Buck at 11:38am February 8
A Ron Popiel reference. Good one JET! Now we need a good Chef Tony one!

Steve Stepek at 9:08am February 9
Totally Billy Mays! He'd seal up Vince with some space age polymer Smart Lidz borrowed from Chef Tony!

Ryan Buck at 9:09am February 9
are ya gettin' this camera guy?

Camille Stark at 3:23pm February 9
i have to go with the shamwow guy....i bet he could work a room

Darrell Harden at 8:04pm February 9
While I'm still giving the nod to Billy Mays, I'm thinking Vince the Shamwow guy would inflict some damage, as he's also Vince the Slap Chop guy.

Ryan Buck at 10:36pm February 9
I noticed he can't do it all day with that either.

Darrell Harden at 11:05pm February 9
I noticed that, too. Then again, that little thing chops up stuff in a hurry, so maybe he doesn't feel the need is there. Even still, Billy Mays has a much greater array of weaponry at his disposal.

Darrell Harden at 11:06pm February 9
Sidebar: I'm rather intrigued by the amount of interest this status has created. Good status, Ryan.

We'll miss ya, Billy.

What a beautiful library...why couldn't they put a Barnes & Noble here?

Over the last year or so I've come to terms with the fact that I'm terribly mainstream. My tastes are so average that I'm strange. I love a meal at Applebees, Chi-chi's was the best Mexican restaurant ever and Olive Garden seems like a great example of fine Italian cuisine.

It's not that I don't appreciate the towny bars and mom and pop shops - I do. But chain stores are built from experience. While they don't always fit in the context of the community around them, they always seem convenient.

Today, however, I reached a new low. I was walking around a brand new community library. A block off of the main drag, within easy walking distance of the entire community. Its a prime example of a public library. My downward spiral started when I asked a few local officials if a coffee shop was included as part of the development. I realized after I had opened my mouth I've never seen a coffee shop in a public library. I suppose I see a conflict that would prevent a private business sharing space in a public library but that is one of those conflicts that never seems like it would REALLY matter. The picturesque library lies next to a gently flowing river meandering back and forth with a train track in the background. It truly is a beautiful space.

Wouldn't you know, all I could think about was how much I wished it were a Barnes & Noble.

A friend put it best. "Wouldn't it be great if you could buy the books instead of getting them for free".

But I really could use a cup of coffee.

The 1st Amendment vs. Scranton City Council

Sometimes you just need to laugh and what better way to do it than the expense of someone else! If Mr. Lyman doesn't put a smile on your face...well, you need to attend more public meetings! For fans of the show The Office on NBC, the fact that this is taking place in Scranton PA is icing on the cake!

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from Mr. Ray Lyman.

1. Who's the liar now?
2. The constitution outranks the law of the land
3. In the constitution you can speak as long as you want and this rules of Council does not exist
4. The constitution outrights any law in the land
5. The rules of council do not exist
6. They had two guys in suits comin around now!
7. You have a business, you can pave your sidewalk!

More to come regarding the City of Lithonia and hopefully a little something special about David Thompson and John Walsh!

Twitter Wars vs. Facebook and Myspace

After rereading my thoughts on the recent cultural explosion known as twitter, I thought it would be prudent to look at real numbers on the subject of social networking competitions. Who's REALLY your social daddy?

I used google trends (you might remember we used to call it zeitgeist) to see how the toddler twitter is truly fairing against big brother facebook and ugly uncle myspace. And yes of course using google trends is fool proof, providing real, tried and true scientific results. If you don't believe me - Google it! If you don't believe in sarcasm...then you should look it up on wikipedia.



As you can see (actually you can't, really, so you'll need to click on the graph above to get a clear image), twitter barely ammounts to a blip on the screen when compared to facebook. Before you go getting your panties in a bunch and burry twitter remember that facebook is a giant multi-billion dollar institution which makes comparisons using it as the basis difficult for all but things like "Obama" or maybe "Limbaugh".

I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, but Ryan, you just said Twitter is a cultural phenomenon, how can it only be a blip on the screen? While the search results for Twitter have only skyrocketed compared to themselves and remain a blip against facebook, the number of news stories about Twitter eclipsed that of facebook for a brief period of time during April 2009.

Why did this happen?

Freakin' Ashton Kutcher! Part of the draw of twitter for many is the fact that you can feel "at one" with the celebrity community. You can tweet "@aplusk wow its great what you are doing for world malaria day" and you can feel like you are friends with someone famous and, after all, thats all American society wants these days: to be a celebrity or a youtube sensation.

I guess the irony in this whole thing is that it was that very same obsession with celebrity that made twitter is what it is today. Twitter is the Paris Hilton of Social Networking: It is famous for being famous.

What's Paris doing these days anyway?

And feel free to follow me on twitter @rybupsp If you're interesting I'll even follow you back.