We Love $1.99!

Since Pangea Software's sale reduced Cro-Mag Rally on the App Store to only $1.99 it's been creeping up the Top 25 Paid Apps list. Yesterday, it was #3, this morning it is #2. At that price it will be hard for ANY iPhone/iPod Touch owner to pass up. Smart move Pangea! I really hope that starts a trend in price dropping. As I said in a previous post, there are several apps I'd buy if they were cheaper. There's no way I can be the only one holding out. Cro-Mag Rally is perfect proof of that concept. Some money is better than no money!

Oh, and to add to my Paid App Purchases List, I bought the #1 on the Top 25 Paid Apps list... "Pocket Guitar" for only 99¢. No, I don't play guitar but at least I'm learning to pay the beginning of "One" lol Since I put paid apps on both my iPhone and my wife's, I can easily get 50¢ worth of fun out of it. Grand Total on the App Store is now up to $42.90

Holy Shit Fail!

Food Poisoning Fail

I laughed out loud when I saw this one...

Apps on the horizon...

There are apps that I'm currently keeping tabs on (price, updates, reviews, etc.) that I haven't purchased yet.

Since day -1 I've been looking at getting a Planetarium app.

It's interesting that all 4 are in different categories...

Reference: iAstronomica - $8.99 (I noticed that their price is reduced from their opening day price of $19.99)
Education: Starmap - $11.99
Navigation: GoSkyWatch Planetarium - $9.99
Entertainment: Astronomer - $1.99 (programmer says "Don't bother buying this one")

I'm leaning towards GoSkyWatch Planetarium but one of the biggest things I HATE about the app store is that the VAST majority of apps have no "demo" or "lite" version to 'try before you buy'

There are also some apps out there that I'm interested in but the current price is too high...
Spore Origins $9.99
Asphalt 4: Elite Racing $9.99
Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D $9.99
Tetris $7.99
Bejeweled 2 $7.99 (down from $9.99)
Scrabble $9.99

And of course I'm (we all are) waiting for the KILLER APP to appear. SlingPlayer!! I will buy it no matter the price. It looks like they've charged around $29.99 for mobile versions of it for other platforms, that will likely be the most expensive app I ever buy in the app store!

I will also recommend that if new iPhone/Touch users see something for free in the app store that they could be even the slightest bit interested in, get it. (You can always delete it later)

You never know when free app developers will start charging for them (Seismometer, whip, etc.) or if they get pulled off of the store completely (PhoneSaber, iPint, Tris, etc.)

New App Needed!!

Last month whilst at my Gun Club I found a need for a new app. Let's call it "Shot Timer" it will be an iPhone only app as it would require the mic.

Basically, it would be similar to Apple's "stopwatch" and use the iPhone's mic to hear the gun shots and automatically record the times for "shot 1", "shot 2" etc. just like it records "lap 1", "lap 2" etc. when you touch 'Lap'. Obviously the large numbers at the top would be the overall time elapsed... not the next 'lap' like it's setup now.

I would need a mic sensitivity setting so I could fine tune it. It would need to keep at least 10 sets of data (I need the ability to name each set) and be able to e-mail them off easily.

It would need to have a few modes...

Timer starts at the first gun shot
Timer starts at the tone (customizable sound of course)
Fixed timer countdown... (You have xx seconds to shoot your xx shots in)

I would not need it for competition, just informal target shooting so timing to the 1/10th of a second would work. (but I certainly wouldn't say no to the 1/100th)

Do we have any programmers/shooters out there that wanna give it a try?

App Store Purchases...

Darren sent me a link the other day to a Chicago Tribune article about a new affliction called appiphilia. Now unlike the author I haven't downloaded 80 apps. Nor have I spent $90 since its launch... but I have made a few purchases. A 1/3 of them today alone.



It started with the early opening of the app store the day before its official launch date of July 11th.

For those willing to download and install an early release copy of the iPhone firmware on Apple's website (unofficially), they could install and play with new apps the day before it's official launch.

I was among the MANY I assume bought Super Monkey Ball that day for $9.99. I'm sure the vast majority of people who saw the App Store keynote and the demo of Super Money Ball were eager to try one of the coolest App Store launch apps.




Later that evening I purchased, iBeer for $2.99 and Comic Touch for $4.99. A few days later, and after restoring the iPhone with the REAL and OFFICIAL firmware, I bought another app... Texas Hold'em for $4.99. By that night I had also downloaded 28 free apps to screw around with (and sometimes delete).



About 2 weeks later I tried the free version of Labyrinth and then a couple of days later bought the full version for $6.99.

A few weeks later when Koi Pond went #1 on the paid side of the store, I (along with LOTS of others apparently) decided hell, it's only 99¢ I'll give it a try!


I didn't buy a another 'paid app' until today. I was perusing the store and came across Cro-Mag Rally for a too low to resist price of $1.99 (80% off of the app store launch price of $9.99). There was a note on Cro-Mag's page that mentioned that all of Pangea Software's apps were on sale. Having some interest in Enigmo at launch but not $10's worth of interest, the 50% off was too hard to resist and at $4.99, I bought that too.

Lastly, I looked at Pangea's other title called Billy Frontier it was on sale for $3.99. Down from its normal price of $5.99. Ok, not that big of a discount, but I was on a roll, give me a break! But it looks like I could have got it for only $2.99 had I seen the app when it first came out.

So let's ring up a total.... $41.91 + tax. Yes, iTunes charges me tax for apps but not for music. Strange. Anyway, between free and paid apps it looks like I'm around 60. So on second thought, I'm not too far behind that guy from the tribune after all!

TV Shows I'm watching this season...

This is not my first complete season in HD (that was last year in the bedroom) We got the TV for the living room last Christmas so this will be the first (complete) TV season that I'll have a nice big HDTV to watch in the living room.

As some of you know, I'm rather picky about new TV shows. The normal rule I've used the past several years is I won't watch a new show that I'm interested in until it gets picked up for season 2. (with the internet, it's real easy to track that shit) I've been burned too many times by networks who don't give a new show a chance and just as I begin to get interested in the story, they pull the plug. It's like reading a book and having half of the pages pulled out and burned before you can read them...

Firefly - Canceled on its first season without an acceptable ending.
John Doe - Canceled on its first season without an acceptable ending.
Harsh Realm - Canceled on its first season without an acceptable ending.
The Lone Gunmen - Canceled on its first season without an acceptable ending.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith - Canceled on its first season without an acceptable ending.

The rule doesn't save me from a network canceling a show without a proper ending in a later season...

Joan of Arcadia - Canceled without an acceptable ending.
Dark Angel - Canceled without an acceptable ending.
Early Edition - Canceled without an acceptable ending.
Boston Public - Canceled without an acceptable ending.

...but at least I won't bother getting into a new show at all if the network has no faith in it to give it a second season. This rule has saved me time. There are several shows I didn't waste my time with due to this rule. I've skipped shows that at least mildly interested me... Blade, Commander in Chief, Daybreak, Invasion, Lyon's Den, Karen Sisco, Journeyman, The Nine, K-Ville, Bionic Woman, Moonlight, etc. The most recent of which was Women's Murder Club on ABC. I've read every "Women's Murder Club" book by James Patterson but since ABC had no faith for a second season, why should I watch a single episode?

Then of course I'll throw my cheap shot at David Chase just because I'm as asshole...

The Sopranos - Don't Stop.................. without an acceptable ending, Jerk Off!

There are many more but off the top of my head, I can't remember what they are.

Anyway... here's my list of TV shows I'm watching this season. It's broken down in a few categories...
Shows I Watch Religiously...
Heroes - (kids will watch it with me)
Lost
The Office - (kids will watch it with me)
Prison Break
The Shield - (sadly not in HD)
Terminator Sarah Connor Chronicles
Weeds - (almost done)
24 - (been waiting a LONG time for the new season!)
Ghost Whisperer - (kids will watch it with me)
South Park
Mythbusters
Nip/Tuck - (not sure when the next season starts up)
Rescue Me - (not sure when the next season starts up)

New shows that I am/might be giving a chance this season...
Fear Itself - (all stand alone stories, so I broke my "2nd Season Pickup" rule - all eps already aired)
True Blood - (I broke my rule here for 3 reasons. 1. Anna Paquin, 2. Vampires, 3. It's HBO)
Fringe - (Rule in full effect. I'm recording it on my DVR... Time will tell if I will actually watch it.)
Destroyed in Seconds - (Discovery Channel show... the rule doesn't count on non-scripted shows. And it sounds like more fun than Smash Lab!)
Sons of Anarchy - (2nd Season Pickup rule applies. I'm not recording it. In the event it's picked up for a 2nd season and reviews aren't half bad, I will torrent it.)
My Own Worst Enemy - (2nd Season Pickup rule applies. I'm not recording it. In the event it's picked up for a 2nd season and reviews aren't half bad, I will torrent it.)
90210 - (Valerie is watching it, as is most of my office. The 2nd Season Pickup will apply for me.)

I will watch if I have the time (guilty pleasures)
Cops (in HD only)
Dog the Bounty Hunter (if not in stretch-o-vision YOU SUCK A&E!)
Modern Marvels (HD only and if topic is of interest)
Unwrapped (HD only and if topic is of interest)
American Chopper (if I'm really hard up for something to watch)

I'm sure I'm forgetting something but that's the list for now. It might seem like a lot of TV but at least it's good TV. My list isn't filled with 90%+ crappy reality tv shows like others I know.