Rob at STLWPMeetup is at it again, this time getting the folks at Nokia to chip in with some Windows Phone development “how to.” Windows Phone is an easy platform to develop for and all necessary tools are free so we encourage you to join us whether you want to just get started with or enhance your developer skills.
Thanks to Rob at @STLWPMeetup for getting this set up.
Find out more and RSVP here.
Posted in Microsoft, Nokia, Community | Tagged Developer, Nokia, WP, wpmeetup | Leave a Comment »
If only there were a great new way to stitch your photos to create a panoramic image. If only we had something to announce soon. IF ONLY
Is this Photosynth? Let’s hope so.
Photosynth is an amazing technology that stiches together individual photos to create panoramas, deep zoom images and much more. It’s free to try on the web, and I highly recommend it. There has been an iOS app for a while and since this is a Microsoft service Windows Phone app has been desperately wanted but eerily absent. I have a feeling an announcement will come soon!
Sources: Twitter, Photosynth
UPDATE: Photosynth is now available. Click here to download.
Posted in Microsoft, Mobile, Apps, software | Tagged WP7, WP, photosynth | Leave a Comment »
After receiving my Nokia Lumia 900 I immediately became interested in the Nokia specific apps available. They are all quite good, but was disappointed to find that Nokia Transit did not support the St. Louis area. Nokia Transit (or Nokia Transport in some mentions) is a public transportation app that is meant to help you get to your destination using public transit.
Some may not realize Nokia has a Beta website called Nokia Betalabs. After a quick sign up you can download Beta applications for all different types of Nokia devices (think Windows Phone and Symbian) and leave reviews, feedback and suggestions. I saw that Nokia Transit (initial version) still had the suggestions box open so suggested the addition of St. Louis. A few days later a Nokia rep replied to my post that it had been added, but for the upcoming version 2.0.
Having seen the news that the release of the Nokia Transit (a.k.a. Nokia Transport) beta version 2.0 took place today I immediately made my way to Nokia Betalabs to try it out. A quick scan of a QR code by my Lumia and I was delighted to see Nokia made good on their word and I was finding nearby bus stops and routes.
Given this is a beta I won’t focus too much on the interface as it may change, but this is a really nice app. It appears to have two basic functions; Journey Planner and Transit Nearby.
Journey Planner will give you multiple options for using public transit to get to your destination. It will combine the different public transportation methods in your area to give you multiple options to your destination based on the time the route starts. It represents this in a timetable that visually breaks out the transportation method: walking, bus or light rail. A nice feature allows you to see the map of the walking route by clicking on the compass near that part of the route. I feel very confidant you’d have a hard time getting lost with this app.
Transit Nearby is a simple list of nearby public transportation stops, the bus or train number and the time table.
To give a bit of a personal story I have not ridden a public transportation bus since my college days and have never done so in St. Louis. I ride Metrolink regularly. Given the abundance of stops near my location I have set a personal goal to get around downtown using the combination of bus and Metrolink just to experience what our public transportation system is truly like. With this app in hand, I feel I’ll be crossing that goal off my list soon, and will no doubt have a story and full review of how successful the app was in a real life situation very soon.
Finally, kudos to Nokia for reading, responding and making good on user comments and suggestions. I was impressed and am happy to see Nokia has thus far had a stellar record of customer support with their Lumia devices and apps.
If you have a Lumia device and use public transportation go download Nokia Transit (Nokia Transport) Beta 2.0 from Nokia Betalabs today.
Sources: Nokia Betalabs
Posted in Apps, Nokia, software | Tagged Nokia, public transit, STL, WP | Leave a Comment »
The second Windows Phone Meet up will take place on May 19th at Triumph Grill between noon and 4. I won’t be able to attend this time, but if you can I highly recommend it. Great people and great discussion. Find out more and and RSVP here. http://groupspaces.com/STLWindowsPhoneMeetup/
Posted in Community | Tagged STL, WP, WP7, wpmeetup | Leave a Comment »
We wrote about the Skype beta for Windows Phone a while ago. Today, the Skype 1.0 became available on the Windows Phone Marketplace. There are few updates and some features that are still missing but if you need your Skype fix go and download the app for free here!
Source: Windows Phone Blog
Posted in Apps, software | Tagged Skype | Leave a Comment »
Did you know that if you have Hotmail, XBOX live or a Windows Phone you already have free cloud storage on the internet? If you’re not aware Microsoft has offered a service called Skydrive for years and today gave it a major upgrade. User who already have these accounts above likely have 25GB of free storage on line, but you need to logon to your Skydrive account and claim that 25GB before they drop you down to the new 7GB of free space. For those who are new to Skydrive from today forward, you’ll get 7GB of free storage with the ability to buy up to 100GB of storage for a price that is much lower than competitors like Dropbox. Microsoft has also released new or updated apps that make accessing that storage quite easy for the following platforms: Windows, Windows Phone, Mac, iPhone, iPad. Go out to www.skydrive.com and claim your space today!
Posted in software | Tagged live, skydrive | Leave a Comment »
In a move I don’t think anyone expected Microsoft announced that editions of Windows 8…there are only three! There is edition for ARM processor called Windows RT and 2 editions for x86/64bit Intel called simply Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro. It’s called out in detail here. People have been asking for less editions and Microsoft delivered.
Source: Microsoft blog
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
