News Archive for 08/10/07

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NetSketch 1.3 adds tabbed colors, improved email

10/07, 10:00pm

NetSketch 1 3 update

Gotow.net has introduced the latest version of its collaborative drawing app, NetSketch 1.3 for the iPhone or iPod touch. Updates include a tabbed color picker to make transitions faster while drawing. Each tab can be assigned to a particular color and brush size, allowing users to quickly switch between options. The email interface has also been improved, claimed to be more reliable when sending large files and now included a progress indicator.

Grafly graphical calculator introduced for iPhone

10/07, 6:20pm

Grafly graphical calc

Em Software has introduced Grafly, a graphical calculator application for the iPhone or iPod touch. The program provides equation graphing interactivity, touch-based zoom and scroll for arbitrarily complex graphs, and a "live gravity" mode that allows the graph to be viewed from different angles by moving the device "around the figure." Both 2D and 3D equations are supported, with shading, lighting, and inside/outside distinctions.

Tranquility iPhone app offers relaxing audio, visuals

10/07, 5:35pm

Tranquility for iPhone

Freeverse has unveiled Tranquility, an iPhone application for relaxing or meditating. Audio tracks and visuals are provided for "aural landscapes" that include Zen Meditation, Flowing Water, Ocean Waves, White Noise, Rain, Thunderstorms, Mechanical Hums, and more. The user interface is simple, offering volume controls and settings to turn the sound off after a period of time.

Burning Monkey Puzzle Lab available for iPhone

10/07, 4:35pm

Burning Monkey Puzzle Lab

Freeverse has released its latest application for the iPhone and iPod touch, Burning Monkey Puzzle Lab, which offers five different puzzle modes. Gamers must help the Burning Monkey, Monty, clear the game board of puzzle pieces. The Color Reaction game requires matching colored balls; Hex Bonding involves assembling falling pieces into rows, and Test Tube has gamers rotate balls in-line to create matches. The remaining two modes, Zen and Mission, are simply rearrangements of the previous ones.

Apple faces pressure over replaceable batteries

10/07, 1:35pm

Apple battery controversy

Developing European Union guidelines could force Apple to adopt a more user- and environmentally-friendly approach to batteries, reports say. The legal body is currently in the process of drafting a "New Batteries Directive," which would expand on the present set of guidelines designed to make it easier to remove, dispose of and/or recycle old batteries. The present directive indicates that companies must make it simple to remove batteries from electronics; the proposed one would insist that batteries can be "readily removed" for replacement or disposal.

NASA's Picture of the Day viewable on iAPODViewer

10/07, 12:05pm

iAPODViewer for iPhone

A new app has launched for the iPhone and iPod touch, iAPODViewer, which allows users to more easily access the NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD). The viewer offers an iPhone-optimized interface, with rotated and full-size image viewing -- for zooming and scrolling around -- as well as keyword searches, and the ability to save favorite APODs. The latter are stored in the iPhone's photo library for later recall. Each image features a description of the scene from an astronomer.