Envoy recently released its new app entitled MarkUp. (You can download it here). This is the tool for web developers that want to annotate websites on the go. Built native for both the iPad and the iPhone, MarkUp allows anyone to take a screen shot of a web page, add notes, and draw on the shots to outline update notes for developers, upgrade ideas for clients, or simply highlight unique features of a particular website. Made by designers, for designers, this tool also allows for bookmarking of frequently visited sites; a helpful tool for staging environments with multiple client builds on them. When done you can email or save your shot to your photo album.

MarkUp was designed to with the developer and designer in mind but it is also an ideal tool for clients as well. When hiring a web design firm to handle your next site, use MarkUp to highlight desired attributes of other websites or illustrate items you don’t like. Anyone who wants to comment on a variety of websites, this is the tool for you.

You can download the app in the Apple App Store by clicking on this link.

I admit, this post will only appeal to the few who are, well, that much of a design geek to actually find this funny. That being said, if you are ever curious what make a group of designer laugh, well, this is it.

This tutorial is a brief outline of what steps you will need to take in order to install an ad-hoc app onto your device using a PC. This is to be used for all apps in development or apps that won’t be included in the app store itself.

1) Download the latest version of the iPhone Configuration Utility and install it: CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

2) Plug in your device

3) Click the “Provisioning Profiles” section in the left sidebar

4) Drag in the .mobileprovision file to the list view window

5) Click the “Applications” section in the left sidebar

6) Drag in the .app folder to the list view window

7) Go back to your device in the left sidebar

Click the “Provisioning Profiles” tab

9) Click the “Install” button next to the newly added provisioning profile

10) Click the “Applications” tab

11) Click the “Install” button next to the newly added app

At some point I am wondering if we just do what McDonalds did and say forget it, we just sold a ton of apps; period? Seems like not now though. Apple has crested the 15 billion app mark and seems to be on fire. We even now have north of 425,000 apps to choose from in the app store so despite what appears to be more options that most would have ever imagined, folks are still downloading them like crazy.

The hardest part to believe here is that we have only enjoyed knowing what an app store even was for three years this month. In just three short years Apple invented, marketed, skyrocketed, and monumentally profited from a completely made up product. What’s more is they have essentially made it so that I get angry when a company I want to use does not provide me an app to interface with them.

Put another way research shows we spend 667 minutes per month using apps. If that happened in just three years, how long am I going to be on this thing this time next year?

Lollapalooza recently decided to release their API to the world and crowdsource a new app for their upcoming festival. The organization pared it down to 19 entries they felt had promise and are going to vote on the two best to feature at the festival.

As a development company, that is to say, folks who make a living off of making apps, I am not terribly excited about crowdsourcing. I think it is akin to child labor in the sense that the person or entity engaging in crowdsourcing is knowingly exploiting a large number of people and paying a fraction for the output that they should. In the end you can get an avalanche of options to choose from and clearly the numbers game works in your favor here. However, cumulatively, the number of man hours that are donated to the individual or entity are staggeringly out of whack with the financial compensation they ultimately pay out.

Some would argue this is fair competition. Others would argue that this paradigm affords smaller companies or individuals the opportunity to throw their hat in the ring on a project well above that which they could do otherwise. All of that might be true and we could argue the point ad nauseam.  The real issue here is that they wrapped it up as though they were doing a good thing. A “contest” they say.

The resulting product ultimately gave them 19 apps to choose from, none of which they will pay for it seems. The winner will be “featured” at the festival which may, or may not, lead anywhere for that person. Aside from bragging rights (which let’s face it are cool, no denying that) this ultimately benefits Lollapalooza a whole lot more than John Doe who wrote the winning app.

There were some good idas that emerged from the contest too. I hope the talented individuals who cobbled those together can make something happen from this experience.

Ford is really on top of things it would appear. Already launched now but soon to hit the scene in even more of their cars is a system called Sync AppLink. The goal of this system is to further integrate the passenger’s smartphones with their cars. The overall goal is to reduce the amount of time it takes to control various aspects of the car (from the user control vantage point that is) as well as reduce passenger interaction with their phones. Turns out people download apps while driving! Can you imagine?

This step is significant as it is a recognition of mobile’s stratospheric growth as well as admission that, well, we like to use our phones while driving. Since cel phone laws and tickets have not done the trick I guess it is the auto maker’s turn to try and save us from ourselves.

In a world where smartphones went from huh? to everywhere in only a few short years, it leaves most wondering what comes next? Tablets? Smaller phones? Computers embedded in my eye and a keyboard that only I can see? Perhaps all of those things but one thing, according to Forrester, the computer paradigm is changing.

First on their list is the shift from desktop to everywhere. Computers are going from a fixed position entity to things that are everywhere. Computers are in virtually everything now. That is only going to augment over time.

Next is the shift from a formal computer relationship to a much more casual one. Since they will be everywhere we will interact with them with less effort and in more ways. Maybe checking email on digital tiles in your shower? I thought the crackberry was bad.

Next is that computers are moving closer to us, the human being. This means they are going cold hard boxes on your fancy Ikea desk to colorful, highly customized, communicators to the world; in your pocket. Even tablets, while somewhat larger, sit near you. Book readers are in your hands like an actual book would be. The computer is coming to us.

Last noted was that information is being gathered and viewed by physically getting it. Keyboards and mice, blah, that is yesterday’s news. Pinching, swiping, pulling, grabbing, swooshing away, now that is how today’s info seeker gets the job done.

The important lesson to learn here is that this is not some fantastical sci-fi, theoretical prediction. This is happening, now. The important thing to realize is that vendors and manufacturers need to recognize this shift now while it is still in transition so that they can position themselves in the market properly. As we have been saying for a while, it is a wonderful time to be in technology.

iPhone 5 rumors

What fun would iPhone be without rumors? It seems as though they start while people are still in those excruciatingly long lines trying to buy the current one. iPhone 5 is no different. Unfortunately this is not looking good for those who were hoping for an iPhone with a flux capacitor, was able to create perpetual motion, or could cook you dinner. It is far more likely that the new device will be a modest upgrade from the 4 with a few tidbits added.

Chief amongst them are upgraded cameras as well as inclusion of their A5 chip. Both of these are good news if you wanted to squeeze a bit more from the device. Bigger news seems to be that they could release it on Sprint and TMobile. A move like that would level the playing field a bit for the holiday season with Android et al given that Apple would be available in many more places

The iPhone 5 is due out in September.

TV used to be just TV; that box in your living room, bedroom, or wherever. Then it was the slick flat panel you replaced the old ones with. Then Slingbox, Roku, etc. Now, as we make the next leap we have “over the top” devices such as iPhones, iPads, and Androids that we can consume media on; and we are.

According to Horowitz Associates, 31% of us who live in urban areas watch TV on devices other than actual TVs. That is a pretty large number. They break it down by race past that and the numbers get more interesting. Asians lead the pack with 41% viewing on alternate devices. Past that we have Latinos weighing in at 37%, African Americans at 36%, and Caucasians bringing up fourth place with just 25%.

This is not entirely surprising. Mobile devices shot up pretty significantly from 2010 to 2011; about 11% up. More devices means greater chances of viewing for sure. Also, let’s be honest, it’s just plain easy to do. I use my Hulu Plus account daily sometimes. This is certainly a trend to keep in mind.

One sure fire way to get a bunch of tech geeks into a heated war of words is to take sides as to which is superior iPhone, Android, or [cough] Blackberry. Nothing gets a lively conversation started faster. That being said results from Mplayit on Facebook found that regardless of which horse we back in this race, we end up using the same apps no matter what. As it seems, Angry Birds and Facebook are that compelling to everyone.

The tidbit that should be extracted here is that it underscores the necessity to know your audience and know them well. If we know users will use the same apps cross platforms then this is as solid of proof as any that exploring all three platforms may be worth your while.

Another tidbit here is that it shows a high chance of success from one platform to the next. If you hit one out of the park on Android, chances are in your favor of repeating that on iPhone.

Apps are everywhere. They have gone zero to 110 through the popular vernacular in a shockingly small amount of time. We went from a handful to over 350,000 in just shy of three years. Where do we go from here exactly? According to Forrester, up, way up. By 2015 they predict the app business to be north of $38 billion.

This report is significant. $38 billion is a lot to work with to be sure. The report also calls out corporations specifically citing that they are expected to spend $17 billion on apps for their goods or services. That does not include the service component to this that will be required to manage this cacophony of apps. The report says that the combination of apps and services relating to apps will surpass $54 billion by 2015. This world is changing fast.

The iPad was a game changer for doctors. The device’s size, ease of use, and connective abilities allowed previously unheard of possibilities to doctors at the exact moment they really need it; standing in front of you. The iPad2 is almost certainly going to push the next wave of medical adopters to take the plunge.

The iPad2 has a few tactical advantages for doctors. One, it is significantly quicker. The device can burn through images at a blistering pace as compared to the original iPad. This is particularly handy when reviewing a series of scans with, or for, a patient. The second largest advantage is the dual cameras. This allows for remote video conferencing with colleagues when discussing unique cases. It also allows easier documentation of ailments or wounds that can be simply for a patient’s file or for a second opinion by another doctor.

The final kicker is that it is smaller and lighter. Those white lab coats are not exactly the sturdiest things in the world so portability is pretty big. Pair all of this with its ability to connect to a data source and you have a perfect delivery vehicle for all of the electronic medical records in an office.

Overall the device is perfectly poised to push many more medical professionals to the tablet way.

The Windows Phone Marketplace is the place where Microsoft sells its phone apps. Everyone seems to know a lot about the Apple App Store but this little guy does not get a whole lot of attention. We thought we would list out a few things here that are of some interest to us.

This marketplace offers, at present, about 9,000 apps for Windows phones. Their information tells us that this grows by about 100 applications per day. Slowly but surely it seems to move forward.

Microsoft clearly does well with free or trial apps. Some interesting tidbits here too. Paid apps that have a free trial are downloaded 70 times more than paid apps without trials. From there, 1 in 10 trials convert to paid. This conversion leads to about 10 times the revenue than their no-trial cousins enjoy

These are certainly drastically different numbers from either Android or Apple’s numbers but you have to start somewhere.

Microsoft is psyched. They are finally jumping in to the tablet wars of late. The bad news is they won’t be doing it until next year. Next year? Really?

While nothing is official yet it looks like Microsoft is working out the kinks on a new version of Windows 7 that would be more ideally suited for the new touch interface of a tablet. Sweet, we sit with baited breath for that.

It seems odd to wait that long really. While we don’t advocate a lot of what is going on in the market now with tablets getting out there as fast as possible, waiting that long is almost worse. It has been stated that there are over 100 tablet models hitting the stores in 2011. 100! It is unlikely that all 100 are good. There have to be some follies in there somewhere but the fact is, someone will buy each one. Perhaps not a lot of someones, but someone will thus giving that manufacturer a shred of traction to build on. Others will thrive. Not showing up seems a bit odd.

Apple will for sure have a third version out there. If it is anything like the iPad2 there will be lines a’ plenty for those. Google will have a few clear cut winners in their corner by then as well; many could be on their second gen devices as well. WIthout question both Apple and Google will have cemented themselves in the court of public opinion by then to be the top dogs. While that may not be the case for time ever after, it is not likely to topple soon.

In just under 3 years the word “app” has gone from nothing to everywhere. Keeping the ball rolling is our friends over at Saab. They are taking the app paradigm from your pocket to your car. Not only that but they are supercharging them in a very auto-specific way.

While details remain a bit foggy it appears as though users can buy an Android package on their new Saabs similar to floor mats, sunroofs, and heated seats. This package would offer a 3 or 4G connection to the car as well as an Android operated screen. The mechanism would allow users to download Android apps to the car for use whenever, wherever.

The thought is that they would pre-package a bunch of “old favorites” on the car at the time of purchase. You know these guys, the Facebooks, the YouTubes, the Pandoras, and the like. THen you could download whatever else you like. I for one would be pumped for the Pandora app. That would make my day. I am super not pumped about the thought that they will likely make none of this possible while driving, even if the passenger sensor indicates that there is a passenger which would make all of this practically useless but I digress.

The interesting part here is that Saab is allowing developers direct access to 500+ sensors in the car. This will be the first time we developers will have direct, if not full access, to a product other than a cel phone or tablet. The implications of this are huge. WHile history teaches us the first one out of the gate tends to run into issues, this advancement is a) shockingly fast in the continuum of the app paradigm and b) incredibly exciting.

Leaping from cars to blenders, refrigerators, and who knows what else is not all that hard. Being an app developer could soon mean you have nothing at all to do with phones but are a home app builder, or an auto app builder, or whatever you want app builder. I could be a ways down the road but I for one can’t wait.

Anyone who has owned anything Apple for the last, oh, forever, knows all too well that their devices often lack a piece of hardware or two that all other computers have. See, SCSI ports, floppy drives, smaller floppy drives, zip drives, etc. It is no secret that when Apple is done with something it is quite simply done and that is that. The recent Apple vs. Adobe wars were nothing different except that it was software this time. Ensuing wars not withstanding, they once again made a pretty bold statement.

A year ago only about 10% of the online video content was in HTML5; thus meaning that 90% of the video on the web was simply “unseeable” on the iPhone and iPad. Today, 63% of web video is in HTML5. That happened in the course of one year. Given the tipping point has clearly passed us in this department it is likely we will be cruising much closer to the 100% marker much faster.

The next pressing question will be video formats. No one can just be happy with one thing for any amount of time so as we move from a fight of “To Flash” or “Not To Flash” we will soon be fighting over which codec to use. My interest level in that debate is not even close to warranting a post just yet but I am sure it will make an appearance here in the near future.