14 April 2010

What smartphone apps does Canberra need?

| johnboy
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iphone screenshot

It’s been a long, hard, and not entirely successful journey getting ACT services onto the internet.

The bad news is that the mobile data revolution is going to require another round.

So what applications should ACT instrumentalities be working on to take advantage of a future where everyone has a handheld GPS/Camera/InternetConnection?

Three starters for mine:

    1) Crimestoppers. Take a photo, hit the send button, Crimestoppers gets a GPS coordinate, a photograph and any description you choose to add.

    2) Taxi. Taxi company gets your GPS coordinates, any address detail you choose to add, and your name and number. Bonus points if it displays where your despatched taxi is up to on its way to you.

    3) TAMS. Much like Crimestoppers, and a bit like the Chief Minister with his little digicam but for all of us. Potholes reported in realtime.

Anyone else got any bright ideas?

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Downloaded a new mobile payment app called “mHITs” the other day. http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/mhits/id414850803?mt=8

You can use it to buy coffee and stuff.

A Mully ghost tour.

Judging by the screenshots that app essentially scrapes the Action website and re-formats the info.

http://www.action.act.gov.au/routes_timetables.html

I guess if it’s quicker than going to the website itself it has merit…

PetroniusArbitor3:43 pm 21 Jul 10

Hi All, for everyone that was after an Action Buses App, I found one last night. Has timetables and maps to help you find the nearest bus stop. No GPS unfortunatly…
http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/act-buses/id376634797?mt=8

I was gonna suggest an app to tell you where all the rent-a-backpacker charity nuisances are waiting to annoy you in Civic.

But on second thoughts, that’s not necessary as everyone probably knows they lay in wait at every entrance to Canberra Centre and every other major intersection of City Walk..

Cool ideas. What about an app to make it easier to use mHITs to pay for coffee and food (http://www.mhits.com.au). At the moment you have to use SMS which is ok but an app like an iPhone app would be so much easier to use!

I some of the ideas! My favourite is the “Public Service acronym speak translator” You could use “PulSASTor” for short….

peturbed_but_pretty9:16 pm 20 Apr 10

* A What’s on guide with map
* a gps Action bus map, with dots for the buses (from GPS transmittors) so I can tell where on the route it is and whether it’s worth running
* dial-a-drink

ACT Govt could have a dedicated failblog app.

Danman said :

If we are speaking of stoner apps, I want a beer and pizza delivery service using GPS co-ordinated app created for when you and your mates are doing mobile compression sessions down at charny ovals or lake carpark.

If you like eating cardboard, there is already a Dominoes app.

Holden Caulfield9:34 am 15 Apr 10

Primal said :

A smartphone-friendly version of Allhomes would be nice. I’m sure the annual flood of APS grads would find it very handy in their desperate search for rentals.

I heard a vicious rumour that this was going to happen. But that was a while ago now, so not sure if they’re holding back release or putting irons in other fires? Sounded like it would be quite good, too.

Nick Sundance9:34 am 15 Apr 10

A mash-up of Allhomes and ACTPLA data could be valuable for house/rent hunting

http://tinyurl.com/y4hnvdm

If we are speaking of stoner apps, I want a beer and pizza delivery service using GPS co-ordinated app created for when you and your mates are doing mobile compression sessions down at charny ovals or lake carpark.

A where’s JB app.

a mobile version of the riotact site or a riotact app!

why would you want an ACTIION app? it would just depress you by telling you that your bus isn’t coming or it’s going to take you 2 hours to get where you want to go.

Up The Duffy10:59 pm 14 Apr 10

Public Service acronym speak translator

I’m browsing RA via phone right now…

No real problem with it, might be better if it could be narrower to fit on a small screen. I Am browsing g using my Wifi, I imagine if you were using your mobile signal then a version which required less Mb to down load might be an advantage.

What about the Canberra Conversion Calculator – converts values like house prices, builders quotes, petrol prices, prison sentences, peak hour traffic flows etc to and from the equivalent Sydney/Melbourne values.

Skidbladnir said :

I browse RA from a smertphone

I don’t know why this simple typo is making me giggle like an idiot, but it is… (maybe I’m an idiot).

A smartphone-friendly version of Allhomes would be nice. I’m sure the annual flood of APS grads would find it very handy in their desperate search for rentals.

Can I get an app that aknowledges the traditional owners of the land on behalf of everyone who stands in front of a podium in this town?

Jazz said :

Would you all go for that?

I browse RA from a smertphone currently, with no real troubles.
So why do you want to take the nasty route of compatibility issues making an application that accesses the webpage & database, when you could just streamline the shit out the site and make an http://m.the-riotact.com version of an already functional product?

It becomes an economy of scale issue for anyone doing this off their own bat – a lot of lead development time for not many sales.

Now, if action comissioned something on their own…

Tempestas said :

An ACTION Timetable/ nearest bus stop app it can’t be hard. Again bonus points if it could tell you next bus in X minutes using GPS.

Just for comparison, Melbourne’s Metlink has an absolutely excellent iphone app which does exactly that. Lists timetables for all the public transport stops in Melbourne, has a “I want to get from here to here, tell me how” type function, and for memory it does real time updates and estimated arrival times for trams based on GPS.

If only we could get something half as good as that for ACTION.

Jazz said :

I am giving some consideration to a building a riotact application. It in theory would access all of the content, reviews, etc on Riot but geotagged to locations & businesses in Canberra. Would you all go for that?

I would love a mobile version of RA, would help me browse when not at a DT or NB and out and about.

I am giving some consideration to a building a riotact application. It in theory would access all of the content, reviews, etc on Riot but geotagged to locations & businesses in Canberra. Would you all go for that?

None, only stoners stare at their hands.

p1 said :

Dealer search.

To find your nearest sympathetic doctor.

Fixed it for you.

Thoroughly Smashed said :

So you can dob them in while on the move?

well that is at your own risk I for one never ever use my phone in anyway while driving

Dealer search.

To find your nearest drug dealer.

Well, based on previous RiotACT articles we need:

* Housing Trust House Proximity Detector – calculates the distance to the nearest Housing Trust house. For use when looking for home to buy or rent, or just parking your car.

* Cyclist Counter – reports sightings of cyclists using on-road cycleways. Builds up statistics to be misused by both sides of the argument.

* The Greens Augmented Reality App – Replaces cars with bicycles, buses with light rail and car parks with playgrounds complete with grass, flowers and fairies.

* Postcoder – Another augmented reality app that tags everyone in view with their postcode. Lets you select who is worthy of speaking to and who to avoid.

* L Plate Mapper – An extension to Google Maps traffic feature that shows the location of all learner drivers on the road.

* Windscreen Washer Alert – Notifies you if you are approaching an intersection with a window washer so that you can divert in time. If you get too close, the screen displays a message you can hold up to tell them to F*** Off.

* Bogan Tourist Trail – Allows you to add points of interest for various bogan monuments around town.

* The ALP Candidate Game – Players try to become the ALP candidate in a safe Canberra seat. Battle against factions for preselection only to be thwarted in the higher levels by the political staffer.

what’s an ‘instrumentality’ that could work on these applications?? is real english??

something that magically hails a cab between ten to three and three fourty in the afternoon would be useful.

Dealer search.

LOL @ ACTION on Twitter. If only.

Google Transit integration for ACTION (which would allow most smartphones to give good realtime directions via google maps) was announced last June for launch last July.

Last word I saw about it was from back last August: http://the-riotact.com/?p=13459

Muttsybignuts1:04 pm 14 Apr 10

I’d like an App that tells me when I am within 100 metres proximity to Dickhead P platers.
Thanks.

Maybe the ACT bike path map? They could update it at the same time (last one seems to be 2005) as it seems to be missing a few new suburbs and has a number of errors.

Location and closing times of Canberra’s pubs.

Thoroughly Smashed12:34 pm 14 Apr 10

jasere said :

Some kind of name and shame for Canberra’s bad driving

So you can dob them in while on the move?

An ACTION Timetable/ nearest bus stop app that updates if the bus is late/not coming at all.
Unless ACTION already do that via Twitter.

Some kind of name and shame for Canberra’s bad driving

1) Crimestoppers. Take a photo, hit the send button, Crimestoppers gets a GPS coordinate, a photograph and any description you choose to add.

I vote for this since it would be incredibly easy for them to set up. All they need is to advertise a number for people to text to, and have someone at the other end with the software to read the GPS data in the Exif.

Hear hear! 1st Action map/timetables. Then add routing and GPS integration (e.g. “how to I get from here to there and when?”)

An ACTION Timetable/ nearest bus stop app it can’t be hard. Again bonus points if it could tell you next bus in X minutes using GPS.

A mash-up of Allhomes and ACTPLA data could be valuable for house/rent hunting

Some sort of Health services portal with current wait times in A&E, advice on what Clinics/Pharmacies/Radiography alternatives might be available.

Lets face it most of these would just need an appropriately coded website and that would enough.

If by smartphone you mean something like an i-Phone, I reckon we need an Action bus app, something similar to sydneys travel website where you can type in where you are and where you wanna go and it gives you all public/walking/cycling options, like an auto-timetable, actually canberra just needs this as a website aswell..

I would think a ACTION timetable website which wasn’t hilariously bad would be a good first step.

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