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Most of the applications that run on the iPhone will run on the iPod touch as well, but one or two do not. I mention only the iPhone in several paragraphs because I got tired of typing both names in. Sorry. I do mention which apps won't work on the touch.
Not released as of January 7, 2009. Expected by the end of the month. Website at pocketinformant.com
Note2Self is a quick dictation application for the iPhone and iPod touch if you have the microphone. You may either keep the notes as a sound recording or email your notes to a transcription service where humans do the transcription and email you back the text.
Pocket Informant is a daily management application that runs on the iPhone and touch. I'm told this has been running under Windows Mobile for years and is a robust application there. You can view a calendar, to do lists (Franklin Covey or GTD), events, and contacts. Some items will sync on your desktop, and the calendar will sync over the air with your Google calendar and ToodleDo.
I was impressed by the amount of information I could get from the month view on the calendar on an iPhone screen. I look forward to giving this a try.
Runs on your desktop Mac; from MacPractice.com. The pamphlets do say there is an iPhone interface.
I have no information on this package other than the pamphlets I picked up. MacPracticeMD and MacPracticeDDS are for, wait for it, doctors and dentists. I have no experience in either field, but these applications seem to be complete. The dentist version offers digital radiography, scheduling, treatment plans, EClaims, appointment reminders, and so on. The doctor version seems similar.
The iPhone interface says you can see appointments, call or email the patient, and review the patient's history.
Polar Bear Farm offered three iPhone applications from their New Zealand offices. As I recall, these applications do not work in the touch, but confirm that if you have a touch and are interested.
Note Pad is an application which will organize your notes in folders, including smart folders (which you may base on your iPhone's GPS location). Searchable and syncable. My take is that making notes on the screen-based keyboard is not fun, no matter what the application. Your mileage will vary.
Record is their application to let you dictate notes on your iPhone. Sync, email, set up smart folders.
Telegram seemed the most interesting to me. Instead of text-messaging, dictate a short memo and send it to an email address. The recipient gets your email with the audio file attached. Most people can play the message from their computer, you don't have to sit there typing notes on the iPhone, but you may pay for sending the larger file.
Connected looks to be a nice accounting package that is fully auditable (you can't change entries after they're made). You have to make appropriate entries to correct errors. There are single and multi-user versions, with a general ledger, accounts receivable, and accounts payable in the basic package. They're based in Canada, and the person I spoke with said they have a number of American law firms using Connected.
Elements SBM is a customer relations management application from Ntractive, LLC in the well-known metropolis of Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Elements offers personal information management, customer relationship management, finance and product management, project tracking, and document storage. There is a limited-time offer of $50 per person per month, and I don't know what the restrictions are nor what the normal price will be.
I asked about problems specific to law offices, and I was shown how to set up accounts so that clients are billed at specific rates for specific services, time tracking was automatic for tasks, mark aheads (next time to contact the client) were a point and click feature since it is part of customer relations management, and billing was more or less automatic based on work done.
The reason for the monthly bill for using Elements SBM is that the product is hosted on Ntractive's servers. This has its advantages and problems. Multiple offices are always on the same page; Ntractive takes care of upgrades and problems; you have access to all your data where ever you can get online; it's available to iPhone users. On the other hand, you lose control of the software; you can't take it with you on your flight or anywhere you don't have online access. They offer a free thirty-day trial as of this writing.
This is an interesting application, and Bee Docs is currently offering a free trial.
You may not think you need a timeline, but then again, maybe you could use one. The timeline is shown on your computer screen askew - older events are shown "closer," with the future disappearing into the distance. As you proceed along the timeline, photos on the line flip from their perspective view into a full frontal, and text becomes readable. So you could arrange your family vacation trip on the time line and animate your slide show.
Lawyers can also use Timeline 3D to show victim timelines, comparing testimony of various witnesses, or patient timelines for day-in-the-life exhibits after a traumatic event. The BBC used Timeline 3D to show highlights of the career of a sports legend. I understand that timelines can be run on your computer or exported as QuickTime movies or Keynote presentations.
For individuals in these dire economic times, there is Squirrel for your personal finance. Squirrel requires 10.5 and a desktop Mac (although there is an iPhone extension), and it keeps track of your regularly scheduled payments, sets up a budget for you and keeps track, plus does reports and graphs, so you can see and compare your budget and your actual income and outgo.
Squirrel has a special of under $20 (depending on the dollar vs. the euro) while in beta, and there is a free trial.
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