iPhone/Web 2.0

I was quite shocked today to pull out the most useful app I own, Fahr-Info Berlin … and find that it no longer has an integrated S-Bahn map! It was always a great feeling of comfort to know that wherever I was in Berlin, I can always look at the S-Bahn map on my iPhone to easily get around.

Today I just noticed on its App Store description: “Aufgrund einer Beschwerde der BVG mussten sowohl der Übersichtsnetzplan als auch die Detailpläne entfernt werden. Sorry dafür!” (Because of a complaint from the BVG [Berlin's transport company] we had to remove the overview map as well as the detailed maps. Sorry about that!) I find this completely unacceptable from the BVG. If they can’t provide their own iPhone app, then they should be very happy that another organization has decided to do it for them, and done it incredibly well, I must add.

I’ve travelled much more often since I’ve had this iPhone app, because I never have to wonder about where I am and how to get home. I’ll often find myself with a group of people and we’ll have walked for a while to the point where I’m not entirely sure where I am and I’d like to be able to see a map without having to carry around a paper one in my pocket. I haven’t used the detailed maps yet, but I know I’m often in foreign cities and have to switch to a bus or tram and really have to search hard to find it. Such maps would be incredibly useful in such situations, especially for those just visiting Berlin, not so much for those living here. In fact, I’m much more likely to take taxis more often, because the BVG upsets me so much from their complaint.

I am about to write the BVG to make my own complaint and if you are upset about this as well, I’d ask you to write as well. Their general contact page can be found at http://www.bvg.de/index.php/de/Kontakt/ (just click Allgemeine Anfrage). Hopefully with full Berlin community support, we can get the maps back into this app! Thank you for your support.

Related articles

- Berlin’s public transport company forbids free iPhone app by The Local
- BVG stößt Kunden mit iPhone vor den Kopf by TAZ, a popular German newspaper

I am honored to continue my developer interview series with Erica Sadun who is probably best known among iPhone developers for her much needed article against the NDA. She is also the author of The iPhone Developer’s Cookbook: Building Applications with the iPhone SDK (Developer’s Library) which was published in book form in the USA on Oct 23 and will be released in Germany on Nov 28.

What was your inspiration for writing this book? What sets it apart from other iPhone books?

I always try to write the book that I would have wanted to read. I’m a huge fan of re-usable code snippets that really show how one single concept can be executed. And that’s what I hope I brought to this book, things to make developers more productive right away.

When did you start learning the iPhone SDK? Were you also part of the jailbroken developer community?

I was involved in the Jailbreak development arena, from the first days of NightWatch’s ARM compiler. My first apps “do Shell” and “tapp” allows users to run command-line utilities from the iPhone GUI.

Interesting, so you’ve really been in there from the start! How did you see the official release of the iPhone SDK change the dynamics of iPhone development?

The official SDK did a lot to formalize the libraries and get them into a form that was ready for a wider audience of developers; earlier firmware was still very raw. I’m a big SDK fan, and yet at the same time I get frustrated by the limitations Apple has chosen to set on what devs can and cannot do.

What was your most successful iPhone app? How have you seen your apps have an effect on your personal branding?

There have been a lot (and I mean a lot! dozens!) of apps. It’s hard to put my finger on just one.

Well, I personally think Converter Pro (20-Dec-2009, editor’s note: no longer available) is the most useful, although Moo can be quite fun. I also notice that all of your apps are free. What role do you see free apps playing in the App Store?

For now, free apps relieve me of at least some of the bother of dealing with unhappy customers. I’m seriously not trying to make a statement here. I just don’t have time to build a proper business and give people the support they deserve. With free software, when someone complains you can just suggest that they demand a full refund.

Nice answer. Personally, I’ve only had one refund and it was nice because Apple dealt with it and I wasn’t even involved in the process. So, besides giving away software, what else can we expect to see from you soon relating to the iPhone?

I’m writing over at Ars Technica now as well as my ongoing O’Reilly Inside iPhone commitment.

Thank you very much for your time and interesting interview. I can’t wait to get a copy of your book when it arrives in Germany!

Go Player

I must say that I really enjoy using GoPlayer on my iPhone. That probably doesn’t come as too much of a surprise though considering I’m its developer. I’m a rather random person, so my app has a collection of over a thousand games and it randomly picks one out to show. This way you can watch professional Go games anywhere on the go. So, for less than the cost of a round-trip subway ride to your local Go club, you can have 1,000 Go games on your iPhone. Also much cheaper and more useful than having the same data in book form. [2,99 €, App Store]

Stones

My second favorite Go app is Stones. You don’t carry a Go board around with you, do you? Well, now you can just pull out your iPhone and play with your friend by passing the phone back and forth. It offers 9×9, 13×13, 19×19 and handicap options for each game. At the end, just mark the captured groups, and it scores it for you as well. It has two Go bowls at the bottom which you drag stones from to place on the board, and I must say it feels very intuitive and precise. [Free, 20-Dec-2009, Editor's Note: No longer available]

Tetsuki

Tetsuki is a Go term which means “The way a stone was physically played. Usually paired with an adjective as in: light tetsuki, strong tetsuki, etc. [Definition from Sensei's Library] Play Go over the Internet on your iPhone. I haven’t actually tried playing there with it, but I’ve noticed that I can watch games with ease. I can load it up and watch people playing Go online in real time on the Internet Go Server (IGS). My favorite Go server is Kiseido Go Server (KGS), but I know they require you to use their Java program, so that no one has an advantage just because of the platform they’re using to play. In any case, Tetsuki seems like a really cool way to play or watch live games anywhere. [Free, App Store]