Kermit the Frog once said "It's not easy being green..." and how right he was! Sure, some things are simply, like recycling or flipping off the lights. But some things (and here we're thinking of the diehards that turn the shower off while they shampoo) are really difficult. Luckily you have your iPhone at the ready and these apps will make sure that being green gets easier every day. (All available on iTunes.)
Price: $2.99
Gorgeously Green Survival Guide
Price: $0.99
Price: Free
Price: Free
Price: Free
Price: $0.99
Price: Free
MyMPG
MyMPG is a little app with a lofty aim: to save the world from gas-guzzling one driver at a time. Using the technology in your iPhone's accelerometer, it alerts you with a tone when your lead foot on the gas (or brake) is costing you fuel and money--just by smoothing out your driving technique you should be able to save money and keep your metropolis a little greener. Fuel purchase management and progress tracking are also included.
Being glamorous all the time isn't easy, and being glam and green is even harder...but if you use this Survival Guide developed by best selling author Sophie Uliano it becomes a breeze. From what chemicals to avoid in makeup to the best foods to buy organic, she's put tons of tips into an easy to navigate app. Yes, you could google this information while you're shopping, but why? This app puts all the important info at your fingertips and in one place.
Carticipate
If you're too far from work (or, let's face it, unwilling) to bike, you can still make a stand for cleaner air by using carticipate. The network of users is still growing, but it works like this: you plug where you're headed and when you're going and post it, then the app matches you with people with the same idea. It's also available on Facebook for a wider rideshare pool and you can even tweet your ride to find passengers.
Yowza
If you thought that your commitment to saving paper meant your coupon-ing days were over, we've got great news: your iPhone can fix it so saving the earth doesn't mean losing money. With the Yowza app you use locations to identify Yowza sourced deals in your area and up to fifteen miles away for anything from groceries to pilates to dinners. Then visit the merchant, make your purchase and show the cashier your iPhone with the discount barcode--they'll scan and you'll save. These are not internet coupons, and the folks at Yowza worked hard to get merchants on board for the deals...we honestly can't believe it's free.
Seafood Guide
From the experts at the Monterey Bay Aquarium comes this incredible dining companion--not only does it tell you what seafood to avoid based on over fishing, it lists names in Japanese and English (for those irrepressible sushi cravings) and bases its recommendations on what seafood is best (read local) in your area. Your choices make a big difference in fish populations, so having this on hand when you're debating between the branzino and the chilean sea bass will help you make the best decision. (Hint: it's not the sea bass.)
ACTPrinter
Another app in the save paper save the world vein is ACTPrinter; once you install the desktop client onto your Mac (with an Airport card) you can "print" documents from your desktop to your iPhone. Best for small documents like notes, news articles, boarding passes movie tickets and the like, the ACTPrinter makes it easy by adding a "print to iPhone" selection in the Print to PDF document menu. You can't edit these on your phone, but for the stuff it's good for you won't need to. An excellent way to stay organized, too.
GreenCard
Business cards are a necessary part of the world at large, but if the thought of all your info gathering dust on someone's desk sends shivers through your eco-friendly spine you're in luck: GreenCard offers you a way to share all the data without any of the paper. You create your card on your iPhone and share it with contacts. Best of all, if you update your information you don't have to wait to get new cards from the printer...your contacts will be notified immediately.
More Apple
More News
OS 4.0
What with all the iPad speculation, iPhone rumors have mostly been left in the dst We're proud to take up the mantle once more and speculate wildly about what's coming. Aside from a flash for the camera, we've heard more complaining about the lack of multi-tasking than anything (except AT&T's service...). Now, AppleInsider reports that people who are spot on in their Apple predictions say it's coming, and we couldn't be happier. Pandora streaming while browsing the interwebs? Yes please.
The issues here are really user interface and battery life--how do you switch between apps in a way that's easy to do and easy to see? Also, how much of our batteries will be quickly whiled away during our power sucking? That remains to be seen, of course, and along with spyware and malware issues is probably the reason we don't have this capability yet. There are tons of case chargers and battery backup systems available though, and we'd gladly slap a Juice Pack on or carry the Gum Plus if it meant we could use our iPhone more like our Macbook.
Consumer Reports
We don't know about you guys, but we've been reading Consumer Reports since childhood--there was very little to do in our grandparent's hometown over the summers--and we still have a special place in our hearts for them. Now we are happy to tell you that they've names Apple's customer support for laptops and desktops the best in the industry. Apple was judged in four categories for each computer type: problem solved, phone waits, phone staff and online support. It received the coveted "very satisfied" rating from over 7,000 subscribers...
Nice job, folks...thanks for making the upkeep of our machines as easy as using them.
And Now For Something Completely Different
Sure, there are plenty of office "friendly" games out there with escape buttons that quickly switch the screen to charts in the event of an unexpected boss walk-through, but four guys from the Netherlands have taken this a step further and worked their games into charts, graphs, and other office productivity tools. Leadership, Breakdown and Cost Cutter are the titles available free at cantyouseeimbusy.com that use word documents, line graphs and bar charts in games so you look more productive than you're being. The cost calculator (which tallies the cost of your lost productivity) is a nice, if sobering, touch.
Our advice? Just play. Don't think too hard about it.
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