to-dos

Sync to-do lists and blow away terrorists: iPhone apps of the week

If you've been checking out the most popular list at the iTunes App Store recently, you might have noticed that a new game has reached the top of the charts--even unseating the mega-popular Angry Birds. It's called Cut the Rope and it challenges you to feed candy to a hungry little monster named Om Nom by cutting various ropes to direct the candy to his waiting mouth. It's a little hard to describe here, so check out Rick Broida's coverage of Cut the Rope here.

Beating out Angry Birds at the top of the charts is no small feat (it's been sitting pretty there for months), so it got me thinking about what type of game reaches the top of the iTunes App Store.

It seems you must have polish--both games were obviously painstakingly produced. From the main characters down to the menus and even the design of the buttons, the whole experience captures the ambiance the developers are trying to convey making the game more immersive. Both games have extremely cute characters; each of the different birds are adorable in their anger, and the little green monster Om Nom couldn't be cuter when he opens wide for the candy. Both games have simple controls that can be played by anyone--this seems to be the biggest factor. Just about anyone from any age group can grasp the simple controls, but the games are still plenty challenging.

Finally, you need airtight audio, with little nuanced and silly additions like the muttering birds in Angry Birds, or the sigh of sadness when the candy misses Om Nom's mouth. Judging from these games' success, it seems as though the combination of these ingredients casts the widest net for capturing most iPhone gamers' hearts.

So what will the next big iPhone game be? My bet is \it will include all of these ingredients. You can be sure there are developers working right now to capture that perfect combination that makes a hit at the App Store. The only question is, what's the next big hit?

This week's apps include a cloud-synced to-do list manager and an excellent sequel to one of the best first-person shooters on the iPhone.… Read more

Who's bringing what? Divvyus helps you sort it out

Ever tried to set up an event or meeting while trying to balance the schedules of others? That's been made easy with tools like Doodle, TimeBridge and Planypus. But what if you're having a dinner party, or a picnic, or going camping, or any other real-world situation where you're grouping together your resources?

That's where Divvyus comes in handy. It lets you manage some of the chaos of assigning to-dos, or things to bring ahead of time. There's no registration required, you just need to send out the URL of the Divvyus, and whomever you … Read more

Gmail's task list can now be e-mailed

Google has enhanced the task feature that's integrated into Gmail and other Google products to let users share their lists with others. Gmail users can now choose to share an entire task list in a new e-mail message. Doing so transfers all of your tasks including information like due dates, and any tasks that have been completed which show up as being crossed out.

One thing to note is that this only works in Gmail, and not in other places where tasks can be found, including Google Calendar, the mobile version of Gmail, and on iGoogle. Although knowing Google, … Read more

Five apps that solve common iPhone problems

The iPhone famously solves many of life's little problems--you can't decide where to eat, you've got nothing to read, you need to update your Facebook status right now--but who's going to solve the iPhone's problems?

For instance, maybe it's low on storage. Or it's having trouble connecting to a Starbucks hot spot. Here's a list of five common iPhone ailments and the apps that aim to cure them.

You're running out of storage. Apple may have a 32GB iPhone waiting in the wings, but how does that help you and your … Read more

PC knows best: Tools to nag, remind, and track productivity

Trying to get work done is tough if you have an Internet connection. The constant urge to take a peek at a video on YouTube or check your personal e-mail is a siren song that for many simply cannot be ignored. Luckily, there are several sites and browser add-ons that can help keep us in line, be it with basic productivity or making sure we do not stumble in moments of weakness.

Gmail "e-mail goggles" and "take a break" labs add-ons

Want to send that e-mail at 4 a.m.? Unless you're up early, and … Read more

ReQall 2.0: Now somewhat smarter

Aide-memoire service ReQall, which I first tested a year ago, is getting a 2.0 update. New features will make this clever application more useful. Now, when you type or speak an item to remember, you can also help ReQall file it away for you by using certain keywords. For example, if you say, "Buy milk," the service will put that to-do on your "shopping list." The service also understands time: You can specify items for "tomorrow" or for specific dates. You can also share items by saying, for example, "Ask Joe to … Read more