Apple iPhone School

FolderCloser – Automatically Close Folder on App Launch

Douglas — Wed, 08 May 2013 12:27:21 +0000

One thing that has always annoyed me is when I have apps in folders and the folder is still open after I close the app. Most of the time I don’t want to go back to that folder after I’m done using the app. So, this app simply closes the folder automatically as the app opens. This app goes great with an app called HomePage that scrolls your home screen back to the first page as an app opens so when you close the app you see the first page of your apps. Both apps are free and a great way to customize your device!

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FaceDetectionDuringVideo

Douglas — Wed, 08 May 2013 11:42:18 +0000

Face Detection is a feature of the iPhone that adapts the focus & exposure automatically when a face is present in the shot. This feature is only active when taking a picture but this hack allows it to work actively when shooting video. This is really nice as the environment can change quickly during a video and typically you want the video focused on faces if they are part of the shot. This hack is available in Cydia for free.

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AccuWeather Update Getting Poor Reviews

Douglas — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 13:10:54 +0000

AccuWeather recently updated their iPhone app and I have to say that I do not like it. It had a nice clean design with iPhone style graphics. It functioned. I finally had it figured out since the last update changed so much. Now the new app is ugly, clunky and unorganized. You’ll see there are a lot of grab handles that require you to swipe to get to more data which takes more steps to get to the same info as before. Here’s a before and after of some of the screens and lots of unhappy tweets. What do you think of the new update? Do you have another weather app that you’d recommend to others wanting to switch?

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Tweets

I strongly dislike the new @accuweatherapp update.

— Heath (@h_wolfe58) March 24, 2013

Well the accuweather app now sucks.Thanks for that useless update.

— Bryce Day (@bryce__day) March 24, 2013

The new #accuweather app is a pain in the buns.

— Kellee Schaffer (@KelS609) March 25, 2013

@accuweather‘s updated app looks positively awful. Terrible example of UX. Awful, hard to read italic fonts, stupid useless graph.

— CAT FOOD STEVENS (@disturbedcrime) March 25, 2013

Sorry @accuweather you have failed on usability with the last update on your iphone app. Please learn some or buy forecast.io #ux #design

— Burak AYDIK (@burakaydik) March 26, 2013

@accuweather I’ve recently updated my AccuWeather iPhone app and since that it doesn’t work. Any suggestions?

— Kevin McCarthy (@kmc1970) March 26, 2013

@accuweather OK, I think it looks as though the #app is providing the wrong info. I’ve switched weather apps…

— Daniel Mead (@DanMeadDesign) March 26, 2013

Anyone know NYC weather today? This is all I get with the new #AccuWeather app. twitter.com/BLDavid7/statu…

— Brian David (@BLDavid7) March 26, 2013

@accuweather Hi, your iPhone app since its update doesn’t load any more, just sits forever with the thermometer on screen

— Luke Dyson (@dualcyclone) March 26, 2013

According to my accuweather app, it’s a “fair” time for outdoor fitness, even though its also telling me it’s snowing.

— Emily (@Emilyyyhhh) March 26, 2013

Anyone else’s #accuweather not working. Very annoying even after latest update. @accuweather @accuforumstatus @accuweatherbb

— Ray Ryan (@rayryan6) March 23, 2013

@robwilb @accuweather @rayryan6 so the app works with 24 hour clock switched on. age old 24hr clock. New look is worse as well

— Bendy (@bendy) March 25, 2013

Has the snow broken the Accuweather app?

— itskatywithay (@itskatywithay) March 25, 2013

@lnlne we are continuing to investigate why the iOS version of our app is still having problems. we’ll note that the app has crashed for you

— AccuWeather.com (@accuweather) March 25, 2013

The button bar at the top of the revamped AccuWeather app isn’t real. It’s an ad. This should be illegal. twitter.com/checkypantz/st…

— Jason A. Milner (@checkypantz) March 25, 2013

“Today is a fair day for Outdoor Fitness”. Good to know. How did I function before this AccuWeather app?!

— Andy Goeddeke (@agoeddeke) March 25, 2013

They changed the Accuweather app, and now I don’t like it.

— Rachael H (@halliwellrach) March 25, 2013

Recommendations for a weather app anyone? Giving up with Accuweather after the update killed it.

— Kiz (@deililly) March 24, 2013

Thanks again to the few folks still having iPhone app problems. Your reports are helping us and we are cont. to investigate.

— AccuWeather.com (@accuweather) March 24, 2013

Nexa & Prime – 2 Clean Fonts for BytaFont

Douglas — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 03:11:13 +0000

BytaFont is a great way to make a huge change to the look of your iPhone. You can change the fonts of your Dialer, Calculator, Keyboard, Lockscreen Clock, Notes and the entire system. BytaFont needs to update to get every font working in iOS 6.1 so if you see a couple places where the font hasn’t changed, hopefully there will be an update soon. Here are a couple that I’ve been using latley since I’ve jailbroken my iPhone 5.

Nexa

Prime

AppCap – Add Day, Time, Frequency and WiFi Restrictions to Apps

Brooke — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:24:36 +0000

AppCap is a hack that allows you to set parameters on the day, time, amount of time and the number of times you can launch an application. When I heard about this hack, I knew I would have to check it out. We have four boys and our oldest, who is six, is extremely iPhone savvy… like father, like son. He does really well following the guidelines we put on his phone and it has a password that we have to enter before he is able to use it but an extra precaution couldn’t hurt right. Or, not going to lie, I might use this app to keep myself off Facebook!!

AppCap actually has quite a few options in the setting allowing the ability to be pretty specific about when the app can be used. You are able to set the number of times you can launch an app in a day (ex. the app can only be open 4 times a day), a duration of time in which the app can be launched (ex. between 7:00pm-9:00pm), the frequency in which the app can be used (ex. the app can only be used once every 4 hours), the days of the week an app can be opened (ex. it can only be opened on Saturday) and whether the app can only be launched while on WiFi or even a specific WiFi network. All of these settings can be used together. For example, you could set an app to only launch on a Saturday between 8:00pm and 10:00pm.

The only issue I have with this application is that it only allows the ability to restrict one application at a time. It would be nice to be able to create a list of apps and be able to restrict each one uniquely. It would also be sweet if there was an option to put a password on the AppCap settings. Though, overall, a nice little hack.

Note: If you have any difficultly getting the app to work correctly just toggle it on/off.

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NCSettings – System Toggles for Notification Center

Brooke — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 13:00:52 +0000

I discovered this hack on accident… kind of. NCSettings is a toggle hack and I already have SBSettings installed (another toggle hack). I wasn’t really looking to replace it, however I was looking for an easier way to toggle my mute on/off. Why you ask… because my mute switch is broken. Sad day. I blame it on children. The need to turn the mute switch on and off a million times a day apparently was not tested thoroughly. Apple really should have tested the mute switch on mothers of young children. ANYWAY… my mute switch is broken and I was getting seriously sick of moving my Accessibility AssistiveTouch button around constantly so that I could tap on things. And then Evasi0n was released and there were tears of joy (ok, there were not really tears of joy but I was happy).

NCSettings is a hack that adds a list of toggles to your Notification Center. It’s a clean little hack that allows you to toggle 18 different functions. There are also a few convenient customization options such as the ability to add/remove toggles from the display, ability to choose the number of toggles displayed before scrolling, etc. A few things I like about NCSettings are that it takes up very little space in the Notification Center and it is super clean… just icons. It did take me a little while to remember which icon stood for which function but, the mind adapts. Oh, I almost forgot, I also love that I can toggle my flash from there as well. No more searching for my flashlight app!

You will find the options for NCSettings in the stock Settings application.

Note: Don’t forget to go into the Notifications option in your Settings app and move NCSettings up into the active apps list. I moved NCSettings all the way to the top of my list so that it would display first in my Notification Center… since it is so pretty and all.

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Subway Surfers – Video App Review

Douglas — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 21:28:39 +0000

Denver, my son, wanted to show you his most recent favorite game in the App Store. It’s called Subway Surfers and it’s a lot like Temple Run only you’re running from the police… The goal is to collect coins to get upgrades like fasters shoes and different characters. Check out the video and download it free in the App Store.

Video

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Friday Favs – This Week’s Favorite Hacks and Mods

Brooke — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 05:45:16 +0000

Hi! Welcome to Friday Favs… this is where I will talk about some of my favorite mods and hacks from the week. Since the Evasi0n jailbreak was just released on Monday, this post is going to be primarily made up of the must-have mods and hacks I install as soon as I jailbreak my iDevice (in this case my iPhone).

PhotoProtect – The very first hack I installed was PhotoProtect, a hack that prevents photos from being deleted off your iDevice. If you have young children (or maybe crazy friends), you understand my need for this hack. I’m pretty sure the first thing my 2-year-old does when he picks up my iPhone is take pictures and I’m always afraid he is going to accidentally delete one in the process. Once installed, the controls for this app are in the stock Settings application. This app has an added bonus with the ability to customize the pop-up text and button text. See the screenshots below.

Note: If you have any trouble with this application, just toggle it on/off again.

ScreenShots:

Infinifolders – Infinifolders is a hack that allows you to put as many apps in a folder as you would like. Apple only allows for 12 apps in a folder (and there are times when 12 apps just doesn’t cut it!!). Seriously, there are just more than 12 apps for my “Shopping” folder. Nothing fancy with this hack, just install it and start adding more than 12 apps… no icon or settings.

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SBSettings – If you have read my previous post, you already know that SBSettings has sentimental value to me… being an old school jailbreaker and whatnot. Not only does this hack allow for quick access to brightness controls, WiFi toggle and respringing ability… it allows me to do some of my favorite hacks including changing my carrier name and adding the date to my status bar. <---- This is HUGE, it is so annoying to have to go find my calendar icon to know the current date. Now, I can just look at my status bar no matter what app I'm in (as long as the statusbar is visible obviously). The option to add the date to the statusbar is located in the More menu in SBSettings under the SBSetting Options in the menu. The ability to change the carrier name is in the More menu under the System Options in the menu. See screenshots below.

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BytaFont – BytaFont is an application that allows you to customize the fonts on your iDevice. Once installed, you can browse from a list of fonts, see screenshots of those fonts, rate fonts and choose the fonts you would like to install. I will say the app is a tiny bit clunky and does take a few minutes to learn how to use it with ease but, other than that, it does it’s job, it’s nicely designed and it has a decent list of fonts to browse through.

Note: You can get a little more specific with your font customization in the Advanced option. Check it out.

ScreenShots:

Two mods that I have installed this week are ColorClock and Message Bubble Colors. You can check out reviews of those mods HERE and HERE. Those are my Friday Favs for this week. Let me know what some of your favs are in the comments.

ColorClock – Change Color of Time and Date on Lockscreen

Brooke — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 04:29:34 +0000

ColorClock is a unique mod that allows you to change the color of both the time and the date on your lockscreen. I will say that this mod might not be for everyone. It is based on the RGB color codes and doesn’t have a crazy UI or anything… it’s pretty simple. Once you have installed ColorClock via Cydia, you will find the controls in your stock Settings application. Below is a screenshot of what the controls look like. Basically, you are creating a color based on RGB decimal color codes. The sliders go in order Red, Green, Blue.

So… I wanted to make my lockscreen clock a nice magenta pink (to match my chat bubbles of course), so I slid the R (top slider) to the right to add more red, the G (second slider) to the left to have less green and the B (bottom slider) about half way to get a fair amount of blue in my pink. If you are not big on trying to figure out your own color, this website allows you to choose a color and then will give you the color codes or it gives you a few pre-picked colors with codes and you can just use those codes to adjust the sliders in the app. I personally like to make my own colors… I kind of geek out on that stuff.

One nice thing about this mod is that it does not respring your device. If you change the color, you can just close the Settings app and lock your device and the color will be changed. Very nice.

Note: if you would like to set your font back to white, but would like to leave the mod installed, you can just adjust the sliders all the way to the right (255,255,255) to create white.

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Message Bubble Colors – Change Chat Bubble Colors

Brooke — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 03:04:11 +0000

If you are looking for a quick and easy way to mod the chat bubbles in your Messages app, Message Bubble Colors is a mod worth checking out! It is a nicely designed, simple modification with a decent amount of color options. Once you have installed Message Bubble Colors in Cydia, you can go into WinterBoard to activate the color options.

Each of the 21 colors come with an outgoing and incoming message option. This does add a lot to your WinterBoard themes menu, but it allows you more customization. Some of the colors also have an iMessage option. There is even an interesting option that removes the chat bubbles. I did notice that the Gray color option does not work correctly and I have emailed the developed about that… hopefully we will see a fix for it.

Below is a full list of the colors so that you are able to see what they look like without having to respring your device each time… seriously it took like a day and a half to get all those screenshots!!! OK, maybe not a day and a half but it did take forever. Doug said our motto should be “We respring so you don’t have to.” Ha!

Note: Because this mod does use WinterBoard, will need to make sure you already have WinterBoard installed before installing Message Bubble Colors.