Welcome back! It's good to see you again. Please note that I am now publishing all new material at my hub site: StephenPSmith.com

Productivity in Context’s own Wednesday writer has put together an e-book entitled “Think Spiritual: Favorite Posts from The Daily Saint on Everyday Spirituality” that you can get here: Think Spiritual.

Also, Leo Babauta from ZenHabits has a giveaway for people that buy his new book, if you order it before the end of New Year’s Day. One of the choices is an exclusive audio podcast of weight loss tips from Leo, packaged with a special sneak peek of an audio interview — Leo interviewing GTD author David Allen — which will be released to the public next week sometime.

If you found this post useful, please share it with your friends on Twitter using the tinylink http://tinyurl.com/a2tdph. Thanks, I appreciate it! Feel free to comment below, I enjoy discussing these ideas. ~@Stephen

Early Look: Top 10 Android Apps - Website Magazine Consumer Corner - Website Magazine

T-Mobile released the G1 mobile phone to the public this week, the first true competitor to the iPhone. And what makes the G1 a legitimate threat is Google’s Android operating system, complete with apps, just like the iPhone. But Android apps will play a significant role in attempting to dethrone the iPhone - mostly because its open source, developers will face less scrutiny and easier acceptance for app creations, and because Android apps will eventually work across more networks, and more phones. So, let’s take a peek at some of the early apps, ranked somewhat loosely in popularity according to Website Magazine’s Peter Prestipino’s shiny new G1. The numbers are current as of this writing. (If the apps below are not linked, it’s because the Android website is not displaying them, but they are available through the G1 itself.)

1. ShopSavvy: 10,000-50,000 downloads, 538 ratings (4.5/5 stars). Scan barcodes with your camera and find the best prices on the Internet, and at nearby stores. We recently wrote a review about a similar, non-Android application, with mixed results. My guess is that the Android app is much more capable.
2. The Weather Channel: 10,000-50,000 downloads, 432 ratings (4.5/5 stars). No surprise here, and the name pretty much sums it up.
3. MySpace Mobile: 10,000-50,000 downloads, 348 ratings (3.5/5 stars). Again, the name says it all. What’s interesting is that this is the lowest rated (by stars) app on the list. It’s unclear whether that’s because of its functionality, or the G1’s audience.
4. WikiMobile Encyclopedia: 10,000-50,000 downloads, 125 ratings (4/5 stars). Over two million articles, including images. “Faster and uses just a fraction of the network data vs. the Android browser.”
5. T-Mobile HotSpot: 10,000-50,000 downloads, 146 ratings (4/5 stars). Automatically determines when you are in a T-Mobile WiFi hotspot, enabling the user to connect that way instead of the 3G network, saving battery power. Theoretically, would also allow a connection to Skype, saving on minutes.
6. Accuweather: 5,000-10,000 downloads, 205 ratings (4/5 stars). Not much information on this one yet, but one forum I read found that this app was “way better than The Weather Channel app.” Accuweather app includes a live Doppler radar map, also according to the forum.
7. Compare Everywhere: 5,000-10,000 downloads, 205 ratings (4/5 stars). Similar to ShopSavvy - scan barcodes, find out if you’re getting a good deal. Includes reviews, shopping lists and wish lists. The personal favorite of Website Magazine’s editor - and his wife’s.
8. Pro Football Live: 5,000-10,000 downloads, 119 ratings (4/5 stars). A football fan site, with live updates and scoring, news, photos and a personalized home page.
9. Translate: 5,000-10,000 downloads, 81 ratings (4/5 stars). Language translator - type in a word or phrase and get the translation in the language you select. Supports 150 language pairs.
10. PicSay: 5,000-10,000 downloads, 126 ratings (4.5/5 stars). An on-the-fly photo editor. Distort images, add shading and effects, speech bubbles and props to your photos, then share them with friends via email, your blog or online phot sharing sites.

Keep in mind that these are actual applications, and not games. However, many of these applications have more ratings than games and just as many downloads (at least as far as we can tell from the less than precise download numbers.) It’s interesting to note that two on this list are shopping services. It perhaps indicates that the G1 audience is a little more business- or consumer-oriented than the iPhone - also indicated by the low rating of the MySpace app. It might also be a sign that mobile e-commerce is going to heat up, now that consumers are armed with more viable tools.

If you found this post useful, please share it with your friends on Twitter using the tinylink http://tinyurl.com/59vu5t. Thanks, I appreciate it! Feel free to comment below, I enjoy discussing these ideas. ~@Stephen

I was recently contacted for a brief interview on collaboration and co-creation by Insight Magazine, and my friend Ryan Rasmussen and I were quoted in the magazine. You can see it online here, or find it on newsstands.

The magazine article was inspired by discussions that Ryan had with the D*I*Y*Planner community. When I got to meet Ryan face-to-face at SOBCon in Chicago this past May, I asked him about those discussions and how they led to a new product being offered by the company that he worked for. Then he showed me the prototype of the “Circa PDA” (or cPDA) that he developed with the productivity/planner community:

Ryan goes on to offer some advice for companies that are interested in getting involved with existing communities:

Thanks Ryan! If you are interested in seeing pics of some of these iterations and early prototypes, you can check out Ryan’s flickrset here.

Now here is an excerpt from the article, I’d love to hear your thoughts:

Co-creation Theory - INSIGHT Article - Jul. 2008

In the last three years, this interaction has become even more intimate. Consumers are wielding greater influence earlier on in the product development process, and are now contributing their ideas even before a product hits the market.

Levenger, a manufacturer and retailer of productivity tools, often turns to its consumers for new ideas. The company originally hired Ryan Rasmussen as a salesperson with a desire to experiment online as an extension of his duties. The process of engagement and collaboration within online communities, however, developed into an entirely new position for Levenger, that of an Emerging Media Specialist.

With activities that blur the silos of online marketing, customer service and public relations, Rasmussen’s interactions now hinge on seeding community brainstorms and prototyping new product ideas with online collaborators in forums, blogs and persistent virtual environments like Second Life.

“A lot of our online customers are eager to share their opinions, not just on new products, but also on how to improve existing products,” says Rasmussen. “Participation in these conversations provides customers with a genuine connection to a brand they care about, and a voice in the direction that brand takes.”

Levenger’s Circa PDA, for example, was the brainchild of an online community. The idea was to create a mini-notebook for on-the-go note-taking. After gathering input from users of a popular online productivity forum, D*I*Y Planner, Rasmussen created a prototype. “It’s a process of hacking and cracking,” says Rasmussen. “I fast-prototype with the same kind of tools that the community would use—an Exacto knife, a Dremel tool–—and I take (existing) products apart and try to do different things with them.”

After creating the prototype, Rasmussen took a picture and posted it online to generate even more input. The Circa PDA is now one of Levenger’s standard product offerings. “A lot of these communities really offer the best new ideas for products,” Rasmussen explains. “Engaging this talent requires nothing more than a willingness to participate and recognize each community member’s value through open conversation.”

You can read the entire article here - Co-Creation Theory.

If you found this post useful, please share it with your friends on Twitter using the tinylink http://tinyurl.com/6pl6ow. Thanks, I appreciate it! Feel free to comment below, I enjoy discussing these ideas. ~@Stephen

If you found this post useful, please share it with your friends on Twitter using the tinylink http://tinyurl.com/5slc26. Thanks, I appreciate it! Feel free to comment below, I enjoy discussing these ideas. ~@Stephen