Pop Divas VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Add up to 8 Artist Specific Live Tiles (see above) by dragging down on the artists list box:

or by selecting the live tile from the dedicated Live Tile page:

Download Pop Divas now: http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=cc1e9758-9e84-47b2-ae78-378c86158ac0

Great performances from these denizens of Rock:

"David Bowie";
"Freddie Mercury";
"Elvis Presley";
"Mick Jagger";
"Jon Bon Jovi";
"Kurt Cobain";
"Bono";
"Jimi Hendrix";

DOWNLOAD: http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=cfcba309-bf03-4da3-87c2-ff2c0e4b00fd

As of today new tiles will be highlighted with a red dot in the upper right hand corner:

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Live Tile Browser is available free here 

If you have your own live tile – you’ve made it.

If you enjoy this app – you’ve maybe lost it.

If you have written this app – you’ve definitely lost it.

and If you are none of the above – wtf?

I thought it might be kind of interesting to have this app on my own phone.  I like to know when most of these guys have a new video and this app allows me to add a live tile which updates with each new post (and if I am that much of a geek to want to do this then why shouldn’t I?)

Here’s what a Windows Phone looks like when it is crammed full of softie tiles <—

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So how did this app come about?

Well I guess you would have to say that things have gotten to be quite desperate. I’m well off the rails my son.  Desperate maybe, but not serious, as a notable ant once said.

NB If you really do enjoy this app please consider donating to my favourite charities by purchasing a copy of ‘Live Tile News’:

http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=d6f47b28-8be1-40d1-97ed-32b101216557

Thanks!

Ian

Download:

http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=8f1fa59d-e875-4df7-a57d-6a7162257146

The new Arc mouse is rather nice and, dare I say it, even better than the last Arc mouse (Which in itself was a superb example of great design).

So why is it better?

Well its’ kind of aimed at being your personal travelling mouse, it folds flat with the tiny USB connector stuck to its’ front (with a strong magnet). This is actually great for slipping into a laptop case or slip pouch without being overly bulky.  When you want to use if the mouse ripples into a comfortable mouse shape with a quick flex of its spine (easier done than described).  And the process of folding/unfolding the mouse for use is also the on/off switch – genius!

I have used the mouse for long periods and can confirm that it remains a joy to use.  If I had one criticism then it might be aimed at the mouse wheel strip which, at the same time as being amazing, still doesn’t quite feel 100% natural.  Notwithstanding, I would urge everyone reading to try one of these out at a local store, or maybe even just go for it online (you are not going to be disappointed).

Full marks go to the designer, this mouse definitely takes the cheese…

UPDATE: Great deal on this mouse from Amazon

If you are still reading here is the simple walkthrough:

Go to the WindowsPhoneMarketPlace and retrieve a link to the App you want to use

EG http://www.windowsphone.com/en-GB/apps/798a731f-c0f0-4c2a-b8b1-c1590a0d66ac

Paste this into the space provided:

(this will trigger the population of the other feeds).

Click on “Generate Banners” to create the full set of banners (see below)

My eldest daughter returned home from school with a note saying that they were looking for children to audition as extras for the BBC and that she would like to go along.  So we (the family) combined this with existing plans to meet up with friends in town at the venue in question seemingly for coffees and a chat. Luckily on the day we arrived early and avoided much of the queues while the BBC processed over 500 potential extras!

So some time passed and I got a phone call saying that if I was available the BBC could make use of me as an extra in a couple of upcoming films (Henry IV and Henry V).  Great,  that sounds interesting thought I and I went along the following Tuesday for a ‘fitting’.  This involved dressing up as a Nobleman, complete with heavy robes, wig and floppy hat!   Fun!

On the day of filming I met up with my friend and we spent the best part of 12 hours being made up then, for the most part, walking ‘in to places’, ‘through places’ and ‘out of places’ within (and without) the magnificent Gloucester Cathedral – many, many times over while the Director ensured that everything was up to the mark.

Highlight of the day was having the fortune to be the last extra walking out of a room for as a result of this I was singled out for attention ‘as though I was an actor’ for I was the only extra in the scene (with a dead Tom Hiddleston) who had indeed to spring into action* when the director called for the same (This I managed to do several times without tripping over).  That said, anyone who knows me will know that I don’t really care for being singled out for attention so when I noticed that John Hurt was standing next to the camera with eyes focused intently on me (or so it seemed) I nearly shat myself. Thank god all I had to do was walk a few paces! (Now most people when they think of John Hurt in an acting role will probably think of “The Elephant Man” or “Caligula” or even Quentin Crisp but for me the association is with one of my favorite films which goes all the way back to 1979 … Alien! )

In discussing the day my friend remarked that appearing in such a film, even as an extra, is a once in a  lifetime experience, and I have to agree, it was a fantastic day (albeit a surprisingly tiring one).

Oh, and before anyone gets too excited about my being singled out for a starring role in the production, I am sad to say that all you will maybe see in the film is my legs, walking, albeit slowly, and then, I suspect, only very fleetingly …

(Sadly the BBC didn’t want anyone to take pictures).

3.10 Country/Region Specific Requirements

3.10.1

Requirements Expected Result
Content that is offensive in any country/region to
which your application is targeted is not allowed.
Content may be considered offensive in certain
countries/regions because of local laws or cultural
norms. Examples of potentially offensive content
in certain countries/regions include, but are not
limited to the following:

-People in revealing clothing or in sexually suggestive poses
-Religious references
-Alcohol references
-Sexual or bathroom humor
-Simulated or actual gambling

Countries/regions for which one or more parts of
3.10 may apply include the following:

Group 1: China
Group 2: Malaysia, Indonesia

I removed the 3 Countries from the list and resubmitted.

I understand what has happened here but would have preferred that the App was published with the offending Countries removed automatically, perhaps with a note supplied to me (or a ‘Warning’ submission report) outlining the issue.

I am guessing that fart machines might would also fail under 3.10.1?

Happy Families:

http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=277219eb-be38-47ab-93d8-c5205eaae942

A few people have asked what controls were used in the ‘Live Tile News’ app to create the ‘Flipping Live Tiles’ that feature on each page (If you haven’t tried this app yet then each page has a number of two sided tiles which can be flipped over with an upward – or downward, flick of the thumb).

The basic control is made up of a couple of standard list box controls for each panorama item page:

(Click to enlarge)

Each ListBox is then populated with enough items to fill 1 screen (ie x2 – 1 for each side of the tile).  For this I used a user control but a template would work just as well.  The key to the flipping functionality is the transformation element, which sits on the root grid of the UserControl:

The “Rotator” element is manipulated by a couple of storyboards which site in the XAML immediately previous to the above:

(Click to enlarge)

With the engineering in place all that is required now is to identify the gestures and trigger the storyboards and image switching as required:

NB The gestures are listened for using the ManipulationCompleted events which I set up in the constructor:
 

The Event handler that handles all the listbox manipulation events then has the responsibility of identifying the type of manipulation that has taken place by checking the relevant X & Y coordinates:

(Click to enlarge)

If a ‘flip’ action is detected then, after setting a progressively slower storyboard start time dependent on the usercontrols’ (BBCTile) position within the ListBox, the user control’s  “StoryFlip” Storyboard action is triggered. 

NB Note that when this first storyboard action has completed the tile has travelled 90 degrees to the user and apears at that point to be invisible – the image on the tile is then switched before calling the second storyboard (Named “StoryFlipBack”) which finishes the rotation and shows the ‘virtual backside’ of the UserControl.

NB I am not convinced that the staggered start time has any real impact on the effectiveness on the transition.  At the time of writing I feel there is still opportunity to enhance the flipping effect such that it appears more natural!

In a future post I will look at the additional gesture that allows each tile to be added as a ‘Live Tile’ to the home screen.

The following Apps make use of this effect:

• Live Tile News (free – ad supported)
• Live Tile News (No Ads, small donation)
• Live Tile Browser
• News in Pictures
• Sport in Tiles I
• Sport in Tiles II

One of the things that I heard tell of on this day was “turn by turn game play over the XBOX live network”.  Great! Thought I and envisaged playing ‘Shove Halfpenny’ with my in Laws in Dublin.  “Ahhh, but Xbox Live is reserved for ‘la crème de la crème’” I was told.  And that was pretty much that.

It’s no secret that the XBOX Live games are indeed ‘la crème de la crème’ and it is difficult (though not impossible) for independent developers to develop a successful XBOX Live enabled game.

So I guess those words ‘la crème de la crème’ have always bothered me a bit and I started to daydream about opportunities for independent developers like myself.  (Indeed, this was the thinking behind my series of blog posts on Marketing for Independent Developers last year).

But now there may be a glimmer of hope for us downtrodden indies, the faint glint of a tool that might help us in our toil.  What if we could harness the thing that singly differentiates and at the same time exemplifies what is great about Windows Phone? What might I be referring to?

The “Live Tile” of course!

Yes, Live Tiles are great, but how on earth do you find them?  You maybe find an App you like the sound of, then read the description hoping for an indication that it supports live tiles?.

But now there is …

The “Live Tile Browser” tm

What is it? Well its free, so the easiest thing to do if you are that way inclined is to download it and have a quick play:

http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=d68906de-da5d-4f64-9b88-154f1f5d3c07

If you would like to read a bit more, or perhaps participate by marketing your own Live tiles through the browser app and its sister site (http://LiveTiles.co.uk) there is another blog post with more information here: Live Tile Marketplace Browser

I would also really appreciate your feedback.  What do you think of the idea?  How can it be improved on?  Should MS be doing this?

Please let me know your thoughts.

• Live Tile Browser
• Live Tile News