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By Jazmin Butler
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The podcast currently has 18 episodes available.
This episode of Living Digital takes a look at the app development process.
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Show NotesNeed help staying on track with your New Year's Resolution? This episode highlights a few apps to help you reach your goals. You got this!
Forgot your headphones? No worries! Here's the transcript of this week's episode:
Alright! 2016. New Beginnings! The future is on everyone's mind...probably. We're not that far into the new year, so I'm sure a few people are still gung ho about their resolutions. Unless you're not the "new year, new me" type. But whether you're the resolution type or not, I think the apps mentioned on today's episode's are a step in the right direction for anyone trying to course correct or improve their quality of life.
So, according to a Nielsen poll ranking the most common resolutions, you guys want to be better with money, enjoy life to the fullest. And number one by a mile was of course lose...weight and get healthy. Side note, the Quantified Self Movement was built for this. Quantified self refers to self tracking we do with technology. Some of you might be wearing some type of activity tracker as you listen to this. Fuel Band, Fitbit. The Apple Watch.
I don't have one myself. I pretty much stick to my phone when it comes to quantified self. Some of my apps are absolutely an asset when comes to meeting personal goals.
Which makes sense because according to a Pew Report, 46% of people that track their health end up changing their over all approach to their health. So, people are tracking, counting, and swiping their way to their goals.
So let's get to these apps:
In the past, I've had goals to reach my peak physical form. Well, not just in the past. But, this is the most common and capitalized on resolution out there. And the same way sales go up for sneakers and juicers, downloads skyrocket for fitness apps like Lose It and MyfitnessPal. And while those apps aren't new, they have staying power for a reason.
Screen shot from the MySymptoms app
I first heard about Lose It around 2011. Someone I knew lost like, 30 pounds in 3 months. So, I was like ok, let me apply this to my goal. Which was gaining 10 lbs of muscle. And when it comes apps like this, the magic isn't necessarily in all of the cool functionality or data analysis. It literally just makes you pay attention to what you're doing. Because numbers don't lie.
Catching correlations is one of the most valuable parts of all this. Like, how else would you realize you break in to hives every time you eat carrots in New Mexico on Tuesday's. Yeah, I know that was like a Mad Lib. But speaking of allergies, the hypochondriac in me really appreciates the MySymtoms app. I'm going to link to all these apps on livingdigital.me
But enough about food. Let's move on to the next resolution. Saving money. When was the last time I logged in to my Mint account. Well, there was just a lot going on. If you don't know, Mint is a money management tool that's lets you have all your bank accounts and investments in one place so you can track spending, make budgets, get bill reminders, create savings goals, track your credit score. It's just a lot. And I was so enthusiastic initially. I mean, it's depressing once you incorporate student loans and all that. But, you know, I had goals and I was organized. But then life happens. It wasn't seamlessly integrated into my life.
Screenshot from the Sweep app
However, I did come across an app relevant to basic financial needs. It's called Sweep and their tagline is: Budget less. Save Money. Track bills. I like that. Right to the point. The differentiator is it forecasts your cashflow. That seems really useful, because at the end of the day we really just want to know what we can spend when. I want to try it out for a few months and see how I like it.
I'll link to some other finance apps on the blog.
Alright, the final resolution: Living life to the fullest. The same way the body benefits from monitoring, your mind does as well. Mental self care can make all the difference. I heard a Ted Talk by Guy Winch about emotional hygiene. And what I took from it is getting to that new year new you might require tending to the psychological injuries from the previous year. Whether it derives from the loss of a loved one, a breakup, weight gain, job loss, or divorce. It's easier to say, "Oh, I'll just leave that in 2015", than actually doing it. So, before we get to June and forget what our resolutions were, I suggest trying out apps like Way of Life, MoodTrack, and Headspace.
For those with the goal of becoming more optimistic or even navigating through trauma, I like the Moodtrack App. It creates easy to read graphs based on your own words, provides useful data, and guides you toward more mindful habits.
Screenshot from the Way of Life app
Another app that helps you spot trends is Way of Life. I heard about it on the Tim Ferris show. It's simple "yes or no" functionality lets you track your habits. That simple. Did you meditate today? Yes. Sleep more than 7 hrs? Yes. Binge on social media?...Yes. Just like Moodtrack, you can see your habits laid out visually. Red and green tiles side by side. I like it because it's so simple to update. You're just like yes, yes, no, yes and move on. It's also like a game. How many green tiles can I get in a row? The human mind is interesting that way.
And finally there's Headspace A beautiful well produced meditation app and self proclaimed "gym membership for your mind". Emphasis on membership.
Just like a gym, they're motivated to get you to join. Headspace indoctrinates users with their Take Ten program. Fun Fact: Prior to putting out the app, the creator, Andy Puddicombe, was a Buddhist monk. Now, he's worth over 30 million dollars.
Screenshots from the Headspace app
But yeah, for Take Ten there are ten 10 minute guided meditations for free within the app. Very relaxing. Andy is like the laid back British friend you didn't realize you had *Insert bad impression of Andy*. After you complete Take 10 you have the option to access more meditations (different lengths and topics) for...$12.00 a month.
And was like "What am I getting for that?" And personally, it's kind of vague. They say there's thousands of hours of meditation on various topics. But you know who else has that? YouTube. For. The. Free.
And before I discovered this app I'd been listening to guided meditation podcasts. Again, for free.
But that doesn't mean I won't try it out. For you know...research purposes. When I do, I'll let you know the overall impact. What I do like is that for every subscription purchased, the company donates a Headspace subscription to someone in need.
What ever your goals are, don't give up. There's an entire industry built around helping you help yourself.
What apps do you use to improve your quality of life? Let me know on the Facebook page. Facebook.com/livingdigtalpodcast
Also, if you like the podcast I'd love if you could leave a review in iTunes or simply share an episode with someone you know! And as always, thanks for listening. (And reading) ;)
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This week I speak with voice actor and author Kareem Taylor. Our conversation touches on personal branding, being fearless in the digital age, and more!
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You know how some apps spike in popularity? Before you know it, your timeline is flooded with the newest way for people to express their digital identity. Here's my take on the Motion Portrait app.
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An online persona is a carefully and sometimes not so carefully crafted identity one establishes online. This includes everything from your profile pic to the people you choose to retweet. Are you getting the most out of yours?
Mentioned on this episodePersonal branding done right.
@Vashtie
@Mrdabney
@TimFerriss
@_ChrisClassic
@Ownbyfemme
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This week's episode reviews some best practices for online behavior.
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Make-up apps are definitely a great way for makeup addicts to get a fix. The latest and most innovative among them being MakeupGenius from L'Oreal Paris. This episode of Living Digital describes the app functionality and my experience with it.
Trying out different looks using the MakeupGenius app
Download MakeupGenius from the app store!
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Memes and gifs are everywhere! This episode breaks down the basics of memes and gifs, and highlights some great sources for those that love sharing and creating memes.
Definition via Google
Click through to view each on http://giphy.com/
Apps to create gifs
Google Play
iOS
Best Places to find Memes and Gifs
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Transcript
And then I said "Hey girl. So, you're telling me, that moment when you're forever alone, One does not simply say "you mad bro.?"
So if you're an internet addict, you might have noticed that sentence was made up of meme titles. Which speaks to how many and how popular they are. Today's episode I'll breifly break d own the basic s then highlight some great sources for those meme makers and lovers. But first.. the definition. Wikipedia defines it as an idea, behavior or style that spreads from person to person within a culture. According to about.com, the word "meme" derives from the word mimema. M-I-M-E-M-A. Which means something immitated. It was introduced by Richard Dawkins. and his definition categorizes it as a way for people to transmit social memories and cultural ideas to each other, which accurately describes what is known today as an internet meme. To be more specific, where the internet is concerned, memes are spread via, images, videos, hashtags, and even intentional misspelling. We also have the gif, the memes cousin.
Gif, which stands for graphic interchange format, is often defined with a lot of tech jargon. but I like the urban dictionary definition . It is "A form of computer image that moves as an animation, because it consists of frames, like a movie with no sound."
Gifs in themselves can be considered memes. What makes them so popular or appealing? well, It has the same structure, as a running joke. A lot of the time the origin brings the initial interest but layers added by the online community is the true essence. And it takes a really creative person to use in a creative way. This art has actually become a profession in itself. People like King batch and Brittany Furlan], are professionally "in on the joke" and If you're on vine, some of those names probably sound familiar. Hence why they have been able to monitize their personality, more or less. I bring this up because you can't talk about gifs without mentioning Vine.
Vine, which launched in 2013, is a short form video sharing service. Like gifs, they play in continuous loops, have been used to express reactions, or they are watched over and over simply for the entertainment value.
I'll post some of the most popular memes, gifs and vines on the blog and you'll see just which social memories tend to resonate with society. I'm interested in seeing what analysis will be made about this time period based on our affinity for...some of these crazy images I see on my twitter timeline.
When it comes to creating memes, the functionality is available in most photo apps. At this point the meme uniform consist of white block letters at the top and bottom of an image. So it's a straight forward way to create from your own photos. But of course there are apps made specifically for meme creation. For google play the top apps include "Best meme generator", "free meme generator" and "GATM meme generator". For ios, top apps include "Meme factory, "meme maker" and "imgur memeGen". thats I-M-G-U-R then M-E-M-E-G-E-N
When it comes to viewing memes, entire communities exist; imgur (or image jurr, however you prefer to pronounce it) and reddit and tumblr being among the most popular. A lot of times the comments are the best part and may generate a memes of itsown. So that shows again that the creatvity of community is what breeds memes.
What are some of your favorite memes? post them on our Facebook page which is (enter) or tweet us.
Photo Credit: Reńe Daniella of OwnByFemme.com
Living Digital chats with app developer, photographer, entrepreneur, and all around great guy Vaughn Dabney. In this episode, Vaughn shares a few of his projects, tells us what brought him to the world of app development, and gives advice to those aspiring to follow a similar path. To learn more about Vaughn, go to http://mrdabney.com/.
Soundr
Collectiv
Social Note
Codecademy
Udemy
And as a bonus, check out Ted Blog's 10 Places Where Anyone Can Learn to Code
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Image Courtesy of Reuters
This episode of Living Digital takes a look at the wearables industry.
Welcome to WearablesBehold the various forms of wearable technology.
Mota Smart RingInteract with your notifications without constantly being on your phone.
Image Courtesy of Mota
Similar in functionality to the Mota Smart Ring but for the chunky jewelry enthusiasts.
Image Courtesy of Ringly
Tracks and streams biometric data to your phone in realtime.
Image Courtesy of Ralph Lauren
Features include fitness tracking, voice control, and notification capabilities.
Image Courtesy of Motorola
Provides realtime insights about your baby's activity (including body position, temperature and breathing pattern).
Image Courtesy of Dulcie Madden
Bringing technology more seamlessly into everyday life by providing a second screen for your mobile device.
Image Courtesy of Google
This sports bra is equipped with a heart rate monitor. (Compatible with various fitness apps).
Image Courtesy of Sensoria
Last but not least, this customizable watch lets you see and respond to messages, track fitness activity, make payments, and more.
Image Courtesy of Apple
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Transcript
Welcome to the podcast. Darth Vader, Geordi La Forge, Tony Stark have in common? Wearables: the subject of today's podcast. Wearables refer to wearable technology. Like the Smarthome industry, it weaves technology into everyday life to make things easier. The main functionality we see today is related to quantified self. If you aren’t familiar with the quantified-self movement, it is a way for us to incorporate technology into the collection of data. Like physical activity, sleep patterns, heart rate, etc. They come in various forms. watches, wristbands, and of course Google glass.The podcast currently has 18 episodes available.