Gadgets by TWKM Blog

The latest update to the Gateway Gadget adds three of the most-requested features to the app.

When viewing the Verse of the Day or a search result, you can now save the verse or search query for quick recall. You can save searches in custom-named folders and view them again later from the search view.

In addition to sharing the Verse of the Day or Reading Plan via Facebook or Twitter, you can now share what you’re reading by email right from within the app.

It is now easier than ever to change the date of Reading Plans. Whether you want to catch up on previous days or jump ahead, just tap the calendar icon to quickly choose a new date.

The update is live on the App Store now, and free for existing Gateway Gadget users. Enjoy!

I’m currently working on updates to the Gateway Gadget to bring some of the most-requested features to you.

Email sharing, saved searches, and past and future-dated Reading Plans will be coming in the next update!

Last week my latest iPhone app, Minecraft Compass, went live on the App Store.

Minecraft has become a huge phenomenon. Since the creator, Markus Persson, started developing the game a little over two years ago it has sold over 3.8 million copies. And it isn’t even done yet!

I’m among the many who have been taken by Minecraft’s open world exploring, crafting, and building mechanics. It is always interesting, always random, and you can shape the entire game around you like a digital Lego set. You can learn more about Minecraft at their site.

I created the Minecraft Compass app as an homage to the game. Mimicking an in-game item, the app allows you to set a location in the real-world and have the compass point back to that location. This can be helpful if you want to find your way back to your car in the mall parking lot, for example. Just set the location when you are at your car and follow the compass back to it when you’re done shopping.

Check out the app now on the App Store. I plan on adding some requested features in the future, including displaying how far you are from your destination and the ability to save multiple locations to your device. An Android version is also in the works! As always, if you have any feedback or feature suggestions, please get in touch.

I want to finish this post by thanking the awesome people on the www.reddit.com/r/Minecraft subreddit for their overwhelming response to my announcement of the app. I was worried for a bit there that my website would crash as a result of all of the people who came to the site to check out the app.

Thanks, and enjoy!

Update: Some versions listed in the Default Versions setting option are not available for the Verse of The Day, but they are available for Reading Plans. For this reason I have decided to leave the affected versions in the setting option, and created more detailed messaging for when a Default Version is unable to be displayed for any reason. 

EN - New International Version (1984) and EN - New Living Translation are both options available for the Default Version setting, but do not currently work for the Verse of The Day.

Unfortunately some versions were listed in the Gateway Gadget as being available for the Verse of The Day and Reading Plans, when they are actually not provided by www.biblegateway.com in the format needed for the app.

Three versions have been affected so far:

• EN - New International Version (1984)
• EN - New Living Translation
• ES - Castilian

If you notice that any other versions do not work for you from within the Gateway Gadget, please use the link provided on the error page to let me know so I can remove it from the settings.

I am truly sorry for the miscommunication on which versions were available from Bible Gateway for the iPhone app. If you have comments, questions, or feedback, please get in touch with me.

Thanks,

Troy

A new social sharing option is now available in the Gateway Gadget to allow you to share the Verse of the Day and Reading Plans with your friends and family on Facebook.

Just touch the Facebook or Twitter button to share what you are reading from right within the app. We are also working on an option to share by email, so keep an eye out for that as well!

I am nearly done an update to the Gateway Gadget which will automatically update languages, versions, and reading plans on your device each time you open the app. You will no longer have to download a whole new version of the app from the App Store each time Bible Gateway adds a new version or reading plan!
I realize it has been a while since the reading plans and versions have been updated, and I apologize for that. The upcoming update will totally circumvent the long process of updating the app, waiting for Apple to approve the update, and you downloading the app.

This will leave me more time to focus on new functionality for future versions.

I’ll post an update on Twitter when the update has been sent to Apple, and back here on the blog when it is available. 

- tM

Troy

I’ve just released an updated version of The Budgeteer budgeting app for iPhone to Apple for their review. This update is mainly bug fixes and minor feature updates. Here is everything that has been changed:

• Bug fix. 
• New add button in list items view allows you to create an item, enter it’s name, price, tax, etc. and immediately mark it as ‘Need It’ or ‘Got It’, rather than using the Quick Add Input. 
• When creating a new list using the Quick Add Input, you will automatically be taken to the new list, allowing you to start entering items with 1 less touch. 
• New icon.

UPDATE 2011-03-23: This has now been confirmed as fixed by Bible Gateway. Thanks for your patience.

BibleGateway.com is currently presenting the Reading Plans RSS feeds incorrectly.

The Gateway Gadget for iPhone uses these feeds to present you with the Reading Plans, so you may notice that the options you’ve chosen in the Settings area is not what you see in the Reading Plan view.

Bible Gateway has been notified of this, so hopefully they have it fixed shortly. In the meantime you can use the “Open Original” button to view the plan in a browser view, but you may have to change the version once the page loads.

We will update this blog when more info is available. Thanks for your patience.

You’ve worked hard to manage your spending by carefully crafting budgets, shopping wisely, and showing self-restraint, but try as you might there are still times when you blow the budget while you’re out shopping. Budgeting is half of the battle, the other half is staying within that budget.

Download The Budgeteer iPhone and iPod Touch app now to put him to work for you. Create lists, enter the items you need or have acquired, and enter their prices and whether or not taxes should be added to stay informed as you shop. The Budgeteer works hard to calculate taxes, add up your purchases, and let you know how close or far you are from exceeding your budget. The Budgeteer will show you how much of your budget is remaining, how much is spent, and he won’t try to take the control away from you.

You know where you want to shop, you know how much you want to spend, and if you do go over budget, you know whether or not that is manageable or unacceptable. The Budgeteer will not bother you by telling you peanut butter is ten cents cheaper on the other side of the city, or prevent you from purchasing items that are not in your budget.

The Budgeteer has just been released for iPhone and iPod Touch and I am very excited to introduce him to you! Download the app now to stay informed and take control of your spending.

You can learn more about The Budgeteer at the Gadgets by TWKM site.

The Gateway Gadget for iPhone and iPod Touch has been updated to include support for the Common English Bible (New Testament) version which was recently added to BibleGateway.com.

You can learn more about the CEB version at BibleGateway.com. 

The latest Gateway Gadget update allows you to search both the previous NIV version (1984) and the recently updated NIV versions. 

Check it out on the App Store to download it now!

Support for the updated New International Version is coming soon to the Gateway Gadget!

Check back here on the blog, on the Facebook page, or on the Twitter feed for announcements when it is available.

I have two announcements today, both of which I am very excited to share with you.

The first is an update to the Bible Gateway iPhone app. Version 1 of the Bible Gateway app had some problems, most related to the tools I used to develop the app. Although the tools were great to help me to get the app into your hands quickly, they weren’t very reliable. So I had to rebuild the app from the ground up to meet not only your expectations of the app, but my expectations of the app.

The update brings far more stability and ease-of-use to the app and does exactly what I set out for it to do: serve you the features of BibleGateway.com in a format suited to your iPhone or iPod Touch. Here are some of the details:

• MORE Bible translations and a new Reading Plan
• NEW in-app browser that enables you to view links and share the Verse of the Day and Reading Plans without having to leave the app
• BETTER layout and navigation
• Support for iPhone 4 Retina Display and multitasking
• Default View option has been removed, the app now automatically remembers your last used tab and takes you there when you open the app
• All Version 1 bugs have been exterminated

The second announcement is the first charitable donation from Gadgets by TWKM to our charity of choice, To Write Love on Her Arms. I am overjoyed that we have been able to contribute in a small way to the work that TWLOHA is doing. I have been following TWLOHA for a few years now and I am grateful for the work they do every day.

Thank you for being a part of this. A portion of the purchase price from your Bible Gateway app has helped to make life better for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide.

I hope you enjoy the new update,

Troy Meyer
◐ Gadgets by TWKM

Why Did I Make the Bible Gateway App?

For a while now I have been working on a new iPhone/iPod Touch app to allow you to get the Bible delivered to you in a simple and meaningful way. Yes, in a way I have already done this with a Bible Gateway web app, but I wasn’t quite satisfied with it.

I thought the navigation could be better. I thought the presentation could be better. I thought the speed of the app could be faster. So I set out to work on a new iPhone app, one that installs directly to your device, that presents what you are looking for right away, that is faster.

I love BibleGateway.com. They have created a great online service that not only lets you search through the Bible, it lets you search through the Bible in any language or translation you prefer. It provides you with a daily verse and multiple daily reading plans. 

I really wanted to be able to access their features quickly and easily on my iPhone. So I created an app to do just that.

It’s Just About Here!

I’m happy to announce that the new app is nearly ready for release. I’m happy to announce that I’m happy with this version of the iPhone app. It does exactly what I wanted it to. You can read the verse of the day and the reading plan you prefer, in the versions you prefer, on the device you love. You can search from it as well, if you want to look up a verse or topic.

Preview The App Now!

It is not quite ready to be submitted to Apple, but I want to provide you with a preview of how the app looks, feels, and works.

I have updated the ad-supported web app so you can start playing with it now. It has all of the same features as the new app, but it is entirely free. The web app is supported by ads, but the new app will be ad-free and will run a lot faster installed directly to your device.

Start playing with the updated web app now by visiting http://twkm.ca/g/1 from Safari on your device. If you have any feedback please visit the contact page at the Gadgets by TWKM website, I’d love to hear it.

Get Yourself a Free Version

I will be doing a draw to send promotional codes to ten lucky US app users! All you have to do is:

• Sign up to the mailing list and confirm your email address. Make sure that you confirm your email address, I want to be sure I can notify you if you won.
• When the app is submitted to Apple I will send you a quick email letting you know the app should soon be available.
• Once the app is available I will send one more quick email letting you know, and announcing the winners!

A random draw will be made of all mailing list subscribers in the US who have confirmed their email address. Ten lucky US app users will receive promotional codes for free copies of the new app.

Unfortunately, promotional codes are only redeemable in the United States App Store. You can definitely still sign up to the mailing list if you are not in the US, however. I will let all subscribers know when the app is submitted and approved by Apple.

I hope you enjoy the new version!

- Troy Meyer

Gadgets by TWKM now has a page on Facebook to allow you to connect and communicate both with Gadgets by TWKM and other gadget users. 

I’ve been looking for a way to open a clear line of communication for everyone who uses a Gadgets by TWKM gadget, and after looking around I believe that Facebook is the best forum. Previously, communication happened through my blog where readers could comment, but that didn’t feel “two-way” enough. I think that Facebook is the best place for us to connect and share.

So check out the Facebook page. You can send in your questions, feature requests, and get involved. Meet others who are using gadgets and stay informed.

Exclusive Leak on Facebook

Soon I will be posting some screenshots of two different layouts for the new Bible Gateway iPhone app on the Facebook page and I want your feedback. Let me know on the Facebook page which layout you like best, why you like it, and add your suggestions and comments. Your input will help shape the future Bible Gateway iPhone/iPod Touch App!

See you there!

- Troy “TWKM” Meyer

I have always felt that success is a product of sharing. All of the moments in my life that make me feel like a success have been when I have shared my time, talents, and money with someone else or helping someone else.

So I’ve decided to donate a portion of all Gadgets by TWKM revenue to a group of charities and causes. I will be maintaining a list of these charities at http://twkm.ca/gadgets/charities/. 

The first charity that I have added is To Write Love on Her Arms. This is the TWLOHA Mission Statement, from their website:

“To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.”

The success of Gadgets by TWKM will be shared with other worthwhile causes, because I think success is meant to be shared. Thanks for your support of Gadgets by TWKM (and the charities that Gadgets by TWKM supports).

I am happy to announce that I have been working on a new version of the Bible Gateway for iPhone app. I have a bunch of changes in mind to make the gadget faster and easier to use, to give you the best Bible reading experience possible.

The biggest change is be that it will be available on the App Store, so you can install the app directly to your iPhone or iPod Touch. The new gadget will run faster and will have a redesigned interface, allowing you to choose either the Verse of the Day or the Bible Reading Plan as your default view after the gadget loads.

In the meantime, the free web app is available for all iPod Touch and iPhone users. You can use and add that version to your iPhone or iPod touch by visiting http://twkm.ca/g/1 from your device.

Keep an eye on the blog and my Twitter account for more details as they come out. If you have any suggestions or questions please send them to me through Twitter or the Contact Page at the Gadgets by TWKM website.

You can now share the Verse of the Day or your Bible Reading plan with your Twitter followers on both the iPhone and iGoogle versions of the Bible Gateway Gadget!

You will find the

Here’s an example of what your Twitter followers will see:

If you are not already logged in, Twitter will ask you to log in first. If you are, all you have to do is hit the Update button to share with all of your Twitter friends!

Enjoy sharing the verse of the day and your reading plan on Twitter!

Speaking of Twitter, I’m on Twitter too! Follow me and I will follow you back.