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There was no In the news last week because my house had no electricity due to Hurricane Isaac, so in today’s issue I’m pointing out some interesting articles I’ve seen over the last two weeks.  Of course, the biggest news right now is that in just a few days, on September 12, Apple is going to announce the new iPhone, and presumably will also release iOS 6.  As we wait to learn more about that big news, here are the other news items of note:

• Rocket Matter is a cloud-based legal billing and law practice management solution for small and medium larger firms, and I know many attorneys who use and love the service.  This week, Rocket Matter announced a new iPhone app, so attorneys who use the service while on-the-go no longer need to use a more cumbersome web-based interface.  The app looks really nice.
• San Francisco attorney Deanne Katz of FindLaw recommends external keyboards for the iPad.  My favorite combination is the Apple Wireless Keyboard with the Incase Origami Workstation.
• Saul Elbein of the New York Times reports that Paris, Texas Judge Bill Harris decided a complicated and controversial oil pipeline condemnation suit by sending a 15-word ruling from his iPhone.
• California attorney Morgan Smith explains his verdict calculator for iPad and gives you a link so that you can download it yourself.  It requires Apple’s Numbers app.
• iOS 6 will have a lot of great new features for iPhones and iPads when it comes out (presumably next week).  One change is that the Maps app will no longer use information from Google Maps and instead will use Apple’s own map information.  This means that we will no longer have Google Street View, but we will have Flyover, which uses detailed 3D models.  Daniel Eran Dilger of RoughlyDrafted Magazine has a great explanation of what will be new in Maps.
• David Pogue of the New York Times recommends apps that let your iPhone act like a walkie talkie to send quick voice messages to another person instead of text messages.
• Joe Kissell of Macworld recommends apps to edit Microsoft Excel files on the iPad.  I usually use Appple’s Numbers app to do this.
• Dan Miller of Macworld discusses three cloud-based solutions for running Microsoft Office on an iPad.
• Jeff Gamet of The Mac Observer reports that Delta Airlines is providing 4,500 iPads to airport restaurants so that diners can order meals using the iPads, and then use them to check news, weather, etc.  I’d much rather use my own iPad when I travel, but I’ll be interested to see what becomes of this.
• Speaking of flying, I wish that I could use my iPhone or iPad during takeoff and lasting — not to talk on the phone, but just to use the device.  Todd Shields of Bloomberg reports that the FAA is now studying letting people do that.
• Reporter Harry McCracken of Time explains whey the iPad is his favorite computer and what he uses to do most of his work.
• Katherine Boehret of the Wall Street Journal / All Things D has a good list of iPhone tips and tricks.
• TeleNav, a company which provides GPS navigation software, conducted a national survey and learned that 83% of iPhone users believe that other iPhone users make the best romantic partners, and 33% of respondents would rather give up sex for a week than give up their mobile phone.
• If you are around my age, then chances are you remember using an Atari 2600 in the early 1980s, and you know that some of the best games were made by Activision — the first third-party publisher of video games for consoles.  Last week, Activation released a free app called Activision Anthology that lets you play some of those great 2600 games on an iPhone or iPad.  You need to buy the classic games (like Pitfall) in the app, but it comes with one free game, and it was one of my favorite games when I was a kid:  Kaboom!  Using a finger to play the game doesn’t seem right — that game was the best ever use of a paddle controller — but it is fun to see the sights and sounds of a great game from 1981.  (I wonder what ever happened to my Activision Bucket Brigade patch?)  Click here for Activision Anthology (free): 

  

• And finally, while you are playing those video games from the early 1980s, why not also blow the dust off the box containing your old cassette tapes and convert them to MP3 files that your iPhone can play?  Later this month, Hammacher Schlemer will start selling the Cassette to iPod Convertor, an $80 device that turns your iPhone or iPod touch into a cassette player and recorder.  I think I still have some cassette tapes stuffed into a box somewhere around here, but I can only imagine how disappointing the sound quality would be if I tried to play them today.  You may make better use of your $80 by just purchasing those songs from iTunes.  Nevertheless, this device does look amusing:

Yesterday, Apple announced that it will make an announcement on September 12th.  Apple didn’t actually say what the announcement is for — the invitation to select journalists simply states “It’s almost here” —  but we all know that it will be the new iPhone.  The invitation includes this picture:

The “12" surely corresponds to September 12, and the shadow shows the number five.  That could simply refer to the fifth anniversary of the iPhone (which debuted in 2007), but I think it more likely means that the next iPhone will be called the iPhone 5.

We’ll find out next week what the new iPhone will include, but Macworld has a good summary of the current best guesses, including fast LTE connectivity, a bigger 16×9 display, a smaller dock connector, and an improved camera.

The announcement will occur at 10 Pacific / 1 Eastern on September 12 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco.

Thanks to all of you who sent kind notes over the last week.  Hurricane Isaac was “only” a Category 1, but it was slow-moving and packed a real punch for the City of New Orleans and especially for some surrounding areas such as Braithwaite.  Being without power for four or more days caused all sorts of issues, but fortunately most of New Orleans now has electricity again.  I did learn every trick there is for squeezing the most battery life out of an iPhone while you are simultaneously making extensive use of it to get news and to communicate using an overloaded 3G network  — multiple backup batteries, brightness turned way down, shutting down the phone between uses, etc.

Now it is time to get back to work.  Give me a few days to catch up and I’ll get iPhone J.D. running again.

If you get the paper edition of the Wall Street Journal, then you may have seen that the very top of the front page of yesterday’s edition announced a special section of the paper called “The Best Mobile Apps for Almost Anything.”  The special section includes almost two dozen helpful articles recommending a wide variety of apps.  Click here for a link to all of those articles in the Wall Street Journal.

Journal reporter Geoffrey Fowler talked to me when he researched his “Take a Trip” article which recommends travel-related apps and accessories.  If you ever take an iPhone or iPad when you travel, you’ll enjoy that article.  (And if you enjoy that article, you may also be interested in this this article I wrote for the BigLaw TechnoLawyer newsletter last month about how iOS 6 — which Apple is likely to release in just a few weeks — will make it even easier to travel with an iPhone or iPad.)

Other articles in the series recommend apps for (among other things) cooking, reading, shopping, managing your money, exercising, dating, going to the movies, and holding a remote meeting.  There are also several articles that recommend apps for parents of kids of various ages.

You usually need to be a paid subscriber to read articles on the Wall Street Journal website, but for now it appears that you can still read the articles from the special section even without a membership.  If you are not a subscriber, just be aware that you may not have long to click the above links.

On August 27, 2005, everyone here in New Orleans and many other locations on the Gulf Coast was preparing for a hurricane to hit on August 29, uncertain how big a deal it might be.  Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, quite a bit deal.  Seven years later, we are once again preparing for the possibility that a hurricane will hit land close to here on August 29th.  Hurricane Isaac is a smaller storm, but the date similarity alone is somewhat troubling.  Within the next 24 hours everyone will be deciding whether to ride out the storm at home or evacuate to safer locations.  Already, the local schools are closed until Thursday.  And while it will change throughout the day today, the current National Hurricane Center forecast map has the hurricane traveling across my front porch:

Suffice it to say that the weather is on my mind right now.

So this is a good day to discuss weather apps for the iPhone or iPad.  I’ve paid for dozens of them, and while not all are gems, that are quite a few that I think are worth putting on your iPhone or iPad, whether you are trying to track the next hurricane or if you are just trying to decide whether to take an umbrella with you to lunch.  Here are my favorites:

• The Weather Channel (free) — This app has all of the basic features that you want in a weather app.  Current weather, hourly for the next 24 hours, 36 hour detailed forecast and 10 day forecast, plus decent maps and videos.  You can also pay $3.99 for the “Max” version of the app which lacks ads and has some other features like push notifications, but I like and recommend the free version.  Click here: 

  

• The Weather Channel for iPad (free) — This app has all of the useful features of the iPhone app but takes advantage of the larger iPad screen to present you more information at once and let you see radar maps on a larger screen.  Click here: 

  

• Hurricane HD ($3.99) — This is my favorite iPad app for tracking hurricanes.  It shows you the complete track and details for every current hurricanes and typhoons, plus you can go back in time and see the tracks and details for prior hurricanes back to 1851.  And you can overlay multiple hurricane tracks at one time.  For example, you can easily compare the current Hurricane Isaac track with Katrina (2005), Camile (1969) and Betsy (1965) — the major hurricanes in recent memory to hit near New Orleans.  Click here: 

  

• Dark Sky ($3.99) — This app does only one thing, but it does it very well.  It tells you whether it is going to rain over the next hour.  By limiting its forecasts to the next hour, it is usually amazingly accurate.  If I’m trying to decide whether to take an umbrella with me to lunch and the app predicts that it is going to rain outside of my office at 12:52, I know that I better be back in the building at 12:51 or I’m going to get wet.  The app works on the iPhone, which is great because your iPhone is always with you, and is also useful on the iPad because of the large screen that shows you on the map exactly where the rain move during every minute of the next hour.  Click here: 

  

• Weather+ ($0.99) — This app is packed with lots of information including the current weather, forecast for the next few days and next 24 hours, and lots of other details,  But the real reason to get this app is that this information is presented over a beautiful looping video appropriate to the current weather conditions with the time presented in large, easy-to-read numbers.  Thus, you can turn on this app, set up your iPhone or iPad on your desk, and easily glance at the time and temperature atop a beautiful, moving background.  Click here: 

  

• Intellicast HD (free) — This app is packed with factual information, includes a large radar map, and even has a “skytime” mode that is similar to Weather+ although not as pretty.  When I find myself obsessing about the weather and I’m tired of looking at The Weather Channel app, I’ll switch to this one for an alternate view.  Click here: 

  

• Weather 2x ($0.99) — The concept here is similar to Weather+: present basic information on a beautiful background that corresponds to the current weather.  This app uses a picture instead of the looping video of Weather+ and presents less information, but sometimes less is more.  You get a beautiful picture on your iPhone or iPad with the time and weather, along with the ability to swipe left to see an hourly forecast or swipe right to select other cities.  Click here: 

  

• WeatherBug (free) — WeatherBug gets data from a vast network of stations located at schools
  
  and elsewhere, letting you see the current conditions at the high school
  
  down the block versus the community center around the corner.  Many
  
  stations have live weather cams.  There are three versions of this app.  First, there is a free version for the iPhone that contains ads.  Click here for the free iPhone version: 

  

  Second, there is an ad-free version called WeatherBug Elite for $1.99.  That is the version that I use on my iPhone, and it works great.  Click here for WeatherBug Elite for iPhone: 

  

    Third, there is a free version for the iPad that has ads, but you can pay $4.99 as an in-app purchase to disable those ads.  Click here for iPad version: 

  

• Weather Underground (free) — The Weather Underground was the first weather site on the Internet and has long been a favorite of hard-core weather fans.  Last month, Weather Underground was purchased by its long-time competitor The Weather Channel, leading some to wonder what would happen to the website and the iPhone app.  So far, however, Weather Underground continues to be a great source of weather information with a great map feature.  The app is free, but you can pay $1.99 a year to disable ads.  Click here: 

  

• Camera and Photos (built-in) — If a hurricane, tornado, or other weather event causes damage to your home and the property contained within, you are going to have to file an insurance claim.  It will be much easier to do so if you have current pictures of all of your valuable items.  Before a big storm comes, take 10 minutes with a camera, such as the built-in one on the iPhone, to take pictures throughout your house of everything that you would want to replace.  If you use another camera, make sure that you transfer the final pictures to the Photos picture gallery on your iPhone or iPad.  That way, even if you evacuate for a storm, you have current pictures with you on your device in case you need them.

These are the weather-related apps that are currently in regular use on my iPhone and iPad, but I frequently find new favorites and I’m sure that there are a ton more out there that I don’t even know about yet.  If there is another app that you use and recommend, please post a comment to this post to share with the rest of us.

Ian Paul of PC World reports that you can get an iPhone 4S or an iPhone 4 at deep discount right now — not very surprising considering the strong rumors that the 2012 version of the iPhone will be announced on September 12th.  If you are interested in buying a new iPhone but you can wait a few weeks, I recommend that you wait.  If you are looking for something larger than an iPhone but smaller than an iPad, the latest rumor (John Gruber; Jim Dalrymple) is that Apple will release a smaller version of the iPad, but will do so in October so as to not steal the attention from the new iPhone in September.  Interesting, if true.  And now, the rest of the news of note for the week:

• We are waiting for the jury to come back with a verdict in the Apple v. Samsung trial regarding whether Samsung copied the iPhone and iPad.  Nick Wingfeld of the New York Times examines some of the corporate secrets and other tidbits that came to light during that trial.  One example:  78% of iPhone owners use a case.  That’s far higher than I would have expected.  I can report that in the Richardson household, that number is 50%.  (My wife uses a case; I don’t.)
• Trial consultant Ted Brooks discusses options for printing from an iPhone or iPad.
• If someone sends you a confidential text message while you have your iPhone on a table with others nearby, they can see the text message when it flashes on your screen.  (The same is true for part of the message in an email.)  Allyson Kazmucha of iMore discusses this and shows how to adjust your settings to gain privacy.
• Kazmucha also compares remote access apps for the iPad.  I use and recommend LogMeIn Ignition.
• Dan Moren of TechHive reviews GateGuru, one of my favorite apps to use when traveling.
• If you are really into photography, you’ll enjoy reading these two posts from Haje Jan Kamps at Pixiq.  This one explains why one could not use an external flash with the iPhone’s camera even if you wanted to do so.  This one explains how the iPhone deals with its fixed f/2.8 aperture.
• Martyn Williams of IDG News Service explains how police used Find My iPhone to track down the iPad stolen from Steve Jobs’ home.
• And finally, my prior posts this week discussed using external keyboards with an iPad to help restore that feeling that you are typing on a real computer keyboard.  But what if you want to restore the feeling that you are typing on an old typewriter?  Austin Yang, a designer currently based on Scotland, came up with this amusing idea:

As I stated yesterday in my review of the Origami Workstation, my favorite external keyboard for the iPad is the Apple Wireless Keyboard.  But what if you don’t want to carry something extra with your iPad?  Several companies make iPad cases that include keyboards in them.  I previously reviewed the Kensington KeyFolio Pro and I also hear good things about the ZAGGfolio.  But if you want to go even more minimalist, Logitech now sells its Ultrathin Keyboard Cover, a cover that attaches to the top of the iPad, much like the Apple Smart Cover, that has a built-in keyboard.

I haven’t yet seen this product in person, but I’ve heard good things about it, most recently from Melissa Brown, a family law practitioner in Charleston, South Carolina who I met at ABA TECHSHOW earlier this year.  Melissa handles complex divorce and other family law matters, is a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) and the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (IAML), and is currently serving as the chairperson of the AAML Technology Committee.

Melissa and I recently “talked” about the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover in a series of e-mails, and she really likes this product.  Melissa gave me permission to turn her e-mails to me into this post.  Take it away, Melissa:

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I’m turning into a “walking consumer report” for gadgets.  I tend to buy every keyboard, case, stylus, bag, etc until I find my favorite one.  After purchasing and testing six keyboards for the iPad, and with some assistance by Gordon Cruse (ESI expert and AAML Fellow from San Diego) I have found my favorite:  the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover. 

This cover uses a magnetic clip to securely attach the keyboard to the iPad. It possesses a satisfying tactile feel. While Logitech does not consider it to be a case, it does double duty as an ultra thin one. 

While the Apple Wireless Keyboard clearly has the perfect keys, Logitech’s feel good as well.  The keys are solid and “click” when pressed.

I like the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover better than the Apple Wireless Keyboard because the Apple keyboard is difficult to carry without accidentally turning it on.  As a result, I found that the Apple keyboard would often die.  Even worse, on two occasions, the keyboard “accidentally” started playing music.  [Jeff adds:  one of the function keys at the top of the Apple keyboard is a “play” button that will play/pause a song using the Music app on the iPad.]  On one of those occasions, the keyboard caused Sweet Home Alabama to play in the courtroom.  Thankfully, the judge was empathetic and/or a Lynyrd Skynard fan.  Removing the batteries each time I travelled was unrealistic.  

The thin size, convenient magnetic connection, on/off button and use as a cover that protects the iPad makes the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover my favorite travel keyboard.  If you are looking for a workable, flexible keyboard solution for your iPad, give it a try.

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Although I love the Apple Wireless Keyboard, Melissa’s two gripes are the same two limitations that I see with that keyboard.  First, it is annoying to have the keyboard occasionally turn on by accident when it is in a bag.  The Origami Workstation that I reviewed yesterday helps guard against that by having an edge that is longer than the Apple keyboard itself.

As for causing music to come on accidentally, that is a real danger.  It happened to me once when I was in a meeting with other attorneys.  I was typing on the Apple Wireless Keyboard to take notes and I accidentally hit the play key, causing my iPad to start playing music.  I didn’t even realize at first that the music was coming from my iPad.  It was embarrassing, but fortunately I was able to stop it very quickly.  Even so,  it led me to decide to remove all music from my iPad — which is admittedly an over-the-top solution, but I really don’t listen to music on my iPad anyway because I prefer to use my iPhone for music.  Note, however, that this danger exists with virtually every external keyboard for the iPad if that keyboard is turned on because virtually all of them have function keys that allow you to play/pause music.

Thank you Melissa for the review of the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover.  If you don’t mind the slightly smaller keys used by any keyboard that is limited to the width of the iPad, this sounds like a reasonable solution worth your consideration.  You can get more information about this product on the Logitech website.  You might also be interested in reading the favorable reviews on iLounge, Macworld, iMore, Lawyerist, Wired, 9to5 Mac, Pocket-lint, MacLife and TUAW.

Click here to get the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover on Amazon ($94.84)

If you use your iPad to get work done when you are away from a computer, such as when you rely on an iPad instead of a laptop computer when you travel, an external keyboard is a must.  It makes it so much easier to type long e-mails, create documents, take notes during a meeting, etc.  Some people like to use iPad cases that have keyboards built in, but I’ve never been a fan of that solution because the keyboards are cramped.  I prefer to use the $69 Apple Wireless Keyboard because it is a full-size keyboard.  Indeed, it is the exact same keyboard that Apple sells with many of its iMac desktop computers. 

For about a year, I frequently traveled with my iPad 2 and the Apple Wireless Keyboard without using any kind of case for the keyboard.  I just slipped it in my briefcase.  I had no problems doing this, but I talked to several other attorneys who told me (and sometimes even showed me) that without a case, an object had rubbed against their keyboard and popped off a key.  Ugh.  These horror stories eventually led me to try the Tom Bihn Cache for Wireless Keyboard.  That case (which is no longer sold) worked well, but one problem is that it was possible for an object to push against the side edge of the case, which would turn on the keyboard and in turn run down the batteries.  That only happened to me twice over the last year, but it was still very annoying when it happened.  In the meantime, I’ve seen excellent reviews of the Origami Workstation for iPad by Incase, and so when Incase sent me a free review unit, I was eager to check it out.  I’ve been very happy with it, and this is now my top recommendation for anyone using an Apple Wireless Keyboard.

The Origami Workstation is a lightweight black case for the keyboard.  The stiff vinyl laminate doesn’t provide any cushioning, but that also means that it is very thin while also providing protection.  It barely takes up more space in your briefcase or purse than the keyboard itself would take. 

The device has two clips that snap around the round part at the bottom of the keyboard and hold it tight.

You can then fold down the top and attach the two velcro strips to keep the case closed.

When closed, the keyboard is protected so that nothing else will harm its keys.  Nothing covers the two edges, but because the case is longer than the keyboard — not by much, but just enough — if another object presses against the side edge it is unlikely to turn on the keyboard by pressing that button.

If this was all that the case did, it would be nice enough.  But the name “Origami” comes from the fact that the case folds.  Simply fold down the two corners of the case, connect the two sides with the two velcro strips, and suddenly the back of the case becomes a pyramid-shaped stand for the iPad.

The stand works very well.  It is incredibly sturdy, which is important because you are going to need to tap on the iPad screen to use it.  It is also at just the right angle, similar to the angle you would use with a laptop computer screen.  And it holds the iPad in either the portrait or the landscape position.

Remember that you need to hold down the button on the side of the Apple keyboard to turn off the keyboard before you close it in this case.  Otherwise, it is easy for an object that presses on this case to depress keys on the keyboard, which could case keys to be typed on your iPad if the keyboard is paired.  But as I noted above, once the keyboard is off, it is unlikely to go back on while in the Origami Workstation.  (In the future, it would be nice if Apple put a simple on/off switch on the Apple Wireless Keyboard, but for now the Origami Workstation does the best that it can to work around this issue.)

The Origami Workstation is very well designed and constructed, and I did not have to use it for very long to realize it is a must-have case for the Apple Wireless Keyboard.  It is a great accessory for a great accessory.  You can buy it direct from Incase for $29.95 (with free shipping in the U.S.) or it is on Amazon for five dollars more.

Click here to get the Origami Workstation from Incase ($29.95)

Click here to get the Origami Workstation from Amazon ($34.95)

Every year in December, the ABA Journal publishes its list of the top 100 law blogs (blawgs).  The blawgs are divided into categories, and then people are allowed to vote for their favorite blawg. The ABA is starting to decide which 100 blawgs to include in this year’s list and is asking for your help in the form of “Amici” submissions.  Click on this link if you want to tell the ABA Journal editors about one or more websites aimed at legal professionals that you enjoy, whether it be iPhone J.D. or any other blog.  The deadline for submissions is September 7, 2012.  Every year, I find the list to be a great resource for finding great websites, so for all of you who take the time to nominate sites, thanks for making this year’s list as good as the prior ones.  And now on to the iPhone and iPad news of the week:

• Yesterday I talked about lawyers designing great apps that are unrelated to the practice of law.  A perfect example is TallyPad, an app by California attorney Dan Friedlander that makes it easy to tally.  I often use it to keep score when I am playing games with my kids.  This week only, you can get the app for free by clicking here: 

  

• Indiana attorney Bill Wilson of the Third Apple blog compared some of the top iPad styluses, and concluded that the Wacom Bamboo stylus was his favorite.  I agree.
• I find it hard to imagine that an attorney using an iPhone would want to switch to an Android phone, but apparently it does happen.  Oklahoma attorney Jeffrey Taylor of The Droid Lawyer explains why some attorneys have made the jump.
• Patrick Jordan of iPad Insight recommends apps that let you work with Microsoft Word documents on your iPad.  (Thanks to Adriana Linares for the link.)
• After the iPhone 4 was released in 2010, a small number of people complained about the antenna.  A class action was filed and a federal judge recently approved the settlement, except that he slashed the attorneys fees in half because of a low number of claims and a high number of plaintiff attorneys.  Cynthia Foster of The Recorder has the details.
• Stenograph, a leading developer of computer-aided transcription software used by professional court reporters, has come out with an iPad version of its CaseViewNet software.  The app lets you view realtime transcripts on an iPad.  Read the press release for more details, and you can download the free app here: 

  

• Richard Lutkus of Law Technology News writes about getting forensic data off of an iPhone or iPad in e-discovery.
• And finally, we are starting to get some great pictures from the Mars Curiosity rover, and Andrew Bodrov put together a really cool 360 degree panorama that stitches together some of the images.  Click here to see it, but don’t do this on your computer; do it on an iPhone or, better yet, an iPad.  The website uses your iPhone and iPad gyroscope as you spin around to change the view, so you can hold up your device and as you move it around, the image moves too, just as if you were standing right next to the rover on Mars.  Very cool.  (via iMore)  Normally I would put a picture below this post, but you really need to go to that website to experience the 360 degree version of it.  So instead, I’m giving you a link to the background image I’m currently using on my iPad, which I created by combining an image from NASA taken by Curiosity with a picture of Marvin the Martian that I found on this website.  Click the picture to see the full-size version formatted for an iPad screen (it is retina-quality for the third generation iPad), and then you can save it to the Camera Roll on your iPad and then select it in Settings -> Brightness & Wallpaper.

I’m always eager to learn about the latest iPhone apps for lawyers, but it is just as interesting to learn about the latest apps designed by lawyers.  Sometimes those apps are law-related, but that is not always the case, as today’s post demonstrates.  Mitch Robiner is a partner in the Tampa, Florida office of Gunster, Yoakley & Stewart.  Robiner represents companies in commercial litigation, but he also likes to come up with his own business ventures.  After reading about the sucess that others have had developing iPhone apps, he bought a book to learn about designing apps.  “The business model really appealed to me,” Robiner told me, “because the entry costs are relatively low as compared to other business ventures I have considered, and once your app is approved for sale in the App Store, you immediately get access to a global market of 50,000,000 iPhone users.  A lot easier than trying to get one of my inventions on the store shelves at one of the retail giants.”  After a lot of brainstorming, Robiner came up with an idea that could have some mass appeal, searched for and hired a talented animator (Alan Becker) and hired an iPhone programmer to implement his ideas.  A few months later, Stick Texting was born.

Most everyone is familiar with the traditional emoticons that you can add to text messages, such as a smiley face.  Stick Texting lets you instead send short, funny animations.  What is great about the app is that the recipient doesn’t need to use any special software.  Indeed, it is better if they have never heard of the Stick Texting app because then you can surprise them with a text message containing one of the funny animations.

The app is incredibly easy to use.  When you launch the app you see several categories of animations.  Choose a category, then tap one of the squares to see what the animation does and at the same time copy the animation into your iPhone’s clipboard.

 

Now just switch to the Messages app on your iPhone.  (You can tap the Texting button at the bottom to take you there.)  Whenever you are ready to send the animation, simply hold down your finger until the “paste” command appears, paste the animation, and then hit send.  The whole process just takes seconds.

The above image is just a static screenshot, but here is what that animation looks like:

In addition to being able to use the animations in a text message, you can also paste them into an e-mail.  If the recipient is using an iPhone or iPad, or the Mail program on a Mac, the animation will appear in the message itself and will look great.  With some other programs, such as Outlook on a PC, the animation might come across as a .gif attachment that the recipient will have to double-click to open in an external program to see — which takes away some of the fun and surprise.

Robiner also prepared this amusing YouTube video to show off the app’s features:

Stick Texting works great.  Although I don’t text very often, I was happy to spend the one dollar that Robiner is charging for this app just to be able to use it a few times with some of my friends and family.  I have no complaints about the app.  I do, however, hope that Robiner adds more animations in the future to keep the app fresh.

But even aside from the merits of the app, it is fun to see another lawyer come up with an idea for an app and then see it through to fruition.  Hopefully Robiner (pictured at right) will see some success with his new venture.  As he told me:  “If our YouTube video gains traction, or Apple’s App Store editors decide to feature Stick Texting, the app really could take off.  If not, I have had fun making it, and I still believe it will generate a decent passive income over time at a minimum.  It is a lot better than buying a vending machine and having to deal with inventory and equipment failures.”

Click here to get Stick Texting ($0.99):