I was skeptical when I saw this but it actually works. Clearly, I need to get more familiar with the iOS API.
I mentioned this in the RubCam discussion but Shake is another example of a simple app with a unique interaction that might inspire new ideas. This is one of the reasons why products makers visit Product Hunt.
@rrhoover Thanks! Keeping the app simple was very important to us.
We initially went down the path of making this a Routesy clone with shake notifications, but quickly realized that the app would be most useful for commuters and tailored it for that use case.
@rrhoover The only thing is that shaking your phone is a really awkward and obvious thing to do in public. I think that's probably why the shake API hasn't really been used too much
@zackshapiro remember Urban Spoon? The shake novelty certain gave them attention and encouraged word-of-mouth when people spastically waved their arms in public.
We should add this to the iOS app. Shake to upvote!
@rrhoover Another iOS app that uses this same shake technology is Tickle. You touch your phone in an awkward situation, your phone rings, and then you have an easy escape!
Hi, I made Shake along with @mikemcghie. We made Shake to solve a very specific need: The daily Muni commuting problem.
I take the L every day and it never follows a predictable schedule. I found myself looking up departure times on nextbus.com every day and decided there needed to be a faster way to do it.
I'd also like to mention: Shake was just a weekend project, but we've been working on v2.0 since then. If you'd like to sign up for the private beta, email me at david@tictoclabs.com
@davldcordoba very cool ux! Can you explain how it works? how are you keeping the app open in the background (location?) and are you using the gyroscope with that too?
@Anderson760 We use background location services to keep the app alive in the background and so it knows which of your bookmarked stops you are closest to. The GPS isn't always on, though, so Shake won't kill your battery. As long as the app is alive in the background, the accelerometer will continue updating your app.
@davldcordoba@mikemcghie This is a really awesome, borderline-legal use of the iOS API.
Similarly, I wish we could just turn the phone landscape and hold down the '+' button to shoot video, even when locked. That would be sick.
@arush Thanks! We had a bit of a hard time getting it through the review process, but they allowed us to make our case and agreed that we were following the guidelines.
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This is pretty cool, didn't know the iOS API supported this functionality. @arush I thought of something similar a while back, might need to revisit the idea after checking out API a bit more.
@dskaletsky Thanks! There are a ton of applications I would love to see a Shake for. We wanted to start out with a simple use case where we knew it would work.
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