Xploding Boxes gets even more levels

April 18th, 2013

IMG_00000064Xploding Boxes has been updated to version 4.4 in BlackBerry World, Google Play, the Amazon AppStore, the Nook Bookstore, and the Windows 8 store. This new version adds an additional 10 levels to the game, as well as improving the sharing options on BlackBerry 10, and improving the in-app payment system for the Google Play store.

About Xploding Boxes

Xploding Boxes is a strategy game for BlackBerry, Android, Nook, Windows 8, and BlackBerry 10 where the goal of the game is to start a chain reaction that will explode all of the boxes on the screen. Each level gives you a different number of touches, and requires a different strategy to solve.

The game itself, and the first 25 levels are available for free, while an in-app purchase can be used to access the rest of the levels for just $2.99 while maintaining your progress from the free levels.

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Starbeams released for Windows 8

April 16th, 2013

Level58After being released for BlackBerry 10 a month ago, Starbeams is now also available on Windows 8. The game has 100 levels, and requires you to assign colors to each star in order to ensure that none of the stars are connected to another star of the same color. The game starts off easy, but quickly gets more complex, adding more colors and seven pointed stars that can not be changed.

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As with the BlackBerry 10 version of the game, the first 25 levels of the game are free, while the full game can be purchased through a one time in-app purchase of $2.99USD. Currently Starbeams boasts 100 levels, but that number is sure to grow as the game is updated in the coming months.

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Animal Sounds app updated

April 15th, 2013

ShapeItAppThe Animal Sounds app for BlackBerry 10, has been updated to version 1.1 in BlackBerry World. This new version adds support for the soon to be released BlackBerry Q10, as well as adding precautions to prevent accidentally triggering any of the animal sounds.

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Posting elsewhere

April 12th, 2013

8350iThis past week I have had two posts over at the Gadget Masters with an explanation on Why the Facebook Phone is Doomed, as well as a look how PlayBook upgrade rates may help predict How quickly Z10 owners will update to OS 10.1 on their new phones.

Yesterday I also posted on BerryReview about The Amazing Resiliency of the 8350i. A Nextel branded phone from 2008 on the iDEN network, that stubbornly continues to persist in the monthly download logs for my games.

PlayBook users still on newest OS

April 8th, 2013

PlayBookStatsMar2013

BlackBerry has not launched an OS update for the PlayBook since last October, and given that pretty much all users were already on the newest OS for the past three months now, it isn’t much of a surprise for almost all users to also be on the newest version of the OS in the month of March either.

This data was collected by BlackBerry World at the time of download, for the popular PlayBook strategy game Pixelated. Data shown on the chart is from the beginning of March 2012 through the end of March 2013.

BBOS users shifting towards newer OS versions

April 4th, 2013

StatsMar2013

After being flat for two straight months, February say a 3.65% increase in the the percentage of users running OS 6.0 or higher. The percentage of users on the newest version of the OS is also up slightly to 35.1% of BlackBerry OS users.

This data was taken from downloads of the free BlackBerry strategy game Pixelated. Data shown on the chart is from the beginning of March 2012 through the end of March 2013, and does not include BlackBerry 10 or PlayBook devices.

Stuff I Need app released for Windows Phone

April 3rd, 2013

MainThe Stuff I Need checklist app has now been released for free on Windows Phones. This is a minimalistic app that allows you to either list the stuff that you need to buy, or the stuff that you need to do. Previously, this app has already been very well received on BlackBerry 10, where it has thousands of downloads and an average rating of four and a half stars.

This app was originally designed as a grocery list app, but is flexible enough to be used for any purpose. Existing items can be edited or deleted after giving them a long press.

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Nationality of PlayBook users

April 2nd, 2013

In the first three months of 2013, the strategy game Xploding Boxes was downloaded by BlackBerry PlayBook users in 142 different countries. As in the past most users are from Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

XplodingBoxesPlayBookUsersByCountry2013Q1

The biggest change from three months ago, is the increase in UK users, which is now up to 27.7% of PlayBook users. However, for the most part the distribution of countries being represented is very consistent with what it previously has been.

These statistics are generated from PlayBook downloads of the popular strategy game Xploding Boxes, from January 1st, through March 31st. Data was collected by BlackBerry World at the time of download.

Happy Dyngus Day!

April 1st, 2013

DyngusDay
I may not be Polish, but I am from Buffalo…

Remember to celebrate Good Friday

March 29th, 2013

goodFriday
Perhaps the most cleverly named of all holidays, it is not always readily obvious how the death and humiliation of God is good. Yet it is by the actions of this day that God’s grace is granted to all of us. Though often unmarked, this day is more relevant than Easter…

BlackBerry’s music program

March 27th, 2013

This would have been much funnier if I had thought of it two months ago…

App reviews from others

March 26th, 2013

My apps have gotten a lot of attention in the past week from a variety of sites, so I would like to take a moment to thank everyone for writing about my apps.

First BlackBerry Cool and Berry Review wrote up reviews of the new BlackBerry 10 game, Starbeams.

The Stuff I Need app also got some attention, with N4BB calling it a ‘must have BlackBerry 10 app’, and CrackBerry also giving the app a favorable review. A video from CrackBerry’s James Richardson is embedded below.

Finally NerdBerry noted the release of the most recent update to Xploding Boxes which is now up to 370 levels.

Mileage Tracker updated to version 1.2

March 25th, 2013

IMG_00000038The BlackBerry 10 app, Mileage Tracker has been updated to version 1.2 in BlackBerry World. This new version now automatically fills in your start odometer reading with your most recent end odometer reading in order to make your use of the app more efficient and quicker than ever. This update also adds support for the upcoming BlackBerry Q10 in addition to some optimizations to the code of the app itself.

About Mileage Tracker

Mileage tracker is a free app designed to help you track the miles you drive on each trip for use on tax deductions, accounting, or employee reimbursements. Instead of keeping this information charted on your computer, it makes much more sense to be able to track this directly on your phone, which you normally would have with you in the car already.

IMG_00000035Trips can be grouped into categories, and edited (or deleted) at a later date. Following a one time in-app payment you can export your data into an Excel compatible .csv format and a pretty (and sortable) .html format.

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Morse Code app adds support for BlackBerry Q10

March 24th, 2013

Q10The Morse Code app for BlackBerry 10 has been updated to version 2.1 in BlackBerry World in order to add support for the soon to be released BlackBerry Q10.

About Morse Code

This app will take your text, and translate it back to you in Morse Code. Any text can simply be entered, and then by pressing the “Play Morse Code” button, can be turned into an audible Morse Code signal. The application also allows you to adjust the speed of the playback in words per minute in order to accommodate different skill levels.

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Stuff I Need app gets its first update

March 22nd, 2013

framedThe Stuff I Need app has been updated to version 1.1 in BlackBerry World. This new version adds support for the BlackBerry Q10, and also includes a delete all function on the options page in order to make it easier to refresh your list.

About Stuff I Need

Originally conceived as a grocery list app, this minimalistic checklist can be used to keep track of the stuff you need to get, or the stuff that you need to do.

Links & Information

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