The application I am going to talk about has been around for a while already. However, being in the Pacific Northwest at this moment, all of a sudden it is helping me a lot. I am talking about Live Search Mobile. The application allows you to do local searches, display maps, find directions, even get real-time location information if your Windows Mobile device is GPS enabled and many more features. What is very cool about this application is the fact that it runs smoothly on any Windows Mobile device. This is a perfect example of an application utilizing the capabilities of both Smartphones and PocketPC’s. The application uses a number of services to retrieve mapping data, movies currently playing in theaters and lots more. There is also a possibility to feed your maps with live traffic information. Even though there is no voice output available, this application helped me tremendously when searching for the SAMM campus of Microsoft where I had a meeting last Friday. Even though I don’t have GPS on my device, the extremely simple UI for navigation purposes, just using one simple button click to show the next exit you need to take, makes it even worthwhile and safe to use without voice output and without GPS data fed to it. I found my way without any problems. I urge every device developer to download and install this application. You can download it immediately on your device by navigating to this URL on your device: wls.live.com. Just to give you some impressions, here is the route I need to take from my hotel to Mount Rainier for a nice hike (if the weather would have been better I actually would have taken this trip today).
Of course it is also possible to have an aerial view. And what about the current traffic situation in the greater Seattle area. As you can see, there is one small problem near Issaquah, for the rest traffic is smooth here tonight.
Here is another great option in Live Search Mobile. Want to find the best gas prices? Just one button click and you will get them for the area you currently are in, nicely sorted from cheapest to most expensive.
Or what about watching a movie? All movies playing near my current location are available as well. Again, this application is a perfect example of a smart device application, caching data locally if it makes sense (like mapping data), retrieving information from web services and combining all data and showing it in a very user friendly way. This application alone makes it worth to own a Windows Mobile device, besides all the other cool things you can actually do with your device, hey even including making phone calls. There is only one wish I have. I can’t wait to see the source code for this application. It would be very useful for many developers. Since it seems that Live Search Mobile makes use of a number of 3rd party services, we probably don’t get a chance to get our hands to the source code, but I for one would love to get my hands on it, study it, learn from it to help me write better applications.
Maarten Struys |
