Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Weather apps

The iPod comes with a basic Weather app, which I relied on for some time to find the expected temperature range for the day, and to decide whether I should bring an umbrella.

Later, I switched to using The Weather Channel free app, which, after a somewhat longer initial startup pause, provides a larger amount and different levels of detail for a variety of time segments (24 hours [up from 12 hours after an 8/2011 update], 36 hours, or 10 days). It has a number of other features, including "In Season", which provides 3 days' worth of pollen projections for Tree, Grass, and Weed types. The app has ads, not surprisingly. Normally I would just start up the app, find the information I want, and shut it down. While writing this entry I left the app running for a bit, and unexpectedly discovered that at least one of the ads had a life of its own, expanding to take up more space on the screen (although it did come with a close box). Unlike in the iPod's basic Weather app, to view weather for each location beyond the first one that you add, you must tap on the open book button, then switch to the desired location. This remains my primary weather app.

I have also tried the Weather+ Free app, whose main screen has ads plus a prominent "Upgrade to Full version!" nag reminder. The extra piece of information it has, about which I might occasionally care and which The Weather Channel free app lacks, is a humidity projection for the four days after today. Like in the iPod's basic Weather app, weather for any locations beyond the first one that you add can be viewed by sliding the screen left or right.

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