iPhone Atlas

President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration this January could be quite a chaotic scene, with as many as 4 million people possibly heading to the National Mall to watch, but a new application available on Apple's App Store could help spectators navigate the crowds a bit more smoothly.

The free 2009 Presidential Inauguration Guide landing screen features an inauguration countdown, as well as the distance the user is from the steps of the Capitol building, where the event takes place.

The application also provides information about metro service and parking garage locations, a Zagat guide of local restaurants, a list of free nearby Wi-Fi zones, and information about the afterparties that are sure to keep Washington abuzz all night.

The application's developers, law firm Patton Boggs and public-relations firm Qorvis Communications, call it "THE guide to the inauguration," though the two firms are only the latest to develop an App Store download that caters to the excitement surrounding the inauguration. The Obama Inauguration Countdown and the Obama Inaugration applications also give countdowns to the event.

The Obama for America Campaign, after Obama won the election, updated the iPhone application it introduced during the campaign to include a campaign office database.

Fun? Yes, but I wouldn't put too much stock into it.

I have to admit, I didn't see the point of Sonic Lighter. I mean, it was cool to see real-time mapping of people using it, but there was no real point. With the latest version, however, that's changed.

Smule has released Sonic Lighter 1.2.1 Special Campaign 2008 Edition for the iPhone. Instead of just lighting a normal orange flame, with the new version you now get to express yourself politically (somewhat), by choosing either the red (McCain) or blue (Obama) flame.

The coolest thing about this is the ability to see, in real-time, which flame is more prevalent in different parts of the world. If you want to get even more detailed, Smule has a Google-powered map at its site that allows you to pinpoint the flames down to the city or even a stretch of road.

Now, this is what I call instant polling results. Is it accurate? Hmmm, not so much. Unfortunately we still have to wait 'til next week to see just how much stock we can put into polling. Sonic Lighter 1.2.1 is available at the App Store for $0.99, but is a free upgrade if you already own Sonic Lighter.

(Credit: CNET News)

Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign launched an iPhone application on Thursday that turns the vaunted device into a political recruiting tool.

The most notable feature "organizes and prioritizes your contacts by key battleground states, making it easy to reach out and make an impact quickly," according to the software.

On my phone, the application ranked contacts in Colorado, Michigan, and New Mexico at the top; at the bottom was a friend whose cell phone has a Texas number, though she actually lives in California.

The application anonymously reports back the number of calls made this way: "Your privacy is important: no personal data or contacts will be uploaded or stored. Only the total number of calls you make is uploaded anonymously."

The software is the latest effort by politicians to capitalize on technology, joining other examples such as ads distributed through YouTube, Web-based fund-raising, Facebook pages and fan groups, and e-mail recruitment drives.

The Obama for America iPhone application is available for download through Apple's iTunes store, said Raven Zachary, an iPhone consultant who's directing the launch effort.

A "get involved" feature uses the phone's GPS-based location sensing to find the nearest Obama campaign headquarters, and "local events" likewise pulls up a list of activities sorted by proximity.

A "media" section provides links to video and photos, but beware: YouTube showed errors following some of the links. Perhaps the newer videos hadn't been prepared for iPhone display yet.

The application also shows Obama statements to the news media and a guide to Obama's positions on various issues.

Update 8:50 a.m. PDT: The application shows how many calls have been made nationwide and how many you made. Those statistics are the kind that can motivate people--they can feel like they're part of something bigger. That may sound a bit silly as a motivational tool, but consider that Smule's Sonic Lighter application for the iPhone is popular, despite the fact that it costs 99 cents more than its free competition, likely because people can see where else on the globe people are using it and because the longer you run the application, the bigger your own spot on the map becomes. It's a kind of competition.

Update 9:28 a.m. PDT: The campaign added an Obama iPhone app Web site, too.

Our good friend Raven Zachary is directing the launch of an iPhone Application for Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign

The most notable feature "organizes and prioritizes your contacts by key battleground states, making it easy to reach out and make an impact quickly," according to the software.

The application anonymously reports back the number of calls made this way: "Your privacy is important: no personal data or contacts will be uploaded or stored. Only the total number of calls you make is uploaded anonymously." The software is the latest effort by politicians to capitalize on technology, joining other examples such as ads distributed through YouTube, Web-based fund-raising, Facebook pages and fan groups, and e-mail recruitment drives. The Obama for America iPhone application is available for download through Apple's iTunes store, said Zachary.

A "get involved" feature uses the phone's GPS-based location sensing to find the nearest Obama campaign headquarters, and "local events" likewise pulls up a list of activities sorted by proximity.

A "media" section provides links to video and photos, but beware: YouTube showed errors following some of the links. Perhaps the newer videos hadn't been prepared for iPhone display yet.

[Originally posted by Stephen Shankland to our sister site, News.com]