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Why would this be an iPhone application and not a Windows Mobile application?
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I would love a iPhone app, but you'd have to give away a free iPhone for me to use it.
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Well, for starters, the main screen should have 3 big buttons: Ask Questions, View/Answer Questions, and Check Status.

Ask Questions should work just like the site - type your question, add details, tip if necessary, choose a category, and click OK.

View/Answer Questions should be different - set some criteria (only questions with tips, only unanswered questions, only questions in certain categories, only answered unresolved questions, etc.) and it should show you a list of questions. Or, just shake it (like in the UrbanSpoon commercial) for a random question!

Check Status should show you all of your questions, answers, comments, etc. that have had some related activity (someone answered your question, commented on your comment, etc.)

EDIT: It also needs to work with the iPod Touch (I don't see why it wouldn't, but...)
Source(s):
I'm not an iPhone user, but I think that these suggestions are good.

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Does answering this question provide me with an iPhone? At least, every answerer with over 11,000 points should be able to get one from Mahalo Answers. So, I second Darcy on that. First it was a Wii, now you're barking up the iPhone tree.

The answer to this depends. I do not think it will improve the quality of answers. I just do not see people typing on iPhone that well. People can ask questions, view questions, but I would not be excited about seeing some of the answers people put out on their iPhone.

So, here goes with a feature request that's better than iPhone, and I've mentioned it before. I guess I will keep mentioning it again.

Check out the Google Maps API.

http://code.google.com/apis/maps

Someone asked a question the other day, and after answering said they were not from the US. This is an ongoing problem, as you would like to know where this person comes from when answering the question, what time zone they are coming from, and what country, state, or local area they are answering or asking a question from.

Why is this good? You can set a question and answer category on local questions, getting to know people in your local area, and answering questions that may be local. The other day, I asked a question about, "meeting places" in downtown New York City, and the answerer recommended Panera Bread, when there is no Panera Bread in the city. With a local feature you can connect people to their mobile phones and a text message can be sent to their email when a question of local interest is asked.

You can also add heatmaps http://www.heatmapapi.com

and people can find questions on a map. You may even want to use something like Mapeed API to make a mapup.

http://www.mapeed.com/api

You can even do something with the zip codes:

http://www.zipcodesmapped.com

Just imagine if you can facilitate the user and pinpoint a location on the map where you are (ie. I'm at Union Square right now), and then ask a relevant question, get an answer with detailed directions built in just like that!
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The only feature I can think of that I didn't see above is to filter questions categorically by area of expertise, as in the ones you chose for yourself.

Windows mobile might be a bust, but I live and die by my blackberry, and using Opera Mini to surf Mahalo Answers is, I'm sorry to say, painful. We could totally use a BB app.
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I would like to see to main things on the iPhone app

1) Be able to take a picture of something, someone or an action and add it to your question. I asked a question a while back and I would have loved to add a picture to my question (i.e. http://www.mahalo.com/answers/home-and-garden/how-would-i-go-about-fixing-this-chair) It took me about 15 minutes (total) to get it all put together. It was a pain.

2) I keep reading that we are not giving well thought out answers, well, on an iPhone and Twitter it is almost impossible to give that kind of answer. It is due to the limited text you can type on twitter and the iPhone keyboard is awful to type on. I suggest using something like Google Voice or some other transcribing software like Dragon. People can easily speak their answer and let Google Voice and/or Dragon do the rest. Since all answers are screened anyway, it would a great solution. IMO
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I would like to see the ability to mange your questions and see answers that you provided. Along with all other answers give. it needs to have the capability to choose the types of catagories that you want and give you updated feedback when your answer is chosen.
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This question leads me to to point out the fact that there is a great majority of people who simply just "watch" all of the gadget-mongers design toys just (and only) for their own gadgets of interest.

I would love to see a "mobile Mahalo" in which the maker considers all types of web browsing gadgets in its creation. Then it would not seem as if it were available only to a select group of "elite", a sort Mahalo/iPhone clique.

Just my opinion, though . . . and I'm not in a hurry to buy an iPhone just so I can be part of the "in crowd"!
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I'd say that Oboewan has the best ideas for what an iPhone app should look like. However, I think that it would nice if it could add a little search bar onto the iPhone. Then you could look on a big search engine or on Mahalo Answers. If you weren't able to find anything right away, you could go to the Mahalo Answers search tab and ask a question right there. It could then alert them when someone answered the question. About answering from an iPhone, I think that there should be an option for them to not have this option, because some people might just want to ask questions. But for the rest, who do want to share their knowledge, I believe answering should go basically the same as it does on Mahalo, but maybe with more restrictions imposed. Finally, I think that one should get a 50 or so point for getting the app just like when you get the Mahalo widget thing.
Source(s):
Never really used an iPhone before, hope this actually applies.

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yes
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I streamlined way (shortcut) to asking a question, and saving the page so you can quickly refer back to your question (to see answers).

This is the heart and soul of what mahalo answers is about. All the other goodies would be bonus'
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Hey, I think it's a terrific idea. I have had this idea popping around in my mind for some time now, and although I won't dare to say i know exactly how it would work, here's how it goes:

Remember those comparison shopping sites? Where you can select a product in a certain category, and you are automatically given details of other products from the same category that are most likely a match...?

http://infosthetics.com/archives/modista2.jpg

Well, I had envisioned a website where you can upload a pic, taken either from the net, or by digicam, or whatever... and get updates on similar products based on visual clues. For example... say, I find a somewhat rare postage stamp on ebay, and want to know if there is anything similar available elsewhere online, and at what price point. That's where this visual search tool comes in.

Google actually did take this technology and try it. The first version of their image search had a “find similar” link next to every image. After it degenerated to the point of near uselessness, they took the “find similar” link away from the image search results. I expected it to turn up again once they got the kinks worked out, but apparently they just decided to stop working on it.

http://i40.tinypic.com/2zxvzlv.jpg

Now, imagine we can scale this to fit as an iPhone app, where all one has to do is click a picture of an object and upload it to Mahalo, and get users to find and send back pics of similar objects at a different location (online or offline) and/or the same product at a different (preferably lower) price than currently shown.

As an example, say I'm vacationing abroad, and find a souvenir I like. While
uploading it via my iPhone, I ask Mahalo users to let me know if it is worth buying for reasons of price and/or availability back home. I can instantly receive responses from Mahalo Answerers telling me the pros and cons of this particular object, and why I should or should not go for it.

http://laughingsquid.com/wp-content/uploads/steet-car-souvenir-20080812-120740.jpg

I know that the technology for Content-based image retrieval. is in place, but all it means is that instead of entering text to find images, you provide or click on an existing image to find related ones. What I'm talkinng about, is the ability to upload your own pic, and not one that's already in the organisations database.

http://www.public.asu.edu/~pgodbole/cbir_color.jpg

Obviously, the image comparison then has to be done by humans, and not an algorithm, and thats where Mahalo Answers comes in! The advantage of such an app would be that you can take any kind of picture - from a diustance, at an angle, or even partially hidden, and still get the result, as there are humans searching for a similar object, and they can determine what you've taken a pic of...

http://www.techchee.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/visual-pattern-recognition-search-engine-for-the-iphone-180408.jpg

That's my idea, and I don't really know of any site out there, that has already got this service. There are services such as BrowseGoods, Visuali.se, and Shopnics, but as mentioned, they work on the database platform, which is non-human, and therefore less accurate. I believe that combining a great service such as Mahalo Answers, and a great device like the iPhone, can make this idea come true.

http://content.mahalo.com/images/7/74/Mahalologoiphone.jpg

Who would develop such an app? Maybe you could go with the ViPR visual search platform for the iPhone from Evolution Robotics - they already have the technology in place, although the end result is different. Check out their demo video below.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Evolution_robotics_logo.svg/260px-Evolution_robotics_logo.svg.png

Do give me feedback on what could be the possible downsides to this idea, and Jason, if you do go for it, remind me to get a copyright :)

http://i44.tinypic.com/10eiqz9.jpg

Mahalo!
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I'd like to see an iPhone App build on the community aspect of Mahalo Answers. I also feel like it shouldn't just be an iPhone version of the website:

1. The ability to follow members, their questions and answers

2. The ability to subscribe to/follow questions/discussions that interest you

3. Functionality that allows you to link member profiles to Apple address book contacts, a la BeejiveIM

4. Interoperability with iPhone- or Google-Maps

5. Functionality that allows you post photos or screen shots from your iPhone with questions, .e.g. "I am playing Spore but don't know how to get past this animal. Help!"

6. Use of GPS functionality - find fellow MAers nearby (not much use for me down here in Indonesia, but hey!)

Good luck!
Source(s):
I'm an iPhone user

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The option to have text msg replies of the answers to the phone, so we don't have to re-run the app to see the answers. But, also have a time limit on those replied.

It would be something like "Send answers to my phone via SMS Text Messaging for (Options here, First answer only, first 4 answers, or the next 15 minutes only)

This way you don't get a message all day for days.
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No! Serious questions and answers can't be done on the limited text of a phone. Things have gotten bad enough as it is.
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I'd actually like to see a Mahalo app for something OTHER than the iPhone. A Palm and Windows Mobile app would be nice. Too many times lately the other platforms are getting completely ignored.
Source(s):
My opinion.

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I think a big constraint on the Iphone when answering questions will be the space available - so it is critical I think to have the Iphone remember your favorite categories – and have different views for looking at questions – favorite categories, Most Interesting, and the other ones that you have.

In terms of finding places near you, Urbanspoon, AroundMe etc do a pretty good job at it, and I don’t think I will get great answers instantaneously which I already get from these applications. I don’t want to ask a question and keep waiting to get an answer when I am driving around looking for a restaurant - I know you disagree with me--just my opinion.
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If this was an iphone app it would need easy ways to access question and asking questions. They would have to find simple ways for members to use it
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A iPhone app would be great and I would love you to make it - however you must consider that will it be available in the App Store or will people have to jailbreak their iPhone's.
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