New app: Reverse Talk

The new app is now in the App Store.

The name is Reverse Talk and it's quite entertaining. You push the big red record button, talk or make some noise, and then listen to it. You can play it either forwards or backwards.
Playing something backwards really sounds quite different. Those of us who tried to find hidden messages in Stairway to Heaven and other masterpieces, will know what backward talk sounds like. It sounds weird, usually so weird that it's quite funny or perhaps even scary.
You can choose to record for a fixed amount of time, which is 2.5 seconds, or you can record for as long as the device's memory lasts. If the recording is less than about 10 minutes, you can email it to your friends, or to yourself to save it.

The localized app names are as follows:
EN: Reverse talk
SV: Backsnack
NL: Achteruit praten
DE: Rückwärts reden
FR: Inverser parler

Hope you'll buy it and enjoy it. Here is the app's page in App Store.

Update: We have discovered that babies have no need for the Reverse Talk app, because babies already know how to speak in reverse. See http://www.reversespeech.com/Children_Reversals.htm 
Their parents, however, might well want to use the app to better understand their babies' reverse speak.
Note: Proctele and reversespeech.com are NOT affiliated

Sony PS3 games

My kids bought a Sony Playstation 3 last week-end and two games for it: Call of Duty MW3 and Lego Batman. The graphics is very good, but more importantly, the user interface is good too. The so-called game controller is a handsome piece and I think that's what makes PS3 games better than the online PC games. Those use the keyboard's cursor keys and thereby kill much of the joy of playing. Many of the online games have such excellent graphics that I fail to see what more the PS3 has to offer.
That brings me to my favorite game thesis that games are not about graphics. True gaming joy comes from a good intrigue and the satisfaction of using a good user interface. A beautiful backdrop is fine, but adds very little to the gaming experience. A racing game with simple graphics, but with a steering wheel and pedals, is great fun. Pac Man played with a joystick is great. Frogger, Missile Command, Centipede, Tetris are all good games with no remarkable graphics.
How can this be? Once you've started playing, the backdrop just vanishes and all you see is the game character or car or whatever. There isn't enough time for admiring the fantastic landscapes that someone meticulously crafted for the game. You are trying to stay alive and score points. Who cares what color the mountain or the grass is? If you do start thinking about it, your character is probably finished within short. Be concentrated, stay alert, never mind the backdrop, prepare for the next assault. It's about attention. You can't score points and watch graphics. It's either-or.
Finally, games are about scoring well or winning. Graphics is for the photo album.

Spring has arrived in southern Sweden. At last!

When I'm sure Spring has arrived, it definitely has arrived. How can I be so sure then? The hedges are getting greener, temperatures are quite low, but slowly rising. The calendar says it too, because Walpurgis Night bonfires will be lit tonight.

A new Proctele iPhone app is being born these days. The finishing testing is all it's going to take before submitting to the App Store. The new app is all about laughing and having fun. Kids are going to love it, because so do my own kids. The icon's colors are somewhat Caribbean and it looks fantastic.

Timestables on 3 BIG wheels (v2.0) is ready for sale

The timetables app for iPad is now in the App Store. We hope you'll enjoy this new version.

Timestables on 3 BIG wheels (v2.0) has been uploaded

Today v2.0 of "Timestables on 3 big wheels" was uploaded to the App Store. That means the new version is on schedule. We hope everyone will upgrade a.s.a.p. and that those who haven't bought the app already will have one less excuse not to buy it.

Timestables on 3 Big Wheels Update

Timestables on 3 big wheels is being updated. The new version will add a new way of testing your knowledge of the times tables. For this reason the home screen has been very much redrawn. It will however be recognizable to current users.
A graphics bug has been corrected.
The update is almost ready and is scheduled to be uploaded to App Store on Monday April 16th. It should be available for download 7-10 days later.

SMS-Fast, the app for fast AND SAFE messaging!

Yesterday I sent an SMS to the wrong person. The message was intended for my accountant, but it went to my mother. Here's what happened.
I opened the iPhone's standard message app and wrote my message. I then pressed Send and the message was sent. Unfortunately I was in the conversation mode, where I can see all messages from one particular person (my mother) and the messages I've sent back. Consequently the message automatically went to my mother, without any question.
This is not a mistake I'm supposed to be making, but it actually happened.
Today I realized this would never have happened if I had used Proctele's SMS-Fast app. There you always have to select the receiver, because SMS-Fast doesn't use conversation mode.
So to be on the safe side I'll completely stop using the standard app, before embarrassing things happen.