Easy audio Tweets using Audioboo

Audioboo is a simple tool for microblogging audio clips via Apple iOS and Android mobile devices; a Web interface is also available (Safari Mobile is not supported at this time). For more information, see "Getting Started with Audioboo" and the video, "Intro to Audioboo on Vimeo."

Soon after I got my first Apple iPhone, I downloaded Audioboo app for iOS and created an account. Honestly, I never used Audioboo until after I started using Twitter. I realized recently that Audioboo can be set to automatically cross-post "boos" to other social media services such as Twitter -- a clever work-around that enables me to literally say more than is possible in a 140-character Tweet!

There is a five-minute time limit for "boos" recorded using the free version of Audioboo; there is no time limit for "boos" recorded using Audioboo Pro. The Audioboo Web interface functions like the apps for mobile devices, with the additional feature that users can upload pre-recorded audio files (use the device of your choice to create "boos" that sound polished). A Web Widget can be used to automatically generate the HTML code for a customized embedded "boo" playlist player (similar to the one shown below).

Audioboo app is simple and straightforward -- it works as advertised and works well. I have a few suggestions for improvement:

1. It would be nice to see the app feature some sort of audio editor, even a rudimentary one. As it stands, there are two options for editing a recording: Pause/Resume (append the recording); and/or Delete Draft (a complete do-over). Mobile audio recording doesn't have to be a one take and you're done process, as shown by Audiofile Engineering's FiRe app for iPhone.
2. Add a setting for local time. The time stamp shown on the Flash "boo" player appears to be Universal Time (UTC).
3. And what's up with the Flash "boo" player? Seriously, if there's an Audioboo app for iOS then then the Web player should be completely compatible with Safari Mobile. Can you say HTML5?

My latest "boo" is called "Spring thunderstorm in Alexandria, VA USA," shown below (Flash required). The audio clip was recorded using my iPhone's built-in microphone; as a result, the sound quality is admittedly poor. Audioboo automatically cross-posted the "boo" as a "Tweet" to Twitter.


Audio clip URL: http://audioboo.fm/boos/339761-spring-thunderstorm-in-alexandria-va-usa

Tech Tip: "Boos" are not cross-posted to other social networking services such as Twitter unless you are logged in to your Audioboo account.

Breaking news: TPE on sale this weekend only

The Photographer's Ephemeris app (TPE for iOS) -- one of two noteworthy Apple iOS apps for planning photo shoots of the Sun and Moon -- is on sale for $3.99 this weekend only. That's right, for two days only you can buy TPE for less than the price of LightTrac ($4.99), a similar yet much less robust app. Don't sleep on this extraordinary offer!

iBlogger 2 app

OK, I admit I'm a sucker for apps like iBlogger 2 that promise "advanced mobile photo blogging." Don't be suckered like me -- iBlogger 2 wasn't worth its introductory sale price of $4.99, and definitely isn't worth its current retail price of $9.99! At best, iBlogger 2 enables limited resizing- and scaling of photos, limit one photo per blog post; at worst, the results are unpredictable. Would you call that "advanced mobile photo blogging?" I wouldn't.

As a quick and dirty test of iBlogger 2, I created a blog post on one of my blogs. The post featured a screen capture of the Apple iPhone "Compass" app. (The original image is 480 H x 320 W pixels, the standard screen resolution of an iPhone 3GS.) I selected the options for center alignment and a full-size "thumbnail." iBlogger 2 resized the image to ~320 H x 320 W pixels, and cropped off part of the original image; the resized image isn't centered on the post. See what I mean by unpredicatable results? Not good!

Here's how iBlogger 2 should work: If I select an image thumbnail size of "Full," then the result should be a full-size version of the original image, scaled to preserve the aspect ratio of the original image (if necessary). Needless to say, if I select "Center" then the image should be centered; any other position is unacceptable.

Text editing is limited in iBlogger 2 as well. Conspicuously missing are options for entering bold- and italic text. Photo captions appear more like section headers in the body of a post rather than photo captions. There is no option to enter new categories.

My first and lasting impression: iBlogger 2 is a BIG waste of money! Save $10 and go with another FREE photoblogging app such as the Posterous Mobile apps -- you'll be much more satisfied with the results.

Editor's Note: In the interest of fairly evaluating iBlogger 2, I re-tested the app and posted the results on the same blog. The results of Test 2 were no better than the first test. I give the app a rating of 0 out of 5 stars: "iBlogger 2" app is a dog and the dog won't hunt!