4Prox

FAQs Proxpro Prompt v0.2

Frequently Asked Questions

 

Proxpro Prompt v0.2

 

What is the “when to leave” screen?

 

The “when to leave” screen is automatically activates 30 minutes before the latest departure time for an event in your Blackberry calendar.  Proxpro compares your current location with the time and location of your next appointment, works out the fastest route (allowing for real-time and predicted traffic), and displays the “when to leave” screen.  The “when to leave” screen is “pushed” to your mobile home page.  The “when to leave” screen includes a map of your current location, which changes to a route map, displaying the journey ahead five minutes before departure.  The route map shows the fastest route.  A countdown alarm, a green and red bar, illustrates the journey time to your destination in red, and the time between now and your latest departure time, in green (the cushion).  As time elapses the green portion of the bar will shrink, and the red portion of the bar will fluctuate according to real-time and predicted traffic conditions on your route.  The address of your meeting and your current location can be checked, along with the current time and the arrival time at the future engagement.

 

What if the start location is wrong?

 

Proxpro uses the last valid location as the assumed start location.  If the start location is in correct, select menu | LocateMe and you can choose an alternative start location or enter a new start location.

 

While on route can I use Proxpro Prompt to check I am going to arrive on-time?

 

Yes, this is a really useful feature.  Even thinking you might be late is an uncomfortable feeling. When you embark on your journey, Proxpro realizes you have started moving and checks the road ahead for traffic every minute.  It updates your position and the green portion of the bar, the cushion, fluctuates according to the number of minutes you will arrive early for your meeting.  Users keep this screen running right up until their arrival.

 

I see the “when to leave” screen, how do I snooze it?

 

The “when to leave” screen appears 30 minutes before your latest departure time.  You may like to keep an eye on it, or snooze it or switch it off.  To snooze the screen press menu | snooze.  The screen will reappear once 5 minutes before your latest departure time.  To switch it off for this engagement select the “escape key” to the right of the “trackball”.  To use other applications, but be able to return to the “When to leave” screen, press the red “end” key, then press the Prompt icon when you need Prompt again.

 

My meeting time has changed, how do I update Proxpro?

 

Simple.  Go into your BlackBerry native calendar and update the time of your meeting, save it and Proxpro will immediately update you when to leave screen.

 

How does Proxpro pick the route?

 

Proxpro analyses 3 routes and chooses the optimum before presenting it on the screen to you.  As you get closer to your destination the magnification automatically increases, until you arrive.

 

I’ve heard GPS drains the battery on BlackBerry’s, how will Proxpro reduce battery performance?

 

You are correct, with most GPS applications you need to watch out for battery drain. However while designing the application we realized this was an important issue.

Proxpro uses about 5% of battery resource of turn-by-turn navigation.  From my experience you will not notice incremental battery drain.

 

Why do some items in my BlackBerry native calendar not appear in my Proxpro Prompt calendar?

 

The Proxpro Prompt calendar displays only one calendar week’s events, from the current day forward for 7 days.  If there is no location, or an invalid location, in the BlackBerry native calendar event’s location field, then Proxpro will not present an event in the Prompt calendar.

 

What is a valid location?

 

A valid location includes street address, city and state.  Proxpro does some nifty language recognition, so you do not need to enter zip code or house number.   

 

What is MyCommute and how does it work?

 

MyCommute is an easy way to check traffic on your daily commute, personalized to your location and the time when you like to arrive at work, or at home, in the evenings.  By default MyCommute is switched off.  You can activate MyCommute either when you first download Proxpro, during set up, or my selecting menu | preferences.  By entering your home and work addresses, and the preferred time of arrival, Proxpro will automatically check the road ahead for unusual traffic conditions and 30 minutes before your latest departure time present the fastest route and travel time needed.  This also works for your commute back home in the evenings.

 

How can I tell the travel time for a future trip?

 

For events in the future you can tell the travel time and route simply by clicking the event in the Proxpro Prompt calendar.  This gives a time-based travel duration and distance.

 

I shall be travelling abroad, will Proxpro work for me?

 

No.  Proxpro is switched off if your time zone is outside US time zones.

 

How do I switch Proxpro off and on?

 

If you wish to switch Proxpro Prompt off, simply press menu | preferences | menu | switch off.  Proxpro Prompt will not work again until you press the Prompt icon on your home screen.

 

How do I switch Proxpro on again?

 

Select the Prompt icon on your home screen

 

How do I unsubscribe from Proxpro?

 

If you don’t want to switch off Proxpro but would prefer to unsubscribe, go to Settings | Options | advanced options | applications | highlight PimSync – menu | delete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Predicting the Future of Mobile (location-based) Social Networking

 ABI research has released a provocative report on the future of mobile (location-based) social networking.  The press release and published graphs have stimulated a skeptical response from the blogosphere. Clint Boulton, eweek, and Frederic Lardinois, ReadWriteWeb, have articulated their doubts particularly with respect to $3.3 billion forecast 2013 market size, the business models and today’s poor performance .  Granted the mobile eco-system's dysfunctional structure, software and hardware have limitations, business models are yet to be proven and the offerings to date have not been compelling.  Perhaps an analysis of the numbers will help us determine truth or hype?

 

Let’s dissect the numbers (and make some assumptions).

 

A $3.3 billion market with 80 million users, that’s an average of 58 million users generating $4.8 / user month or $0.20/ day in 2013.  At $5-20 CPM net (avg. $12.50), means that each user has to generate 16 page views per day – that’s high if you are just searching for your closest friends.  Currently to open a page enter information (16 characters), click return, and receive a page of results takes about 28 seconds, including network delay – 8-10 minutes per day, that’s achievable.  The point is that getting the page views is easier than the achieving the daily habitual usage.

Other income will come from licensing deals, like Gypsii and Garmin that will support the short term mobile social networking coffers; rev. share partnerships, between FaceBook and Loopt, that will increase frequency of use and customer acquisition; there will be a combination of native and third party apps populating added to the mobile social networking experience that may bring further revenue.  However I think these items will have a marginal impact in the short run.

The real problem with proximity social networking today is woefully poor user experience, that' s why they lack critical mass, even the leaders.  They are light years away from 16 daily page views per user.  Social networking is only partially about “where you at?”, Loopt’s tag line.    Mobile social networking is about allowing people to expand their contact base, disseminate peer-to-peer information and advance themselves socially and professionally. 

 

 How do you make mobile social networking compelling?

 

People’s lives have got to revolve around their mobile social network service.  They have got to reach for the app as often as they look at their email inbox (more than use voice features).  There has got to be excitement and new possibility “pushed” from the phone constantly.  The mobile's intimacy and convenience is a huge asset.
 

 

The obvious extension is the opportunity to meet new people  with whom they share interests. The CTIA US Privacy Guidelines (I led the early team drafting the early privacy provisions) are complete and new introductions are now possible.  Privacy can be modulated to create a safe experience (click here to read more about privacy).  When social networking becomes about advancing one’s self socially and professionally, expanding one’s contact base, that’s when it grabs you, that’s a big part of the answer.

 

About Julian Bourne

Julian Bourne is an inventor of mobile social networking and other award-winning GPS mobile applications. He was granted a mobile social networking patent US #7,310,676 and a further patent allowed; He launched the world's first location-based (AGPS) mobile social networking application in the UK provisioned to events attended by 500,000 people (Oct 2004); won the NAVTEQ Global LBS Challenge, best social networking application, April 2006 (4 winners / 140 entrants); He has built the first GPS navigation application personalized to the digital calendar. This patent pending product is called Prompt. It makes sure people are never late, and has been described as "a service more intelligent and resourceful than anything we've seen before" (Mobile Messenger 2.0, July 2008). Proxpro is based near Boston MA.

Proxpro Prompt V0.2 Available Today

I am very pleased to announce Proxpro Prompt V0.2 is available today!  Visit www.proxpro.com or go to http://wap.proxpro.com in your BlackBerry browser.

Proxpro V0.1 will continue to work for 30 days, but I strongly recommend upgrading to Prompt V0.2.

Click here to see new look, new features and improvements.

Please Note:

Before you press the "download buttton" for V0.2 check the JAD (Java Application Descriptor is the screen describing application you are about to download) shows V0.2.  If it shows V0.1, in your browser app, press menu | options | cache operations | clear history to clear content cache, pushed content and cookie cache.

How would you compare on-line business networking to in-person business networking?

Martin Brossman, a success coach, asked the following interesting question on LinkedIn Answers

How would you compare on-line business networking to in-person business networking?

I believe the key concept is intellectual proximity. Intellectual proximity is a quantitative measure of the incremental social capital to be gained from two people meeting (online or in person). It is a function of networking intent, as well as the relative hierarchical level of the networkers. If there is a zero sum game (I win you lose) there is no incremental social capital. Online it is easy to calculate, for networker and networkee, if there is intellectual proximity. However at a party, in a crowded room, it is difficult to find people you share interests with. Socially we use introductions to help identify intellectual proximity, "you must meet so and so, you are in the same business." for instance.

If there was a way to identify intellectual proximity with people in your physical proximity then you have the perfect scenario. What is needed is an enabling technology to help find the people that matter to you, and meet face-to-face to build relationship. If you are interested read this patent US # 7,310,676.

About Julian Bourne

Julian Bourne is CEO and Founder of Proxpro Inc, a company spearheading a new wave of pragmatic GPS software solutions that help people predict the future. A location-based services thought leader, Julian is an inventor of mobile social networking (Patent No.: US 7,310,676 and continuation 11/198,126) and other awarding winning GPS software applications. A seasoned veteran of high tech industries, Julian’s prior role was as Global President of Morgan Crucible’s Specialty Division, where he led a range of growth businesses serving semi-conductor, solar, aerospace, super-abrasives and fuel cell industries. While traveling frequently for business, he recognized the need for services to help executives to “connect the dots” when traveling on business in unfamiliar places.

In April 2006, Julian won the social networking category in NAVTEQ’s 2006 Global Location Based Services Challenge, best Social Networking application. In August 2006, Julian received the 40-under-40 award in Boston Business Journal’s list honoring 40 rising stars under the age of forty.

Proxpro Prompt v0.2: New Look, New Features and Bugs Fixed

With well over 3,000 downloads in the last 30 days and press praising Prompt as "a service more intelligent and resourceful than anything we've seen before",� we are pleased to be able to release an even better version of Prompt, in the next few days.

New Look to the Prompt Countdown Alarm Screen:

�

- It is always important to see where we are going.� The Prompt countdown alarm has been moved to the top of the screen so the trip, that best avoids traffic, is visible start to finish.

-� As you progress on your the map adjusts enlarging to show more detail the closer to your destination get.� Use Prompt to navigate.

-� A new "LocateMe" feature is available in the menu so you can quickly update your start location, without having to wait for GPS.

7-day Forward Visibility to Make Trip Planning Easy



- The Prompt calendar now opens at today's date and you can plan your trips for the next 7 days.

- Flip between your BlackBerry applications and Prompt using the "call end" key.� The "escape key" will take you back to the calendar.

- Switch Prompt on/off in preferences, whenever you like.

If you would like to be notified when you release is available please email me at: julianbourne "at sign" proxpro.com.

Bugs fixed in Version 0.2

1. MyCommute, daily commute on/off
2. Central, Pacific, Mountain time zones for MyCommute
3. Updating synced events to Prompt calendar
4. Uncaught Exceptions in preferences
5. If last known location is incorrect you can quickly correct start location

New iPhone Fitness App: RunKeeper shows a clean pair of heels!

A friend Jason Jacobs is about to release a new application for joggers / bicycle enthusiasts.  The product is called RunKeeper and it is designed for the new iPhone.  As you can see from the video the application uses GPS to track your process, speed, distance, changes in pace and then can be uploaded to a website.  The website archives you history and displays a bread-crumb representation of the route on a map.  Jogging to music and a permanent record of your fitness plan.  This is a must for serious athletes and joggers trying to loss some pounds.

Should Social Networking be strictly for social networking or for business networking, or both?

It is often asked should we keep professional and social networking separate.  Clearly LinkedIn believes people should keep a clear demarcation.  By contrast Facebook would probably like to have more professional users, rather than having a totally social brand.

Sometimes we forget the sociology behind social network analysis. The study was designed to people calculate social capital - the qualitative and quantitative sum of their contacts. People use social networking to expand their contact base, disseminate peer-to-peer information and advance themselves socially and professionally. One would keep them separate if the information one disseminates socially might reduce their professional social capital or vice versa. For some it is just easier, and less risky, to keep them separate, but, in my view, you are not optimizing your social capital by doing so.

Julian Bourne
CEO & Founder, Proxpro Inc.

Julian Bourne is an inventor of mobile social networking and other award-winning GPS mobile applications. He was granted a mobile social networking patent US #7,310,676 and a further patent allowed; He launched the world's first location-based (AGPS) mobile social networking application in the UK provisioned to events attended by 500,000 people (Oct 2004); won the NAVTEQ Global LBS Challenge, best social networking application, April 2006 (4 winners / 140 entrants); He has built the first GPS navigation application personalized to the digital calendar. This patent pending product is called Prompt. It makes sure people are never late, and has been described as "a service more intelligent and resourceful than anything we've seen before" (Mobile Messenger 2.0, July 2008) because it gives people the ability to predict the future. Proxpro is based near Boston MA.

The Future of Mobile? Where to look...

There is much discussion in the press and the mobile community as to whether or not Apple will take enterprise market share from RIM.  In the medium term it does not really matter if, at the margin, Apple substitutes BlackBerry, or vice versa.

In the past we looked at Europe, S. Korea or Japan as a vision of the future.  Now we look at Apple's App Store or some even better apps available on BlackBerry.  With falling prices and increased features the speed with which the consumer markets adopt, Apple, BlackBerry, Android, Symbian or Windows becomes a key factor that drives growth in the industry.

Companies that earn a place on the open OS deck in the short run, have a huge opportunity in the long term.

Update July 23rd, 2008

AT&T published their results today highlighting a 52% surge in data revenues.  Underlying this trend is an 10% increase in smart phone and integrated device adoption, up to 18% of their customer base from 8% one year ago.  A very smart strategy from AT&T.

Julian Bourne
CEO & Founder
Proxpro Inc.
NEVER BE LATE!  Download Prompt at www.proxpro.com on BB 8800 and Curve.  USA and Canada only.
"A service more intelligent and resourceful than anything we've seen before.  Super-Cool"  (MobileMessenger2.0)

Who will be the Winners and Losers in Mobile Social Networking?

InMobile.org has been having a debate about the future of Mobile Social Networking.  Here is my contribution to the discussion.

1. Who will be THE biggest winner in Mobile Social Networking?
a) Today's big social networking companies (e.g. Facebook),
b) Independent mobile social networking companies (e.g. MocoSpace) or c) Some other type of company?

 Mobile social networking will have a variety morphologies: communication will be important in some but other mobile social networking services will be maps, navigation, user generated content or situation awareness centric.  Along the continuum social networking importance, as a feature, will vary according to membership behavior and developer creativity.  My personal view is that it is subjective content that matters and social networking is secondary.

 All businesses will be driven by value, relevance, stickiness and user acquisition.  Each of the contingent parties: carriers, social networking company, device manufacturers, carrier sponsored independents, device sponsored independents or independent will approach the challenge by exploiting their strengths. 

 The degree of success will be weighted less by the unassailable strengths of the incumbents but more by their obstacles.

 The carriers? demarcation of on-deck services limits those companies that partner with them.  Business model, value cannibalization and other limiting constraints suffocate the user experience and innovation.

 Social networking companies / portals must have a technology lowest common denominator approach and will naturally favor PC services that translate to mobile (search, messaging and status updates).  However they may not have access to all handsets or location coordinates.

 Device manufacturers are very fragmented and have relationships with the carriers to maintain.  Merging combinations of the above, will meet increased resistance before they reach critical mass.

 My preference is independents that have killer mobile applications, supported by social networking, which are able to rise above the noise. 

 The jigsaw puzzle has many pieces and not all are interchangeable.  Winner takes all does not apply here,  web-based incumbents must lose share in the mobile ecosystem.  Licensing mobile social networking patents is a good place to be too.

2. What is THE most important unique feature about mobile that will make MOBILE social networking different?

Location will be the most important feature, combined with immediacy and always on awareness. 

3. What is the business model for mobile social networking?

I'm not a big believer in subscriptions for social networking.   Some brands may feel they command a premium, but in time people will unsubscribe and again the brands will lose share.   So an ad-supported model is important long term.  If your membership can command high value CPM, so much the better.

Julian Bourne
CEO & Founder, Proxpro Inc.

Julian Bourne is an inventor of mobile social networking and other award-winning GPS mobile applications. He was granted a mobile social networking patent US #7,310,676 and a further patent allowed; He launched the world's first location-based (AGPS) mobile social networking application in the UK provisioned to events attended by 500,000 people (Oct 2004); won the NAVTEQ Global LBS Challenge, best social networking application, April 2006 (4 winners / 140 entrants); He has built the first GPS navigation application personalized to the digital calendar. This patent pending product is called Prompt. It makes sure people are never late, and has been described as "a service more intelligent and resourceful than anything we've seen before" (Mobile Messenger 2.0, July 2008) because it gives people the ability to predict the future. Proxpro is based near Boston MA.

Make Way For “Aware” Services That “Tell” The Future

Proxpro received a fabulous write-up in Mobile Messaging 2.0 by Peggy Anne Salz.

The article focuses on the powerful distinction between services that tell you how things are (the weather, the news, your friends status) and "super-cool" services" that connect the dots in our daily routines to help us manage our lives and express our intentions"

"Take Proxpro Prompt, a GPS service in beta that fuses the mobile device’s digital calendar with GPS to tell users exactly when they have to leave to make the next appointment based on a real-time understanding of traffic conditions and related factors. By integrating GPS with the calendar, Proxpro compares current location with the time and location of the user’s next appointment, and 30 minutes before the best departure time a “when to leave” alert pops up automatically on the user’s mobile device. A map displays the fastest route and the current traffic conditions."

"Put simply, mashups between location (GPS, for example), calendars, address books and a host of other tools and technologies make it possible to create services that transcend the present tense to focus on future possibilities. Clever companies (read Proxpro) is combining phone features with personalization and pattern recognition to introduce services that are more intelligent and more resourceful than anything we’ve seen before."

"In fact, many (attendees at Navigation and Location Europe 2008) wondered why we don’t have those services now. After all, the utility is obvious and the value prop is easy to communicate."