Smart phone apps

LAYTON -- IASIS Healthcare is releasing a mobile app for smartphones and iPads that instantly provides users with up-to-date emergency room wait times at all IASIS hospitals, along with physician directories and GPS-enabled directions.

The free app can be downloaded at Apple's App Store and Google's Android Apps Market. Links can be found at www.davishospital.com/apps.

FARGO, N.D. -- When a powerful blizzard ripped through North Dakota last winter, hundreds of drivers were stranded as white-out conditions shuttered interstates spanning the state. Snow whipped up by wind marred the lines between pavement and grassy drop-offs, leaving some scared motorists unsure what to do.

Two local software developers figured they could help.

Bob Bertsch, an employee with the North Dakota State University Extension Service, and Jake Joraanstad, an NDSU computer engineering major, had just finished developing an app to help residents during floods when the blizzard hit in March, convincing them to shift their attention to winter disasters.

Winter Survival Kit was born. The free program, available for iPhones and Android smartphones, is both a primer to help motorists prepare for winter driving and a beacon when things go badly.

LAYTON -- Motorists looking to avoid the next big traffic jam need to look no further than their own cellphone.

Utah Department of Transportation has released a new smartphone app that will allow motorists to get traffic, road conditions and road forecast information on the go.

LAYTON — Shoppers heading to the Layton Hills Mall may want to make sure they bring along their iPhone, iPod or iPad. Thanks to mallMerlin, a new smartphone mobile application, the mall shopping experience is no longer reserved for those close enough to smell the food court.

I always forget the soy milk.

How nice would it be if, whenever I walked into the grocery store, a text message popped into my iPhone reminding me: "Dude, do yourself a favor and remember to get the soy milk."

Michael Massie, a Milwaukee software developer and designer, and Bob Ralian, a local engineer and entrepreneur, are building a solution that delivers gentle reminders to your smartphone.

Airrand.com, which launched its beta late last month, is a smart to-do list that sends text message reminders when you visit specific locations.

LOGAN -- A Utah State University smart phone application provides campus news, maps and access to grades.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- For a growing number of shoppers this holiday season, the difference between offline and online will be no line at all.

With an avalanche of new smart phone apps just in time for Black Friday, these handheld shopping tools are redefining the art of consumption, blurring the distinction between the in-store experience and the virtual world of information now available in the palm of your hand. Advances in location-based technology, bar-code scanning, price-comparison apps and social-networking tools have turned the mobile device into a sweaty-palmed third channel of commerce, empowering consumers while challenging retailers to rethink the way they do business.