Android smart phones have numerous applications designed for the RVer

Android smart phones, like Apple's iPhones, offer many applications or apps tailored for computer age RVers. Not only do apps locate campgrounds, restaurants and entertainment venues, but they can be used as GPS units, for paying bills, checking emails from home and even chasing away mosquitoes.

Yes, a free app called Sonic Mosquito Repellent is one of several that you can download from Android Market. You need only open it up while walking in the woods of lounging around an evening campfire, and those pesky blood suckers will steer clear of the ultrasonic sounds that cannot be heard by humans.
 
Another great app is Allstays Camp & RV. For a one-time fee of $4.50, the app allows you to obtain information on all types of campgrounds (including Wal Mart stores that allow overnight parking), state and national parks, rest areas, low clearance obstacles such as bridges and overpasses, stores, restaurants and fuel stations.

One simply goes to Manual Lookup to select the state or Canadian province. A menu appears that allows you choose the information you are seeking. Pushing the KOA line, for example, provides the locations of all KOA campgrounds along with pertenant information. Other selections allow you to call the particular campground, look at its web site, get directions to it, and even read reviews from other campers.

The app virtually eliminates the need to carry those telephone book-size campground directories that clutter RV cockpits and storage areas.
Another worthwhile free app is iRV2 Forum that allows exchanges of information about all types of RVs and other topics.

For hikers and other exercise enthusiasts there are many apps that can be an asset to your lifestyle. Instant Heart Rate measures your heart rate by analyzing color changes on the tip of your finger. You simply place your fingertip on the Android camera lens to get a reading. There are numerous other apps that do the job. Some are free while others come with a nominal fee.

If you left your pedometer back home, just download one to your smart phone. One app, simply called Pedometer, comes free and counts steps, distance, and even the calories burned during a walking or jogging session.

If you're trying to cut down on excess baggage ... of your body, not the RV's ... there is the free Restaurant Nutrition app. It lists chain restaurants and information about their respective menus. You will be shocked to learn just how many calories your favorite foods contain. A Burger King double bacon cheeseburger carries 510 calories, 1,150 grams of sodium and 30 grams of fat. That should be enough to send you to the nearest emergency room to be treated for clogged arteries.

If you decide to stay out of restaurants and go the home cooking route, there is a free app called Basic Food Calorie Lookup. You simply type in the name of the item and all the information you need pops up on the screen. Typing in low fat milk shows that one cup contains 102 calories. Two slices of pizza equals to 601 calories. Well, you get the picture.

Another app called Note Everything is a life saver both on and off the road. You can create RV checklists, shopping lists and record virtually anything. There are apps for obtaining trip information (AAA TripTik), checking gas mileage (Gas Mileage Calculator), locating cheap fuel (GasBuddy), and  locating restaurants and attractions (Places). Some apps even double as compasses (3D Compass). Another turns a smart phone into a flashlight (Flashlight).

Oh, and yes, and you can use the Spirit Level Plus app to ensure that your RV is on flat ground before you call it a night.

For more information about Android and its applications visit https://market.android.com/

Email is a great way to stay in touch with friends, family

RVers can stay in touch on the road with friends and loved ones back home by email. Sending electronic messages was probably the first thing we learned with our new computer.

But there are dangers lurking out there in cyberland. Do you wonder why you get viruses or junk mail? Every time you forward an email there is information left over from the people who got the message before you, namely their email addresses and names.

The following are some tips about keeping your emailing habits safe and more enjoyable:

• When you forward an email, delete all other addresses that appear in the body of the message.
• Whenever you send an email to more than one person, do not use the "TO" or "CC" columns for adding email address. Always use the "BCC" column for listing the email addresses. This is why people you send emails to only see their own email address. If you don't see your BCC option, click on where it says TO and your address list will appear. Highlight the address and choose BCC. When you send BCC your message will automatically say "Undisclosed Recipients" in the TO field.
• Remove any "FW" in the subject line. You can rename the subject if you wish, or even fix spelling.
• Always hit your Forward button from the actual email your reading. Have you ever received those emails that you have to open 10 pages to read the one page with the information on it? By forwarding from the actual page you wish someone to view, you stop them from having to open many emails just to see what you sent.
• Have you ever received an email that is a petition? It states a position and asks you to add your name and address and to forward it to 10 or 15 people or your entire address book. The email can be forwarded on and on and can collect thousands of names and email addresses. The completed petition is actually worth money to a professional spammer because of the valid names and email addresses contained therein.
• If you want to support the petition, send it as your own personal letter to the intended recipient. Your position may carry more weight as a personal letter rather than a laundry list of names and email address on a petition.

A Map of Visited States

Would you like to have your very own map of visited states to put on your blog, facebook profile, or email signature?  It’s easy and free by going to http://epgsoft.com/.  Just choose ‘Create Map’ and ‘Visited States Map.’  You should now see a listing of all the states.  Check off the ones you have visited, then Create Map.

 

Make sure to select the Map Size and the File Format.  Then, when you click Create Map you will see:

 

If you find that you’ve missed some states, or selected some by mistake, you can click the Back button on your browser to fix it, then click on Create Map once again to see the corrected version.  Once the map looks how you want it, you right-click on it and choose Save Picture As (or Save Image As – depending on your browser.)  Navigate to the folder where you want to store it and click ok.  Now the map is a picture on your computer that you can use like any other picture. 

How about the World?

If you travel the world and want to have a map of visited countries, check out http://douweosinga.com/projects/visited.  It works similarly to the visited states above except at the very end.  Instead of saving an image file, you get html code to put on a blog or website.  It also only uses one color.  I find for a world map that one color is better anyway.

 
visited 83 states (36.8%)
Create your own visited map of The World or Like this? try: Eddie the DJ

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