Tuesday, September 29, 2009

AP Stylebook Launches iPhone App

After four months of hard work, the minds behind the AP Stylebook are taking a step up in the technological world and launching a new AP Stylebook iPhone app. The app will be a hybrid of the online and print versions of the stylebook, and is designed for journalists on the go.

The app will cost $28.99 and will include 3,000 AP entries as well as the means to create a customized listing.

“AP Stylebook fans have been asking for a mobile application so they can have style guidance wherever they go,” Colleen Newvine, the AP’s head of market research and the Stylebook’s product manager, said in a statement. “Journalists never know when they will need to run out the door to chase a story, so as long as they have an iPhone in their pockets when they go, the Stylebook can go with them."

I think this is a great new app for the iPhone, especially for journalists or individuals in similar fields. Who wants to flip through a book (a fairly large one) when they can just type it into their phone?

Source: http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1004016377

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a nice idea, but how useful is it going to be? I think that when a journalist sits down to write a story he or she uses a laptop that already has an access to the web and to AP stylebook.

dquack said...

Honestly, I was tweeting about how expensive it is, but then there have been a few times since the announcement when I've been grading in a coffee shop and wished I had it handy. Still not sure it's worth $30.

Unknown said...

I think this is a beneficial app for any journalism professional.

sharborth said...

i think its a great idea. I thought it was a bit expensive until I started thinking about the availability to recieve continuous updates to the stylebook. You wouldn't have to buy new editions all the time. It is more like a one time fee for the most current edition.

Mel Mooney said...

As much as text books cost these days, I'd rather carry the AP Stylebook around with me. Plus, I don't have an iPhone, but if I did I wouldn't spend the money on it. I agree with Noam also; if you are typing up a story, you should have internet access to look it up.

But congrats to the Stylebook for jumping on iPhone commodity. How many apps does that make? A bazillion?

Chelsea C. said...

I don't think people will spend the money.