Global record high prices of gold as well as high domestic interest rates have affected imports of the yellow metal by the world's largest buyer, India, falling 9.11% in 2011 compared a year ago, the Bombay Bullion Association said on Monday.
Imports of the yellow metal in the last quarter of 2011 pulled down overall full-year import figures. In the fourth quarter, gold imports slid 56 per cent to only 125 tonnes, Prithviraj Kothari, president of the Bombay Bullion Association, was quoted as saying by the Economic Times India.
Year on year, India imported 878 tonnes of gold in 2011, compared from 958 tonnes in 2010.
Analysts and experts had hoped India's appetite for the yellow metal will further spike in the last three months of 2011, especially since it is during the last quarter, October to December, that the country holds its annual festival and wedding activities. During these months, Indians spend on gold jewellery and investments.
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It is rare for gold demand in the last quarter to remain below third quarter consumption, Kothari said.
"People were even selling gold in November. For them it was an investment," he added.?
"Imports were very bad in October to December, compared with last year, compared with Q3 of this year."
The World Gold Council (WGC) had earlier forecast India will buy more of the precious metal in November to bring total 2011 imports to over 1,000 tonnes. India only bought 281 tonnes of the safe haven precious metal in November 2010.
Kothari noted the dynamics that pulled down gold demand and imports in the fourth quarter of 2011 will be the very same influences to affect gold demand in the first quarter of 2012.?
"Still prices are high. Interest rates are high. Liquidity is tight. I think imports in the first quarter of 2012 will be 50 per cent lower than last year," he said.?
WGC data showed India imported 286 tonnes of gold in the first quarter of 2011.?
Indian gold prices hit a $553.80 per 10 grams high on Nov. 15, while gold prices in the global front reached a high of of $1,920.3 per ounce in September.?
The price of gold in India, in local currency terms, rose 32 per cent in 2011, while the rupee's value plummeted 16 per cent.?
From January to September 2011,?gold investment demand in India grew 22.5 per cent to 272.1 tonnes from a year ago, WGC data showed.?
However, it was still insufficient to counter the drop in jewellery demand.?Investment demand accounted for 22.6 per cent of total demand in 2010, according to WGC data.
"Jewellery sales were very low. Investment demand rose in 2011. People were interested in coins and bars. The share of investment demand in total demand has risen to 35 per cent in 2011," Kothari said.?
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CORONADO, Calif.?? An early morning New Year's shooting has left four people dead at a condominium near San Diego, authorities said Sunday.
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Police responded to a 911 cellphone call of shots fired in Coronado, a wealthy seaside suburb of about 24,000 people on San Diego Bay. Officers found a man in the doorway of the condo. The bodies of two men and a woman were discovered inside the condo.
San Diego County sheriff's Lt. Larry Nesbit said homicide investigators have not determined how any of the four died, though Coronado police officers who were first to arrive believe the man found in the doorway was shot.
"They checked and he had no obvious signs of life. They tried to make contact with anyone else that might be inside the building and they got no response," Nesbit said.
A SWAT team sent in a robot to the first floor and later searched the second and third floors, Nesbit said. The three dead bodies were found in "different parts" of the three-story building.
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service was on scene, "in case any of the victims were members of the military," Nesbit said.
The victims' identities hadn't been confirmed.
Asked if the deaths are believed to be a murder-suicide, Nesbit said, "I'll let it infer what it does. We're not going to say that. Although it's very early in the investigation, we don't believe there are any outstanding suspects."
Nesbit said the 911 was placed by a male passer-by who heard gunshots. Authorities received a search warrant Sunday afternoon to enter the three-story condo, which remained cordoned off.
Neighbor Julie Kansy said was awoken at 2:15 am by six pops ? three, followed by a short break, then three more.
"At first I thought it's too late for fireworks," she said. "Then I thought it was somebody being stupid and firing shots in the air."
The condo sits a few blocks from the famed Hotel del Coronado and a block from the main street, which is lined with boutiques and restaurants. Curious passers-by asked police what the commotion was about and expressed shock and surprise.
Coronado is home to Naval Air Station North Island and is a haven for Navy retirees. Homicides are extremely rare in Coronado ? just one was recorded in 2010.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Source: jacksonville.com --- Sunday, January 01, 2012 BELMONT AT NORTH FLORIDA When : 7:45 p.m. Monday. Where : UNF Arena. Radio : WBOB (600 AM). PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS Bruins (9-5, 2-0 A-Sun) : F Scott Saunders (10.2 ppg), F Mick Hedgepeth (6.5 rpg). G Kerron Johnson (14.9 ppg), G Ian Clark (11.7 ppg), G Drew Hanlen (9.8 ppg). read more ...
A convicted child molester who assaulted boys in Columbia for decades is getting ready for another parole hearing.
The State newspaper in Columbia reports (http://bit.ly/sHgrz0) that 55-year-old Chuck Sullivan will ask for early release from prison on Jan. 11. The former high school coach has already been denied parole several times.
Sullivan was sentenced to 35 years in prison after pleading guilty in 1998 to 32 charges. Prosecutors say he fondled, molested and took pornographic pictures of children between the ages of 10 and 16 for about 20 years starting in the mid-1970s. Under sentencing laws at the time, Sullivan will complete his prison term in September 2015.
Sullivan taught at Cardinal Newman High School and St. Joseph's Catholic School in Columbia and also volunteered to work with children.
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This weekend's MacUpdate Promo offers 30% off Defense Grid: The Awakening 1.0.3, the "definitive Defense Strategy game that's easy to pick up, engrossing to play, and hard to set down. Strategically place your towers on the map to prevent alien enemies from stealing your power cores."
Will 2012 be better for Apple than 2011? Cast your vote in "Today's Poll..." in the left column below or go straight to the results here.
Friday Highlights: Jony Ive is now Sir Jonathan Ive!; Apple searching for renewal following Steve Jobs' passing, says Financial Times' Chris Nuttall, expressing concern that the company has lacked innovation over the past 12 months; similar sentiments expressed by Timothy Taylor who asks "can the brand's core attributes be protected without [Jobs]?"; Macworld's Dan Moren is a bit more optimistic expecting 2012 to look "smart, savvy, and, above all, successful"; Android is the hare, iOS the tortoise; Investanomics details how they think Apple's "iTV" will revolutionize the TV industry; in the war of patents, are the "spoils of war" likely to "outweigh the casualties"; Apple reseller in France filing suit against Apple over unfair competition; Kirkville on how to make a personal "dropbox" but using iCloud; while The Next Web reviews Insync, a Dropbox alternative; New York Times Q&A on how to keep your Safari reading list in sync between your iDevices, Macs, and Windows; The Lamp finds a pretty cool car decal: OS X Dock for your back window; Wired's biggest stories of 2011: Oct 5, Steve Jobs dies; Macworld UK's top stories of 2011 feature iPhone 5?more top stories of 2011 in our General Interest section; Wired goes inside SRI's R&D, from which came Siri; WSJ article on how churches are using custom apps for their congregants, and the Catholic confession app a "surprising success"; new Apple Store coming to Masonville Place Mall in London, ON; from the bizarre files, a 12 year old boy told by Siri to shut up; fake Apple Store in Kunming China changes name again; cool 1983 Apple phone prototype had touch-screen interface; new IGZO panels to be used in Apple products, Jack Purcher details the patent.
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Fri Dec 30
"Apple seeks renewal after death of Jobs: Hours after Apple emblazoned its website in October with pictures of its newly announced iPhone 4s, the homepage was changed to a single, sober black-and-white image of the company's co-founder, accompanied by the words 'Steve Jobs 1955-2011'."" Financial Times
11:10 AM
"Apple Mojo Shows No Signs of Slowing"?CNBC?7:04 PM
"Apple's 2012 Will Be Awesome, It Has No Other Choice"?Forbes?8:43 PM
"2011 in review: Apple's financial performance"?Macworld?8:43 PM
"Apple and the year ahead"?Macworld?11:11 AM
"Apple's Terrific And Tumultuous 2011"?TechCrunch?9:42 PM
"Samsung still dominates mobile phone market, but Apple is gaining"?CNET News?8:16 AM
"Federal Circuit ordered Apple to correct appeal against denial of preliminary injunction against Samsung"?Foss Patents?4:40 PM
"Apple to appeal Italian warranty fine: Apple will appeal against the fine imposed by the Italian regulator for failing to respect the legal warranty requirements, and (astonishingly) we know this because Apple told us."?The Register?7:38 AM
"France Reseller Files Complaint: Unfair Competition"?ifoAppleStore?7:52 AM
"French reseller sues Apple, claiming unfair competition"?MacNN?7:52 AM
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"Tech 2011: Biggest News Stories of the Year" ["Oct. 5: Steve Jobs Dies The timing was eerie. And, in a poignant twist of fate, it showed that Steve Jobs completed his life as he comported his life: as a consummate showman."]?Wired?11:21 AM
"2011"s top stories: iPhone 5/iPhone 5 has been a hot topic of 2011, what with lost prototypes, leaked specifications and the iPhone 4S debacle"?Macworld UK?7:54 AM
"Looking back at 2011: iPhone 4S and Galaxy Nexus cap off the year of the smartphone"?BGR?11:02 AM
"Enterprise Mobility: Apple's 2011 Saw New iPhone, iPad, Mac OS X, Steve Jobs' Death" [Slideshow]?eWeek?11:02 AM
"New Year Honours for Corbett, Bonham Carter and golf champions" ["Apple's Jonathan Ive, the designer behind the iPod and iPhone is made a Knight Commander (KBE). Now living in the US, the East London-born 44-year-old began working for the company in 1992. He said: 'I am keenly aware that I benefit from a wonderful tradition in the UK of designing and making. 'To be recognised with this honour is absolutely thrilling and I am both humbled and sincerely grateful.'"]?BBC?7:02 PM
"Jonathan Ive is knighted in New Year Honours list"?The Register?8:43 PM
"Will That Be Sir Jonathan, or Sir Jony?"?AllThingsD?9:50 PM
"Apple designer Jonathan Ive knighted"?MSNBC?9:19 PM
"Apple's Jonathan Ive knighted in UK"?The Verge?7:44 PM
"First Siri, Now Threat Detection: Inside SRI's Amazing R&D"?Wired?11:24 AM
"Churches Bring Custom Apps to Their Flocks"?WSJ.com [Paid Membership Required]?7:36 AM
"Someone Is Selling An Apple 'Five Year Employee Award' On eBay, For $2K"?TechCrunch?7:34 AM
"Passwords 'nightmare' solved storing logins with Passpack"?Forbes?7:39 AM
"Apple Store to Open at Masonville Place Mall in London, Ontario?"?iPhoneinCanada?7:46 AM
"Winds Blow, Doors Shatter, Life Goes On"?ifoAppleStore?4:39 PM
"iPhone Crushes Android at AT&T Corporate Stores in December"?The Mac Observer?8:52 PM
"Apple sends 'take down' notices to cracked iOS apps creator AppTrackr"?9 to 5 Mac?4:41 PM
"iPhone Siri software tells boy, 12, to 'shut up' in Tesco: A 12-year-old boy was subjected to an obscene tirade by a new iPhone when he tested out its new voice technology in a supermarket, according to Reports."?Telegraph?7:41 AM
"iPhone 4S gets offensive with 12-year-old boy after pranksters tweak Siri"?The Next Web?8:18 AM
"Apple's Siri gets sweary with British child"?The Register?12:05 PM
"Apple's Siri curses out 12-year-old"?CNET News?4:20 PM
"Kunming Fake Apple Store Changed its name for Second Time (Video)"?M.I.C. Gadget?7:54 AM
"The surprising success of the Confession app"?The Globe and Mail [Free Registration Required]?8:57 AM
"Simulating traditional painting with the iPad: Digital art doesn't have to look sterile and cold. Digital artist Kyle Lambert shows us how to create a painting that looks like it was made the old-fashioned way." [Slideshow]?Macworld?8:19 AM
"Steve Jobs Talks About Future of the TV in 1998 (Video)"?MacTrast?7:53 AM
"Picture This: Steve Jobs Gets Bronzed" [Slideshow]?Network World?10:55 AM
"Apple Produced 'Ghostbusters' Ad, Apple Boogie Album in 80s"?PC Magazine?10:53 AM
"Discovering The 1983 Apple Art Steve Jobs Forgot"?iPhone Savior?4:16 PM
"Apple phone prototype from 1983 shows an all touchscreen interface"?TiPb?8:17 AM
"Rare Photo Shows Steve Jobs's Rebellious Spirit As He Flips The Bird To IBM"?Cult of Mac?8:07 AM
"Cat Plays Fruit Ninja On iPad [Video]?Redmond Pie?7:04 PM
Non-Apple News
"Facebook Messenger embeds network into Windows"?ZDNet UK?11:24 AM
"How Tetris became the world's favourite computer game"?BBC?11:19 AM
"Report: Wii U will have its own 'app store'"?TG Daily?11:09 AM
"First LTE Windows Phone will be on AT&T"?TG Daily?11:09 AM
"Casio's New G-SHOCK Connects To Smartphones, Shows Incoming Calls, Emails, SMS"?TechCrunch?11:06 AM
"Two New Tools Exploit Router Security Setup Problem"?IDG News Service?10:55 AM
"Need Wi-Fi? Find a Vending Machine"?PCWorld?10:55 AM
"Siri for Android? New App Fools Users in Android Market"?Techland?12:32 PM
"'Official' Siri App Lands In The Android Market"?Cult of Mac?12:32 PM
"Siri Knock-Offs Invade Android Market"?PCWorld?10:54 AM
"Google: The New Vampire Squid"?Forbes?11:31 AM
"Google, Facebook rivalry to heat up in 2012"?Computerworld?10:31 AM
"Google Backs Israel Entrepreneurs as Local Financing Drops"?Bloomberg?10:19 AM
"Hackers, IT units focusing on smartphone security"?Reuters?10:09 AM
"Happy New Year from Skype! Free Wi-Fi in NYC for New Year's Eve"?CNET News?10:02 AM
"Christy Wyatt on How Motorola Plans to Stand Out From the Android Pack"?AllThingsD?9:49 AM
"Computer Sciences Narrows CEO Hunt"?WSJ.com [Paid Membership Required]?9:47 AM
"Verizon Drops Plan for New $2 Fee"?WSJ.com [Paid Membership Required]?7:03 PM
"Verizon retreats on 'convenience fee' for online bill payment: Public outcry causes backpedaling in 24 hours"?The Register?5:23 PM
"Verizon Drops Plan for New $2 Fee"?WSJ.com [Paid Membership Required]?4:25 PM
"Verizon's on-contract Xyboard is now $50 cheaper"?ZDNet?11:22 AM
"Verizon explains 4G outages: Parsing the IT failure transparency"?ZDNet?11:22 AM
"Verizon Attributes 4G LTE Service Disruptions to 'Growing Pains'"?PC Magazine?10:53 AM
"Verizon Outages, New $2 Fee Irk Customers"?WSJ.com [Paid Membership Required]?9:42 AM
Publications/Podcasts
"iPhone & iPad Live 186: Untethered"?TiPb?9:44 PM
"Gene Steinberg wraps 2011 with commentator Kirk McElhearn, author Bob 'Dr. Mac' LeVitus, and The Loop's Jim Dalrymple this week on The Tech Night Owl LIVE"?The Tech Night Owl LIVE?4:17 PM
Deal Brothers Daily Deal: Xbox 360 Live 12-Month Gold Membership Subscription Card: $37.99 Delivered
"Apple, Amazon Lead '5 Most Admired' Tech Companies"?Forbes?8:43 PM
"iOS developers still battling Lodsys"?TUAW?5:34 PM
"Steve Jobs Was The Modern-Day John Galt"?Forbes?5:22 PM
"Apple's 100 -Tester Rule for iOS Apps Not Enough"?PadGadget?4:39 PM
"Lions and Tigers and Kittens Playing on Tablets? Oh, My!"?AllThingsD?4:26 PM
"Apple accused of giving resellers short shrift again, this time in France"?Ars Technica?4:20 PM
"iPhone 4S Contributes To Growth In App Downloads"?HotHardware?4:20 PM
"Holiday Gifting Drives Apple iOS 12x Higher; Android Leads in More Countries"?MacPrices?4:18 PM
"Rumor: Thinner, Low-Power Retina Display For iPad 3"?AppleBitch?12:04 PM
"Samsung now takes to copying Apple's iPad commercials"?Edible Apple?11:33 AM
"iPad online shopping (mis)adventures"?AppleTell?11:27 AM
"Will 2012 bring a challege to the iPad? While Apple's iPad dominated the tablet market in 2011, there are signs the competition is heating up for 2012." [Audio Report]?MarketWatch?11:20 AM
"iPad 3 Rumor Roundup: New Display Tech, Lots of Contradictions"?Wired?4:25 PM
"Rumors of new iPads heat up as 2012 arrives"?CNN?10:39 AM
"My Predictions For 2012: The Apple TV And ITV"?MacNews?9:03 AM
"Looking Forward to 2012: Credible iPad Threats"?Techland?8:18 AM
"Top 5 Apple Rumors From 2011"?TheStreet?7:42 AM
"Study Claims Android Is For Apps, iOS For Games"?MobileMag?7:42 AM
Non-Apple
"The curious case of slowing US growth for Android"?asymco?4:40 PM
"Another 'Honor' For Hewlett-Packard"?WSJ Blogs?11:30 AM
"Symbian grows mobile dominance in 2011"?ZDNet UK?11:23 AM
"Motorola DROID XYBOARD 8.2, 10.1 hands-on review"?ZDNet?11:22 AM
"2011 Year in Review - Android's year"?ZDNet?11:22 AM
"Google's SOPA press stunt: Can we truly hold them liable?"?ZDNet?11:21 AM
"Anonymous 101 Part Deux: Morals Triumph Over Lulz"?Wired?11:20 AM
"Do You Speak Robot?"?Wired?11:19 AM
"4 Reasons Verizon's $2 'Convenience' Fee Is Harsh, Unfriendly and Wrongheaded"?Techland?11:12 AM
"TVs are top CE energy user"?TG Daily?11:09 AM
"Amazon Democratizes Supercomputing: Got a big question? Willing to spend $1,279 an hour?"?Technology Review?11:07 AM
"When Will LG's 84-Inch 4K TV Go Mainstream? Maybe Never"?PCWorld?10:55 AM
"The best game of the year" [Video Report]?MSNBC?10:50 AM
"10 Ways to Clean Up Your PC and Digital Life Before the New Year"?PC Magazine?10:53 AM
"How to Prevent a New Year's Eve Tech Hangover: From embarrassing photos to lost phones to inebriated texting, learn how to prevent tech-related regrets in the first hours of 2012."?Techland?11:12 AM
"Big data, analytics get even bigger, hotter in 2012"?IDG News Service?10:45 AM
"How a Montreal company won the race to build the world's cheapest tablet"?The Globe and Mail [Free Registration Required]?10:41 AM
"Toshiba Thrive 7 a Solid, Smaller Android Tablet: Toshiba's Thrive 7' is a solid, middle-of-the-road Android tablet, but its higher price-points could drive some consumers to look elsewhere."?eWeek?10:37 AM
"Tech 2011: Biggest News Stories of the Year"?Wired?11:19 AM
"2011: Biggest tech stories of the year"?Washington Post [Free Registration Required]?9:50 AM
"RIM's Share of the U.S. Smartphone Market Slips Again"?AllThingsD?9:48 AM
"Windows 8 tablets: Microsoft's 'think different' moment has arrived"?Tech.Blorge?8:58 AM
"If HTML5 Kills the Blog Format, I Won't Shed a Tear"?ReadWriteWeb?8:19 AM
"Microsoft Launches Native Lync Client For iPad"?RazorianFly?5:24 PM
"Rock out with your friends with Rockmate for iPad"?TiPb?4:38 PM
"60Beat, a Proper Game Controller for iOS"?Wired?11:24 AM
"SwitcherLyrics adds music lyrics to the Fast App Switcher [Jailbreak]?TiPb?11:20 AM
"The iPod Nano Pill Speaker: Good for What Ails You"?Gizmodo?11:11 AM
"Cirque du Mac 9 Scheduled for Friday, January 27 at Macworld | iWorld"?The Mac Observer?10:38 AM
"'iPhoned Erie:' Shot and edited on the iPhone"?FairerPlatform?8:40 AM
"Tipard Released Mac iPhone SMS Transfer: A Powerful SMS Manager"?PRNewswire-Asia?8:15 AM
"iTattoo Cases Make Excellent Use Of Your iPhone, iPad or Mac Apple Logo"?prMac?8:40 AM
"TheDataManager releases Raghavan's Indian Flavors 1.0 for iPad"?prMac?8:07 AM
"Dirty Hip Hop mini for iPod and iPhone released by Digifilm"?prMac?8:07 AM
"Mindshapes Releases Tap-A-Tune App For iPad, iPhone and iPod touch"?prMac?8:07 AM
"Letters App - Version 1.0 - educational ABC iPad game"?prMac?8:07 AM
"PhatWare Releases WritePad for iPhone, Offering Multilingual Handwriting"?prMac?8:06 AM
"The Ultimate Stain Removal Tips App is Out"?prMac?8:06 AM
"Move your files from your computer to iOS freely with SyncMeApp"?prMac?8:06 AM
"MEJJI Puzzle Arrives on iPhone, iPod touch and iPad"?prMac?8:06 AM
"intelli-Diet App - Don't count calories, eat them"?prMac?8:06 AM
"Plush Ninja 1.0 Free for iOS - Slice Plush, Toy, Zombie Bears to Pieces"?prMac?8:06 AM
"Soldier's Tactical NAV iOS App Provides Help to Veterans in Need"?prMac?8:04 AM
"intelli-Diet App - Don't count calories, eat them"?prMac?8:03 AM
NAIROBI (AFP) - Kenyan troops clashed with Somalia's Al-Qaeda linked Shebab militants leaving several dead, the latest casualties in weeks of dragging conflict in southern Somalia, officials and insurgents said Friday.
One Kenyan soldier died after troops attacked a Shebab base at Beles Qoqani some 60 kilometres (40 miles) into Somalia, killing five militants and leaving "many wounded," said Kenyan army spokesman Major Emmanuel Chirchir.
However, the hardline Shebab claimed to have ambushed Kenyan troops on Thursday with an explosive device, forcing a Kenyan armoured vehicle to stop.
"Upon stopping to survey the damage, a hail of bullets waylaid the inexperienced boys," the insurgents said in a Twitter message, claiming to have killed 11 Kenyans but making no mention of their own casualties.
None of the casualty reports could be independently verified, but the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported over 100 wounded in the frontline clinics they support in recent days.
"More than 100 wounded people, mainly civilians, reached the medical facilities during the most recent phase of the fighting," said ICRC nurse Randi Jensen in a statement.
"It has become very dangerous for patients to reach the few clinics available to them, and we just don't know how many more wounded are still out there, desperately waiting to get help," Jensen added.
Kenya sent troops across the border into Somalia in October to battle the hardline militants it blamed for a spate of attacks on home soil, and are fighting alongside Somali pro-government forces.
The Shebab insurgents control large parts of central and southern Somalia but are facing increasing pressure from government forces and regional armies.
The ICRC has sent emergency medical supplies to both sides of the frontline between Kenyan forces and the Shebab, including to the insurgent-held port city of Kismayo, as well as to Afmadow and Dobley.
The Horn of Africa country has been ravaged by a nearly uninterrupted civil war since the 1991 ouster of president Mohamed Siad Barre sparked vicious bloodletting by rival militias fighting for power.
For travelers who received a new tablet or smartphone over the holidays, it's time to begin finding and downloading apps that will be of use on the road.
In addition to a few basics such as Google maps for driving directions; Gas Buddy for finding the cheapest places to buy fuel; and TripIt?for organizing, tracking and sharing an itinerary, here are some others to get you started.
Forgot to pack underwear? No matter how well you plan, chances are you?ll discover you?ve forgotten to pack fresh underwear, a camera battery or something else you?ll really need on your trip. Goodzer?helps locate ??and price ??pretty much anything you?d want or need and includes stores of all sizes throughout the U.S. in its database. Goodzer is available online and as a free iPhone app.
Where to go when you have to ?go? Tourist bureaus load their websites and brochures with lists of art, history and cultural attractions, but visitors often find themselves flummoxed when they simply need a place to ?go.? The Sit or Squat app (you laugh now?) is a free online and mobile database that helps you find the nearest public restroom based on a zip code, address or intersection. In many cases, the site shares information about the hours a restroom is open and includes user ratings.
Other road-tested apps for travelers Sommer Cronck, a Bellingham, Wash., executive director at Technology Alliance Group for Northwest Washington and a?mother of three, favors the free MapQuest GPS app with spoken navigation and, for families planning their 2012 Disneyland trip, the free Disneyland wait times app ?and a free flashlight app in case they get lost along the way.?
Sinje Lesemann, the creative director for London-based luxury travel accessories company, KOZA, relies on the free Concierge Insider Guides, Goby and Foodspotting apps during her frequent travels. ?
?Concierge?is full of insider recommendations from [Intercontinental Hotel Group] concierges around the globe,? said Lesemann. ?I like the videos that show you around the destination and [the] interviews with locals. It?s also divided by things to do in the morning, afternoon and evening.?
Lesemann finds Goby useful for filtering and finding local attractions ???especially the offbeat ones? ??and Foodspotting?for getting tips on bars and restaurants. ?What I like about Foodspotting is that it is curated by real people, not just food critics. People take pictures of their favorite dishes so you can see what they look like before ordering. And that?s very useful for exotic and unfamiliar dishes.?
Have a favorite travel app to recommend? Tell us in the comments section below.
More on Travel Kit
Find more by Harriet Baskas on?Stuck at The Airport.com?and follow her on?Twitter.
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