John Albright and Kevin Talbot (Photo:Nigel Dickson, CNN/Fortune)

What is a “winning application?”  Is it how cool it looks on your smartphone?  Is it how productive it makes you on the go?  Mobile application developers are constantly coming up with new and innovative solutions that bring more function to our smartphones.  So, how can a developer get their application in front of companies and users to be a winning application? I spoke with Kevin Talbot, Managing Director of RBC Venture Partners & Co-Managing Partner of the BlackBerry Partners Fund to get his take on a “winning” mobile application.

I found out that there is not an arms-length checklist, but merely three things that he — and the other members of the Partners Fund — look for in an application.  So, what three things can make an application go from relative obscurity to receiving prizes valued at $100,000, tons of press, being featured on an application storefront and even a possible venture capital investment?

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I’m on my way to another Microsoft sponsored Mobius Session this morning, this time in Seattle Washington. There won’t be much for me to post about today, but on Tuesday and Wednesday I’ll share info from sessions attended as I am able.

As usual, I’ll be updating on Twitter regularly, so if you haven’t already, then you might want to follow me.

The second annual BlackBerry Developer Conference may have ended this week, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have your ‘Berry fix!   We’ve still got a quite few upcoming posts from the developer interviews conducted throughout the event, but we wanted to give our overall take on DevCon and highlight not only the announcements made throughout the week — but also the challenges – and what it all means to BlackBerry users in this “wrap-up.”

So, what does the future hold for BlackBerry?   In today’s marketplace where RIM is facing continued competition from multiple platforms — from iPhone, Android, Palm, Windows Mobile and Symbian –in both the business and consumer space, how is the Waterloo, Canada-based company responding?  The message this past week was loud and clear to the mobile developer community — “Come Build With Us!”

RIM has responded to the competition by not only reaching out to developers, but by promising improved tools to quickly build, deploy, and monetize their applications; as well as the training and access to RIM resources to bring their applications to market.   Game On, RIM!

Let’s take a look at the entire week’s worth of announcements from the event, and share our take on the future of the  BlackBerry platform.

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One of the cool things about being at the BlackBerry Developer Conference is the chance to try out pre-release apps from actual developers.  Couple that opportunity with developers and conference participants all exchanging “tweets” about their applications, and you may be fortunate enough to get a look at some awesome apps for ‘Berry devices.

Last night I got the chance to try out an advance look at the Craigslist app for BlackBerry from Movela.  As the screenshot above shows, I immediately configured it for my home preferences and location.   Anyone looking for a better method than the mobile Craigslist site, will definitely be happy with this app which makes quick-and-easy work to not only search listings but reply to posts and save your searches (say, if you’re looking for a new BlackBerry ).  While the app is not yet available, expect it to be $4.99 when it hits BlackBerry App World.

Oh, poor, poor BlackBerry users.  Alwasy watching their iPhone-toting friends run Urbanspoon to find some new restaurant.   Well, the sad days are over!   The team over at Xtreme Labs has brought the popular app over to the BlackBerry platform.  That’s right, now you too can use this app to find your next restaurant via the “slot machine” method — just press the Space key on QWERTY/SureType BlackBerry keyboards or, if you have a Storm, just shake the device.  The app will let you select the neighborhood, cuisine, and price that you’re interested in to give you the very best matches based on your location.

Look for Urbanspoon to be available in BlackBerry App World very soon.  What?  That’s just too long to wait?  OK, then, go to http://www.urbanspoon.com/blackberry right from your BlackBerry Browser to download the free app now.

[Urbanspoon]

The team from Cellcrypt let us know that they’ve just released an update to their popular security software for BlackBerry devices.  They now support the brand new BlackBerry® Bold™ 9700 smartphone and for the first time on the BlackBerry® Curve™ and BlackBerry® Pearl™ series of smartphones.

Cellcrypt is the very first application that provides secure encryption for BlackBerry voice calling.  The product is geared towards the enterprise business or government user, who requires top-level security features across all smartphone features.  If you have a BlackBerry and happen to be in a line of work where you may be concerned that your cellular line is being tapped, Cellcrypt has your solution.   So, if your line of work is super-top secret – or you just happen to be in a witness relocation program — now you can breathe a sigh of relief.  Your BlackBerry calls are completely secure.

Learn more at the Cellcrypt website.

BlackBerry users have been wanting a LinkedIn App for quite some time.  Now, the team behind the business social networking site have developed an application that integrates unique features to BlackBerry versus their iPhone app, including:

• Messaging from within the App.
• LinkedIn Profile viewing.
• Calendar integration (Example: You receive a meeting invite on your BlackBerry.  You can click on the name of another person listed in the meeting invitation and it will give you the option right in the calendar to pull up their LinkedIn profile — same for the BlackBerry Address Book).

During the BlackBerry Developer Conference keynote, the LinkedIn team emphasized that these  features will give you the advantage of never walking into an interview or meeting without knowing the professional details of the people you are about to meet.

Unfortunately, no specific timetable other than “soon” was provided.  We’re expecting to see this app officially available early 2010 at the latest.

[LinkedIn]

No, this is not a joke.  During the BlackBerry Developer Conference in San Francisco, the Loopt app for BlackBerry was demoed and brings some features to the table that — gasp! — best the iPhone’s version of Loopt! Stop laughing.  We are serious!  OK, so what features?  The location based friend-tracking service will enable location updates running in the background (so you don’t have to have the app open to keep track of where your friends and contacts may be) .

The updated BlackBerry app will also take full advantage of the new “Pulse” suggestions feature for BlackBerry devices, where you can receive recommendation notifications of places or events based on your location — again, through background processing.   So you can be listening to music, answering emails, playing games,  surfing the web and still know when your friends or colleages are close so you can coordinate an impromptu get together.   Right now, that level of background processing is something you just can’t do with the iPhone (you have to be running the app on the iPhone to get any location based info on your friends or for businesses). With Loopt’s coupon support, the BlackBerry app can also serve you up with discounts for those businesses or restaurants nearby.  The price for all of this functionality?  FREE.

Get Loopt for BlackBerry Here.

[IntoMobile]

The 2009 BlackBerry Developer Conference just finished the Developer Challenge, showcasing sixteen of the very best applications available for BlackBerry devices.  The winning app was 7digital’s on-device BlackBerry music store & player by DevelopIQ.  As the winner of this year’s challenge, DevelopIQ will receive the following from the BlackBerry Partner’s Fund:

A cash prize of $75,000 plus a $25,000 Grand Prize Package (approx. retail value of the Grand Prize is $100,000). The Grand Prize Package consists of:

• One one-year Elite BlackBerry Alliance membership
• One day Mentoring Session with RIM in Waterloo (Ontario, Canada), providing analysis, review and insights into how best to improve the application on BlackBerry
• Press release and Featured Interviews with Media
• Two weeks on the App World Featured Application Carousel
• Potential investment offer from the BlackBerry Partners Fund

It’s no secret that the 7digital app is VERY well liked here at Gear Diary.  We’d like to congratulate DevelopIQ for bringing the mobile music store to BlackBerry fans everywhere.   Let’s take a look at some of the other apps in this year’s challenge.  Click on to read the details and the Official Press Release.

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Video Courtesy of The CrackBerry.com Team

OK, folks. Put down the BrickBreaker.  RIM and EA Games showed off the future of gaming for BlackBerry devices.  I know, I know…gaming & BlackBerry haven’t really gone together like peanut butter & jelly.  But, guess what, that is about to change.   Take a look at the video above.  The team at CrackBerry was kind (and quick!) enough to post this gem.  This was one of the things that had developers really excited.  Forget BrickBreaker.  Forget Texas Hold ‘Em.  The announcement that BlackBerry will begin supporting OpenGL ES may not sound like a hot bowl of awesome at first glance, but what it means sure does!   OpenGL ES will soon enable 3D gaming and graphics on your BlackBerry.  Let me emphasize that again…On.  Your.  BlackBerry!

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One of the highlight’s of today’s BlackBerry Developer Conference Keynote was the announcement that RIM will be giving developers the tools to implement advertising directly within the applications they create for BlackBerry devices.  The move is directed to help developers monetize their applications — and, frankly, to attract more developers to the BlackBerry platform.  So, mobile developers, do you like the thought of more revenue for your apps?  Do you like the sound of money?  Cha-Ching!

Add the fact that RIM will be implementing this service into their existing application development tools, and it is clear the company is looking to make it as easy as possible for developers to hit the ground running and get their BlackBerry apps to market.  The full press release states:

The new and innovative BlackBerry® Advertising Service will enable developers to integrate advertising into their BlackBerry applications, helping them generate revenue and simplifying the business of mobile advertising. With the BlackBerry Advertising Service, RIM plans to provide developers with access to a large pool of quality and innovative ad units from trusted top tier and specialty advertising networks such as Jumptap, Lat49, Millennial Media, Navteq, 1020 Placecast, Quattro Wireless and Sympatico.ca. The service will feature ads compliant with the Mobile Marketing Association’s (MMA) guidelines as well as rich media ads that will be able to deeply integrate with BlackBerry applications. Examples of this deep integration between ads and applications will include the ability to easily initiate a call from an ad, add a calendar entry or contact entry from an ad, and directly link to an application in BlackBerry App World™ from an ad. The service will also include real-time, detailed, consolidated reporting of advertising across ad networks, including ad impressions, clicks, conversions and earnings, as well as integration into the Omniture Online Marketing Suite™ for more advanced analytics.

The BlackBerry Advertising Service and a software development kit (SDK) are planned to be available in the first half of 2010.

One of the things that has been missing for anyone interested in mobile application development has been where to start. Most developers may have studied programming languages in college, but when it comes to keeping up with the constant changes and new platforms most current and would-be developers have to rely on self-taught methods and a lot of trial and error.  RIM’s looking to help make it easier for anyone wanting to develop mobile applications for their BlackBerry devices.

How?  Today, RIM has announced a BlackBerry® Academic Program set up to provide universities with a curriculum offering courses in administering BlackBerry services and developing applications on the BlackBerry platform.   This move will put BlackBerry development and training in college classrooms to help foster a training path for new mobile application developers — as well as helping to ensure RIM has a steady developer following (and ongoing candidates for possible careers inside RIM or with any company deploying or supporting BlackBerry devices).

Full Press Release after the jump.

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Hey ho, mobile developers!  Straight from this year’s BlackBerry Developer Conference, there is LOTS of good news.  No longer are you going to be hanging your head when you think about developing Rich Content applications for BlackBerry devices.  RIM announced their partnership with Adobe to give developers access to the design and implementation tools they need to rapidly make great looking applications. Want to use Photoshop to give your apps some professional flare?  Done.  Want to integrate Dreamweaver, Flex, Flash into your mobile experience?  Done, done, and done!

Read the full press release after the jump.

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Last weekend I had the opportunity to be part of a small group of tech bloggers invited to attend several Windows 7 launch events in New York and Washington DC. I wasn’t totally clear on exactly what we would be doing on this trip before going, but I figured no matter what, it would be fun and the food would be good. I was right…

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A little bit later this morning I’ll be on a plane, headed north for a whirlwind round of Windows 7 launch activities in NYC and Washington DC as Microsoft’s and HP’s guest.

Wayne and Dan will be on their way into NYC as well, to attend Engadget Live, as the show engages in a “frank and unscripted one-on-one conversation” with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

We’ll meet up later in the evening for dinner, and I’m sure that we’ll have plenty to share. Be sure to check Wayne and Dan’s twitter streams for updates throughout the day, as well as mine tonight and over the weekend; it should be fun!

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