Jenny Hong
Technology has become so ingrained in our world today that people can’t live without their smartphones. Smartphones come in all shapes, sizes, and features, and just like their hosts, so many applications are on the market today. In fact, two competing application stores: iPhone’s App Store and the Google Play store have 775,000 and around 800,000 applications, respectively. Out of this total of over 1 million applications, there are some applications specifically designed for University of California, Santa Barbara students. All you need to do is search “UCSB” or “Santa Barbara” or “UC Santa Barbara” or “University of California Santa Barbara” in your Google Play stores and App stores. The top five most useful applications for UCSB students have been compiled. What are the results? Drum roll please.
-
UCSB WiFi Roaming (free): This is the perfect application for those who are in a hurry going from classroom A to classroom B, but are desperate to check the Internet along the way. When you’re that busy, it would be unfortunate to have to constantly type in the username and password for the campus wifi. However, with this cool application available on the Google Play store for Android users, your phone will be automatically connected to the UCSB wifi without having you to constantly input your username and password. All you need to do is input your NetID and password only once and as long as you’re within the campus’s wifi, you can use the Internet.
-
UCSB Gauchos (Free): This is a reward-based application for major UCSB sports fans. It provides sports fans with a consolidated schedule that lists games, events, banquets, and more. When students attend games and events, they can check-in with this application to earn points, prizes, and rewards. This application also provides exclusive coupons. You can find this application on the Google Play store.
-
GauchoMobile (Free): This is an application for those who want a simpler way to manage all of their courses. Some of its features include a list of students’ current courses in Gauchospace and the ability to view links, schedules, and course informations. Students can import assignments onto calendars and quickly check grades for assignments posted on Gauchospace. Furthermore, students can see a list of other people in their classes and view their contact details. This would allow students in similar courses to contact each other for homework help or to create study groups. This is available in the iPhone app store.
-
UCSB Dining Commons Menu (Free): The name of this application speaks for itself. This allows students who have meal plans with UCSB, to check their daily menus for all of the dining commons. This convenient application allows for easier access to the menus instead of having to search through the UCSB Dining commons website. This application is also regularly updated and is available through the Google Play store.
-
Around Campus (Free): Do you remember receiving those thick coupon books in front of the University Center and just giving up looking for a specific coupon in the book? With this application, you no longer need to search with such effort. AroundCampus is a college specific coupon application that allows access to local businesses’ phone numbers, websites, maps, and most importantly, deals. It uses GPS to locate the nearest university deals and it regularly updates coupons. Now, instead of flipping through a thick coupon book, you can easily type it in the search bar and effortlessly find what you need!
Image Courtesy of SB Menus