Ellington

Campus iPhone users now have one more reason to tout the genius of their sleek 3Gs.

The UW’s mobile application, developed over the summer by UW Technology, launched Sept. 3, bringing the ease of all things purple and gold to Apple’s smartphone and iPod Touch.

“A lot of people are using mobile technology, so we wanted to make the information and resources available at the UW more accessible,” said David Morton, director of mobile communications for UW Technology.

Christened m.UW in a naming contest, the application, available for free download on iTunes, does not contain new information. With eight modules, m.UW simply bundles existing data into one convenient package, offering users a sense of immediacy, said Harry Hayward, director of electronic media and media relations and communication.

In the directory, users can search for UW students, faculty and staff, and then tap a phone number or e-mail address to dial a call or compose a message. Sports fans can check a game’s score in the athletics section, and wayward students can navigate the UW’s 643 acres with the maps feature, aided by the iPhone’s GPS.

Users can also browse the course catalogue in the courses section and view university-related multimedia on 24 YouTube channels with the video feature. The news tab yields articles from The Daily, University Week and UW classifieds. With the events feature, users can skim campus happenings in various categories. Lastly, wallpapers of the UW campus, including cuddly Husky pup Dubs, are available in the images module.

“I didn’t even know that some of this information existed,” said sophomore and iPhone user Kate Sailor. “The UW campus can be very confusing, but it utilizes the data and packages it in a way that makes it accessible to use.”

Morton and Hayward emphasized that m.UW isn’t iPhone-specific. While the interface appears more graphically rich on Apple’s gadget, any smartphone can access the information via connection to the Web site m.uw.edu. However, the choice to develop it on the iPhone was no accident.

“The iPhone dominates our users on campus,” Morton said, citing statistics on his blog. “Ninety percent of the mobile handsets we see on the wireless network are iPhones or iPod Touches. That’s very clear as to why we would start there.”

The project, which was initiated a year ago and sparked by similar work at MIT, was delayed due to budget cuts and layoffs. Per UW President Mark Emmert’s early summer request, the application was developed on a tight deadline in time for the football season.

Now that it’s on the market, several users have written reviews on iTunes expressing concerns regarding the public display of directory information. Morton and Hayward mentioned this information is equally accessible on the Web, and they foresee no major issues.

“It’s available in a variety of other ways that people might want to find somebody’s phone number or class,” Hayward said. “It’s just like you putting yourself on Facebook. It’s an opportunity for others to find out what’s going on.”

Students can, of course, remove information from the directory to maintain privacy.

As the quarter progresses, m.UW will continue to evolve, and student input and suggestions are encouraged. The technology staff plans to introduce a section spotlighting iPhone apps written by students and employees and hopes for the courses module to eventually offer an option for class registration. And one day, users might even be able to pay tuition bills from their phones.

“Now that we’ve got that base platform, we’re looking for ways to grow,” Morton said. “Using the talent and expertise of our students is a great way to continue to build that application.”

Reach Lifestyles Editor Rachel Solomon at news@dailyuw.com.