The High Plains Dairy Conference does not support one product over another and any mention herein is meant as an example, not an endorsement. Harnessing the Power of “Smart” Technology Kevin Murphy, PhD Virtus Nutrition Email: [email protected] Apps in agriculture have come a long When approval was received programming way. Growing up in the 70’s I listened began and part of the process was preparing to a transistor radio jamming the Beatles the eventual users of the program for the while I milked cows. Now I stream classic launch. There were meetings and training Beatles songs via Pandora as I work on sessions. Many times programs were projects in the shop. launched to a small group (beta) to find bugs so when the entire program was released it largely did what it could do. That doesn’t mean of course it was easy to use or met with the users expectations. The user was largely ignored while the needs of the organization were satisfied. The cost: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pandora- Thousands of dollars or more and months of radio/id284035177?mt=8&ls=1 time. Let’s start a little further back. What is Enter the App! Much as the revolution in an app? The app slang has only been music was started in 2001 when Steve Jobs around since Apple launced its App store in and Apple released iTunes selling single July 2008, but is used so much it seems like songs for $0.99. The release of the first it’s been with us since the beginning of time. apps, with full user input and even better Applications (apps) are a combination of built-in instant user feedback, has hyper-links to websites and actual free- completely turned the status quo business standing programs that are used on smart program development upside down. Now phones and tablet computers, such as the the user finds an app that will do what is iPad. There are literally hundreds of needed, provides input directly to the thousands of apps and they are multiplying programmer (many times a teenager daily. The biggest question for us is how building programs after school, then shares can an app help me be more effective in my it via email, Facebook, or Twitter and it career, with my family, and with life in spreads virally within and outside the general? company. The cost: Free or $0.99 and days or a few weeks of time. The introduction of apps within the past few years is actually a tsunami that will be Large companies are grappling with the felt in the business world for a generation. shortened timelines, potential security In the past, computer programs used by issues, and a multitude of small app businesses were large, expensive, and companies that have great ideas but required extensive programming and questionable funding and follow through. customization. As such they were largely They also are adapting to the speed of controlled at the board level. Requests were adoption and training the rest of the users. submitted, went through rigorous approval As an example a major revision of an processes requiring extended time lines. inventory tracking system can be taken from 2012 High Plains Dairy Conference 47 Amarillo, Texas The High Plains Dairy Conference does not support one product over another and any mention herein is meant as an example, not an endorsement. a 14 mo time period to 6 wk and the cost This app explosion fits that model nicely. from $300,000 to $25,000. Testing is done The do more with less, faster and more cost- with iPhones and Android based phones effectively is actually accelerating within until actual dedicated scanning units are agribusiness. In the past large companies purchased and deployed. Any employee had the funds and the people to develop the with a smart phone equipped with a free QR programming to increase their business. code reader app, a username, and password Now that the consumer/user is in control, the can access inventory and product many small businesses within agriculture are information at any time in the field or in the able to respond in a nimble and efficient warehouse. manner. Small business is used to having to adapt and now that they have the ability to What is a QR code? It is a digital access technology that was beyond their signature that can contain hyperlinks, text, reach they are accessing it and very quickly or numbers. These automate the arduous integrating it into their businesses. task of copying numbers or long url strings to access websites. A bigger issue than just There’s an app for that is how can we use these to help us? Many of the actual apps are largely hyperlinks to websites. The work is done on-line and requires an internet connection. This allows the user to access information from any device at any time. One of the first programs that I started using to help me manage my information across, computers, phones, servers, and paper folders was http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/redlaser- Evernote. The founder of the company Phil barcode-scanner- Libin launched this free program, now an qr/id474902001?mt=8&ls=1 app, everywhere, about four years ago. His need was to remember whatever he needed They can also be accessed and read from to remember, whenever, wherever. The idea any computer. is to dump everything you may ever need to or want to remember into virtual notebooks and then be able to recall it with a word, phrase or even a picture. This app is the first of its generation of freemium apps. The http://qrcode.kaywa.com/ app is free with full user privileges. If you like it you can sign up for a paid account. WHERE IS AGRICULTURE IN ALL THIS? The American farmer continues to grow http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/evernote/id28 food for the world and American agriculture 1796108?mt=8&ls=1 is the most productive in the world. We have a heritage of adopting technology. 2012 High Plains Dairy Conference 48 Amarillo, Texas The High Plains Dairy Conference does not support one product over another and any mention herein is meant as an example, not an endorsement. Functionality and Interactivity and gave their ideas on what worked best for them. The adoption of the Virtus Nutrition The explosion of apps and user input is app and its effect in the marketplace have only part of the overall app story. The been astounding. With the short time line release of the iPad in April 2010 was the we had to get the app to the field there was beginning of a new generation of no pre-training or pre-meetings for the field interactivity between apps, websites, and salespeople on the iPad or before we users. One of the early reviewers of the iPad published the app. We actually did a called it The iPhone for Old People, a training session for 15 min before the show reference to it’s large screen size. While opened the first day. Sales personnel were ability to use larger font size enhanced view- given a quick tour of the iPad and the app. ability, the fully enabled touch screen Within minutes of the show opening our revolutionized computer use. In general salespeople were engaging leads in each of us was educated to comprehend the discussions utilizing the iPad and navigating written word on paper held at a 10 to 30° through the app. As stated earlier the ease angle. The use of computers and recently of use and speed to market driven by user the push to be green and not print paper has input has proven successful for us. created lowered comprehension when viewing parts of pages on a screen, at 70 to 90° angles. The iPad changed all that. It allows full page viewing, as well as annotating, much like on paper. Beyond that the old adage that A picture is worth a thousand words comes into play. With the iPad the user can see and manipulate full images for realistic views and even 3-D imaging. One of the first apps released that uses this realistic imaging is Molecules. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/virtus/id3934 This app gives a full view of the usage of 82787?mt=8&ls=1 iPad and other tablet devices as teaching When approached from the user tools. perspective the interactivity helps increase retention and even bring more believability to data presentation. These devices, whether it be an iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or other tablet device do have limitations. They are meant for consumption of audio, pictures, video and http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/molecules/id2 data. When it comes to generation of data 84943090?mt=8&ls=1 (including this paper) it can be tedious at The Virtus Nutrition journey with the best. To answer this limitation several apps Apple app store began in early May 2010. with advanced voice to text recognition have We were given the charge to program an app been developed. One is Dragon. The and have it ready to release for World Dairy program has been around for at least 12 yr, Expo in Madison, WI in Oct 2010. The app starting with an early Windows-based is a combination of product information, version. The increase in chip speed and scientific review, and a benefit spreadsheet. memory capacity has made it usable (part of The salespeople used all three in the field this paper was recorded with Dragon on an 2012 High Plains Dairy Conference 49 Amarillo, Texas The High Plains Dairy Conference does not support one product over another and any mention herein is meant as an example, not an endorsement.