Designation Detr@it
JEWS IN THE DIGITAL AGE
Sharing Plans Made Easier
Thanks to new app, now Mom knows what you're UpTo.
reg Schwartz's mother,
Wendy, used to complain
that she never knew what
her children were "up to."
The Bloomfield Hills resident often
told her adult children
that she had to figure out
where they were and how
they were doing based on
the various voicemail mes-
sages they left on her cell
phone.
That all changed a few
months ago when Wendy
took out her phone and
was able to immediately
see her children's plans.
And when she saw which
family members would be
attending her son's up-
coming birthday dinner, she said
to Greg, "This is amazing. I can't
believe this hasn't existed before.
I'm really glad you built it."
She was referring to the mobile
application called UpTo that Greg,
31, and his team of co-founders
recently launched. With UpTo, Greg's
mother and millions of other curi-
ous and concerned mothers around
the world will be able to gain better
insight into their children's lives. Of
G
course, the mobile app is not just
for mothers. The new app allows
users to share upcoming plans with
Facebook friends and other connec-
tions.
"Currently, social networking
apps like Facebook and
Foursquare allow people
to share the recent past
and present," Schwartz
said. "Foursquare lets you
check in to a location, but
by the time your friends
see that you're there it's
too late for them to meet
you. Facebook broadcasts
things that you've already
done. Nothing shares what
you're going to be doing
or where you're going to
go. UpTo focuses on the
future."
Schwartz came up with the idea
for sharing upcoming calendar items
through a mobile app when he was
leaving a meeting in downtown
Birmingham last year. He looked
at his cell phone's Foursquare app
and noticed that a friend from out
of town had recently checked into
a nearby coffee shop following a
wedding. He walked into the coffee
shop to connect with his friend but
UpTo co-founders: Matthew Piccinato, 27, David Webber, 30, Greg
Schwartz, 31, and Chris Kaufman, 31.
just missed him. He recognized that
it would have been serendipitous to
have seen his friend, but it would
have been better had he known his
friend was in town for the wedding
that weekend in the first place.
With UpTo, Schwartz's out-of-
town friend would have added
the wedding to his calendar and
shared it with local friends. The
app integrates with a user's exist-
ing calendar to allow sharing and
commenting on meetings, appoint-
ments and events with a network of
friends. The user decides which are
shared and with whom. Anyone with
the mobile app is then able to see a
dynamic feed of all upcoming events
looking forward in time.
Google Calendar users have long
been sharing future events with one
other, but that function is limited
to other Google Calendar account
Sharing Plans on page 5
One House from page 1
African American groups is rather
remarkable, but it's not because I'm
special. It's because they recognize
my passion, and they trust me.
"I've been able to build the confi-
dence of these groups that might not
have the confidence themselves. If we
don't all work together, we're noth-
ing."
Detroit
students
often have
to walk
past blocks
of burned
out and
abandoned
buildings.
How to help
"Mix'n It Up"
Ross has tapped into the power of
television to generate support for his
efforts. Each Tuesday at 9 p.m., he
hosts a program called Mix'n It Up
with Barry Ross, which airs on De-
troit's WHPR TV 33, on Comcast 20 in
Detroit, live online on Facebook and
at www.TV33live.com .
"I do an educational, truthful show,"
he says. "We're not under any sanc-
tions or constraints that conventional
media are. We do what we want to do.
We do what we feel is purposeful."
The last half hour of each program
is dedicated to the Better Detroit
Youth Movement.
"Young people go onto the streets
of Detroit, and I give them subject
matter. They go interview people and
then, on the air, we show the tape
and discuss it. We're working right
now on a series on poverty. We're
traveling on the expressways and
going underneath the viaducts to talk
with the homeless."
In May, Ross is expanding his
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broadcasting efforts with a second
show
Remix'n It Up With Barry
Ross
which will air 8 p.m. Wednes-
days on ItsWebTV.com .
"I feel that my community activism
has given me an air of sustenance by
giving that I have never known be-
fore," he says. "We all need to realize
our purpose. And I believe I'm doing
that." [—
__
—
—
Boarding up an abandoned home
requires, on average, less than
$200. The Greater Detroit Restora-
tion Coalition Project is seeking
funding to continue its work.
"Most of the Jewish community
came from Detroit," says Barry Ross.
"If we don't start stepping up to
help our once-great city, we're go-
ing to lose it. I'm asking my Jewish
brothers and sisters to consider
pitching in to help us."
To donate or find out more about
the effort, contact Ross at (248)
417-9696 or barryross@comcast.
net .
In addition, a fundraiser for the
project will be held from 4-6 p.m.
Friday, May 18, at the MacDonald's
restaurant on Seven Mile and Wood-
ward in Detroit.
Details about the initiative can
also be found on the Greater Detroit
Restoration Coalition Project's Face-
book page.
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