Just released yesterday, Touch Tarot is yet another program designed to turn that fancy new iPhone into a pocketable, portable Tarot deck.
The main menu pretty much says it all: with the tap of a finger, Touch Tarot generates one-card, three-card (Past, Present, Future), and ten-card Celtic Cross readings. The only deck included is the familiar Rider-Waite; if you like, you can gaze lovingly at each and every card in the deck one-by-one using the built-in card browser.
Inevitably (*sigh*!) the developers have included a library of short, pointless canned meanings for each card. The Empress, we are told, heralds "stable relationships" and "material wealth." The Lovers warn of pending temptation (!) and looming change.
I asked Touch Tarot, "When will a developer release an iPhone deck simulator that isn't saddled with stale, trite canned meanings?" My one-card reading supplied the Seven of Swords: "Logic and reason win the day."
Ah, we can only hope. If you like your readings served up with 50-word meanings tacked on, Touch Tarot will set you back just ninety-nine cents.
SO... do you think this is better or worse, than the Party Tarot app, all things considered?
Posted by: Marc | July 20, 2008 at 02:05 AM
Hi, Marc! Thanks for stopping by.
Instead of seeing one or the other of the programs as "better or worse," I tend to see them as very different programs for very different applications.
Party Tarot is well-suited for quick, informal readings. The "tap to pick" interface shows off the iPhone interface. If you're wanting to engage someone with the Tarot or your iPhone, but have limited time, this is the right application for you.
Touch Tarot offers more traditional readings and more spreads. It's more like a traditional reading, and its readings, as a result, could take more time to interpret. If you're looking for a portable electronic deck that can generate three-card and Celtic Cross readings on the fly, this application is the better one for you.
Hope that helps!
Posted by: Mark McElroy | July 28, 2008 at 07:52 AM
As a new reader to your blog, I think some of your critiques/posts come across as snooty--perhaps even a bit patronizing. It seems that if the product/book/etc. isn't a perfect fit for you, then you fail to see how it could be what someone else is looking for.
Take your review of the iphone app as an example. You are clearly miffed that it includes keywords. But when I was first learning to read tarot, I loved the fact that there was a starting point for me to expand upon (i.e., keywords). So while the keywords may not appeal to you, there may be some that find them useful.
I'm not trying to ruffle any feathers here. Just trying to give you my honest feedback as a new reader.
Posted by: Ann Green | May 12, 2009 at 05:22 PM
Hi, Anne! I'm glad you're here, and I appreciate the fact that you would take the time to comment.
Me? Snooty? Patronizing? Nah.
Cantankerous? Crotchety? Irreverent? Yep, 'fraid so.
You see, I've got strong opinions about most things, including Tarot and Tarot software. Rather than express these opinions as bland platitudes, I tend to express 'em with what some people's Mama would call "a tone."
Some folks won't like that ... but some folks "get it" and appreciate the fact that my posts are a little more pointed than those found on, say, "Pink Unicorn's Sparkly Tarot Enlightenment Blog (Now with Chocolate Sprinkles!!")
To paraphrase Lon Milo Duquette, "I take Tarot very seriously, but I don't take myself very seriously" -- and I would urge you to take me and all my blathering just as seriously as I do. :-)
Thanks again for the comment! Feedback is always welcome, and comments are always appreciated.
Posted by: Mark | May 12, 2009 at 05:45 PM