MakeUseOf Directory » recommendation engine

Chef’sFeed: Find Out Which Restaurants Your Favorite Chefs Frequent [iOS]

Umar — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 21:01:16 +0000

Although there are numerous applications out there that let you search for restaurants and delicious dishes, you do not always end up with something you like. This is mostly because recipe and restaurant reviewers do not always have the same tastes as yours. Here to help solve this problem is an iOS app called Chef’s Feed that helps you find out which restaurants your favorite chefs are dining at.

Chef’s Feed is a must-have app for people who like to dine out. It helps you find out the restaurants your favorite chefs frequent. You can also view which recipes are their favorites at those restaurants. The app is a free download and you get thousands of top recipe suggestions from around the country. To ensure you get the recipes you like, simply visit the restaurants your favorite chef recommends and have what they liked there the best.

Features:

A user-friendly phone app.
Compatible with iOS devices.
Shows you where your favorite chefs dine.
Shows which recipes they order at those restaurants.

Check out Chef’s Feed @ http://www.chefsfeed.com (By Umar from AllThatIsApple)

Stamped: A Phone App To Get Recommendations From Friends [iOS]

Umar — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 21:01:27 +0000

Getting suggestions for restaurants, movies, and books from the Internet is easy. But people always prefer the suggestions of somebody whose tastes they respect instead of a stranger on the Internet. Appreciating this, an app called Stamped was created – to help people get recommendations from friends.

Stamped is an iOS application sized at 8.5MB and compatible with version 4.0 or later of iOS. The app provides you with a new way to get suggestions from friends and share your suggestions with others. After you install the app, you create a profile and invite your friends to the service. From then onwards you and your friends can stamp the things you like; these can include restaurants, books, movies, etc.

You get a limited number of stamps that increase once other friends find your suggestions to be helpful.

In this simple manner you get a convenient way to get recommendations and suggestions from friends.

Features:

A user-friendly phone app.
Compatible with iOS devices.
Helps gets recommendations from friends.
Lets you share your recommendations with friends.
Lets you recommend movies, books, restaurants, etc.
Similar site: TheFilter.

Check out Stamped @ www.stamped.com (By Umar from AllThatIsApple)

BestVendor: Discover Work Apps That You Will Like

MOin — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 23:01:22 +0000

Computer users often find an application that works and stick to it, without exploring other options. What you need is a tool that helps provide other options to you. These options should be interesting and they should include applications that are similar to apps you use. Such app options are what BestVendor provides.

BestVendor is a free to use online tool that provides you with various app suggestions based on your LinkedIn profile information and the app that you Favorite on the site. You start using the site by specifying any 3 apps you normally use and by linking your LinkedIn account to BestVendor. You are then provided with app suggestions that are neatly categorized according to the function they perform. You can mark the apps that you have tried and save future ones in your wishlist.

By connecting your LinkedIn account you are able to invite your contacts and check out the apps that they use.

Features:

A user-friendly web service.
Provides app suggestions.
Factors in apps you already use.
Lets you invite contacts from LinkedIn and view their apps.
Also read related articles: 3 Tools to Discover & Install Awesome Linux Games, 4 Great StumbleUpon Alternatives To Discover New Sites and 3 Websites To Help You Find The Best Software.

Check out BestVendor @ www.bestvendor.com (by MOin from Thumb Press)

Carsort: Car Comparison & Recommendation Website

Hammad — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 03:05:14 +0000

Are you thinking about buying a car and don’t know which one you should buy? To make an informed decision which car come in your price range and will suit your needs, you should give Carsort a try.

Carsort is a useful online utility which can help users make an informed purchasing decision. The site lists all the cars that are available in your budget and categorize them on the basis of different features they have to offer like car brand, type, engine, seating and other safety features. Once you open any listing, it will show you all the details about that car, its price. Pros and cons, what other people say about it and more. If you want, you can compare it with other brands available in the market, check specifications like model, engine details, power, suspension and handling, brakes and more. You can even check out the pictures of the car and see whether it is good enough to suit your needs or not.

All you have to do is select the type of vehicle you are looking for and it will list all the options to help you make an informed decision.

Features

Find vehicles in certain price range
Compare different cars
Get detailed information about any car
Check user reviews about different cars

Check out Carsort @ www.carsort.com (By Hammad from TechnicallyDigital)

Booklikes: Book Recommendations By Book Lovers

abhijeet — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 01:01:17 +0000

Book lovers like to get recommendations and suggestions for titles from friends and other bookworms before they go about buying them. When you are buying online, there are reviews by other readers that you could access. Booklikes is a site that takes it a step further and creates a community of bookworms who review various titles, rate them and connect with each other.

You can browse books in various categories on the site, and see what other readers have to say about it. It’s like a niche social network where you have your information stream, friends circle etc.

I’m not that voracious a reader that I’ll register instantly on the site, but I’d definitely check it out when I find myself on the hunt for new books to read.

Features

Book recommendations by bookworms.
Social network for those who love books.
Browse all kinds of books.

Check out Booklikes @ booklikes.com (By Abhijeet from GT Mobiles)

Decide-O-Tron: Decide Which Game To Play Next [iOS]

Umar — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 21:01:13 +0000

Gamers go through games quick. This is why the question they are most faced with is “which game will I play next?” As simple as it sounds, the question is often not very easy to answer. Here to help you with it is an iOS app called Decide-o-tron.

Decide-o-tron is a free to use iOS application compatible with iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad running iOS version 4.1 or later. The app is sized at 17 MB and uses a variety of settings to learn which game you will be interested in. You can specify parameters such as platforms, genres, ESRB ratings, and review scores. Optionally you can include games from your wishlist – a list of games that the app helps you maintain.

According to your preferences, games are recommended to you to try out. In addition to these, Decide-o-tron recommends trending games as well which gamers would generally be interested in.

Features:

A user-friendly application.
Compatible with iOS devices.
Helps find games you will like.
Lets you set searching preferences.

Check out Decide-o-tron @ http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/decide-o-tron/id456494777?mt=8 (By Umar from AllThatIsApple)

Unofficial Google+ Recommended Users: Find Out Whom To Add In Your Google+ Circles

Umar — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 17:01:17 +0000

Google+ is an online social network that helps people from everywhere connect with others from anywhere. But apart from people you already know, deciding who to add in your Google+ circles is not exactly easy. Here to help you is a web service called Unofficial Google+ Recommended Users.

Unofficial Google+ Recommended Users is a web service not affiliated with Google+. The site lets you search for Google+ users according to your interests. You start by clicking on an icon that represents your interests e.g. writers, developers, entrepreneurs, bloggers, photographers, etc. – the list is a long one. When you click on a category you are shown Google+ user suggestions.

These suggestions can be narrowed down using further interest-filters located in the left pane. When you find somebody that interests you, you can click on their image thumbnail to be taken to their Google+ profile where you will then be able to view their details and add them to your circles.

Features:

A user-friendly web service.
Helps find people to add in your Google+ circles.
Filters Google+ users according to profession / interests.
A great way to find people of similar interests on Google+

Check out Unofficial Google+ Recommended Users @ http://www.recommendedusers.com (By Umar from AllThatIsApple)

ShoeAdvisor: Get Customized Recommendations For Running Shoes

TehseenBaweja — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 23:01:42 +0000

Running may sound an easy mode of exercise but if you are not properly equipped, it can sometimes hurt your feet badly. ShoeAdvisor helps you find the best running shoes by asking you questions about your physique and running requirements. It asks for information like height, weight, gender, average pace, running experience, foot arch, motion mechanics and even details about how your foot strike the ground.

Once you provide the details, it finds multiple running shoes for you along with their details and pricing. You can also compare the recommended shoes for more details. The tool also lets you find shoes similar to a specific one by just entering the shoe details.

It is a great tool to pick the right shoes if you are serious about running.

Features:

Recommends running shows based on 10 questions.
Considers weight, height, gender, foot mechanics and running experience.
Compared the recommended shoes against each other for more detailed information.
No registration required.

Visit ShoeAdvisor @ http://www.runnersworld.com/shoeadvisor [Via LifeHacker]

Alfred: A Self-Learning Personal Recommendation App [iPhone]

TehseenBaweja — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 21:01:30 +0000

There is no dearth of apps that let you find places to eat and hang out near your location, but Alfred puts a personal touch on it by basing the recommendations on your favorite places. When you install the app, specify some of your favorite places for each category like food, coffee, nightlife and Alfred will use that information to pick your next favorite spots.

It also filters information based on several criteria and let you skim through hundreds of user reviews within a few seconds by succinctly summarizing them. Tell the app if you like a recommendation or not and it will improve the results instantly. If you want to see more details about one of the recommendations, Alfred lets you view the menu, opening hours and photos of the place. Another feature is asking the app to find similar places, which eliminates the need for specifying detailed criteria.

Features:

Find places to eat based on what you like.
Personal recommendations based on your favorites.
See photos, menu, open hours or find a similar place.

Download Alfred from iTunes [Via ReadWriteWeb]

Book Discovery: Discover Books While Browsing Websites

TehseenBaweja — Thu, 26 May 2011 17:01:09 +0000

The web is full of information on each and every topic, but sometimes you really feel like reading more about that through a book. Book Discovery is a tool that suggests books related to the website you are currently browsing. The tool is available as a browser extension for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera and Internet Explorer.

Once installed, click on the little books icon in your browser bar when you are visiting a webpage and the tool will display a list of books related to the topic along with their thumbnails, their prices and a link to read their reviews or buy them directly from sites like Amazon. You can disable certain sites so you never receive book recommendations for it and even set the frequency of suggested books to low or high.

Demo video:

Features:

Book discovery and recommendations while browsing sites.
Sort books by “newly published” or ‘highest rating”.
Click on the book link to buy it from Amazon.
Available as extension on most major browsers.
Similar sites: BookArmy, WhichBook and ThisOneNext.

Visit BookDiscovery @ www.discovery.tracknewbook.com