The newest version of Emory Mobile, the University’s smartphone application, was released for the iPhone this fall and includes increasingly interactive features.

Made available in the iTunes store on Aug. 11, the upgrade allows users to follow Cliff shuttles in real time, access Emory’s iTunesU page, search through an alumni directory, take campus tours and have immediate access to emergency numbers.

In addition to 9-1-1, the emergency number page features one-click dialing to Emory and Oxford Police as well as Emory and Oxford Inclement Weather.

The application was first launched in August 2010 for the iPhone. The original application was made available for BlackBerry and Android users starting in April 2011, and is still available now.

Previously, the application offered a faculty, staff and student directory, Emory sports schedules and scores, an events calendar, GPS-enabled maps of Emory and Oxford campuses, access to Emory’s YouTube channel, news at Emory and a library catalog.

Director of Academic Technology Alan Cattier wrote in an email to the Wheel that though there is no “meaningful data on how many new downloads have been made as opposed to the number of upgrades” because the application has only been available for a week, he said that use of the application and its features proved helpful during orientation.

“We do know from welcoming freshmen and their parents that Emory Mobile was the ‘in’ app to use this past weekend, having seen it in use in many places across campus,” Cattier wrote.

Maps of campus on the application provide step-by-step directions, while the campus tour feature offered images of key buildings around campus.

Application users can look forward to another upgrade when it comes time to register for spring classes that will give students easy access to their courses and schedules, Cattier wrote.

“We’re working toward meeting the deadlines for spring pre-registration so that students can see the schedule of next term’s classes on Emory Mobile,” he wrote, noting that the upgrade is a joint effort between University Marketing, University Technology Services, the Registrar’s Office and parts of Emory’s Peoplesoft team.

The project is part of a collaborative initiative between BlackBoard Inc., a venture in which Cattier wrote institutions such as Duke, Princeton and Stanford are also participating.

When the application is first released, Cattier explained, it will have a schedule of offered classes, which he added will be a first step towards making the class registration process one that can eventually be done through a mobile device as opposed to on a laptop, desktop or with a different class registrar.

Upgrades to the Android and BlackBerry applications will be developed after the Courses addition has been made to the iPhone app, and users can look forward to the updated versions early next year.

According to Cattier, these updates complete Phase II of the Emory Mobile project, and Phase III will be launched in Spring 2012. Cattier wrote that he urges users with feedback on existing features or ideas for additional application functionality to email emorymobile@emory.edu.

— Contact Alice Chen.