On this Day... - The stylish Event Calendar is an iPhone app by Sophiestication Software, the makers of the award winning Wikipedia reading app, Articles, that shares past events, births and deaths that have happened on any given day. You can browse through hundreds of daily entries and read related Wikipedia articles that are formatted nicely for On this Day.
Events are shown in reverse chronological order so that you can quickly see the most recent events associated with the date. Some users actually hate this and would rather see older historical events first, but the good news is that there is a an option to choose which sorting method you prefer -- in the Settings app. Although Apple used to recommend all settings get hidden away in the unified Settings app, it's simply more discoverable to have them in-app. Hopefully Sophiestication Software changes this in the future, but for now, at least, the setting exists somewhere!
When you open On this Day, you will be taken to Today's date with the first three dates, first three births, and first three deaths listed with related links to Wikipedia articles. For example, here's the entry for August 26, 2011:
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Boeing's all-new composite airliner, receives certification from the EASA and the FAA.
The links I included are the same links in the entry in On this Day, only the links are opened directly inside the app. If you have Articles installed, you can also choose to open the link in the Articles app instead.
Other features of On this Day include the ability to tap and hold an entry to share it on Twitter or copy to the Pasteboard, quickly select a specific calendar date, and shake to reload the current day.
The good
- Display Events, Birth and Death dates
- Tap and hold an entry to share it on Twitter or copy it to the Pasteboard
- Quickly select a specific calendar date
- Shake your device to reload the current day
- Sort entries from latest to oldest or oldest to latest
- Open entries in the Articles Wikipedia App or Safari
The bad
- Options and settings for On this Day must be changed from the Settings app instead of within On this Day
The conclusion
On this Day is a great way to discover and enjoy historical events on your iPhone. The links to Wikipedia are the cherry on top, making it's easier than ever to learn even more about past events and discover things you never knew about before. The interface for On this Day has a beautiful, historical feel to it, and makes it easy to use.
If you're a history buff, On this Day is sure to become one of your favorite apps and I highly recommend you check it out.
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