By Brad Chacos on October 18, 2011 in
Halloween is the only time of year that adults get to dress up and pretend to be someone else without instantly becoming a social outcast (aside from high school reunions, of course). But a fun Halloween doesn't organize itself; between planning a party, getting everybody garbed and remembering to buy fun-sized treats, you might find the joy being vampirically sucked from the festivities. Don't despair - there's an app for all of that! These nifty Halloween-themed apps can help you keep your zombified ducks in a row and make the spook-filled night frighteningly fun.
Halloween itself gets all the glory, but the days leading up to it can be just as hectic. Jimbl Software Labs takes some of the headache away with its Halloween Planner app ($0.99) for Android. It's also available on the iPhone and iPad as part of Jimbl's Ultimate Checklist app ($1.99). Halloween Planner includes 180-plus Halloween-related activities so that you can quickly and easily create a comprehensive to-do list for the holiday, and it's simple to add custom entries if a task isn't included by default. The software also lets you create your own categories to group related tasks together, and a simple touch checks/unchecks items.
Of course, you never want to show up to a Halloween party underdressed. In the past, Synthetic Bits' Halloween Costume Generator for Apple devices was the go-to app for costume choosing assistance, but it has sadly been pulled from the App Store. The Halloween Costumes app (Android; free) doesn't have quite the same level of polish, but it lets you search, browse and view "the largest collection of Halloween costumes on Android" by category, bookmark your favorites, and buy them from a number of online retailers. If you're the indecisive type, Halloween Costumes will recommend a random outfit if you shake your phone (hopefully not in frustration).
Weather can make or break a trick or treating session. Check the forecast before you head out the door with Zombie Weatherman (iPhone, iPod touch and iPad; free; $1.99 for enhanced version). It's exactly what it sounds like: your local weather forecast as delivered by a swaying, moaning zombie, warning of "RAAAAAAIIIN" or "SNOOOOWWW." He's reactive, too, and will change outfits (he's got raincoats, parkas and hats galore) based on what's going on outside your door. If you don't like the news, tapping the screen "punches" the zombie, causing blood splatter and other damage, while petting him heals his wounds. A word of caution; though cartoonish, attacking the zombie involves blood and gore, so you might not want to let youngsters play with the app.
If your kids are old enough to head out on their own, TrickorTracker by Iconosys (free) is a must-have app. The child's phone must be an Android device, but the parent's phone can be any brand - including iPhone, Windows Phone 7 or Blackberry - as long as Google Maps is installed. With the touch of a button, parents can see where their trick or treaters are on a map - and children can see where their parents are too. Children can also send their location to their parents and vice versa. Parents also have the option of receiving regularly scheduled location updates from their children's phones.
Halloween Postage (iPhone, iPod touch and iPad; $1.99), an offshoot of their popular Postage app, turns your snapshots into shareable e-cards. Choose between eight Halloween-themed frames to set the tone for the postcard. Several color and effect filters let you add the finishing touches. For example, you can add Frankenstein's monster style screws to your head. When you're done, you can instantly share the spookified postcard via email, Facebook or Twitter, or you can save the picture to your library for future generations to mock.
