Did you hear about the Canberra teenagers, lost in the bush last weekend, who were able to be rescued after downloading the Emergency+ smartphone app? You might not realise that the government developed that app, together with emergency services organisations across the country.

What's more, the Australian Government is behind the development of a huge number of free smartphone and tablet apps designed to do everything from dealing with government offices, tracking parcels and finding a toilet to identifying plants and animals and writing a business plan.

There are apps for children and young people, for families and older people, for parents and grandparents, for farmers, musicians, small business people, environmentalists, amateur scientists and astronomers, birdwatchers, bush walkers, fishers, travelers, tourists, health nuts and fact lovers. You can even try your hand at running your local government - using real ABS statistics...

Read more - http://frankandearnest.net.au/theres-a-great-app-for-that/.