Australian Drink Scanner & Alcohol Tracker - Drinkscape

WHAT IS DRINKSCAPE?

Drinkscape is an Australian iPhone app that makes it easy to track what you drink. Its an alcohol diary.
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WHAT PROBLEM IS DRINKSCAPE TRYING TO SOLVE?

• Many Australians drink too much & too often! 1 in 5 Australians over the age of 45 drink practically every day of the year. Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) 2013 National Drug Strategy Household Survey.
• Most regular drinkers find drinking pleasurable and do not want to forego drinking entirely.

HOW DRINKSCAPE CAN HELP

• Be mindful about what you drink by keeping a drinks diary using techniques popularised by successful calorie counting apps.
• Record drinks by scanning drink barcodes. Scan database contains 2,000 Australian & New Zealand beers, wines etc.
• Single tap to add another drink or copy a friends drink.
• Set goals and view charts of your progress over time for motivation.
• Get support by connecting with friends, family and peers.

MY PERSONAL REASONS FOR MAKING THIS APP

My wife and I enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. When we’re drinking wine our meals last longer and our conversation is more interesting and relaxed. A nice hoppy craft beer while Im cooking and a few glasses of a spicy Shiraz over dinner, what could be better!

​My wife and I also have 3 school age children who need to do homework and appreciate a good bedtime story. Unfortunately, taking our time drinking wine usually means they watch more TV, I’m not as helpful with their school work and it’s a toss up who will fall asleep first (me or the kids) during bedtime stories.

So… at the beginning of 2015 I decided to record everything I drank and this app is the result. I used it to record every alcoholic drink I had last year. I found out that I was drinking, on average, 5 standard Australian drinks each day. Roughly the equivalent of a beer and 3 glasses of wine. A little less during the week, a little more over the weekend. As I kept my diary and was more mindful about what I drank I reduced my consumption from 5 to almost 3 drinks. Yay! This was helped by adding daily goals to the app which involved skipping alcohol on several weekday nights and not opening that second bottle on weekend nights.

Interestingly, I still spent about the same amount of money on drinks. I think I drank better stuff (i.e. usually more expensive) and less of it. Part of the reason I drank better stuff was because I became more interested and more appreciative of what I was drinking (and I had a record of what I liked) and part of the reason was social. Early on I asked several friends to try the app and added the ability to share diaries. When I knew people were watching, or at least I thought they were, I felt less inclined to buy my standard 3 bottles for $30 and to try more adventurous fare.

Anyway, I hope you find the app useful. Any comments or suggestions are most welcome.
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-Gary Hunter

PRIVACY

If you use this app, be safe in the knowledge that:
• It does not post anything to social media.
• Other app users will not by default see anything you have recorded or any photos you’ve taken.

You can, if you so choose, accept a request from another user to follow you in which case they will be able to view your diary. When users search for other users they will only see your username and a profile picture if you have one.

This app is for entertainment purposes only.