Hey there everyone,
I’ve been living in Taiwan for a few months and have been saving my receipts but haven’t had any luck so far. One of the first things I looked for was an easy way to track numbers to check against the drawings that are held every few months. I never really found anything so I ended up making something for myself.
It’s a mobile application that runs on either Android or IOS, with the intention of helping you enter/store your lotto numbers as you get them throughout the couple of months leading up to the drawing.
Android Version
market.android.com/details?id=c … luckylotto
IOS Version
itunes.apple.com/us/app/id425115833?mt=8&ls=1
There’s also a free version, but you’ll have to search for it as I don’t have the official link from Apple as of yet. I’ll update this post once I do. I’ve also got a couple of planned updates in the works, but any feedback here would be appreciated!
Hope I’m not breaking any rules plugging my own stuff, but anyways, I’m sure someone besides myself will find it useful.
I like the idea of being able to use an app to check the odd errant receipt you find in a pair of jeans that you haven’t worn for a while. You never know. It could be “the one”.
However, entering a receipt number every time you get one is waaaaay more time consuming than the <0.5 seconds it takes to scan the last 3 digits with your eyes when the numbers come out. It also forces an insistent user of the app to come up with a method for storing receipts in a definite order (by date or simply sequential purchase order?). Otherwise they have to do exactly the same level of checking to find said receipt.
Some very OCD people may enjoy this constant whipping out of a device and entering a number but I prefer to just stick em in a bag and sort them over a beer whilst having a natter with my partner.
I do think it has legs for checking past numbers against a few receipts and credit to you for a reasonably good idea. I’ve written a few apps for Android. Nothing worth publishing but useful to me. It’s a nice idea but might need re targeting. That being said, an app that even simply notifies you of the numbers when they come out as a prompt to check them is fairly useful. So if it does that at least then it’s a good thing.
Happy coding
Thanks for the feedback taiwantech.
The next update for the paid version has the type of functionality you’re talking about where it checks both present and past lotto numbers. The paid version also has push notifications that let you know when the drawing numbers have been announced.
As for being OCD or taking more time using a device vs checking a bunch of receipts over a couple of beers, I’d have to chalk that one up to a matter of preference. I used to manually check them for the first couple of drawings when I got to Taiwan, but kept telling myself that there had to be a better way.
I’ve usually got my phone with me when I’m out shopping and find (so far) that it’s easier to just punch in 8 numbers as I walk out the door, and then type in the winning numbers after the drawing is announced. I haven’t won anything yet, but being able to decide whether or not I’m going to take the time to look through a packet of receipts or just throw them all out seems like was worth it in the end because of the time saved.
Anyways, the link for the free IOS version is here - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id427117494?mt=8&ls=1
Haven’t gotten around to finishing the free Android version, but it’s in the works.
Additional features coming with the updates include multilingual support, OCR scanning support (so you can use your camera to “scan” the number in) and an import/export feature for people who like to look at things in excel.
I should also mention that the app is completely offline so you don’t need an internet connection to use it while you’re out shopping.
Any other feedback is welcomed!
–matt
Quick update, just won my first Taiwan receipt lottery using the app I made to help check numbers. Pretty stoked that I won NT$1000! Hopefully I’ll win bigger in the future! 
If you’re looking for an easy way to track your numbers and find out if you’ve won, check it out the paid version without ads at http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id425115833?mt=8
Or try the free version that is ad-supported, http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id427117494?mt=8
There is also a paid version for Android at https://market.android.com/details?id=com.luuandassociates.luckylotto
