In the month of Elul, the preparatory month before Rosh Hashanah, it is a Jewish tradition to undergo a personal stock-taking of how we’ve used our time.
“Hayom,” one of the latest in a suite of apps by Chabad.org, is the perfect companion for time-conscious users. “Hayom” (literally, “today” in Hebrew) focuses on delivering relevant content tailored to the user’s location and the time of day.
Using an intuitive “deck of cards” design, “Hayom” allows users to quickly find the information or topic of Jewish study they want, while simply swiping away others when complete.
For example, “Hayom” focuses on enabling personal, customized Torah study. The user is able to study relevant daily Torah texts and videos, swiping them away when finished, leaving only those not yet completed on the screen.
Using the phone’s location, “Hayom” can show an ever-expanding list of upcoming Jewish events at nearby Chabad-Lubavitch centers.
Of particular interest is the ability to sync Hayom with the Chabad.org calendar. Once logged in, the app can give reminders before personal events, yahrtzeits and birthdays—all based on the Jewish calendar.
Other features include the ability to track Shabbat candle-lighting and halachic times for locations around the world. These times can be programmed as an alert—be it 30 minutes before the start of Shabbat or a week before a yahrtzeit. They can also be shared with family and friends using built-in social sharing features, allowing users to let people around the world know relevant times and events on the Jewish calendar.
“Hayom” also has an accompanying app for the Apple Watch.
“Hayom” is available for Android and iOS, and was made available free of charge by the generous partnership of Dovid and Malkie Smetana, Alan and Lori Zekelman, the Meromim Fund, and Moris and Lillian Tabacinic.
