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- Apple Updates iTunes to 8.1.1
Apple today released an update for iTunes, bringing the version number to 8.1.1.
The new version (currently available from Software Update) supposedly fixes syncing issues with the iPhone and iPod touch (which I’ve been lucky enough not to encounter) and with VoiceOver, the we-don’t-need-no-stinkin’-display substitute for the iPod Shuffle.
It’s also supposed to bring HD movie rental support to the media management software, though a cursory investigation by yours truly does not reveal any movies that are currently available for rent in said format, in either the Canadian or the U.S. iTunes stores. Maybe the standard $3.99 rental price now includes an HD resolution copy when available? I’m too scared to try it out, so let us know if you’re a braver soul than I.
Переслать - Stanford and Apple Offering Free iPhone Development Course Through iTunes
If you ever wanted to be an iPhone developer, but weren’t sure where to start, this might be the place.
Stanford University is now offering an entire course (iTunes link) in iPhone development through Apple’s iTunes store, absolutely free. The only cost will be the $99 iPhone Development Program fee (if you aren’t already a registered developer). Plus, you don’t even have to commute to Palo Alto, Calif., which will definitely save a buck or two.
The course, the first installment of which is available now, is aimed at students who already have a basic familiarity with programming languages like C+ and C++, so if you were hoping to go in blind and come out with a game in the same league as something from ngmoco, you might want to consider heading back to school for that CS degree you always regretted not getting. That said, the course might prove very beneficial if you already have some development experience but haven’t felt brave enough to venture into the realm of Cocoa Touch.
The class currently available is basically just an introduction and a basic outline of the semester. During the course, students are expected to develop a number of basic apps, escalating in complexity and difficulty. Students will learn how to develop a native iPhone Twitter client, then are expected to develop their own app for the final project. The course covers the iPhone 2.0 SDK only, since the 3.0 beta is still restricted by an NDA. Still, if you want to gain a better understanding of the building blocks of iPhone development, there are far worse ways you could go about it.
Переслать - What Apple Can Learn From MacHeist
Show of hands: How many of us would love to have access to quick and dirty downloads of super-cool Mac apps along the lines of what the current App Store offers iPhone and iPod touch users? Oh, heck yes.
Fast Company’s Kit Eaton asks a great question today about the recent MacHeist bundle. He wants to know if MacHeist’s success will eventually goad Apple into opening an App Store for Mac. He wonders how Apple would implement such a thing if they ever decided to try. “Could MacHeist’s success prompt Apple to expanding the App store to supply Mac software?” he writes. “Or would Apple simply buy up MacHeist, since it does have a history of purchasing innovative start-ups and incorporating them into its business, with CoverFlow being an obvious example.”
If MacHeist has proven anything with its repeated success at selling giant bundles of software, it’s that Mac users want new apps. It’s unlikely that everyone who purchases a MacHeist bundle will use every single app it comes with, yet people flock to buy them anyway. While part of MacHeist’s success may be related to its charitable donations, and part may be due to an insanely low price for a bunch of terrific software, the fact is many Mac users just really want to try new stuff.
Apple has already proven the App Store is a profitable business model, and MacHeist proves there’s a market for third-party Mac apps so it’s not hard to do the math. I do have two qualms, however. Many iPhone App developers complain the approval process is so painfully long that’s hardly worth the effort sometimes. While delayed approval for iPhone apps is a nuisance, a long approval process for Mac software could be fatal. Many Mac apps are developed in response to newly-emerging customer needs and must make it to market quickly in order to be a success. A Mac App store won’t fly if equal or better software is available elsewhere when customers need it.
I’m also concerned that a Mac App Store would become a dumping ground for the same type of freeware cruft that clutters up the current App Store. I can’t imagine anyone taking the time to wade through a bunch of detritus in the hopes of finding one diamond in the rough.
Of course, these might be the very reasons we haven’t seen this kind of store yet. I suspect the vetting process for such a massive undertaking would require a whole new legion of staff and policies. If Apple ever announces they do plan to open a Mac App Store, however, I want to be first in line.
Переслать - Next-generation iPhone to Have Video Editing, 802.11n, FM Transmit/Receive
We’re still more than two months out from the WWDC in June of this year, but already the rumor mill is going full-tilt, especially around what will no doubt be the star of the show, the next incarnation of Apple’s iPhone. We’ve already seen speculation about better camera capable of shooting video, and there have long been rumors of improved processors, and even GPUs and dual-core architecture. The latest speculation brings a lot of new features to the iPhone, in addition to better specs.
Video Editing
The first new feature hinted at is video editing capabilities, which, if true, would obviously confirm the iPhone’s ability to record video. Video editing possibilities stem from the discovery of a series of images with highly suggestive names like “UIMovieScrubberEditingRight.png” in the new iPhone 3.0 beta. None of the oddly named images seem to be used yet anywhere in the beta’s UI, which would suggest they are reserved for a feature not yet introduced. Even limited video editing ability would help Apple distinguish the iPhone even further from its competitors.
802.11n
Both of the other new rumors which came to light recently have to do with the iPhone’s connectivity. First, there’s evidence (again in the new beta firmware) to suggest that the next-gen iPhone will be getting a low-power 802.11n chip for better Wi-Fi connection speeds. Among a whole host of features this would bring to Apple’s mobile platform (the iPod touch is reportedly getting the same boost), AppleInsider points out that this would allow the iPhone to use the 5GHz range, so that users with newer Macs would no longer have to use a 2.4GHz compatible network in the their homes, which reduces overall network efficiency because of heavy 2.4GHz interference.
FM Transmission/Reception
Finally, there are claims that the same Broadcom chip that will provide the next-gen iPhone with low-power 802.11n will also give it FM transmit and receive capabilities. If that’s true, it means not only being able to listen to FM stations on your iPhone (which to me is pretty much worthless thanks to Internet radio), but also the ability to transmit to your car/home stereo on an FM frequency without wires or the need for additional peripherals. At the iPhone 3.0 event, Apple demoed what a potential FM transmitter app designed specifically for use with a peripheral might look like, but maybe they were actually giving us a preview of a standard app for the upcoming iPhone hardware refresh.
I think it’s time to start saving my shekels. I’m gonna have a hard time convincing my Canadian telco to let me re-up my contract for this new model after only a year, but if it’s packing half the features that are rumored, I feel compelled.
Переслать - Apple Job Posting Suggests iPod Touch to Gain Camera
There’s been lots of talk recently about what the future might have in store for the new iPhone camera, with one report claiming that the orders have already been placed for 3.2-megapixel sensors for the device to be released in June. Today, AppleInsider pointed out a recent job listing that seems not only to confirm the rumors about the iPhone, but also sparks new ones about the possibility of the iPod touch getting a camera soon, too.
The job listing called for a “Camera Project Manager” whose responsibilities include driving “the design, development and integration of camera modules across iPhone and iPod,” the operative phrase there being “and iPod.” If it turns out to be true, the addition of a camera would allow future iPod touch users to use the many camera-dependent apps currently available for the iPhone, and would further narrow the gap between the two devices. Readers should note that the listing has been changed since, with iPod references removed. This could be the correction of an error, but more likely, Apple realized they were tipping their hand.
While few (if any) other portable media players currently on the market offer a built-in camera, this past week saw the North American release of the Nintendo DSi, which now offers music playback, built-in web browsing and not one, but two cameras. The update to Nintendo’s wildly successful DS console is seen by some as an answer to Apple’s inroads into the mobile gaming arena, especially with the introduction of DSiware, which will basically be an app store for the DSi. Adding a camera to the iPhone could be a move on Apple’s part to position it even stronger against the DSi and the upcoming PSP refresh, about which very little is known at this point.
All I know for sure is that if Apple were to give the iPod touch a camera (and video recording capability), in addition to the recent line-in support and external speakers, there are very few devices either released or planned in the PMP or portable gaming category that could come close to matching it.
Переслать - The Curious Case of the Missing MacBook Pro Keyboard and Trackpad
About three weeks ago, the keyboard and trackpad on my MacBook Pro (from mid-2007) began failing randomly for no apparent reason. I would turn it on only to find its keyboard and trackpad unresponsive to any input. Rebooting sometimes helped, but many times it did not. Without a reproducible pattern I could determine, it was impossible to know if the problem was caused by failing hardware, a software conflict, or both.
Imagine if this happened to you while you were out at a cafe or are about to give a presentation, and you’ll understand why I was near the brink of insanity. After some investigation,1 it became clear there was a fundamental design flaw present in the MacBook Pro that was causing the problem. If your MacBook Pro does not have the new unibody design, this design flaw could give you grief sooner or later.
The Symptoms
Your MacBook Pro may exhibit any or all of the following symptoms:
- Upon waking from sleep, the keyboard and trackpad become unresponsive; log entries in OS X’s Console say “IOUSBFamily failed to enumerate a device.”
- Booting up the MacBook Pro and into the login screen with neither keyboard nor trackpad input. The only way to do anything further is to force shutdown of the system by pressing and holding the power button.
- The keyboard is sometimes present at boot, and sometimes isn’t. You can verify this by hitting the Caps Lock key and seeing if its corresponding light lights up or not while you are at the white boot-up screen with the gray Apple logo.
- Plugging in an external keyboard and mouse works, thereby eliminating the possibility that software is at fault.
- While OS X is running, the keyboard and trackpad may become intermittently unresponsive.
The Problem
Prior to going the way of the unibody enclosure, the MacBook Pro sported a design largely carried over from the PowerBook G4. A design trait common to all such MacBook Pro models is that of the battery bay. In this design, the battery bay of the MacBook Pro is located beneath the trackpad, in roughly the middle of the wrist-rest area in front of its keyboard. MacBook Pro models that share this design are:
- 15-inch Early 2006, Intel Core Duo (MA463LL/A, MA464LL/A, MA600LL, or MA601LL)
- 17-inch Early 2006, Intel Core Duo (MA0922LL/A)
- 15-inch Late 2006, Intel Core 2 Duo (MA609LL, or MA610LL)
- 17-inch Late 2006, Intel Core 2 Duo (MA611LL/A)
- 15-inch Mid 2007, Intel Core 2 Duo (MA895LL, MA896LL, MA895LL/A, or MA896LL/A)
- 17-inch Mid 2007, Intel Core 2 Duo (MA897LL/A)
- 15-inch Early 2008, Intel Core 2 Duo (MB133LL/A, or MB134LL/A)
- 17-inch Early 2008, Intel Core 2 Duo (MB166LL/A)
Removing the battery
Remove the battery and you will see the partially exposed circuitry of the trackpad. Notably, you will see a orange ribbon cable that ends in two connections to the trackpad.
Take a closer look at this ribbon cable and you will see that it does not lie completely flat against the floor of the battery bay.
I have my MacBook Pro in a sling bag whenever I’m on the move, placed in such a way that the battery side of the notebook is always against my hip. I suspect that the jostling of the MacBook Pro, specifically its battery, against my body over time has weakened the connection of the ribbon cable to the trackpad.
Replicating the Problem
If your MacBook Pro is exhibiting the symptoms I’ve described above, here’s how to replicate the problem.
Before you proceed, install HardwareGrowler. HardwareGrowler is a subset of Growl that notifies you whenever hardware is disconnected and connected from your Mac. This is extremely useful, as it lets you see, in real time, the keyboard and trackpad disconnect and connect while you troubleshoot.
Once you have HardwareGrowler installed, perform the following steps:
- Your MacBook Pro should be running. If the keyboard and trackpad are still dead, use an external keyboard and mouse to login. Once you’re in OS X, unplug the external keyboard and mouse.
- Make sure your MacBook Pro is plugged into AC power.
- Flip your MacBook Pro over and remove its battery.
- Then arrange your MacBook Pro so that its screen is flat on a surface and its lower assembly is vertical, 90 degrees to the surface.
- Arrange yourself so that you can see both the battery bay and the screen of your MacBook Pro.
- With one finger, press the ribbon cable in the spot just before where it bulges. You may need a couple of tries before you find the exact spot.
- If you’re pressing the right spot, you should see two HardwareGrowler notifications appear on-screen. The first notification will say ‘USB Disconnection: Apple Internal Keyboard/Trackpad,’ while the second will say ‘USB Connection: Apple Internal Keyboard/Trackpad’.
- Remove your finger from the ribbon cable. At this point, the keyboard and trackpad may or not remain working.
If this troubleshooting procedure yields the results in Steps #7 and #8, congratulations — you can now be certain that it is a hardware problem, that you are not going insane, and that you have a high-tech problem to which there is, fortunately, a low-tech solution.
The Solution
If the warranty on your MacBook Pro is no longer valid, like mine, don’t worry. Simply take a small piece of paper, such as a Post-It, and fold it in half. Stick it over the spot on the ribbon cable. Then reinstall the removable battery. The battery should exert enough pressure on the piece of paper to keep the ribbon cable working.
If your MacBook Pro is still under warranty, take it to an Apple service center. While Apple has not officially acknowledged that this is a widespread problem, it’s afflicted the machines of many owners, so surely it’s not unknown to them. Demonstrate the steps described above to whomever is helping you as letting him or her see the problem as it happens eliminates the guesswork and may help expedite the time needed for repairs.
The long-term solution is, of course, to have the ribbon cable replaced, because the last thing you want is to have the keyboard and trackpad fail on you when you need to use your MacBook Pro most. In the meantime, you have a temporary fix should you need one.
1 I wish to credit Steve Eugene of Dallas for discovering the cause of the problem as detailed in his post on Apple’s discussion forum.
Переслать - Apple's Stance Gets Sterner on Jailbreaking in Latest Developer License Agreement
We know they don’t like it, since they recently took steps to try and make it illegal, but now Apple is letting developers know directly that they won’t stand for any jailbreaking funny business on their part, either.
The news from Ars Technica comes via changes to the iPhone Developer Program License Agreement, which is part of signing up for the iPhone Developer Program itself. Updates to the Agreement now prevent developers from jailbreaking their own phones, assisting in jailbreaking efforts, and developing apps for use with jailbroken devices. The exact wording of the new clauses are as follows:
(e)You will not, through use of the Apple Software, services or otherwise, create any Application or other program that would disable, hack or otherwise interfere with the Security Solution, or any security, digital signing, digital rights management, verification or authentication mechanisms implemented in or by the iPhone operating system software, iPod touch operating system software, this Apple Software, any services or other Apple software or technology, or enable others to do so; and
(f) Applications developed using the Apple Software may only be distributed if selected by Apple (in its sole discretion) for distribution via the App Store or for limited distribution on Registered Devices (ad hoc distribution) as contemplated in this Agreement.
Basically, Apple’s now gone and drawn a line in the sand. It’ll be interesting to see how high-profile developers like Ars Technica’s own Erica Sadun, who has a foot planted firmly in both the legit and the jailbroken community, react to this latest development. Apple has the advantage of commerce on their side, but can they really twist the arm of independent developers who are only developing free apps to begin with? It’s still not clear whether they can do much beyond booting people out of the Developer Program for any violation, which it seems to me will only serve to strengthen the ranks of the jailbreaking community.
Apple’s probably hoping that this will curtail insider knowledge of development builds and SDK updates, which would hopefully hamper the ability of the DevTeam and others to jailbreak new OS updates so quickly (the newest version of 3.0, for instance, can already be jailbroken on Windows). I seriously doubt the effectiveness of the new clauses, however, until Apple shows that they have some teeth by providing a real-life example of what the consequences of violating the new rules are.
Rather than trying to close their fist on this issue, Apple should really be looking to address the problems that drive developers to the jailbreaking community to begin with. That means making serious changes to the app submission/review process, and taking a look at the strict set of rules they impose on anyone who wants to develop legitimately for their devices.
Переслать - Dear Giampaulo (and Microsoft): You Had $1,500 and Blew It
The latest Laptop Hunter ad is out, and it went where it had no business going. The first ad featured Lauren, and setting aside that she was cute, the best thing about her was that she was enthusiastic and a non-techie. Her purchase was as much emotional as anything else. While I'd disagree with that kind of computer purchasing logic, there's a certain truth to it.
Giampaulo: Technically Impaired
The star of the new ad, Giampaulo, claims to be "technically savvy," and then spends the rest of ad proving he’s not. Apparently, his (and Microsoft's) definition of "technically savvy" means buying a machine with Windows on it. By that definition, Lauren was "technically savvy" as well.
Near as I can tell, the primary reason Giampaulo got a machine one could argue was "better" than Lauren's was simply because he had a higher budget, which was something he didn't even control! And though the guts of the machine are better than Lauren's, that huge 16 inch screen has less vertical resolution than a 13 inch MacBook. I mentioned in my write up of the Lauren ad that the way PC makers market screen sizes is a joke, and for Giampaulo to swallow it whole totally refutes any claim he had to being "technically savvy."
The strangest thing about the ad is that Giampaulo's machine choice (this HP HDX16) could be a nice machine — albeit with compromises — for $1,500 if he was as “picky” or “savvy” as he claimed.
Why didn't Giampaulo simply go online and configure a machine to the maximum budget amount? Well, partially because he's not "technically savvy," but also maybe because Microsoft is getting a few bucks on the side for featuring HP and brick and mortar stores in their ads. This is comical because, for all the chest-beating Microsoft does about PC "choice", these people just go into a local retailer and walk out with whatever they have on hand. That may have washed with Lauren, but it’s ridiculous when featuring someone who's supposed to know the drill.
What I'd Get
As for me, I went online and configured an HDX16 as shown below:
- The 2.53 GHz P8700 processor is what shipped on the high-end 15 inch MacBook Pro until a couple months ago. While Apple’s moved on to something better, it’s still nothing to sneeze at.
- It sucks that DDR2 memory is used, but the machine’s designed to a price, and at least there's 4GB.
- The graphics chip is what ships on the MacBook Pro.
- I've turned that 16-inch screen into something other than a portable IMAX. Ultra bright and 1920 x 1080 resolution.
- Got Bluetooth.
- Got a backlit keyboard.
Biggest change from Giampaulo’s is the vastly improved screen. To me, with a sprawling 16-inch display it’s a night and day difference. There’s a better processor (clock speed increase is small, but cache doubles from 3 to 6MB). There’s also a Blu-ray drive. Oh, and I love backlit keyboards, so I consider that a nice improvement as well.
As configured above, this is a very nice machine, though there are some weaknesses.
What I'd Miss
At only $1,500, some things had to get left behind:
- No software. I’ll need to spend money on productivity, AV, and other software.
- No extra or improved battery (see below for more detail on this).
- Not particularly impressive build quality.
It should be noted that PC makers in this economy are racing to the bottom in terms of pricing, since there’s nothing else to differentiate them. Notice that there's a $200 instant rebate, the 4GB RAM upgrade was free, a 320GB drive upgrade was free, and so was the Blu-ray drive. In a better economy, and if not a “me too” product, this machine would be more expensive than it is right now.
There are other weaknesses. First, while the footprint is about what you'd expect for a 16-inch screen (between most 15 and 17 inch models), it’s really thick. From 1.3 to 1.7 inches. I think PC designers suck at handling a laptop's heat, and they compensate by making the thing huge. I hate that. That also makes it a relatively heavy 7.37 pounds.
And the biggest weakness is battery life. Put simply, it has none. According to AppleInsider, "HP rates its built-in battery for less than 3 hours, but reviewers gave it less than two." And that was at the "base" configuration. With the more powerful processor, ultra bright screen, and backlit keyboard, you'd be lucky to pull 1.5 hours on the thing. That's worthless.
So why not get a better battery? Because the 12-cell battery is $50, and adds to the weight and size of the machine. Further, it would likely not even get three hours, so I’d have to be close to an outlet anyway. (PC makers seem to have problems with battery life; perhaps Vista’s a pig?) You might want to spend $50 on a battery and skip the backlit keyboard, but for me it’s not enough improvement, so I opted for the keyboard.
What It Boils Down To
Weaknesses aside, the machine I configured could be a very nice portable office. Yes, you'd need to be near a power outlet, but if you can live with that (and the size/weight), the machine has big screen resolution and brightness, very good power (both CPU and GPU), plenty of memory, and good hard drive storage.
Yes, I’ve set aside the Mac OS vs. Windows Vista argument so far. This is a Microsoft ad, so that question has already been addressed as far as the ad is concerned. Personally, there's no way I'd trade my high-end unibody 13-inch MacBook for the HP I configured (let alone Giampaulo's), and it was only $100 more. The HP has the larger screen and a bit more speed, but it’s huge, heavy, and plastic, with no software or battery life and, of course, runs Windows Vista.
I'm not sure why a "technically savvy" guy like Giampaulo didn't understand what he could do with HP's machine. In fact, the only thing he got right in the entire ad was to declare the MacBook "sexy.” I actually feel a little sorry for HP in the ad; it’s not presenting their product in the light I think it deserves. I chastised Lauren for getting a 17-inch screen and only having 1440 x 900 resolution, but she looks like a freakin' genius compared to Giampaulo's 16-inch model with 1366 x 768.
Переслать - Weekly App Store Picks: April 4, 2009
It’s the weekend and this is TheAppleBlog…so that means only one thing: the latest picks fresh from the App Store.
This week, Apple news seems to have been predominantly iPhone-centric so, before jumping in to the latest apps, it’s time for a quick refresher of Apple news from the past seven days.
Sony started the week by detailing their lineup for forthcoming iPhone games. The list includes a remake of retro classic Q*Bert, among others, but most notable are plans to release games based on Ghostbusters and James Bond. I hate to disappoint any hopeful readers, but there’s just no way it’s going to be N64 Goldeneye for the iPhone.
Alongside all those other iPhone-occurrences, I managed to squeeze in reviews of two brand new apps: AudioBoo and RelationTips. Earning a Silver App Review Award, AudioBoo (essentially an audio-version of Twitter) is seriously good fun, especially for those with a voice for radio.
Word on the grape vine is that 3D video could arrive on the iPhone as soon as next year. Now that’s soon indeed, but does anyone actually care? I am totally confounded by the notion of using 3D glasses on portable devices. Ever since trying out portable 3D Quake at CES a few years back, I consider 3D to be over-priced, over-hyped and almost useless techno-junk.
And with that said, I’m pleased to tell you that this week I’ve been looking at Super Kaiju Hero Force #2, Eliza, Skype and Match.com.
Super Kaiju Hero Force #2 (free)
After the serious bashing that I gave to Daniel X — an incredibly poor graphic novel released on iPhone — I was overjoyed to discover a comic series on iPhone that gets everything right. Starting with the painfully (and amusingly) verbose title, Super Kaiju Hero Force is a manga-inspired joyride through otaku fanboy culture, mashing super-heros and Adult Swim style humor together in to a colorful mess. This second episode is totally free and absolutely brilliant.Eliza (99 cents)
Back in the day, before I had discovered the joys of Macs or the woes of Windows, I had an Amiga 500. When I wasn’t playing classics like Rick Dangerous, Lemmings or Cannon Fodder, I’d boot up Workbench and chat to ELIZA. For me this was pre-Internet and so ELIZA, a basic chatbot-cum-therapist, felt like magic. If you’re in need of a pocket therapist, download ELIZA for your iPhone and you can spend hours telling her about your mother.Skype (free)
With Fring, Truphone and Nimbuzz, I just couldn’t see what Skype for the iPhone could bring to the game. As GigaOm’s Om Malik said earlier this week, there are a few areas for improvement, but setting those aside for a moment, this is a commendable first version (and so it should be, seeing as Skype have taken so long to deliver): call quality is great, browsing contacts is clear, and the interface feels incredibly similar to the desktop version. The app has made front page on my iPhone and, if you’re already a Skype user, it’s well worth downloading the official app immediately.Match.com (free)
Earlier this week I wrote about RelationTips, an iPhone app that proffers relationship advice. Setting aside our emerging theme of iPhone as therapist, it’s time to let your iPhone play matchmaker. Match.com has finally arrived on the iPhone with an app that services all of your online dating needs as you hunt for love. The app is ideal for Match.com users on the dating scene, integrating profile editing, messaging and photo uploads.I’ll return in just seven days time with more picks from the App Store. Drop by TheAppleBlog during the week to find the latest Apple news alongside app reviews too.
In the meantime, what apps have you been using this week?
Переслать - Thanks to TheAppleBlog Sponsors!
We’d like to say thanks to this month’s sponsor of TheAppleBlog:
- WunderRadio: Wunder Radio provides access to thousands of streaming Internet radio stations and on your iPhone or Windows Mobile Phone.
- Mozy: Back up your photos, music, and files with Mozy for as low as $4.34 per month.
Переслать - Quickword App Submitted for Apple's Consideration, Can Edit Word Docs
A lot of apps have been promising to bring Microsoft document editing capabilities to the iPhone, like DocumentsToGo, which enjoyed prominence on the Palm OS, and continues to be a popular choice for BlackBerry users. But now it looks like Quickoffice might be the first app out the door, though it all hinges on Apple giving it the green light. They submitted their app for approval to Cupertino late this week, and if all goes well, it could be available for purchase in the App Store sometime early next week.
With Quickoffice, users can view and edit Microsoft Word and Excel files and share them over a wireless connection. Quickoffice is actually a collection of three individual apps, two of which are already available for the iPhone now. These are Quicksheet ($12.99, iTunes link), for editing Excel spreadsheets, and Quickoffice Files ($3.99, iTunes link), for viewing a variety of files, and transferring them to and from your device. The third application in the series is Quickword, which brings the crucial addition of Word document editing.
When (and if) it’s approved, it’ll also retail for $12.99 separately, or you can get the whole Quickoffice package together in one app for a price that’s yet to be revealed. I’d guess you might save a few bucks by getting the bundle, so look for it to be priced around $19.99.
News of the app’s submission comes closely on the heels of Microsoft Business Division President Stephen Elop dropping hints at the Web 2.0 conference earlier this week that document editing was indeed on its way to the iPhone. I’ve thought, until now, that the reason we hadn’t seen it yet was that Microsoft and Apple together were blocking it, but maybe Elop was referring to third-party apps like Quickoffice with his subtle suggestions. Then again, maybe they want to release their own branded solution and Quickoffice will be swiftly denied. We’ll find out next week.
Переслать - 3D Video Coming to iPod/iPhone as Soon as Next Year
I’m not really caught up in the recent wave of 3D theatrical releases, since it doesn’t seem to me like they’ve improved the technology at all from what I saw when I watched Michael Jackson’s weird sci-fi dance movie “Captain EO” at Disney World about 15 years ago. Even so, the news that I might be able to watch 3D video on my iPod or iPhone definitely caught my attention. My first thought was that Apple might be introducing 3D-capable displays, but the truth is much cooler and more Philip K. Dick cyber-futuristic than that.
Two third-party partners are in fact behind the ambitious plan to bring your Apple (and other media player) devices into the third dimension. One is SENSIO, a company based out of Montreal (I’m bursting with national pride here, guys; you’d better not disappoint), specializing in 3D video. The other is Myvu, which is in the business of providing you access to a TV-independent, big-screen experience thanks to futuristic visors and goggles sort of reminiscent of Nintendo’s VirtualBoy.
Myvu already makes these babies specifically for iPod and iPhone owners, which can’t help but make you look really cool when you’re wearing them on the bus and reacting to things that only you can see. Together, Myvu and SENSIO showed off at the year’s CTIA how really crazy you’ll look when wearing techie goggles and dodging things that appear to be flying at your face. They hope to have the technology ready for consumer markets sometime in the next year. Considering the $300 price tag on the regular old 2D model, I have a feeling the no-doubt more expensive 3D version might be a bit of a niche product.
Переслать - App Review: RelationTips — A Relationship Counsellor In Your Pocket
App Quick Stats
Music, Internet, Google Maps, telephone calls, taking photos, and now fixing your broken relationship… is there anything the iPhone can’t do?
For most of us, the iPhone makes life better — it’s like a gorgeous bio-mechanical addition to our bodies: augmenting almost everything. And, in an odd sort of way, I suppose it seems natural that this super-device — this digital deity — should turn its attention to our relationships, in an effort to make life better. To make our relationships just work.
Available for iPhone and iPod touch, RelationTips aims to proffer advice and helpful suggestions for your close relationships.
Honeymoon Period
The app begins with a quick configuration process. There are eight empty picture frames, in which you can access advice for eight different relationships, with accompanying photo, from a pre-defined selection: husband and wife, girlfriend and boyfriend, son and daughter. Having eight relationship slots will come in handy for users with several children. Or a mistress.
Intuitive to configure and with a beautifully designed interface, RelationTips feels like a luxury item from the App Store. Attention has been lavished on the smallest details, with welcome embellishments such as being able to change the type of frame on photos of your loved-ones.
The advice proffered is split in to three different categories. The Dates category provides suggestions for things to do, such as train journeys, picnics or a day at the movies. If you’re in need of inspiration for something to say, the Words category focuses on communication. Finally, if you feel like actions speak louder than words, the Actions category contains pearls of wisdom like, “Surprise your husband by cleaning out his car and gassing it up.”
With Dates focused on injecting fun and/or romance in to the things you do with your partner or child. The Words and Actions category offer up suggestions that are intended to display or communicate how important this person is to you, or how much you love them. The language is occasionally a little stuffy, but most of the time (aside from the amusing example above) it’s arguably good advice.
However, there are a couple of problems with the library of advice. The first being that the suggestions, regardless of who they are aimed at, are much the same — even to the point where your husband is swapped for your wife — it’s just not personalized enough. The other problem is that there isn’t that much advice to go off: it’s not long at all before the helpful suggestions start looping and the ideas run dry.
We’ve Got Issues
The advice offered up by RelationTips isn’t always useful, though. Playing the role of iPhone-toting wife, the first piece of advice proffered to me was the following: Is there a chore that really needs to be done but seems to always get pushed down the line in priority? Tell your husband you’ll wear his favorite lingerie and help him complete it. He’ll make the time.”
It’s true, if my partner put on her lingerie and helped me to complete a given task, like clearing the blocked gutters, this would indeed be a welcome encouragement (I suppose someone has to hold the ladder).
However, this shining nugget of advice is merely a lump of steaming fool’s gold. It would be a shame if my partner felt that in order to encourage me to do something helpful for both of us, she had to objectify herself in this way. If the relationship is at this point, maybe there are deeper issues worth discussing. I dig a bit of naughty fun, but in this instance the advice just seems like the wrong way to be tackling the situation (and impractical too — holding a ladder in your lingerie can get uncomfortably cold).
Summing Up
The idea behind RelationTips, to provide gentle relationship guidance, is very sweet. However, if your relationship is in such a condition that you really are turning to an iPhone for this kind of support, there may be deeper issues at play. This app won’t fix what is already broken and, conversely, it’s more than likely not needed if your relationship is working. There are some things that an iPhone probably shouldn’t do and one of those things is dishing out automated morsels of relationship advice.
That said, I can see this app providing support for individuals as part of a larger effort to improve a relationship. For those that may have trouble communicating, need ideas for romantic treats or inspiration for meaningful displays of affection, RelationTips may not fix your relationship, but it could provide a point in the right direction.
Переслать - Release Timeline for Snow Leopard Leaked
In case you were getting excited about Snow Leopard coming out anytime soon, or maybe holding off on a hardware purchase in anticipation of a WWDC ‘09 release, you might be disappointed by the news that it likely won’t make it into the hands of consumers by that early June date. AppleInsider is reporting that the release schedule of the new Mac OS has many stages, the last of which won’t take place until two months after the Developer’s Conference.
What we will see June 8, if AppleInsider’s source is to be believed, is a major developer update to Snow Leopard that will be the first release to be “feature complete,” including all interface changes and functionality additions withheld from prior builds. In other words, they’ll be able to show off a product at WWDC that will look pretty much like what consumers will be getting two months later.
Between now and then, there should be one more build, which will bring “major updates” to what we’ve already seen. Then, after the release at WWDC, we should see one more release prior to the Gold Master build in order to work out any remaining kinks.
All of this means you won’t be able to get your hands on Snow Leopard until late summer or fall of 2009, when Apple generally releases hardware updates. Which in turn means that if you’re waiting to pull the trigger on a new computer purchase, you have to be willing to wait almost 6 months. It also means that Snow Leopard will drop much closer to the projected release date of Windows 7, so we could be in for quite the OS grudge match.
Переслать - The "Macs Are Too Expensive" Debate: It's Ultimately Futile
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer set the proverbial cat among the pigeons last week with his contention at the McGraw-Hill Companies’ Media Summit in New York that Mac buyers pay a $500 price premium for merely a designer logo.
“Apple gained about one point, but now I think the tide has really turned back the other direction,” Ballmer declaimed. “The economy is helpful. Paying an extra $500 for a computer in this environment — same piece of hardware — paying $500 more to get a logo on it? I think that’s a more challenging proposition for the average person than it used to be.”
Perhaps Mr. Ballmer actually believes the only substantive distinctions between Macs and Windows PCs are the logo and the price. It would be politically incorrect for him to say otherwise, since the Mac’s most profound superiority is that it runs Mac OS X instead of Microsoft’s Windows OS.
In that very important respect, the never-ending controversy over whether Macs are gratuitously more expensive than PCs is futile, being an Apples and, well, PCs comparison. It is true there’s great commonality on the hardware component side between Mac and PC CPUs these day, which of course begs the question: “What’s so special about a Mac anyway?”
There’s the cachet of the Apple brand of course, and I suppose that’s important to some, but not especially to this longtime Mac aficionado. I would rank Apple’s sublimely elegant aluminum chassis designs far higher than the logo, but for me the key to Mac desirability and superiority is the operating system. The Mac is not just another PC. Only Macs can (legally) run the Mac OS (plus Windows as well), and that is huge, because the OS is the main course of the Mac feast for many of us, who would and do pay an admittedly substantial price premium — if not happily, at least resignedly — in order to benefit from the manifold superiorities of the Mac OS.
PC World’s David Coursey observed this week that “Many people will happily pay $300 to not be subjected to Windows Vista…” As long as Apple continues (sensibly, in their interest) refusing to license the Mac OS, the argument is moot as far as many of us are concerned.
That doesn’t make us mindless “fanboys,” but rather connoisseurs of a more elegant and hassle-free computing experience with a low tolerance for aggravation, who just want to get our work done with a higher degree of enjoyability and efficiency. PC World’s Coursey, a cross-platform user himself, observes, as many others have, that Mac users tend to be more productive than Windows users “because they spend less time ‘messing’ with the computer and solving (or not) various Windows hassles,” adding that “In a business environment, this saving of staff time can offset the Mac premium so quickly it will make your head spin. Ease-of-use saves money,”
There are many ways to parse “expensive,” with up-front capital outlay being a rather simplistic one. The real value arbiters are TCO, total cost of ownership, combined with the quality of user-experience, and in those more-complex contexts, the Mac is the big winner.
For example, I’m typing this screed on an 9-year-old PowerBook Pismo running what was Apple’s current Mac OS version a year and a half ago (ie: OS 10.4.11 Tiger), and enjoying still satisfactory performance for the things I do with this computer. Try running Vista (which was the current Windows version when OS 10.4.11 was released) on a PC laptop built in early 2000.
I do have an up-to-date Mac laptop, a 2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo unibody MacBook with Nvidia GeForce 9400 graphics, and it’s great. I could have bought a similar-sized and powered Dell or Acer with a lot more RAM and hard drive capacity for a lot less, but I’m not complaining. The MacBook has a look and feel reminiscent of a fine Swiss watch, and runs the Mac OS, which are attributes that are difficult to monetize in a pricing abstract, but they do represent substantial value added, in my opinion.
In this economy, I can’t fault anyone for deciding a Windows PC is a better fit for their budget in straitened circumstances, but as long as I can manage to scrape together the up-front cost, I’ll be using Macs, satisfied that I’m receiving value for the deeper wallet-siphoning.
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