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- Yahoo for iPhone Released: Worthwhile Alternative to Google?
With all the attention in the arena of iPhone applications being fixed squarely on Skype for the past few days, it almost escaped my view that Yahoo has finally released their free Yahoo Mobile app, which we reported on in February. The app’s release coincides with a revamp of their entire Yahoo Mobile web portal, and is designed to provide a uniform experience across products. The iPhone version has some unique hardware-based features, however, but how does it stack up to Google for iPhone?
Initially the two actually appear to have very little in common. Yahoo is more of a fully featured portal than Google’s search-focused application. To begin with, when the app launches, you get a screen with a search bar at the top, but also a list of feature stories from Yahoo.com, including summaries, and pictures, when available. There’s also a list of popular search topics, which depressingly included “ShamWow” when I was writing this up. Depending on what your goal is, this might be more or less useful than Google’s straightforward search bar/search history home page.
Continuing the trend of acting as a more broadly focused news and information application, Y! News is the next available menu item in the app’s navigation bar. There’s a featured story, and then a number of others broken down by category. It’s a fairly nice feature, and it uses your phone’s location to determine what kind of regional and national content should be shown. The content is well formatted for easy reading using the built-in article viewer, too.
The “My Interests” page is also pretty handy. You can add various types of feeds here, including weather, stock alerts, RSS feeds, and more. Basically, it allows you to build your own iGoogle-type all-in-one home page. It could actually replace a standalone RSS reader.
“Connect” offers a full-service social media aggregator, with integration for popular web mail services (Gmail and Windows Live Hotmail included, and Yahoo Mail of course), and Yahoo Calendar. All of the major social media networks are supported, including Facebook and Twitter. Once you’ve added your accounts, you can view updates from all your networks in the “Social Pulse” stream. In all cases, social network contact images can be used for your own Yahoo address book contacts.
There’s more, like direct in-app access to Yahoo Messenger, but you can check that stuff out on your own. Suffice it to say, Yahoo is trying something different with their mobile app, rather than competing directly with Google. If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution that doesn’t necessarily go in-depth in any one particular area, this might be a good solution. In theory, it clears four or five apps off your home screen, and I’m always a fan of decreasing app clutter.
Переслать - Apple Q2 Financial Results Conference Call Set for April 22
It seems like it was only yesterday that Apple hosted their first-quarter 2009 financials conference call, but it was actually almost three months ago (hence why they’re called “quarterly”). Apple revealed the date for their upcoming second-quarter call today, which is set to take place April 22 at 2PM EST. Conference calls don’t usually contain any product revelations, but they can provide insight into company direction, and if you’re an Apple investor, in addition to being an Apple fan, it’s not to be missed.
Last time around, Apple had yet another record-breaking quarter ($10.1 billion revenue, $1.78 in earnings per share), exceeding the estimates of Wall Street and observers, and beating their performance in the same period the previous year by a fair margin. They downplayed their expectations for the second quarter on that call, which is something they always tend to do, but Wall Street expects them to perform well, with $1.13 in earnings per share and $8.2 billion in revenue.
We should see at this conference call what effect Apple’s recent desktop update has had on sales figures, and also get a better idea of the toll the recession is taking on the company, which has appeared to be rather resistant to its effects. You can bet that investors will also be watching closely because of Steve Jobs’ continued absence, which is beginning to look like less and less a factor in the company’s success, since the stock (AAPL) is performing well. Some analysts are even going so far as to claim that Apple is better off without him at the helm. Be sure to check back for a follow-up on April 22 from us here at TheAppleBlog for all the details.
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.
Переслать - It's the Dawn of a New Daylite
If you’re into serious business productivity, then the folks at Marketcircle will become your new best friends. As of this week, there is a new version of Daylite that will enable even higher productivity. We’ve written about Daylite before, so this article will discuss what is new, not a complete re-hash of the application.
With version 3.9 of Daylite, small businesses users will have collaboration tools comparative to Microsoft Exchange: multi-user access to calendars, contacts, and tasks. In addition, they will also have multi-user access to opportunities (sales and more) as well as projects. In environments of 50 or less people, setting up Exchange or a comparable enterprise-class solution is cost prohibitive.
What’s New
With Daylite version 3.9, Marketcircle provides a product that simplifies the deployment and management of this business productivity and collaboration suite. Let’s review what is new:
- Daylite Touch
- Daylite Server
- Daylite 3.9
- Billings 3.0.4
Daylite Touch
I’ve written about Daylite Touch before — back in January. The big news is that Daylite Touch is now available in the Apple App Store.
As discussed in my earlier review, the biggest impact of Daylite Touch is the ability to sync the Daylite data to the iPhone and complete so many business critical tasks while mobile, including:
- Group scheduling
- Task Management & Delegation
- Objectives (Opportunity and Project) Management & Delegation
- And much more
Daylite Touch Home Screen
Daylite Server
With the release of Daylite 3.9, Marketcircle has changed the underlying architecture of the application to make it easier to manage. Essentially, they migrated from the OpenBase database system and replaced it with PostgreSQL. Why is that significant? Fundamentally, here are the benefits:
- Enables the ability to create a separate server infrastructure for Daylite Touch.
- Simplifies the management of Daylite software licenses — all licenses are now managed in the server application and not in Daylite itself.
- Re-architecting the offline database functionally for improved robustness and management.
Translation: a more reliable application with a simple management console for a multi-user environment. Bottom line: a huge win for the customer. Let’s take a look at the new Daylite Server Admin application.
Daylite Server Admin
This new application enables users to quickly set up a shared Daylite database for all users of the organization. What is great about this new application is that on the general pane, you get a quick overview of the health of your server, additional information about how many users, the last time you had a backup, and if you are running a Daylite Touch Server.
The following panes let you manage each database, how often you back up, how you share the database across the network, and licensing management.
Daylite Server Admin Tool - General Pane
If you choose to run Daylite Touch, this part of the Daylite Server Admin application lets you view registered iPhones as well as review logs and if necessary, remotely wipe the data from the iPhone.
Daylite Server Admin Tool - Daylite Touch Server Pane
Daylite 3.9
Daylite itself also received some additional features:- Support for the new database format (PostgreSQL) and server infrastructure.
- Improved support for Apple Sync Services.
- For workgroups, licensing management is available via the Daylite Server Admin application.
- Updated task smart lists (see below) that now reflect an even stronger link to the Getting Things Done method, as well as maintaining cohesion with Daylite Touch.
- A new login with auto-discovery of the database.
New Task Management
Billings 3.0.4
Billings, Marketcircle’s incredibly easy-to-use time management and invoicing application, also received a small version bump with the following enhancements:
- Daylite 3.9 compatibility
- The timer now has a resolution of 1 second (used to be a minimum of 1 minute)
- Ability to edit start and end times for each log entry
- A new report: “Payments received - grouped by client”
- A bulk edit fix so any currency formatted values are applied without tabbing out of the field
Billings 3.0.4 - Payments received - grouped by client Report
Connectors + Daylite Delivery
Each of the following connectors plus Daylite Delivery were all updated to support the new PostgreSQL database infrastructure.So what does this all mean?
For those already using Daylite, this is a major upgrade with a significant amount of new functionality. Most of that functionality (sans Daylite Touch) is not end user-specific. Though this might not be a bad thing, as learning all-new user interfaces for a release does have a training cost. For Administrators of Daylite, this new release is a sheer pleasure, as management has become significantly better.
Here are the details of the 3.9 upgrade:
Pricing
- Daylite 3.9 is a free upgrade for all registered users of 3.x. It includes Daylite Server, Daylite Touch Server and the new Daylite Server Admin application.
- Daylite Touch is a free download from the App Store. It will cost $49.99/year per user. Yes, this is subscription pricing. For clarity, the subscription is not automatically renewed (giving the user choice if they want to continue using Daylite Touch).
- Billings 3.0.4 is a free upgrade for registered users of version 3.x.
- Each connector and Daylite Delivery upgrades are all free.
Marketcircle Support
An item of note is that Marketcircle will stop all support for Daylite versions 3.8 and below effective June 30, 2009. The purpose behind this is to have their customers move to 3.9 so that they can all be on the new PostgreSQL back end.
According to Marketcircle CEO Alykhan Jetha, their highest support costs are with OpenBase. Thus, providing a free upgrade to 3.9 is a good incentive for their users, especially given the long-term benefits of PostgreSQL and the new Daylite Server plus Daylite Touch functionality.
Conclusion
If you are a sole proprietor or a small business (with about 50 users), then Marketcircle’s offering may make you think twice about what solutions you’re using to manage your business productivity.
With this new release, which enables your crucial business information on an iPhone, you ought to consider migrating to the Marketcircle offering. If you already own the product, then upgrade now as the benefits will only improve your business.
Переслать - App Review: AudioBoo — Twitter for People Who Want Their Voice Heard
App Quick Stats
Do you tweet? Then maybe you should Boo! It’s like a multimedia Twitter, designed especially for iPhone users.
Over in the UK back in 2008, Channel 4 (Britain’s edgy TV channel) launched a unique funding program entitled 4IP. Cut to 2009 and, having just announced a dedicated iPhone 3.0 fund, the suits over at 4IP seem particularly keen on Apple’s device as a platform for pushing interactive wares. In fact, 4IP has announced a fund for developers, with almost $150,000 up for grabs at a maximum of approximately $40,000 per app.
Made possible by 4IP and developed by BestBefore, AudioBoo is among the first of Channel 4’s original iPhone commissions to hit the App Store. As developers ready their funding proposals, AudioBoo is set to be a showcase of the kind of app 4IP will be looking for — making use of various media formats, community-focused, and integrating with the most popular social platforms.
Designed to work alongside Twitter and iTunes, AudioBoo is an audio blogging platform created especially for iPhone.
Anatomy of a Boo
On paper, AudioBoo’s feature set reads excellently — it’s a tour de force of current buzzwords and trends. Using the iPhone you can record an audio message, the message pops up on your Twitter stream and there’s even an automatic, iTunes-compatible RSS feed for your followers to subscribe to.
The sign-up process is simple, taking place either on the iPhone (via a Safari link within the app) or on the desktop version of the web site. Plus, once signed in, it only takes a couple of clicks to link your Twitter account and activate Facebook Connect. The site even grabs your Gravatar, saving the hassle of uploading a profile picture.
It’s worth noting, however, that there’s not much to do on the desktop version of the site. AudioBoo really has been designed for iPhone; the app is where are all the key features are and, as such, there’s no way to record a Boo via the site.
Making the Perfect Boo
Once logged in on the iPhone, the app displays the main Boo stream, similar to Twitter’s public stream. Unlike Twitter, though, there’s no way of following other users; this seemed somewhat odd to me initially, until I realized that — with Twitter and Facebook Connect integration — it’s not needed: AudioBoo pushes messages to the big social platforms where all the action happens.
The focus throughout the app is on simplicity and ease of use. This is reflected in the audio-recording interface — there’s no friction with the technology and so creating a Boo is so quick it retains a real sense of fun throughout.
Although the App Store page states that recordings can be up to three minutes long, there’s actually a maximum length of five minutes. It’s the perfect amount of time to do a blog-style update, sing a little tune or make an impassioned rant.
EmbeddaBoo
Each Boo can be posted alongside a photo, either from your photo album or taken with the iPhoto camera. You can also add tags and, if you’re not the secretive type, even include GPS data. After that it takes a few seconds to publish a Boo — even over slower Edge connections — resulting in a page like this.
If you clicked the link to my test Boo, you’ll have heard that the audio quality from the iPhone mic itself is surprisingly good. And, because I’m a Twitter user, I’ve linked up AudioBoo to auto-tweet for me too. The site even generates code so that you can embed specific Boos on your blog or web page of choice.
There’s one feature, though, that seems to be a real stroke of genius on the part of BestBefore: Alongside an RSS feed, your Boo page also has an iTunes button — clicking this button automagically subscribes users to a podcast feed within iTunes of your Boo updates.
Summing Up
Despite having launched in the App Store, AudioBoo is still clearly in its infancy. The site design is incredibly dull, profile pages lack any sort of personalization options and the iPhone app can be a little crash-happy, too.
While there’s still a long way to go with the main site, the core technology works and, after configuring your account, you’ll find yourself primarily using the iPhone app and never having to visit the main AudioBoo site again — everything is automated for you.
The technology, and all the other added extras, more than make up for any complaints. It’s genuinely exciting to be armed with this fun little tool that enables you to record an audio message (with accompanying photo) and instantly publish to Twitter, Facebook and iTunes.
Simply put, AudioBoo is great fun and totally free. For Twitter users, Facebook members, potential podcasters, and regular folk who have something they’ve just got to voice, it’s well worth a download.
Переслать - Apple Releases iPhone 3.0 Beta 2 for Developers
Apple released the second version of the iPhone 3.0 OS and SDK Beta today, bringing developers a number of feature improvements and stability fixes.
It’s good news for people like me who are using the beta on their primary phones — against their own good judgment and the advice of Apple and everyone else. The official build number is 7a259g, and this release marks only two weeks since the announcement and initial release of the iPhone 3.0 software.
I had a suspicion that this build’s release timing might have something to do with the recent discovery that if you’re using the brand-new Skype app with the 3.0 firmware installed, you can apparently make calls over your 3G connection instead of just on Wi-Fi. But, lo and behold, 3G voice calls still work with Skype using the new beta. In fact, a lot of the buggy issues I complained about earlier seem to have been resolved with the latest update, including the mic failure when used by third-party apps.
So far, most of the changes I’ve noticed have been improvements to overall performance, less freezing, and generally fewer bugs. Spotlight loads up a lot quicker, and returns results faster, too. Battery life seems to be better, or at least it hasn’t drained completely while streaming Internet radio over 3G. Using the first beta, I could literally watch it die none too slowly when doing this. The real test will be seeing how long the phone can go without a power cycle, since gradual OS slowdown and eventual failure was my biggest problem before. There’s also a weird “Store” menu in the iPhone’s Settings whose purpose isn’t yet clear.
If you were hesitant about using a pre-release build on your primary device, 7a259g may be reason enough to take the plunge. I’ll let you know if any major issues crop up with extended use.
Переслать - Sony Pictures Details Lineup for iPhone Games
Movie-based titles have not enjoyed a favorable reputation in gaming on the whole. There have been exceptions, of course, like Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64, and the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle games for the Nintendo and Super Nintendo. The Watchmen MMO for the iPhone and iPod Touch? Definitely not among the greats. Iron Man: Aerial Assault was sort of OK, and Shooter wasn’t terrible, but the pattern of lackluster adaptations seems to have extended to Apple’s mobile platforms.
Well, Sony Pictures is going to have a whole bunch of new kicks at the can this year, so there’s still a chance we could see an escape from mediocrity in the near future. Fan favorite “Ghostbusters,” for instance, will get the iPhone treatment this June. Expect to see its release coincide with WWDC and the unveiling of the next-generation iPhone.
There’s also a James Bond game titled Top Agent set for an August release, so we can all begin hoping for another Goldeneye now, as gamers have done with every new Bond title announced since its release. No other details are currently available, except that it will feature some kind of multiplayer component.
Also in the line-up are games based on upcoming movies “Angels & Demons,” “Zombieland!,” and “2012.” And in case you thought they were just about film adaptations, look for a revival of the classic arcade game Q*bert, and a game based on the popular 80s kid’s show “Voltron,” which features robots that combine to form a much larger, more awesome robot (in case you had a deprived childhood).
Переслать - Android Pulls Tethering App? Goodness! You Mean "Open" Isn't Open?
The hoopla around Google’s Android mobile OS, and the resulting apps in the Android Market, is pretty strong. It’s laid on thick and fast. You know the drill; it’s “open” so it’ll be free from all the constraints imposed by The Man, etc.
Oops, maybe not. I’m not sure why people believed the steaming pile of hyperbole coming out of the “open” pundits, but it was just a matter of time before reality stepped in. Google has pulled tethering apps from the market.
There was no way this kind of filtering was not going to happen, and I said so here and here. In fact, in the latter article I even used tethering as a specific example:
Another example: Tethering is not allowed on the G1, but what if someone like, say, Nullriver posts a tethering app on the Android market place? Hey, it's "open", right? Who's to stop them? Naturally, T-Mobile will go to Google to get the app pulled…
Despite what some may claim, “open” does not mean it’s open season on copyright violations or any other activities prohibited by TOS, contracts, license agreements, etc. We may want it to mean those things, but that doesn’t make it so. With all the advantages of a central app store comes the responsibility to police it. One can certainly argue that such policing is not done evenhandedly, or favors the larger partners involved, but this too is par for the course and beside the point anyway. The point is that “open” does not mean anything like free reign, and never did.
There are some who may argue this limits innovation, and while I see the point, I’m not sure I can agree. Certainly it doesn’t apply to tethering, which is hardly new. There is no innovation going on there from a software or hardware standpoint. The innovation needed from tethering must come from the carriers in how they handle this extremely useful feature (and that’s the subject of another article).
It’s hard to make a case for honoring contractual obligations or EULAs, or not violating existing copyrights, as being blocks to innovation. I see them more as blocks to questionable legal activity.
Meanwhile, the “open” community will probably condemn Google’s action, then deny it, then rationalize it, and then defend it. Finally, they’ll get right back to touting how “open” is the panacea; the cure for all that ails us, and everything Apple’s App Store is not. As before, they’ll be wrong, but I’m sure some will still believe it.
Переслать - Skype Now Available in App Store, Unless You Live in Canada
Really? Come on, really? It was almost like waking up on Christmas morning and hurrying down the stairs, only to find that there are no presents under the tree. I’m referring, of course, to the release of the official, free Skype application (iTunes link) for iPhone that took place first thing this morning in every country where the App Store exists, except for the one I happen to be living in right now. Canadian iPhone owners are out of luck, because Skype is not coming to their phones.
In a way, I shouldn’t be surprised. Most U.S.-based streaming media content, from the likes of Hulu and Pandora (and soon Last.fm, too, unless you’re willing to fork over a subscription) doesn’t make its way north of the border. Foolishly, I believed that a simple app like Skype, which just provides a convenient package for a service we already have access to via the web and other iPhone applications, would go through without a hitch.
The official reason the app isn’t available to Canadians is that a patent-license issue is preventing Skype from making it available, according to a company spokesperson. Other outlets suspect more sinister motives, pointing the finger at Rogers Wireless, who, along with their subsidiary Fido, are the only iPhone carriers in Canada. Digital Home, thinks that Rogers may have blocked the app to try to protect their wireless talk revenue. Remember, this is the land of the three-year contract we’re talking about here, so a little strong-arming isn’t exactly out of character.
Whatever the reason, you can always go the backdoor route and just download and sync Skype using an American iTunes account, which is not a difficult thing to get regardless of your country of origin. That’s exactly what I did, and so now my iPhone is fully Skype-capable in Canada. Currently, I’m having issues with getting speakerphone to work, and the mic seems to be cutting out, but I’m fairly sure that’s an iPhone OS 3.0 bug, not a problem with the program or the connection. Anyways, go download your copy now if you’re living anywhere except for Canada, or if you’re smart enough to navigate that minor blockade, and let us know how it’s working for you.
Переслать - Eight More MySQL Apps for OS X
A few weeks ago I took a detailed look at two MySQL database tools Querious and SequelPro, comparing their feature set. These are by no means the only two options for accessing MySQL with a shiny UI — so here is a quick look at eight more MySQL front ends that are available for OS X.
Mac-Only
SQLGrinder
SQLGrinder is all about running queries for any database natively on OS X. As expected from a query runner, it supports syntax highlighting and query history (although there are no keyboard shortcuts to go back in your history) which is only persistent while the app is running, however you can create saved favorite queries. Copying records from a query gives you CSV text in the clipboard, and importing and exporting is also done via delimited text.While it lets you browse a database and view the table structure and indexes, there is no UI to modify the tables. SQLGrinder does support AppleScript and Growl, giving a tidy OS X experience. SQLGrinder supports MySQL, Oracle, SQLServer 2005, Sybase, FrontBase, OpenBase and PostgreSQL. It costs $59 and a trial is available (can be run 20 times). For a query runner that can talk to anything, it does its job well.
YourSQL
YourSQL is a free open-source MySQL client for OS X that allows full database creation, modification, browsing and query running with an intuitive (albeit, a bit cramped) UI. It also allows importing data from CSV or Tab or SQL and exporting to CSV, Excel or SQL, while copying records to the clipboard gives tab delimited text. The query runner is strong, with syntax highlighting and full query history that can not only be navigated with keyboard shortcuts, but persists from one application session to another. This is quite a capable basic tool, with a great price tag of nothing.PGnJ
PGnJ, like SQLGrinder, just runs queries. PGnJ supports syntax highlighting and query history (although the history is only for the current session, it is not persistent when the app is closed) with full keyboard shortcuts throughout, so everything can be done quickly from the keyboard. Table definitions are easily viewable, to aid with building your queries. An SQL Library (with variable support) is present, although this feature is buggy. Common templates (such as create table, alter column, etc) can be selected if you can’t remember the appropriate syntax. Only one database can be viewed at a time, and you have to know the database name — you can’t browse a list of all databases on a server. Copying query results is also limited to the current cell or record — you can export query results to a file however, in SQL, XML, CSV/Tab & HTML formats.In addition to MySQL, PGnJ can also connect to PostgreSQL, Oracle and SQLite databases and costs $49 (a 15 day trial can be downloaded). This application has a lot of potential to be a killer query runner, but has some rather rough edges that need ironing out before it is worthwhile.
SQLEditor
Unlike the other tools here, SQLEditor does not let you administer your database, or run queries — it is a design and ER modeling tool, supporting MySQL, PostgreSQL and Oracle. This lets you design your database with an excellent UI, and then export the resulting SQL to file, or directly into a database. You can also import directly from SQL or from a database — allowing easy diagramming of an existing database. SQLEditor is $79 with a 30-day trial.Cross Platform
MySQL Query Browser and MySQL Administrator
MySQL Query Browser and Administrator are available freely from MySQL itself. Together they allow full browsing, modifications, query running and database maintenance. While the tools are cross-platform, the UI is relatively OS X friendly and doesn’t seem out of place (I’ve found this unusual for cross-platform apps).Supporting syntax highlighting and code completion, the query runner has a query history (unfortunately there are no keyboard shortcuts) and works well. There is not a way to copy records to the clipboard, however the query results can be exported to CSV, HTML, XML, Excel XML or a property list file. Along side these tools is MySQLWorkbench, which is currently feature complete, but still in first beta. This compliments the administration tools with a DB design and ER modeling tool.
NaviCat
NaviCat is a powerhouse of a cross platform database administration application. There are three varieties, one for MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle, with the MySQL version costing between $79 and $119 depending what feature set you want. A fully featured 30-day trial can be downloaded.NaviCat has a horrible, Windows-like UI, but is incredibly featured, allowing pretty much everything from table modifications to stored procedures, views, event triggers, backups, user maintenance and scheduling maintenance tasks. The query runner has syntax highlighting with full code completion, and a UI based query builder. Copying query records to the clipboard results in Tab delimited text, while you can Import and Export in almost any format, including SQL, XML, CSV, DBF, XLS and even import from ODBC. Despite its price and horrid UI, it is one of the most powerful and functionally complete MySQL tool available for OS X.
RazorSQL
RazorSQL is a java-based cross platform browser and query runner that boasts support of 29 databases, including MySQL. A 30 day trial is available, with the full version costing $59.95.Like NaviCat, RazorSQL is fully featured allowing browsing and modifying table, stored procedures, views, triggers and users. Query running supports syntax highlighting and basic query history (no keyboard navigation). There is no code completion that I could find, although it has a UI-based query builder. The UI has the typical cross-platform windows look and feel. Clipboard copying gives Tab delimited text, however you can export in CSV, Tab, XML, HTML, XLS or text and import in CSV, Tab, XLS, fixed width text or SQL. If you need a cross platform fully featured tool to access almost any database, this does the job fine.
Aqua Data Studio
Aqua Data Studio is a java-based cross platform database IDE supporting 11 databases, including MySQL. It requires Java 1.6 and a 64bit Intel Mac. A 14 day trial is available, with the full license costing $399 per user. This price could be possibly justified however, as compared to all the other apps listed here, this is much more than a database administrator. Aqua Data Studio also lets you do full database comparisons, version control (supporting SVN and CVS) and a full ER modeling tool.If you need a complete package for an enterprise-level supporting role, this could be your one-stop solution. Otherwise it’s complete overkill for basic MySQL administration.
Переслать - Search It: Google From Wherever You Are
Sometimes it’s the little things that make your day go more smoothly. One such thing is the cool and elegant freeware utility, Search It.
With Search It installed, when you press a hot key a simple search field pops up (sort of the way the Quicksilver dialog works).
To look something up on the web, instead of moving your mouse pointer to the Dock, finding your browser's icon, clicking on your browser's icon, then mousing to the browser's search field in order to type your search keywords, with Search It you just press a hot key and type in your search topic wherever you happen to be at the time. Different hot keys will search different sites.
Search It’s developer, Jaroslaw Szpilewski, thinks that multistep procedure is a waste of time, and given the literally dozens of times I repeat it in the run of a day, I have to agree. Szpilewski is one of the many hobbyist programmers in the Mac orbit who have created useful tools to streamline their daily work and generously decided to share them with the Mac-using community.
Search It is completely free and requires OS X 10.5.4 or later.
Переслать - Rowmote: Simple iPhone Remote Control
Ever since I owned a Sony Ericsson phone which connected to my Mac via Salling Clicker, I’ve been fascinated with controlling OS X remotely. The iPhone created a fantastic device for taking remote control to a new level, and a search for “remote” in the App Store illustrates how popular the idea is.
A relatively new app on the scene is Rowmote, which takes a much more simplified approach. Rather than trying to offer a huge array of functionality, it simply replicates the controls found on a standard Apple remote. This provides a thoroughly appealing solution as Apple doesn’t always bundle remote controls with new computers.
Initiating a Connection
Rowmote consists of two separate applications. As you’d expect, one goes on your iPhone and the other (a “helper app”) is installed on your desktop. The installation process is simple, although a restart was required by the desktop installer — something I’m not used to on OS X!
Provided that both devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi network, they should see each other immediately and initiate a connection (as shown on the right).
One of the major advantages of connecting via Wi-Fi is that a line of sight isn’t required to communicate. Whether you’re wandering around the room or happily waving your iPhone around, it should still be able to skip a track or adjust your volume.
Application Switcher
The only aspect of the remote which goes beyond that provided by Apple is the ability to swap focus between different applications. These include Front Row, Airfoil Video, Boxee, iPhoto, iTunes, Quicktime, DVD Player, Keynote '08 and '09, PandoraJam, Plex, Powerpoint 2008, Skim, Spotify and VLC.
The latest version of Rowmote also has preliminary EyeTV support, allowing you to change channels and adjust the volume. It would be great if future versions could offer full control of EyeTV via their full-screen menu (in a similar fashion to Front Row).
Other Solutions
There are a number of other remote control applications available for the iPhone that are worth noting as alternatives.
For accessing your music and video, the first (and most popular) to note is Apple’s Remote app. This allows full control of iTunes playback, browsing of your library, and a whole range of other features. Other media-centric applications include VLC Remote for controlling the popular video player, a Boxee Remote, or jfControl for generic volume, track skipping, etc.
If you’re looking for a presentation remote control for Keynote, it’s definitely worth considering Apple’s official Keynote Remote. This is another visual treat, showing you which slides are coming up next along with any notes you’ve made. If you prefer to use PowerPoint (on Windows or Mac) it’s worth considering i-Clickr, which offers similar functionality.
Finally, a number of different remote controls allow you to actually control the keyboard and mouse of your machine. These obviously offer the broadest level of interaction, but can be incredibly fiddly to use. My favorite is Snatch, but other free solutions include RemotePad or Remote Desktop Light.
Conclusion
While I certainly admire the simplicity of Rowmote, in some ways I feel left wanting more. It’s great to have a low-cost application to replace a standard Apple remote, but the iPhone is capable of far more powerful and interactive connectivity (as some of the other remote applications go to show). It seems frustrating that you’re unable to interact with iTunes in a detailed level as you can with Apple’s Remote application. That said, if using Front Row, a similar level of navigation and control is possible.
Rowmote requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later, and is priced at 99 cents. It’s certainly a great deal cheaper than a replacement Apple Remote, and offers marginally greater functionality. If you’ve lost the remote that came with your Mac or want to replicate its simplicity on your iPhone, Rowmote is definitely the way to go.
Переслать - Five Location-Based Apps for the iPhone
With the iPhone OS 3.0 announcement that Apple’s new iPhone software update will include Google Maps integration, you can expect an explosion of location-based apps to start appearing in the App Store. There are already a few location-based apps available now, including ones we’ve written about before — Job Compass and Locly, for instance. Here are five more that are worth a look.
uSonar (Free)
There are lots of apps available that let you keep up with your social networks while you’re on the go, but what about when you’re bored and want to find someone local to hang with? uSonar lets you know who’s around and what they’re up to, whether they are someone you already know or not. Members post “blips” about their activities and locations, then you can message them directly through your iPhone or iPod touch. Everything about uSonar is opt-in, so you’re in control of who can see where you are, or send you a message or email. You can even post anonymously if you’d like.
Loopt (Free)
If you want people outside your immediate location to be able to find you, try Loopt. This app lets you broadcast your whereabouts or send pictures to everyone in your social networks, like Twitter and Facebook. It works across all major mobile phone carriers and supports over 100 different models of phones so your buddies without iPhones can find you. It also integrates nicely with the review Web site Yelp, so if you’re stumped on ways to spend your Saturday afternoon, you can find something to do.
Hear Planet (Free)
If you like to go sightseeing when you travel, then you’ll love Hear Planet. It uses geolocation to determine where you are, then feeds you tons of information about the area’s landmarks, famous buildings, historical sites, and more via your headphones. More than just an audio tour guide, listen while you drive around running errands and you just might learn something you never knew about your hometown.
Whrrl (Free)
Some folks love micro-blogging so much that they want to document every minute of their day. If that’s your thing, let Whrrl help. Use your iPhone’s camera to snap pictures of your lunch, trip to the market, and visit to the dentist, uploading to Whrrl as you go. You can even add text and messages if you choose. Your location and micro-stories are shown on a map, which is really neat if you happen to be around other Whrrl users doing the same thing as you. Imagine attending the Super Bowl and updating the experience as it happens, while simultaneously watching someone else across the stadium do the same. Cool. If any of this sounds familiar, it’s a lot like Brightkite.)
Traffic ($1.99)
This app will let you know what the traffic conditions are like in your area and display them in list form or superimposed on a map. Traffic gives you details on how severe the traffic situations are — is there a 4-alarm fire with road blockage on Main Street, or a small fender bender with a slowdown due to rubbernecking? The app automatically locates where you are, but you can enter the location of your choice so you can get traffic conditions anywhere.
Переслать - MacBook mini: Sorry Apple Fans, This Is Not Real
In case you’ve seen the most recent rumors about an Apple netbook currently circulating, which got their start at 9to5mac.com (whose server load problems seem to indicate that a lot of you have probably already seen this or are trying to as we speak), let me crush your hopes before they get too high: These are not photos of any real product.
Despite the claims of the source (a Russian magazine), the photos are clearly just Photoshop mock-ups.
Can anyone really look at these and entertain the possibility that they might be real? No mic input, no discernible MagSafe plug, and a less-than-accurate alteration of the MacBook Air text to read “MacBook mini”? Kudos to the Photoshopper for the keyboard work, but let’s not secure our reputation as the most gullible tech community in the world people.
Переслать - Skype for iPhone Gets Official, Details Revealed
Last week we got news via our very own sister site, GigaOM, that Skype would finally being releasing their own official app for the iPhone and iPod touch, and that the release date was imminent.
Skype has since officially confirmed the upcoming free app, releasing a slew of screenshots which were published over the weekend by SkypeJournal.com, among others. App usability and technical details were also made known, so we pretty much know exactly what we’re getting when the app drops tomorrow at CTIA ‘09.
First of all, in case you were hoping to circumvent your carrier’s talk time rates by using Skype over your 3G connection, you will be unable. Honestly, that’s not really a surprise, but I suppose there was no harm in hoping. Like any other VOIP application currently available, you’ll have to have an active Wi-Fi connection to place voice calls with Skype.
Skype’s UI on the iPhone is a pleasant surprise, at least in my opinion, since it resembles Apple’s own Phone.app interface. All phone features look the same, including the call screen and call history log. The chat interface is simple and clean, and resembles AIM or iChat for the Mac.
The new Skype app also integrates with your iPhone’s existing address book, allowing you to call any of your contacts from within the app (as long as you have SkypeOut credit). Another iPhone-specific feature is the ability to change your avatar using a photo taken from your iPhone’s camera, or one stored in your phone’s photo library. You can also participate in conference calls, though you can’t initiate them, only join in to those initiated by others.
Second-gen iPod touch users will also be able to use Skype for iPhone, so long as they have a headset or mic attachment. Unfortunately, first-gen users like me are out of luck, but Tom’s Guide thinks that’s only temporary, since iPhone OS 3.0 should activate the iPod touch’s Bluetooth chip for A2DP support, meaning we’ll be able to have all the fun of our newer counterparts. I remember the brief period of excitement when a teardown revealed hardware Bluetooth support on the 1G Touch, but I’d completely forgotten about it over time. Let’s hope it doesn’t remain just a vestigial limb.
There are some significant oversights in the 1.0 release of Skype for iPhone, including the ability to top out your SkypeOut credit directly from the app, and SMS support. I’m hoping to see those in later versions.
Переслать - Weekly App Store Picks: March 28, 2009
Welcome one and all to the weekend, a time for rest, relaxation and fresh pickings from the App Store.
Before checking out this week’s apps, we’ve got seven days worth of Apple happenings to run through.
First up, the week kicked off with a scathing review of the Daniel X graphic novel — an utterly dull comic-book barely improved by its leap to iPhone. Later in the week though, I took a look at Tumblr’s official iPhone app, turns out that it’s a brilliant tool for capturing moments while on the go.
On Tuesday, there was a curious new addition to UK retailer Play.com’s store: the 16GB iPhone 3G. Apparently taking advantage of EU regulations — ensuring the availability of SIM-free mobile phones — the device’s are retailing at a hefty $900.
Midweek, Apple introduced cross-border shopping for twenty different countries via their online store. Unfortunately, our own Darrel Etherington was less than pleased to discover that Canada has been left out of the International shipping fun. Plus, owners of the unibody 17″ Macbook Pro were also treated to a firmware update fixing graphics issues with the system.
Bringing an end to the week’s Apple happenings, over at GigaOm.com, Om Malik received a tip-off concerning a new app for iPhone: Skype. That’s right, there’s rumored to be an official Skype iPhone app, due for release very soon. Unfortunately, for me, it may be too little too late: I doubt that it’ll be feature-packed enough for me to swap over from Nimbuzz.
Moving on the apps, this week I’ve been looking at Bowman, Gengo Lite, AudioBoo and Elemental Monster TD.
Bowman (99 cents)
The original version of Bowman is an excellent little physics-based Flash game, controlling an archer, you simply drag back on the arrows to launch them at your target. Back in February, I mentioned an unofficial 99 cent Bowman game that hit the App Store, for iPhone and touch. Now it seems that the official Bowman game has been released, alongside updated graphics, it packs three different modes: Single player, Multiplayer and Bird Hunt. Try the Flash game first and then, if it hits your target, grab the iPhone version.Gengo Lite: Finnish (free)
Last Sunday I made the epic move of packing up shop and moving from my apartment in central London to Finland. As I don’t speak the language here, I decided to hit the App Store in a bid to find out if my iPhone can help me learn the local lingo. The Gengo Flashcards apps are particularly special — featuring both a plain old flashcard mode and a more exciting game mode. Plus, there’s a wide range of languages on offer: alongside Finnish, there’s Spanish, French, Italian and even Hindi, Farsi and Turkish among others.AudioBoo (free)
Occasionally an app comes along that has the potential to change the way we use our iPhones on a daily basis. Both Tweetie and Evernote fall in to that category, the former giving me beautifully stream-lined access to Twitter and the latter enabling me to take notes and stay organized wherever I may be. AudioBoo is another one of these potential game-changers. It’s an app that plugs straight in to Facebook and Twitter allowing you to record tweet-style audio messages. Quick to set-up, easy to use and certainly very good fun, this is definitely one to check out. Stay tuned as I’ll be posting a full review to TheAppleBlog next week.Elemental Monster TD (99 cents)
Over the past few weeks, I’ve become somewhat obsessed with Tower Defense (TD) games. If you’re not familiar with the genre, it’s essentially a type of strategy game where you build offensive towers on a map to attack waves of enemies. It’s over-simplified real time strategy gaming: more immediate than Command & Conquer and easier to learn (with much less depth) than Warcraft 3. Elemental Monster TD moves the genre forwards: introducing trading card collection alongside action-packed tower defense. What results is a game with stunning graphics, ultra-strategic gameplay and a few added twists to the tower defense genre. Normally $3.99, the app is on offer at 99 cents until March 30.And that’s your lot for the week, I’ll be back next Saturday with more picks from the App Store. Plus, drop by TheAppleBlog during the week for the latest app reviews too.
In the meantime, what apps have you been using this week?
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