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- Can FaceTime Revitalize Video Conferencing?
Just over two months ago, I wrote a post expressing my thoughts on Apple’s iSight webcam and how eight years of investment from Apple and over 15 years of investment from larger tech companies like Microsoft, Intel and Logitech yielded very little progress in making video conferencing a part of our everyday lives. I’d say the comments to that piece were 50/50 in agreeing with me on this fact. I still stand by my opinion stated there and have done quite a bit of research after writing that to back up much of what I said.
Video conferencing still isn’t taking off.
Someone at Apple truly believes in it and that’s a good sign as I think it can be the future one day. At around 11:30AM on the morning of Apple’s iPhone announcement, Steve Jobs made the first public FaceTime call with his friend Jony Ive:
Jobs: You know this amazing. I grew up with "The Jetsons" and "Star Trek," dreaming about stuff like this, and here it is.
Ive: I grew up the same way. And it's real now isn't it?
Yes it is, but will people use it? Was video conferencing only going to take off if introduced in the 70s? Has society moved past video conferencing? I’ll say that FaceTime has zero chance of succeeding if Apple chooses to limit the technology to Apple devices. Apple’s strategy in 2003 with the release of iChat AV was to make it work with all AIM users as long as those users were using the latest version of AIM with a USB webcam, and ideally it’ll open up FaceTime technology to other phones as well.
Opening FaceTime up is key and let’s hope that more companies jump in and adopt the technology so all of us can chat without barriers, communicate and interact face to face on any device. John Gruber posted this last week which threw a wrench in my FaceTime predictions where he notes Apple states that it will ship tens of millions of FaceTime devices in 2010 and he then goes on to predict that Apple could position FaceTime to completely eliminate the current carrier model of paying for minutes where all voice and video data are transmitted over HTTP via a simple data plan. An iPad with 3G could be a FaceTime device for one data price and still offer instant communications with anyone in the world.Now we’re talking!
Of course, we still must tackle this hurdle of our social habits showing a completely different story when it comes to voice and video communications. Mobile minutes are down. Data use is up. Socially, at least in the U.S., we simply don’t talk on the phone as much as we did. Kids are texting, adults are IMing and the in-betweens are using e-mail and Twitter. My only phone conversation a week is reserved to a chat with my Mom and Dad who live at the other end of the country or with my girlfriend when I’m traveling. In those two instances, FaceTime would be perfect.
A point that I want to make that was said perfectly in Gizmodo’s FaceTime testing notes is:
Because what are you supposed to be looking at? What should you be showing? You’re used to talking on a phone and pacing around, skimming an email, doing something else at the same time. But with this, you can’t. You just hold your phone out in front of you, awkwardly, and look at the other person looking back at you, also awkwardly. And you wonder, why are we doing this?
So really, FaceTime is great if you actually have something you want to show someone, like a new outfit or your new house or your kid. But if you’re just calling to shoot the breeze? It’s…awkward.
The same can be said for iChat AV via iSight or Skype. The same can be said via video calling built into Nokia and other smartphones overseas and the same can be said for how our children in their teens use phones for texting instead of calling each other. There’s something you could be doing while on the phone or there’s simply an awkwardness about dedicating all of you in full vivid retina display quality to someone to communicate something that could be better done via voice or even text. It’s the truth.
Of course, I don’t think it’s a bad thing if FaceTime goes global and, in 2010, millions of devices from computers to tablet PCs to mobile phones ship with FaceTime enabled. If everyone walks around staring at each other in screens actually having real conversations instead of doing a million things at once, that will be a wonderful thing. You’ll be able to add, “saved humanity” to Apple’s achievements right alongside with largest music store and use of most adjectives in a single keynote.
I think any product that becomes cool and also something that forces us to stop and actually have a conversation nearly face-to-face will be good for the world and good for Apple. I just hope it’s not too late, but if a puppet can bring smiles to someone over FaceTime, maybe there’s hope.
Переслать - Taking the Pen to the iPad
The iPad has been successful by anyone’s method of reckoning. Apple has done what it does best — create a compelling device that is useful for many things that people like to do. Many iPad users tell me, and I agree, that it is more useful than they thought it would be. But there is one more use that many users would like to see. It is only natural to take a pen to a slate device, but it doesn’t work very well with the current technology. That should be set to improve when a concept by Ten One Design that adds pressure sensitivity to the iPad gets implemented. Many concepts never see the light of day, but Ten One is releasing this one to developers.
Pressure sensitivity plays an important role in handwriting on a tablet. As demonstrated in the video, it can cause line width to vary based on how hard the user presses on the screen. This is important for drawing applications, and it can also make handwriting recognition (HWR) more accurate. HWR is the magic that happens when handwritten words are interpreted and converted into digital text. This opens up a wide range of applications for inking on the iPad, not the least of which would be the ability to enter text into an iPad app without the onscreen keyboard.
Writing into apps may not be something a user wants to do all the time, but it can be a better method than the keyboard for short text entries. Imagine how useful it would be to write in a search term that the iPad converts to text to send to Google for the search. There are many applications for handwriting input that make sense for a slate device, and the omission is limiting.
Ten One has incorporated palm rejection, which is critical for inking applications on any touch sensitive tablet. Writing or drawing on the screen requires setting the hand down on the display, and that is normally falsely interpreted as a desire to write. Palm rejection makes the iPad able to tell the difference between a hand sitting on the display and a pen point. The application then ignores the hand and only interprets the pen input as it should.
The company is releasing this inking capability as a free software library available to any developer wishing to incorporate the ability into an app. This opens up the door for all sorts of useful implementations for ink input on the iPad. Wouldn’t it be great to see a real ink note-taking application, complete with HWR, appear on an iPad near you? Apple may not think pen input is important on the iPad, but my tablet toting buddies will tell you it’s often a great way to work with the slate.
Related GigaOM Pro content (sub req'd): Handwriting Recognition: A Killer App for the iPad?
Переслать - TechUniversity: 10 Mac Setup Tips
Whether you just got a new Mac or you’re installing (or updating) your version of OS X, this TechUniversity screencast will cover 10 things you should setup (subscription required) before you do anything else on your Mac.
We’ll walk you through how to set up, enable, and tweak all 10 items so you can get the most out of your Mac right from the start.
Below is a sample of the video. The full screencast clocks in at just over 11 minutes.
Переслать - Apple Says Signal Strength is Just a Software Issue, But is It?
Apple heralds the arrival of the iPhone 4 as the most successful product launch ever, but since the device first went on sale, reviews across the world have remarked on issues of signal quality. From notions of holding your phone incorrectly to simply displaying an inaccurate representation of signal strength, the issue has become prominently associated with the popular phone and could affect its sales. Today, Apple finally released a response addressing the concerns.
The architecture of the new iPhone 4 places the antenna structure within the stainless steel band that wraps the new phone. And the problem many users have noted is that applying normal pressure along specific points of the phone causes the signal quality indicator to drop. Seems like just a hardware issue, right? Well before you go old-school and wrap your phone in aluminum foil in a desperate attempt to boost the signal strength, there's more to the story.
The issue of signal strength has been picked apart across the Internet; some people can reproduce the problem, while others cannot. A few days after these issues first came to light, Steve Jobs said in response to an email:
Gripping any phone will result in some attenuation of its antenna performance, with certain places being worse than others depending on the placement of the antennas. This is a fact of life for every wireless phone. If you ever experience this on your iPhone 4, avoid gripping it in the lower left corner in a way that covers both sides of the black strip in the metal band, or simply use one of many available cases.
It’s an interesting response, but it seems to speak to Apple’s industrial design decisions, since such sensitive hardware is in a region of the phone that’s naturally likely to be handled. Regardless, since Jobs’ comments, there have been daily rumors concerning Apple's solution to the issue, whether it’s a software update to "fix" the problem or providing customers with an iPhone 4 bumper case that avoids placing pressure on the antenna. Most recently, fabricated emails have come to light suggesting that Jobs told a customer "calm down" and that it's "not worth it." While that turned out to be a fake email according to Apple, the company finally released a statement regarding the issue altogether.
According to the statement, the algorithm for calculating the signal strength has just been inaccurate, showing more bars than it should in some cases. In an example provided by Apple, what is displayed on your iPhone could be two bars higher than the actual signal strength. The statement also suggests your real signal strength never changes, so when you see the lower signal strength as a result of placing pressure along one of the antennas, you're really seeing a more accurate representation of the signal.
Okay, so it's a software issue. Or is it?
Apple says this problem of inaccurate signal strength has been present in every iPhone since launch. (Thanks, Apple!)
So if it’s an issue of inaccurate signal strength, how does that affect performance? Look at the video that Cameron Hunt posted to Vimeo that shows how Safari simply stops loading when he touches one of these antenna points along the device. If you apply Apple's logic to his scenario, when you watch the bars begin to drop, his actual signal strength shouldn't be dropping. Yet it does, because Safari cannot finish downloading the page. Clearly, there's still some degree of a hardware issue involved.
Apple says a free software update for iPhone 4, iPhone 3G and 3GS users will be available in the next few weeks to address the problem, and will cause your iPhone to display a more accurate signal strength. Additionally, the update will make the first three signal bars “a bit taller” and “easier to see.” Just remember, they’re only taller to make them more visible, not because the signal strength is any better.
For the technically minded out there, it’s been mentioned that the field test mode in iPhone 4 has disappeared. That’s too bad, as it would have been a great way to see what’s really happening to the signal strength. Does anybody know how to access it on the new iPhone 4?
Do you really believe Apple's response that the issue is software-related and the reality is that the network reception is actually much lower than what your iPhone displays? Is there really anything wrong? Or is nothing wrong? Or is there something wrong but the problem is just normal of cell phones and it’s just time for us Apple users to drink the Kool-Aid again? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Переслать - Jailbreaking How-To: Enable Multitasking (and More) On iPhone 3G or iPod touch 2G
So, you want to enable multitasking and other iOS 4 features on your iPhone 3G or iPod touch 2G? Well then let’s get to it!
You’ll need an iPhone 3G or iPod touch 2nd-gen, as well as the redsn0w jailbreak, which you can download from here. Now you’re set to do the real work, but first a disclaimer: the procedure is rather simple, but be warned that you could easily brick your device if you’re not careful. Also, jailbreaking will void your warranty, so be smart and restore your device with iTunes before you take it down to the Genius Bar.
Got it? Great.
If your device is still running on iOS 3.x, you’ll need to upgrade to 4.0 before you proceed. Just go into iTunes, click on your device in the sidebar, and check for updates.
The Nitty Gritty
1. When you start-up redsn0w, you’ll need to point it to the iOS 4 IPSW, which, if you’ve already installed iOS 4 on your device, should be at
~/Library/iTunes/iPhone Software Updates/and will be named something likeiPhone1,2_4.0for the iPhone andiPod2,1_4.0for the iPod.2. If you’re using an iPod, redsn0w will ask you to clarify whether it’s one of the newer models that start with “MC.” You can check this by going to General -> About on your iPod and scrolling down to “Model.”
3. Now you can decide what features you want redsn0w to enable. You can choose to install Cydia (which is like an unwalled version of the App Store), Verbose boot (which gives you every detail of what’s going on while your device boots), Custom boot logo, and Custom recovery logo. That’s nice, but you can also enable multitasking, home screen wallpapers, and the battery percentage indicator, which are the really great benefits from doing this.
4. Connect your device to your Mac and turn it off by holding down the lock button until a red slider appears, which you should then slide. Make sure your device is completely off before you continue, meaning there should be no spinning progress indicator, or anything, on the screen.
5. Be prepared for this part, because redsn0w will start on this step immediately once you click “Next.” You’ll need to put your device into Device Firmware Update (DFU) mode. redsn0w will walk you through it, but you’ll need to be quick. The process basically goes like this:
- Hold down the lock button for 3 seconds
- Without releasing the lock button, hold down the home button for 10 seconds
- Without releasing the home button, let go of the lock button and continue holding the home button for 30 seconds, though redsn0w should start doing its thing before the 30 seconds are up. Once you see a grey background on your screen, you can let go of the home button.
6. Watch while redsn0w jailbreaks your device and enables all the features that Apple left out. Do not yank the device of the cord, no matter what happens. That’s a recipe for bricking your device. Just relax and go get some coffee, or drool over the new Mac mini. When you come back, your device will be running with all the features you envied the 3GS for. Tip: You can enable the battery percentage indicator by going into Settings -> General -> Usage and turning it on.
How does the old hardware handle multitasking?
4.0 was already sluggish for me without multitasking. Rest assured, your performance won’t improve if it was already sluggish. But it hasn’t gotten worse, at least on my device, and if you’re going to use a sluggish OS, you may as well have all the features enabled, right?
Is your device running faster after the 4.0 update? Slower? Tell us about your experience in the comments.
Переслать - Apple Admits iPhone 4 Signal Issue, Blames it on Incorrect Signal Display. But Will Software Fix It?
Apple today released a statement on the widely reported iPhone 4 antenna issue, and plans to offer a software update within the next few weeks to address the problem. The Cupertino company says it was “stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong.” The upcoming software fix is expected to use a recommended formula from AT&T to properly calculate the visible bars of signal strength on any iPhone running iOS4.
Here are the details of the problem — which Apple says existed since the original iPhone — according to the Apple press release:
Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength. For example, we sometimes display 4 bars when we should be displaying as few as 2 bars. Users observing a drop of several bars when they grip their iPhone in a certain way are most likely in an area with very weak signal strength, but they don't know it because we are erroneously displaying 4 or 5 bars. Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place.
While the new stainless steel frame of the iPhone — which doubles as an antenna — may indeed be an improvement over prior designs, I see nothing in the press release indicating a software fix for a hardware problem. In other words, unless I’m misunderstanding the whole problem, the software fix will simply reflect a more accurate number of signal bars.
We’ll have to see what happens when the software update arrives — the iPhone 3G and 3GS will get the fix too — but my take: if you hold iPhone 4 in your left hand now have a problem with the signal today, you’ll still have it after the update. Unless you spend $29 on a stunning bumper, that is.
Related content on GigaOM Pro (subscription required):
Is an iPhone- and Android-Only World the Best We Can Do?
Переслать
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