Mobile – Page 12 – ɔimoɈɒ

What’s missing on iPhone

A discussion on the NiMUG forums about the features missing on the iPhone sparked this post. Proper MMS support – to be honest I don’t miss this at all. Looking back on my previous tariffs I only ever sent about 1 picture a month (though my tariff allowed for 15) and I only received 1-2 … Continue reading “What’s missing on iPhone”

A discussion on the NiMUG forums about the features missing on the iPhone sparked this post.

Proper MMS support – to be honest I don’t miss this at all. Looking back on my previous tariffs I only ever sent about 1 picture a month (though my tariff allowed for 15) and I only received 1-2 a month. Since getting an iPhone in October, I’ve only received 2 MMS texts (which are accessed via O2’s web site). Is this worth getting upset over? I think not
Cut n Paste – this is much more serious. I really need some sort of text selection and cut feature to edit down the really long emails that come from the OSX-Nutters mailing list (the discussion on evolution of the mind was fascinating but almost impossible to reply to and provide proper editing. Apple is allegedly working on this but wondering about the implementation.
SMS forwarding – this doesn’t bother me at all. SMS Forwards tend to be jokes and I don’t really want to get involved in that. SMS Texts come from me and SMS Forwarding on my old phone didn’t include any attribution.
Contact Forwarding – Oh, man, this has bitten me two or three times this week. It’s really frustrating that I can’t send someone’s number or contact details via email or SMS without writing them down elsewhere and then re-entering them. Stupid Stupid Stupid.
Maps link Forwarding – again it seems obvious when a friend has asked you where something or somewhere is. i.e. I can use the location feature to find myself but I’d like to be able to email a link to Google Maps so someone else can find me. It should be part of the dropped pin feature or the slightly more obscure Maps bookmark feature.

Anything I’ve missed?

18/100 Just Jump Into Podcasting – Heres How

This is one that I’m going to be learning as I write. Technical The technical side of things is possibly the easiest to fix. Apple has a quick guide to Podcasting on their support site which covers a sample recipe for Podcasts and the bullet points in how to actually record sound and get it … Continue reading “18/100 Just Jump Into Podcasting – Heres How”

This is one that I’m going to be learning as I write.

Technical
The technical side of things is possibly the easiest to fix. Apple has a quick guide to Podcasting on their support site which covers a sample recipe for Podcasts and the bullet points in how to actually record sound and get it published via RSS. It’s a little high level but I guess this means that my mum would find it easier than me as I tend to overthink things.

Non-Technical
I’ve left the non-technical issues until last. This actually involves the content itself and is best covered by the Podcast Recipe on the link above.

Talking for 15-20 minutes is a tough job for a lot of people which is why you have to plan it. I’ve only ever been involved in one Podcast as a guest (The Spodcast (#28) and it wasn’t hard to fill the time – mainly because it was a conversation about interesting stuff that was timetabled and, at the end of the day, there were four people talking. 20 minutes of talk-time is a lot easier to fill when there’s four of you.

Accessibility Issues
Not to be sniffed at, there are real problems if you’re producing podcast content and that is simply accessibility. The first issue is obvious – anyone who is deaf or has a severe hearing impairment will probably not be able to access your content. In the US that’s possibly 2% of the population (link). If you include any kind of hearing impairment it rises to almost 14%. The solution here therefore is to offer a transcript which, as you can guess, is a poor substitute, but if your content ain’t rubbish then it shouldn’t be much of an issue.

Another problem related to accessibility is what is required to listen to your content. MP3 and AAC formats should be fine because one is a defacto standard and the other is an actual standard. Once you start making a political statement (like Ogg Vorbis) then you’ve just thrown away another chunk of listeners. This becomes even more problematic when a format is owned wholly by a company, like WMA, and is poorly supported on other platforms.

There’s also the problem of file size. A minute of conversation might take 512Kbytes, which is the same as about 500 pages of plain text (or seven and a half lines of text in Word 2008). Using plain text means you can feed it into a braille machine or a screen reader or magnify it to ungodly levels without much distortion. A 20 minute podcast is a much higher bandwidth and storage sink compared to the same amount of content as text.

My recommendations:

Get a Mac – using GarageBand will just make your life easier. If you’re in love with Windows, then keep using it I guess but you’ll have to find your own killer podcasting app.
Find a Friend – I don’t think Podcasting is a lone activity and some of the least interesting podcasts come from people who do it alone. Look at popular talk radio shows – Chris Moyles seems to have about 17 people stuffed into his booth.
Do it regularly – Weekly is probably what people expect. Don’t disappoint them.
Careful with Commercials – no-one likes commercials. Everyone wants to skip them but if you do accept sponsorship then make sure you don’t ram them in your listeners faces. Try to be objective about and don’t just think of the “free” money. It’s not going to score you a Mercedes or anything.

I don’t know how useful this was, taking podcasting advice from someone who’s never really done it. A lot of it is common sense. But I’m going to be starting topic 19 from Chris Brogan’s 100 blogging topics. If any of my readers (yeah, both of you) do a podcast, chuck the URL in the comments as I’m interested to listen.

[Chris Brogan’s 100 topics]

Google, Dell to produce piss-poor smartphone.

: Both Google and Dell are collaborating on a handset, says a new claim by ad magazine MarketingWeek. Reportedly contacting “senior industry sources,” the publication believes that the two firms will announce a phone as soon as the Mobile World Congress show in mid-February.

Considering the DELL efforts before with the ill fated AXIM PDA running Microsoft software and the fact they had their market cut out from them by Microsoft with the “PlaysForSure” debacle, this would seem to be a sound strategic partnership. Google has yet to screw over any partners, it saves that experience for customers of companies it acquires.

Of course, it’s possible that these two industry giants could be teaming up to flood the market with another piss-poor smartphone

iPhone 2007. Windows Mobile 2009? Maybe?

Mitchell Ashley, Microsoft apologist for NetworkWorld tells us why he thinks the iPhone is doomed The iPhone is certain to fade into history as another cool Apple innovation, that others soon rushed competitive, like-products to market, blowing away any significant lead Apple might have. The iPod mp3 player is an industry Apple essentially created, the … Continue reading “iPhone 2007. Windows Mobile 2009? Maybe?”

Mitchell Ashley, Microsoft apologist for NetworkWorld tells us why he thinks the iPhone is doomed

The iPhone is certain to fade into history as another cool Apple innovation, that others soon rushed competitive, like-products to market, blowing away any significant lead Apple might have. The iPod mp3 player is an industry Apple essentially created, the iPhone isn’t. Too many major players are in the mobile phone market, who have and will bring iPhone-like products to market over the coming months and years. LG has already done so with the LG Voyager phone, and now Microsoft’s plans for Windows Mobile 7 OS have been leaked and described in considerable detail by InsideMicrosoft blogger Nathan Weinberg.

Does anyone remember what the market was like before Apple released the iPod in 2001? There were certainly lots of MP3 players on the market, some of them flash based and some of them with laptop hard drives in them. There wasn’t any decent way to buy music online and there was only really MusicMatch JukeBox for syncing your tunes that you did have (ripped using WinAMP or MacAMP).

To claim Apple invented the Mp3 player market is simply a lie. A massive straw man argument designed to help prop up the further argument that the iiPhone will fail because Apple did not create that market.

Apple has a 70%+ market share in MP3 players. Are we expecting them to take the same in the phone market? Of course not. They’re never going to release a Â£10 phone you can buy down in Tesco along with Â£10 of free minutes. The vast majority of the market are these low end handsets, so feature-free that I was surprised they still existed (until I bought one as an unlocked emergency handset a few months ago).

Apple did manage to snare 19% of the smartphone market in 6 months which is a much more interesting market – one where people will actually pay for the use of a technology device. Isolating that market aside from the most basic handsets begins to crystallise out Apple’s intended market: paying customers.

The article is fluff, tripe and full of FUD. It’s meant to make you hold out for the next big thing from Microsoft. Yes, it took Microsoft six months to copy key features of the iPhone and create mockups of what they plan to ship sometime in 2009. Yes, six months to invent photoshopped images. And you’ll have to wait over a year to use this stuff.

And of course, Apple will be standing still during this time…

You ratted me out, you dirty rat…

Damien posted this link to a story on the Machinist blog about how smartphones (and not just iPhones) can get you into trouble. One exception to this is a search incident to arrest — if the police are arresting you, they can search you and your possessions without first obtaining a warrant. During the past … Continue reading “You ratted me out, you dirty rat…”

Damien posted this link to a story on the Machinist blog about how smartphones (and not just iPhones) can get you into trouble.

One exception to this is a search incident to arrest — if the police are arresting you, they can search you and your possessions without first obtaining a warrant. During the past few decades, Gershowitz explains, courts have given the police wide rein in conducting such searches. If police arrest a driver, they’re allowed to search not only the driver but the car, passengers in the car, and “containers” in the car — envelopes, wallets, aspirin bottles — that they find. And incriminating evidence they find — even if it’s not related to the crime they’re arresting you for — can be admissible in court.

In recent years courts have been asked to rule on the legality of police searches of electronic devices found during the course of an arrest, and judges have almost always come down on the side of the officers.

The most obvious answer is “Don’t do illegal stuff, ever” but frankly my experience of the police forces, admittedly limited to Northern Ireland, would make me hesitate to wonder if even this is enough.

The obvious thing to do, just in case you are involved in something dubious (and even then, looking at Dumb Laws it can be something as puerile and stupid as:

Those wishing to purchase a television must also buy a license.
Chelsea Pensioners may not be impersonated.
It is illegal to leave baggage unattended.
Picking up abandoned baggage is an act of terrorism.
Any person found breaking a boiled egg at the sharp end will be sentenced to 24 hours in the village stocks (enacted by Edward VI).

and other similar nonsense) is to password protect or otherwise encrypt your data.

From The Register:

“The last line of defense really is you holding your own password,” Lee Tien, a senior staff attorney at the EFF, said.

Aha, that may work in the US with the whole Fifth Amendment stuff, but what about in the UK where, of course, we care about.

From The Register again, regarding the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, 2000:

The RIP Bill contains one truly frightening basic assumption: if you have stored on your computer any form of encrypted message, you will be forced on request by the police to hand over the necessary keys to decrypt this data. If you do not have the keys, YOU MUST PROVE THAT YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN IN POSSESSION OF THEM, or you could be subject to a two-year jail term.

So much for the lack of self-incrimination.

Translink for iPhone

David Rice on NiMUG wrote up this little app: Translink for iPhone Related posts: Cold. Hot. Translink: just close the doors and turn off the lights Translink Annual Report – #freepublictransport Questions for Translink #FOI

David Rice on NiMUG wrote up this little app:

Translink for iPhone

More iPhone stupidity

The hacks are outdoing themselves again. The US Computer Emergency Response Team (US-CERT) issued a warning that a bogus upgrade is wending its way around the Internet. â€œiPhone firmware 1.1.3 prepâ€ claims to be a necessary precursor for 1.1.3 firmware. The bottom line is that the Trojan can overwrite some utilities but that it isnâ€™t … Continue reading “More iPhone stupidity”

The hacks are outdoing themselves again.

The US Computer Emergency Response Team (US-CERT) issued a warning that a bogus upgrade is wending its way around the Internet. â€œiPhone firmware 1.1.3 prepâ€ claims to be a necessary precursor for 1.1.3 firmware. The bottom line is that the Trojan can overwrite some utilities but that it isnâ€™t too dangerous.

Anyone who works in IT and thinks this is a real threat needs to hand their badge in to security and their resignation letter to HR. The reason being: too stupid for employment.

Now, I suppose I’d better back that up.

This “trojan” requires you do unlock your iPhone, then download a hacked 1.1.3 version of the firmware from a dodgy web site. Then you install said dodgy firmware. And it does some bad voodoo.

This is akin to:

Download a disk image of an operating system from some dodgy site. Say a Linux live CD from “thedodgysite.com”.
Boot and install it on your PC, ignoring the warnings that reformatting your disk will remove your data
Complain bitterly that your data is gone
Complain some more that your Windows apps won’t run
Complain until you are blue in the face that the apps contained in the install all bring you to porn sites

Don’t these people understand? It’s not like you caught a trojan because you were stupid enough to run an unpatched version of Outlook from the last millennium. You installed a dodgy OS from a dodgy web site on your pristine iPhone. You did this. On your own. Using your fingers and hands and grey matter. You should get a refund on the grey matter.

There are only two actions that Apple could take with this sort of stupidity:

Keep the OS in ROM only. That’d break software updates, but stop the cool hackers out there responsible for jailbreaks from doing their magic
Perform a recall on all iPhones owned by the chronically stupid

I vote for the latter. Some people are simply too stupid to own technology. To this end I think that we should promote the use of Etch-A-Sketch and Speak’n’Spell devices for people who get bitten by this one.

Lazysphere occurs in the big leagues too

I didn’t think I’d ever use the words “lazysphere” and “gigaom” in the same sentence but thanks to a lazy journo at webworkderdaily who recycles the “Why corporate IT doesn’t want the iPhone” complaint, I am forced to. I’ve refuted these points before. Shame on you, Gigaom! A blatant cut and paste job with virtually … Continue reading “Lazysphere occurs in the big leagues too”

I’ve refuted these points before. Shame on you, Gigaom!

A blatant cut and paste job with virtually no content contributed by the writer. And one that has been refuted may times not just by me but by a lot of people. The single biggest reason to maintain the iPhone in a corporate environment in my opinion is that it gives you a great reason to get rid of RIM. I’ve spent time this week and again last month troubleshooting problems with RIM’s software “not deleting messages properly” which causes a mailbox to get corrupted.

The fix, as passed on from Vodafone: Stop using our supplied Blackberry devices.

Fantastic.

Now tell me why corporate IT should pay for RIM services on top of their Blackberry devices for a service that doesn’t work properly when you can go with a standard IMAP server and any phone with hald a degree of smarts (never mind an iPhone?)

Do you REALLY need PUSH email that much? Can you stand to be without email for 15 minutes? If it’s that urgent why hasn’t your IT department installed an SMS Gateway so you can get instantaneous messaging? If it’s that important why are you relying on methods of delivery that are not guaranteed? You didn’t know that neither email nor SMS offer a “class of service” guarantee? Yes, I’m quite sure. Plus there are interoperable standards for this. Why on earth do we need to use proprietary methods? It’s 2008 for chrissakes. Next you’ll be recommending installing an Exchange server.

The real question you should be asking:

Considering how much I have paid for Exchange Servers, Blackberry devices and RIM’s messaging services, howcome Apple could produce a phone and in 6 months grab 19% of the smartphone market with a device that RIM, Palm and Microsoft are now scrabbling to mimic? What have you been doing with all of my money???

MWSF2008: The Good, the Bad and the Fugly

Every year we wait for the new and sparkly stuff from Apple and we often get it. The move to Intel. The iPhone. the 17″ and 12″ Powerbooks wayback when. This year is no different. We have a new subnotebook, software updates and a glimpse into Apple’s plans for everyone. MacBook Air Some correspondants on … Continue reading “MWSF2008: The Good, the Bad and the Fugly”

MacBook Air

Some correspondants on Damien’s blog don’t think it’s up to much (and this is before touching the device). One commenter wrote “Certainly itâ€™s some kind of breakthrough, but then shit-flavoured ice cream would be, too.” I think that’s more than a bit harsh but then it explains why Apple always dips straight after MacWorld even if the product announcements have been insanely great. A lot of people were expecting Apple to go after the eee PC market and produce a subnote that was cheap. People, seriously. Subnotebooks are not cheap. If you don’t mind running a machine with a 7″ screen, that is light but bulky, only has a 2 hour battery and has barely enough storage for the OS plus any media files, then by all means run, don’t walk, and buy a eee PC. It’s ugly (and yes, I have one here).

The MacBook Air is aimed at people who would buy the Sony TZ series of subnotebooks. No-one would ever accuse Sony of being a cheap brand so I wonder why people expect Apple to suddenly, after years of being a premium brand, flood the market with Â£200 laptops. The Air would have to be beautiful, it would have to show something new and exciting and it would have to beat the best, not beat the cheapest. It’s thinner than the TZ and cheaper than the TZ.

My beefs with the MacBook air are simple. It’s only got one USB port. Though I seldom have more than one thing plugged into my MacBook Pro, there are times I have two. I might be charging my iPhone while playing Battlefield. And no, wireless mice are not good for the First Person Shooters. This happens infrequently enough that I’m not concerned about it. I’m also not worried about the lack of an ethernet port because, frankly, it’s been months since I plugged my laptop into ethernet and that was when I was at a client site. I usually carry a Airport Express with me if I’m unsure of wireless at the next location. I’m also not that concerned with the lack of RAM upgrades and the inability to remove the battery. 2 GB of RAM is a goodly amount for the target market for this device. I am curious that they didn’t bring out some sort of dock, I guess you plug in your USB hub, your power and your video out and just work on. It’s a sleek machine, underpowered for what I want (mostly in the graphics card department) but tempting. I don’t consider the multi-touch trackpad to be a big deal – if it’s not a touch laptop screen I don’t see the point. That said – touchscreens tend not to be thin if they are of any size.

In all, the MacBook Air is not for me. I’m not THAT much of a road warrior (heck, my laptop is 17″ and seldom leaves the house). It would serve a lot of people I know, probably more than they realise especially when they consider exactly how often do they plug anything into their laptop!

Lack of ethernet? Yes. I really wanted to drop over a grand on a laptop and then run wires all over my house, chaining me to certain parts of the room.

Scores 8/10 in my opinion. I’d have liked a 11″ machine.

iPhone update 1.1.3 (also for iPod touch)

We knew this was coming and it’s just like it said on the tin. Maps will now find your location pretty effectively using cell tower triangulation. You can move icons about. You can add bookmarks to the home screen for the bazillions of web apps out there. Texting to multiple persons doesn’t inspire me in the implementation but that’s a UI thing. Song lyrics? If I had any. iTunes rentals? If they were available in the UK I might care but I have Sky and more movies than I can watch anyway. And for iPod touch owners, $20 for the update isn’t a big deal. Sure, it’d be nice if you didn’t have to buy it but then 5 apps for $20 means apps are being targetted at around $4 each. Is Apple laying down expectations for pricing for iPhone apps bought through iTunes later this quarter?

A solid enough upgrade I guess – I don’t get lost very often though. 6/10

Apple TV update

This makes the Apple TV into an interactive device rather than just something to view media with. It becomes a realistic option for people who have broadband and don’t want to pay for cable or satellite TV or on-demand services. Of course, you can’t buy movies on iTunes in the UK and neither can we rent them via Apple TV. So if you’re in the UK, this is a useless update and another example of how if you’re in the UK, Apple doesn’t really care. Just keep buying their stuff. This is pretty much a 1/10

Time Capsule

The Airport Extreme with built-in hard drive is the only thing that really impressed her-indoors. Everyone should be backing up and with having to plug in disks, it can be a pain having to do so. This removes that pain. This I would place as the most impressive release in the show.

What does this tell me? Apple wants people to have more than one Mac. That seems obvious but Time Capsule is designed to back up multiple Macs. The MacBook Air is not designed as a standalone machine but rather as a portable machine which provides you with a companion to your powerful desktop at home. Leopard options like “Back to my Mac” show that being able to access one Mac from another Mac is an important part of their strategy. They’ve convinced a lot of people to buy one Mac so far and when you’ve managed that, getting them to buy another Mac is a no-brainer.

Time Capsule gets a rather spiffy 10/10 from me. Would have been 11 if it had AirTunes too.

Next?

We’re now counting down to the release of the iPhone SDK.