David W. Martin - page 17

According to a story on Network World a cease and desist letter was sent by Apple to Newsday about their popular and viral iPad app commercial that I wrote about last week.

The commercial demonstrated one way the iPad could not possibly replace a newspaper — using it as a fly swatter. If you use the iPad to swat flies according to the commercial the iPad screen will shatter. Allegedly Apple wasn’t to happy about that ad.

Network World received the e-mail below, but wasn’t able to confirm its authenticity:

“Newsday got a cease and desist letter threatening all of our apps, if we did not remove the commercial immediately. They took exception to the fact that the (iPad) glass shattered into large jagged pieces … Your instincts are correct.”

The e-mail above leaves me feeling a bit disturbed, since we all know how controlling Apple has been over iTunes App Store content. However, I highly doubt that Apple would resort to these tactics just to get a commercial pulled.

Something doesn’t feel right about this and I’ve contacted Apple for comment. I’ll post their response or refusal to respond here later.

In the mean time you can try to catch a glimpse of this commercial, while you still can, via YouTube. The original video that I linked to last week has been pulled from YouTube.

[via Network World]

Google Voice apps have had a chaotic history appearing in and then disappearing from the iTunes App Store. The “official” excuse was duplicity of iPhone features, but now it looks like Apple is putting all these excuses aside by allowing, Andrea Amann’s, GV Connect app into the App Store.

The Commodore 64 emulator application for iPhone was pulled from the App Store by Apple in September 2009 for leaving its BASIC interpreter intact and accessible via a backdoor hack. This week, the app has returned after some rework by its creator, Manomio — with BASIC included.

Are you ever wondering about what your dog is doing when you’re not at home? Or do you travel a lot and just need to keep an eye on things at home? You’re in luck you can use an iOS app called iCam along with its companion application, iCamSource, to resolve both of these issues.

What is it?

iCam uses your Macs built-in iSight camera and mic as a security camera. This is accomplished by downloading the free iCamSource application and installing it on your Mac. Once it is installed iCam can stream video from up to four source cameras to your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. The app secures access to the video stream using a user name and password and the stream can be viewed over Wi-Fi, Edge, and 3G. The app performs best over a Wi-Fi connection, but it wasn’t unpleasant to use over a cellular connection.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfFfqMR6uK0

The iPad has made the consumption of digital media revolutionary and more than likely it spells out the demise of printed newspapers. It won’t be long before you’re reaching for your iPad instead of the newspaper, but is that a good thing? I’d say, “Yes,”  because the iPad will you let view content in more exciting formats, search your content, and generally do a whole lot more with it.

There’s only one drawback to replacing a newspaper with an iPad and that is demonstrated in Newsday’s new advertisement for its first iPad app and I’ll let that video speak for itself. It is the perfect humorous ending to a long work week.

Apple claims the flaky proximity sensor in the iPhone 4 has been fixed by the iOS 4.1 update. But there’s mounting evidence that the proximity sensor isn’t fixed at all.

I’ve done a variety of tests on my iPhone and the sensor just flat-out isn’t working for me at times. I’ve performed a test by standing in front of a mirror in a dimly lit room and observed the sensor not working and behaving erratically.

Meanwhile, iPhone user Ryan Bell has performed a series of comprehensive tests using Apple’s iPhone configuration utility, and finds that iOS 4.1 doesn’t fix the proximity sensor. 

The proximity sensor problems are being blamed on software bugs, relocation of the proximity sensor due to the addition of the front facing camera, or greasy ear canals.

But now that the iOS 4.1 update has been released to the masses, we’ve all became iPhone 4 proximity sensor beta testers. Together, we can crowdsource testing of Apple’s claims.

So clean out your ear canals, screw that iPhone 4 to your ear for a while, make a few phone calls, and share the results of your tests with that utility in the comments. (Perhaps you could monitor the proximity sensor using the Configuration Utility, as we showed you here.)

Please let us know by voting in the poll below whether or not the update fixed the problems you’ve had with the proximity sensor in the iPhone 4. Vote below — is the proximity fixed or not?

[polldaddy poll=”3714664″]

Apple has re-introduced field test mode in iOS 4.1, which will allow you to quickly check the quality of your cellular signal by simply dialing: *3001#12345#* and pressing Call on your iPhone.

The signal bars on your iPhone will be replaced by a number. The higher the numeric portion of the negative number gets the worse your signal is. For example, -100 is worse than -79.  If you tap on the displayed number the display toggles between displaying the number and the normal signal bars.

The original field test mode had a more robust set of features being reported, but signal strength is all you get in this version.

Try the test for yourself and during the test hold your iPhone 4, the wrong way, by connecting the two metal bands on the lower left corner with your finger or hand over the black plastic strip. You’ll see the phone’s signal quality drop rather drastically due to the iPhone 4 death grip. According to AnandTech they were able to make calls and remain on that call with a signal strength as low as -113 on their iPhone 4.

If you are done testing simply press the Home button to return to your iPhone Home screen.

This is an interesting development considering the fact that Field Test Mode vanished in iOS 4.0 when it was released along with the iPhone 4 and the subsequent Antennagate scandal that rocked the Internet.

[via Gizmodo]

Apple iPhone Configuration Utility hits version 3.1. The new version was released today and includes enhanced support for iOS 4 and bug fixes. I highly recommend this often under utilized tool as something to have in your arsenal of tools for advanced iOS troubleshooting on all devices running iOS.

Apple’s utility wasn’t designed as an end-user troubleshooting tool — it’s intended to help enterprise users create configuration profiles for device deployment – but it does provide some functions that can be useful for anyone performing advanced troubleshooting on their iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. Any user can use the tool to:  install and uninstall troublesome apps, access the console log on iOS based devices, and perform many other iPhone configuration tasks.

You can even use it to prove whether or not your iPhone 4 proximity sensor is working or not.

The iPhone Configuration Utility 3.1 is currently available via Software Update or as a direct download for Mac OS X or Windows. Information about using this application to integrate iOS devices with your enterprise systems is available at https://www.apple.com/support/iphone/enterprise/.

Apple has updated the iMovie app for iPhone to version 1.1. This new update requires an iPhone 4 or 4th generation iPod touch running iOS 4.1. The update includes automatic music looping for longer videos, an updated photo browser that displays the newest images at the top, and the ability to split video clips.

In addition to these changes you can now scrub to preview clips in the video browser, take advantage of in-app tips that helps you to use key iMovie features more effectively, and finally there are Apple’s infamous performance and reliability improvements.

Current iMovie users can upgrade for free now via the iTunes App Store. If you would like to know more about iMovie then read my in-depth review iMovie a Mobile Video Studio in Your Pocket. Afterwards, if you decide to purchase iMovie it costs only $4.99.

PlayNice from PocketMac is a new utility that enables syncing between Windows and Mac OS X. It is designed to be a replacement for MobileMe syncing and it doesn’t require an annual subscription.  You can sync contacts, calendars, and tasks between iCal and Address Book on Mac OS X and Outlook on Windows.

What is it?

SplashShopper is an app that allows you to make shopping lists of all kinds on your iOS device or Mac (and Windows to if you are so inclined).  The lists can be managed and synced across platforms with the Mac OS X or Windows companion software. If you are Santa Klaus or someone who cannot live without lengthy complex shopping lists in your life you’ll find SplashShopper to be very useful.

On Tuesday this week an Apple spokesperson made claims that the upcoming release of iOS 4.1 will not fix the proximity sensor problems that are being blamed on software bugs, relocation of the proximity sensor due to the addition of the front facing camera, or greasy ear canals. This problem has been widely reported and there are numerous claims from iPhone 4 users that the problem exists. I’ve encountered the problem myself on my original iPhone 4 and its replacement.

On Wednesday this week at an Apple Special Event Steve Jobs told us that the release of iOS 4.1 will resolve the proximity sensor issue, but now one iPhone 4 user, Ryan Bell, is also claiming that iOS 4.1 does not resolve the issue. He presents two YouTube videos that demonstrate why he thinks that the problem isn’t resolved.

Apple started teasing us today when the company posted its iOS 4.2 for iPad “Coming Soon” software update webpage. That webpage serves as a little reminder to us about the exciting new features coming in the next version of iOS for the iPad.

If you haven’t been paying attention to the news lately you’ll be happy to know that Apple is bringing Apple’s Game Center, a unified inbox to Mail, AirPlay (streaming audio/video), folders, wireless document printing, text searches in Safari, and best of all — multitasking to the iPad. There’s even a little hint of something more.

If you want more detailed information about this much-anticipated iOS update then check out Apple’s webpage for yourself or view a video of the Apple Event held last Wednesday and watch Steve Jobs demonstrate iOS 4.2 on an iPad.

That’s all you’ll get for now, since Apple isn’t going to release iOS 4.2 until sometime in November.

Apple has released  the Gold Master version of iOS 4.1 to developers barely more than four weeks after the release of iOS 4.1 Beta 3. There have been a plethora of problems reported with iOS 4.0 and its incremental updates, but according to Steve Jobs today the following issues will be addressed in this new iOS release:

• Proximity sensor
• Bluetooth issues (muffled audio/connectivity)
• Slow performance issues on the iPhone 3G

There is no word on whether or not the update addresses the complaints about yellow tinged photos when using the rear camera on the iPhone 4.

Registered iOS developers can grab a copy of the new beta at developer.apple.com/iphone. The rest of you will have to wait until next week.

I don’t know about you, but I’m used to being able to customize the operating systems that run on my gadgets. I like to be able to tweak a few things here and there on my Mac especially the things I have to look at all the time like my desktop background and screen saver. If I wasn’t able to do these things I think my Mac would be pretty boring. I used to think the same thing about my iPhone until now.

Apple’s release of iOS 4 introduced us to something people using jailbroken iPhones have been taking for granted for a long time — the ability to alter the wallpapers used on the iOS Springboard desktop and lock screen. Couple these iOS enhancements with the new iPhone 4 retina display and soon you’ll be feasting your eyes on some pretty amazing wallpapers.

So where do you go to find good wallpapers?

The Just Mobile UpStand iPad stand is simply perfect. The form factor the stand assumes and the material it is made of coupled with how much it weighs makes it the perfect place to perch my iPad on. The stand sits just right upon my desk and holds my iPad horizontally or vertically leaving complete access to all buttons, switches, and ports — especially the docking connector.

Click the read link for more information about this product and a gallery of photos of it in use.

The application runs in the Mac OS X Menu Bar and will allow you to locate and change the names of files in Finder so they can be copied to Windows OS based systems,  drives, and cloud services like Dropbox. Anytime a file with an incompatible filename is created the program will warn you via a Growl notification. Filenames that are deemed incompatible begin with a space character or contain one of the following characters: \ / : * ? ” < > |.

The application will allow you to work with multiple files and has some filtering options to prevent warnings popping up on files in specific folders. You set those folders to be ignored and you can set others to be watched. Files drag and dropped into the watched folders will be checked for compatibility.

Filerr is available as a single-user license for $6.95 and requires Mac OS X 10.5 or higher. You can download a free trial here.

On Tuesday, the Associated Press reported that a Dallas man, Vincent Hunter, who was visiting relatives in Hartford, Conn. watched the in-progress burglary of his home after receiving an alert from his iCam app (iTunes link) running on his iPhone.

The app warned him that motion had been detected in the house. It turned out that two burglars were attempting to get into the man’s home and eventually made entry into the home by throwing a brick through a glass door.

He immediately called the police and officers were immediately dispatched to his home. The app alerted him to the arrival of the officers and as he watched via webcam they made entry into the home with guns drawn.

The story wasn’t clear about whether or not anything was stolen, but the combination of iCam, some webcams, and the iPhone certainly did their job — advising the home owner of the in-progress burglary.

Apple released a Mac OS X security update today that patches a critical PDF vulnerability and a handful of other security issues.

Security Update 2010-005 supplies a fix that addresses a “heap buffer overflow” that exists in CoreGraphics and the way it handles PDF files. The vulnerability could have allowed the “unexpected application termination of arbitrary code execution” via a malformed PDF file.

It is interesting to note that this sounds just like the exploit hackers used to jailbreak iOS 4 on the iPhone. It is possible that it is the same since the two Operating Systems are said to share the same code base. However, there isn’t any indication that this is true in Apple’s support document. Apple released the update for the iPhone exploit, iOS 4.0.2, a few weeks ago.

This update also addresses a “stack buffer overflow” that would allow arbitrary code execution through a malformed embedded font and the remainder of fixes in the update resolve problems with network security.

Complete information about this update can be found at support.apple.com/kb/HT4312.

Security Update 2010-005 is available for: Mac OS X v10.5.8, Mac OS X Server v10.5.8, Mac OS X v10.6.4, Mac OS X Server v10.6.4 via Software Update or direct download.

Facebook has introduced a new feature called Places and like everything Facebook seems to do lately it leaves us all feeling a little more paranoid and less secure than we did before. The thought of your friends checking you in at your therapist may not be something you want everyone to know. You might like going to the therapist, but you may not want anyone knowing how often you spend your time there talking about your iPhone addiction. So, if you’re anxious to find out how to turn off Facebook Places, read on.

One of those alternatives is a new browser called iLunascape from Lunascape, Inc. and it is available for free (iTunes link) in the iTunes App Store.

This browser takes a new approach to browser user interfaces (UI) on the iPad and I’m wondering why no one else has thought of this yet. The developer’s new specialized UI called the “In Reach Interface” has clustered most common movements and tabs down near the bottom of the iPad display where the user generally holds the device. In addition to this the iPad user experience is the center of attention, but now includes desktop-class tab browsing, easy screen capture and storage, fast and smooth scrolling, simple bookmarking, and iPad rotation controls.

iLunascape may not be for everyone, since not everyone holds their iPad the same way. However, if you are looking to replace Safari this app is a good start with its unique interface and useful desktop like features. Its free and if you care about your browsing experience on the iPad — go get it.

The EyeTV One from Elgato makes pulling Digital TV (DTV) from the air and down to Earth as simple as 1-2-3. Install the included EyeTV software then plug the device into an available USB port on your computer and you will be watching DTV on your Mac in no time at all.

I tested the EyeTV One on my Macbook Pro, iMac, and Mac Mini and it worked fine on all three systems. My ultimate goal was two-fold. First I wanted something that would give me TV on the go and second I wanted something that could bring DTV to my Mac Mini which may ultimately serve as a hub for my entertainment system.

Dear Steve Jobs:

What happened to quality?

Not long ago, before Apple became big and popular, your company was loved by many of us without hesitation. We still love Apple, but it’s getting harder to feel that way. Apple is clearly loosing a foothold on quality. Perhaps you are taking on too much at one time.

I’m writing this letter after experiencing a ton of problems with my new iPhone 4, including issues with Bluetooth, the proximity sensor, and yellow-tinged photos from the camera. I just took it back to the Apple Store to be replaced. Customer service is still awesome, but quality is slipping.

It’s obvious you’ve noticed quality problems too. That’s why you just appointed Jeff Williams as a Senior Vice President of Operations, and gave him the job of ensuring the highest standards in quality for Apple products. He’s got his work cut out for him. So we hope he’ll hit the ground running.

Steve, please consider the following examples of why Apple’s attempts to do too many things at once are resulting in quality failures in just about everything it does.

Phone Disk, from Macroplant, is a utility for Mac OS X (and Windows) that runs quietly in the background on your computer until you plug-in an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad using a USB sync cable. Plugging in your favorite iDevice causes Phone Disk to seamlessly mount the iOS file system on that device to your computers file system. Once mounted you can directly access the files on that device using Finder (and Windows explorer) or any other program.

You’ll be interested in this application if you’re an IT Ninja looking for another good troubleshooting utility to carry around or you’re simply curious about the data that resides on your favorite iDevice.