Adam Rosen is an Apple certified IT consultant specializing in Macintosh systems new and old. He lives in Boston with two cats and too many possessions. In addition to membership in the Cult of Mac, Adam has written for Low End Mac and is curator of the Vintage Mac Museum. He also enjoys a good libation.
Another story today of a dramatic, satisfying – yet sadly illegal – way to end one’s career: go out for some brews after a hard day at work, then return with a gun and shoot the company server.
A Salt Lake City mortgage company employee allegedly got drunk, opened fired on his firm’s computer server with a .45-caliber automatic, and then told police someone had stolen his gun and caused the damage.
I’ve often had this urge, but not owning a firearm nor wishing to go to jail, subtler methods of sabotage have had to suffice.
The light at the end of the tunnel seems to be glowing ever brighter for iPhone 3G owners running iOS 4. In addition to Steve Jobs’ recently publicized email claiming a software update coming soon to fix the problems, the Blogosphere and Twitter are also carrying reports of big performance improvements with recent betas:
Tests with a beta version of Apple’s iOS 4.1 on a well-used 3G suggest that the new OS has increased the phone’s responsiveness. Indeed, apps load much more quickly, text entry is much smoother and the phone no longer slows down beyond the point of usability when more than one browser window is open. [The Next Web]
These have been among the most widely reported problems.
Longing for the gaming arcade but stuck at your desk? Well, the Pinball Magic [app]cessory from New Potato won’t fool you into thinking you’re at the real thing, but it looks like a cute way to kill both time and disposable income. Slide your handheld iDevice into the mini pinball machine and Tilt Away:
Get ready for iPhone and iPod touch entertainment that’s in a class by itself! The Pinball Magic [app]cessory creates realistic and engaging gameplay, bringing classic pinball machine cabinet design and fun to iPhone and iPod touch. Pinball Magic, just like the classic cabinets (only smaller), works with the free Pinball Magic appto create a portable arcade experience, complete with flipper buttons and ball-launching plunger.
Perfect for entertaining miniature coworkers or family members. Available soon at Best Buy for $40.
Another glimmer of hope for iPhone 3G owners running (or crawling with) iOS4; MacRumors reports today on another Steve Jobs email, this one sent to a disgruntled iPhone 3G user:
I’ve waited patiently through 4.0.1 and 4.0.2, looking for a fix that will make my phone work again. I’ve read the forums that advise me to jailbreak my phone or use some other method so I can downgrade back to a version of iPhone 3, however I’m not prepared to use a method that is not supported by Apple.
Jobs’ response is typically succinct:
Software update coming soon.
Sent from my iPhone
Presumably this means iOS4.1. Apple acknowledged last month that it was aware of the performance problems with iOS4 on the iPhone 3G and was “looking into” the issues, which include very sluggish performance and poor battery life.
As an 3G owner myself this fix can’t come soon enough; I’m doing the double hard reset every other week and have disabled spotlight indexing, but this only makes things tolerable at best. Is this ordeal finally going to end soon?
Remote control of your Macintosh allows you to access a distant computer across a network or the Internet. The screen of the remote Mac appears locally, and you use your mouse and keyboard to control the distant system. This capability can be helpful for tech support, system administration, finding missing information or more informed parenting (to the chagrin of many offspring).
With the Mac’s increasing popularity there are now an increasing number of options available for Mac Remote Control, many of which are free. Choices include Apple’s built in Screen Sharing and Remote Desktop software, web based services like LogMeIn and GoToMyPC, and old standards like VNC.
iPhone 4 with sliding QWERTY keyboard (all images: Altamash Jiwani)
Desperate for a real keyboard on your iPhone? Indian industrial designer Altamash Jiwani was too, and created a prototype of a snap-on sliding QWERTY keyboard for the iPhone 4:
[The] keyboard offers a QWERTY slider tactile keyboard and a stylish impact case to protect your Iphone from bumps and bruises along with access to all the switches and jacks on your Iphone. Just fit your Iphone in the case while connecting the QWERTY keyboard’s port to the dock connector of your Iphone.
Design also incorporates a finger rest at the lower end bottom of the case to get a comfortable hold while typing. If you don’t open the slider, you still have access to whole Iphone screen and the QWERTY keyboard for quickly typing something.
Jiwani put significant thought into choosing among three possible form factors: a flip keyboard, an elongated iPhone frame, or a sliding keyboard. He documented the design process on his blog.
While the iPod is busy powering bar taps, the iPad gets in on the fun at Yelp powering an iPad controlled keg for the office. During the 2nd annual Hackathon these serious beer-reseachers knew they had to do something equally productive with Apple’s latest iWonder:
At Yelp, we don’t mess around with our beer. To make sure we never run dry or get a bad pint, the geniuses on this team — John B., Gabe H., Alex D., Julien R., and Jeff M. — built the Kegbot. Controlled by an iPad app, you can tell how much beer is being emptied (and at what rate: cough, John), as well as leave a 5 star review for your brew.
Authorization for pouring your favorite brew comes from a swipe of one’s RFID employee ID badge (after hours, we assume). Of course there’s also a webpage you can check from your desk to see the status of the KegMate. I wonder if Yelp paychecks now include a deduction for beer expenses?
iPad furniture may be a growing trend, but not everybody can afford $2500 for an iPad Chair (myself included). Now the cheap geeks are getting in on the fun. iVan at iPadFORUMS.net tells us of this useful domestic repurposing project:
I bought a microphone boom stand. Unfortunately this one is a little cheapish and not quite sturdy enough so I had to add a 5 pound counterweight to offset the iPad’s heft and that of the supporting panel.
That panel is cut from half inch MDF covered in black self adhesive felt material. So are the rails that maintain the pad. I affixed it to the boom with a speaker wall mount bracket.
Total cost of project, $80.
Armchair not included. You knew you were saving that weight set in the basement for something!
Tired of couch computing while holding your iPad with one hand? Now you can rest your posterior in style with the iPad Chair from Elite Home Theater Seating:
With the Luxa2 H4 iPad holder firmly securing the remarkable device in its tight grasp with its 6 rubber pins, you can now wield the power of the iPad in total relaxation with both hands free. The holder slides into the existing cupholder of the Elite HTS chair, and can then swivel and pivot 360 degrees. In addition, the iPad can be rotated vertically or horizontally, and can even be positioned flat like a table.
Company founder and CEO Bobby Bala explains:
We wanted to enhance the iPad experience by increasing the comfort level of the user. Our testing indicates this increases the level of interaction and escapism with the device.
Pricing for your very own captain’s chair (with dual-seat-cushion support and powered footrest) starts at only $2495 – a more affordable luxury for those who can’t swing $20k for the iPad Bed!
Rising from the dead like a Newton running Mac OS 9, a new form of Mac Zombie is evolving in the wilds of Apple Geekdom: recycled old Macs being used as iPad stands.
One way for old computers to beat mortality is emulation: early Macs had Apple II emulators, PowerPC Macs running Mac OS X had Classic mode, even the venerable Lisa has an emulator. Software emulation gives life to vintage machines long after the actual hardware ceases to function.
A new trend seems to be developing with the iPad: rather than running software within iOS, the iPad is making a home for itself inside the modified cases of old Macs! We’ve coveredtheseitemsbefore, but taken in aggregate a new form of Mac recycling seems to be evolving within the Cult of Apple.
No need to resort to physical violence to escape from jail, just let an engrossing iPhone game do the work for you. GamePron brings us of this tale of a gaming fix with a higher cost than usual:
Everybody knows that there’s a certain risk one takes when playing addictive, engrossing games when you’re meant to be doing something else. The prevalence of awesome games on the iPhone hasn’t helped that risk – as a Philippines police officer has learned.
Five inmates recently escaped from a police precinct in Cagayan de Oro City, snatching up the officer’s keys where he’d left them while playing a quick few levels of Plants vs. Zombies. Apparently, the convicts had no trouble getting the keys and gaining their freedom – although four of the five were recaptured shortly after.
A cautionary tale for those playing addictive games on the clock – though I suspect one (likely) former prison guard now has a lot more time to work on his high score!
Finally, carbon and silicon based entities can repose and recharge side by side! FurnitureWorld brings us news of one of the Ultimate iPad Accessories, the iCon Bed, a luxury offering from Hollandia International and mattress brand Therapedic. Dual adjustable mattresses pair with a high tech headboard for the ultimate in sleep workstations:
The iCon Bed’s upholstered headboard is in a class of its own with its sleek, modern look, along with four fully enclosed speakers, 250 watt amplifier and docking stations for two iPads built into the furniture. It is available in more than 200 fashionable colors and fabrics to complement any bedroom decor.
Like the iPad, the iCon Bed is more about a lifestyle choice than it is about a product, and caters to consumers who know how to balance work, rest and play, said Hollandia CEO Avi Barssessat.
This trendy staple will set you back a cool $20k. Perhaps an opportunity for creative DIY projects?
It’s every child’s worst fear – teaching their parents how to use technology! Perhaps it’s payback for adolescence. SuperNews! offer up this hilarious look at what happens when Dad gets an iPhone.
Not knowing your Mac’s password is like locking yourself out of the house; it’s inconvenient (at best) and always happens at the worst possible time. In our efforts to shield information from others we often wind up just blocking access for ourselves. Fortunately there are several ways to reset your Mac password when amnesia strikes or relevant information isn’t available.
Some methods of resetting your password can affect access to the keychain, however, where many of your other passwords are stored. Nothing in life is free…
What good is an iPhone if you can’t run a tricorder on it? Hiding out in the app store is this little gem called Tricorder TR-580, with realistic sound effects and a hidden trove of data. Somewhat of a cross-series hybrid, it’s not an official Star Trek studio release but definitely worth 99 cents.
You can track crewmates in the field too. Makes a good companion to the iPhone Communicator app!
Guy Kawasaki’s seminal book The Macintosh Way is a classic for technology marketers (“evangelists”) and Apple geeks alike. It is fondly remembered from the Golden 68k Macintosh Era, and is used to this day as reference material for startup businesses and college courses.
The book went out of print several years ago, and Guy has been working since to get the rights back. He has finally succeeded, and is making the digitized eBook available free to everyone for the asking.
The Macintosh Way has seen Apple and the Mac through many changes over its twenty year lifetime; to celebrate the re-release, Guy has also released this video detailing the book’s transformation from printed page to computer screen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnjyrcozHyA
To get your free eBook, follow Guy on Twitter and sign up at freemacway.com You can also read the book in the OfficeDrop iPad app.
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Added bonus for this old Mac geek (and full disclosure): my own Vintage Mac Museum was used to film the opening of the video. For a few enjoyable hours this spring the production team and I relived the Macintosh Way! For more on filming the spot, see Vintage Macs Live Again. Anyone up for Snood?
Travel back in time with this classy look at the History of Apple Design. Matt’s Macintosh offers a loving paean to Cupertino’s Industrial Design trends through the decades.
Theatrically filmed and scored, it’s like Christmas Past and Present! [via RetroMacCast]
Mothers possess skills varied and wide, and recent research shows Moms are particularly adept at using their iPhones. The Huffington Post has developed a list of Top iPhone Apps for Moms, By Moms:
Never underestimate a mom with an iPhone. Research from Greystripe [PDF] show that moms love iPhone apps, and are downloading apps in various categories from games to productivity.
While most mobile developers are men, a growing number of opportunistic women are venturing into app development to create apps catered to other women. And many of these women are part of a group called Moms with Apps, a collaborative group of family-friendly developers who share best practices on making and marketing mobile apps.
HuffPo’s list includes some nicely done iPhone and iPod touch apps that deal with emergency infant medical care, learning sign language, communicating with autistic children, and – helpful for Moms, Dads and chauffeurs of all kinds – roadtrip bingo.
Hope for iPhone 3G users running iOS4: after weeks of suffering under the radar, the Wall Street Journal blog Digits reports today that Apple is aware of the performance issues plaguing 3G users running the latest update:
Apple is investigating reports that the latest iPhone operating system causes problems for users of the iPhone 3G, after a series of complaints on Apple support forums and technology blogs. Apple is aware of the reports and is looking into the matter, a spokeswoman told Digits.
iOS4 performance on an iPhone 3G can be a painful experience – sluggish performance, poor battery life, many more reboots, along with vastly increased levels of user angst. We’ve covered this issue before, as have many otherwebsites, and Apple’s own support forums are buzzing on the topic.
Turns out everyone’s favorite Sith Lord is an iPhone 4 user, and even the Force can’t help Lord Vader avoid the Death Grip. Russell Arch has posted an entertaining animated clip over on YouTube about the experience. Also, the Empire keeps an old iMac around to run Classic Apps!
MacPaint by Bill Atkinson (Image: anoved via flickr)
Where would the Macintosh (and Computing) World be without Bill Atkinson? MacPaint, QuickDraw, HyperCard – Atkinson stands with the Giants. In homage of his recent donation of the MacPaint source code to the Computer History Museum, flickr artist anoved offers this portrait of Bill Atkinson created entirely in MacPaint. With tools like these, who needs Photoshop? Well done!
Clues to the causes of Mac startup problems can be found by analyzing when in the boot process the system fails. Problems may be related to the power supply, battery, hard drive, logic board, OS corruption or an issue with a user account. Macs are reliable machines, but like many of us they get cranky from time to time.
Isolating where the problem is occurring is key to finding the solution. Unplug any external peripherals (disk drives, printer, etc.) to help narrow down the cause.
Kirk to Enterprise: iPhoneSavior brings us news today that CBS Mobile has sanctioned and rereleased a previously banned Star Trek Communicator app for the iPhone, with classic lines and sound effects:
The newly reimagined Star Trek Original Series Communicator($2.99) for iPhone is packed full of the kind of classic fodder Star Trek fans are certain to drool over. In addition to a hidden, functional dialing pad that accesses the iPhone’s address book to make calls, the app includes several sound bites featuring Captain Kirk, one says; “Two to beam up Scotty.”
I just beamed this onto my iPhone, definitely a hoot. Now if they can only get the transporter working…
A clone is a bootable backup of your Mac’s hard drive that provides redundancy for both your data and the Macintosh Operating System. Cloning is easy to do and is complementary to other backup methods like Time Machine. The ability to get up and working in minutes after a crash or system update gone awry can be a very useful thing.
Clones provide a way to rollback your Mac OS X installation. You can keep your clone updated using synchronization software to perform incremental updates, and can use your clone to boot another Mac should the need arise.
UK artist Kyle Lambert demonstrates the viability of creating art on the iPad, painting an impressive portrait of singer Beyoncé using the Brushes app, 1 finger and 6 hours of work. Very nice job. Even better, Kyle’s posted a time lapse video documenting the whole process.
![MacPaint by Bill Atkinson [Image: anoved via flickr]](https://www.cultofmac.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/MacPaint-by-Bill-Atkinson.jpg "To Bill Atkinson, With Love and MacPaint")
