Rolling Stone‘s Special Issue of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time made its debut Tuesday on Zinio, a digital publishing platform that could spell the difference between “survive” and “thrive” for old-school media publications looking to keep the doors open in coming years.

With a stable of top-tier periodicals such as National Geographic, Esquire, American Photo, Car & Driver and many more, Zinio definitely leads the way in showing how paper publications might remain not only relevant but vital and attractive to a new generation of “readers” weaned on the sizzle and flash of gaming and 3D entertainment.

Publication is morphing into something beyond simple words and pictures, evolving into an immersive medium that both pushes ideas and information out to consumers — and draws them in with interactive features and activities that take one beyond the superficial layers of what an article or essay might seem to offer.

Thus, with such crucial stakes at hand, did Zinio, Apple and Rolling Stone produce something of a mixed scorecard with the 500 Greatest issue.

Apple’s>”>suing a number of unlicensed third-party accessory makers for products of inferior quality that reflected poorly on Apple’s brands.

Of course, part of the reason why third-party accessories work so poorly is because Apple is sneaky and employ various hardware tricks to make sure that only “Made for iPod” accessories work perfectly.

The hackers over at Minty Boost have gotten to the bottom of one such trick Apple deploys to make sure that unauthorized accessories have a hard time charging your iPod or iPhone.

In essence, Apple uses secret resistors that are placed in the connectors for Apple devices: if these resistors aren’t there, your iPhone or iPod Touch won’t deted the 2.8V and 2V signals, and hence won’t charge, coughing up a “Charging is not supported with this accessory” message instead.

The good news for unauthorized accessory makers (and makers) is that once you know the trick Apple employs to stop iPod charging on non-“Made for iPod” devices, it’s pretty easy to work around. Now that the secret of how Apple gimps unauthorized accessories is out in the wild, though, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Apple come up with a new way to stick it to those unwilling or unable to pay their “Made for iPod” licensing fees.

While the East Coast has continued to get excited by giant floppy slices of pizza served out of a corner joint, the San Francisco Bay Area has somewhat quietly become the finest destination for real Neapolitan pizza (and stuff quite close to it) in the United States.

Above is photographic evidence that even Steve Jobs has gotten the word. On Saturday night, he attempted to get a table at Flour+Water, one of the insurgent pizzaiolos that has put SF pizza on the map (and was recently named best restaurant in the city by SF Weekly). And, like everyone else, Steve found out that unless you’re ready to wait for a table, you’re not going to get in the door.

Don’t worry, Steve! There’s plenty of other places to go! Zero Zero is a new powerhouse, Boot and Shoe Service is picking up steam, Delfina is unstoppable, and Anthony Mangieri, the you of pizza, will soon open his Una Pizza Napoletana close to Caltrain, so you can take Caltrain back home afterward.

Via SF Weekly

Ever since the iPad’s debut, it has handily dominated the 10-inch tablet space… but that hasn’t stopped companies like Dell from trying to make a dent in the iPad’s sales with smaller 5- and 7-inch tablets.

According to iLounge, Apple might be looking to compete with the burgeoning 7-inch tablet market with an iPad Mini of their very own.

It’s plausible, I guess: the iPad is pretty big — sometimes it seems a skosh too big to me — and a 7-inch iPad wouldn’t sacrifice much in usability for an easy gain in slingability.

9to5Mac is confirming that they’ve also heard this rumor from their sources, adding that the iPad Mini would likely have a 1500×1920 Retina Display.

What do you think? Is Apple aiming to shrink the iPad? If they did, would you want one? Let us know in the comments.

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!

If I was in control of the available categories in the iTunes App Store I’d place MiTube in the “Quick! Get this App!” category. MiTube is a free iOS app designed for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad that allows you to download and save YouTube videos directly to your iOS device. If you haven’t gotten your own copy of this app then use this iTunes link to get it now.

Like we mentioned a few weeks ago, we’re pretty excited about the potential for the iPhone morphing into all kinds of contraptions through hooking up with a little extra hardware. New Potato is one of the lead outfits in this area, and they’ve just introduced a kit that turns the iPhone into a bike super-computer. Rad.

The $99 kit contains a rather large cadence/speed sensor, ruggedized rubber iPhone mount, mounting hardware and a dongle that the iPhone uses to communicate with the sensor; combine the  kit with the free LiveRider app, and presto — a cycling computer with all the standard functions (speed along with max and average, time, distance, cadence, pace) and more advanced functions like competing against a chase bike, ride map and speed graph.

Being the bike geeks we are here at the Cult, we’ve already started playing around with a test unit and we’ll have a full report up soon. Can’t wait? LiveRider is available from retailer J&R or directly from New Potato.

Ever tried asking a cow about the weather?  Because they’re not really the most informative beasts (about the weather, anyway).

“Cow, it looks like it might rain sometime today — any idea when?” Cud-chewing.

“How strong d’you think the wind will be later?” More cud-chewing, accompanied by blank staring.

“Look, cow, can you at least tell me if there are any severe weather advisories I should be aware of?” Cud-chewing stops, then resumes a few seconds later; blank stare may or may not actually be a look of terror.

Using the iPhone’s native Weather app is like asking a cow about the weather: it’s cute and harmless, but not very informative. Unless you’re exceptionally partial to cows and/or don’t mind walking off into the occasional surprise thunderstorm, it should be banished to the back page and replaced with The Weather Channel’s app.

A new survey published Wednesday indicates 93% of iPhone 4 owners are happy with their new Apple devices, down slightly from 99% of iPhone 3G S owners who copped to their ecstasy in a 2009 survey.

Market research firm Change Wave reportedly surveyed just 213 people to reach its conclusions, which may well make them statistically meaningless in the light of the millions of iPhone 4 smartphones in circulation since its public release in late June.

Brouhahas over the device’s revolutionary antenna design and concerns over security holes in its operating software might lead one to question whether more than 9 in 10 consumers remain truly “happy” with their purchase.

[Via Technologizer]

We start off the day with three hardware deals. Are you looking for an affordable MacBook, perhaps as a gift? Why not a 1.83GHz MacBook for $490? If not, how about a desktop machine? The Apple Store is offering a number of Mac minis, starting at $719 for a 2.66GHz unit. Or maybe you need more power and mobility? Check out some MacBook Pros, starting at $929 for a 2.26GHz version.

If you’re not in the market for hardware, we have plenty of accessories, including pre-orders for Apple’s recently-announced Magic Trackpad, deals on skins for your iPhone 4 or cases for your iPad. As always, details on these and many other items are available at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page after the jump.

The crowds have to wait until Saturday, August 7 to swarm into the new Covent Garden store but here’s a sneak peek — thanks to  at what may be Apple’s most stunning retail store to date.

Sure, you may prefer the majestic Regent Street location also in London or admire the posh new Paris Opera store, but Covent garden is the largest in the UK and is said to be the most expensive Apple store to date.

These photos snapped by James Holland at Electric Pig show that Apple’s latest must-see retail spot is a three-story triumph of exposed brick of a restored 1870s building in the heart of London.

The German government announced Wednesday several Apple iOS devices have “two critical weak points for which no patch exists.” The warning from Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security advises users of iPhones, iPads and iPod touch devices to avoid opening PDF files and visiting unfamiliar websites. Apple is already investigating the issue which appeared earlier this week.

The issue appears to be with iPhones using iOS 3.1.2-4.01, iPads using iOS 3.2-3.2.1 and iPods touch devices using iOS 3.1.2-4.0, according to the German statement. Earlier this week, hackers built “JailBreakMe”, an exploit of how Safari handles PDF files. The exploit “jailbreaks” the devices.

I would like to think that most of the people who know me well enough will agree that I have a sense of humor. My tastes in humor can range from the mundane, to a well said pun, or simply the mad cap adventures of a puppet. I really like puppet humor and there is one puppet that really makes me laugh out loud, like a braying donkey no less,the Mosspuppet.

The Mosspuppet has his own iOS app called Mossboard. It is his official iPhone app and it contains a collection of Mosspuppet sound bytes that you can play aloud and in any sequence you choose. You can see it demonstrated in the YouTube video above. It’s outrageously accurate and it looks like a lot of fun. I’m sure that it would have you in stitches in no time at all.

Unfortunately Apple doesn’t think that it is very funny since it was rejected from the App Store.  Perhaps the reason for that is due to the fact that the app comes with a sound byte which mentions the puppets desire to touch Steve Jobs’ nipples. Perhaps Apple finds that offensive, but I only thought it was funny. However, according to the Mosspuppet’s Twitter feed the real reason for rejection was the apps references to journalist Walt Mossberg. Umm.. yeah like I believe that.  [Note: If you are reading this Mr. Mosspuppet feel free to mention me in your app, but if you do be prepared to send me a copy of your app. I’ve got my UUID on standby.]

Come on Apple its just a parody. Have you forgotten that you’ve let other parodies into the App Store? I’m disappointed.  Are you disappointed? Let Apple, Steve Jobs, and the world know whether you are or not by leaving a comment.

Although we’ve known for several months Google would like an Android tablet, Tuesday we learned more details: Motorola’s the manufacturer and Verizon appears to be the carrier. An Android-based tablet could appear later this fall, the Financial Times reports.

Motorola already makes the set-top boxes used for FiOS. The tablet is expected to be unveiled in the fall, about the same time as Android 3.0, codenamed “Gingerbread” is also thought to be released.

Although voices heard earlier this week indicated Apple’s cloud-based music service may be delayed and be “limited it scope,” it appears the Cupertino, Calif. company may have quietly launched streaming music via its Mobile Me iDisk App.

iDisk, similar to Microsoft’s SkyDrive and Google Docs, was upgraded last month to allow stored music to be played via the MobileMe iDisk App.

At just four months old, the iPad is preparing to go off to college.

Apple’s “magical” device, which launched April 3, will be handed out during fall 2010 orientation to college students at a number of US campuses, though the tablet computer won’t be replacing old-fashioned notebooks or pencils any time soon.

Stanford is the most prestigious university to announce an iPad program so far. All first year medical students and Master of Medicine students will be provided with an iPad.

“The iPad allows students to view and annotate course content electronically, facilitating advance preparation as well as in-class note-taking in a highly portable, sharable and searchable format,” the Stanford University School of Medicine announced on its blog. “Students will be able to easily access high-quality information at any place, at any time…and replacing printed syllabi with PDF’s is in line with the Sustainable Stanford initiative, which aims to build sustainable practices into every aspect of campus life.”

Apple is edging closer to introducing its iPad to China’s growing legion of fans. Monday, the government’s Quality Cerification Center gave its much-desired safety certification to the tablet device. Although the Cupertino, Calif. company is mum on its intentions, the iPad would make the second product Apple exports to the Asian giant.

“The iPad is a top tier device and the Apple brand has a great deal of influence among consumers,” iResearch analyst Liu Liang said. Carrier China Unicom has expressed interest in selling the iPad, as well as the iPhone 4, the Wall Street Journal reported in July.

One of the prettiest apps for iPad just got even better Tuesday with new support for iPhone 4’s Retina Display technology enhancing the concert and music poster app, Rock Show.

Portland-based developers Neutrinos, LLC have been steadily improving Rock Show since its initial release and with version 2.0 announced an exclusive mobile-only poster sale that sold out in just two days. Rob Banagale, Neutrinos CEO, said, “As far as we know, Guy Burwell’s 7/29/2010 Silversun Pickups poster was the first retail item that could only be bought on an iOS device, not the web.”

Rock Show lets users browse, share and order directly through the app hand-made, limited edition concert and music posters that are often hand-packed and shipped directly by the artists who created them. With over 250 posters in the current catalog, Banagale feels his company is on to a good — and growing — thing.

The Blackberry Torch misses the mark. We all know this. From its bastardized Palm Pre meets Chinese black market phone industrial design to its Android-by-way-of-Vectrex UI, the entire product is just a complete whiff as an attempt to release a modern, relevant phone for the multitouch and App Store era. Not only that, this is RIM’s third straight swing and miss for an iPhone-killer. We all know this.

But why can’t RIM manage to put forth a phone at least on a par with the Droid or the Samsung Galaxy S line? The answer’s simple, really. They’re so jealous of Apple’s success that they can’t bring themselves to find their way forward.

httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlrOOpPeoVE&feature=player_embedded

iOS 4’s Folders functionality is incredibly useful for organizing the digital App Store protozoa constantly multiplying in your iPhone’s petri dish, but the limitation of 12 apps per folder can be frustrating for those of us trying to keep our home screen down to a single page.

If you’ve got a jailbroken iOS 4 device, though, there’s now a solution: Infinifolders, which allows you to place as many apps in a folder as you like. Just flick up and down to reveal all of your folder’s contents.

It’s not a free tweak — it costs $1.99 — but if you’ve got a lot of apps to corral, the price may well be worth it to you. It’s available now through Cydia.

[via 9to5Mac]

For the green-conscious looking for big sound on the go, Logitech has just unveiled it S715i Speaker Dock, a custom-tuned portable speaker dock that comes with an eight-hour rechargeable battery to save on your AA cost.

Although it’s larger than some luggable speaker dock solutions, the S715i offers big sound to boot, thanks to eight custom-designed drivers that separate and enrich specific sound frequencies, with each channel getting a half-inch tweeter, a 3-inch midrange driver and dual 2-inch passive radiators.

The S715i also comes with a wireless remote, allowing you to control your music, turn down the volume or put your playlist on shuffle even across the room.

The S715i works with any device supporting Apple’s Universal Dock Connector, short of the iPad, and will both play and charge from the built-in battery. If for some reason you got made the sucker by buying a non-Apple MP3 player, or just have an older iPod or iPad, you can connect them too, thanks to a standard 3.5mm auxiliary input.

The Logitech S715i goes on sale today, and costs €179. It will ship this month.

httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH0zasBkNX8&feature=player_embedded

Games maker Blizzard has always had sympathy for Mac gamers: not only do native Mac ports exist for most of Blizzard’s titles, but they have exclusively shipped hybrid Mac/PC installation DVDs of their titles since World of Warcraft.

Their latest blockbuster title, Starcraft II, follows suit with the Mac love… but the game’s content also includes another fond pat on the head for fans in this in-game ad for the iPistol, a space marine spoof of Apple’s famous “dancing silhouette” iPod ad campaign.

Not that anyone’s seen those ads in a while, mind, but cut Blizzard some slack: given Starcraft II’s ten year development cycle, we should count our blessings that they aren’t parodying “Think Different.”

While JailbreakMe is one of the simplest jailbreaking solutions yet, it goes about its dirty work by exploiting a dangerous flaw in the way Mobile Safari handles PDFs and embedded fonts. The same exploit that is making it convenient today for thousands of iOS device owners to jailbreak their machines could be used tomorrow to totally compromise them and install malevolent code upon their devices.

Needless to say, Apple’s going to be closing this security hole, stat, and now Reuters is reporting that Apple is “investigating” the issue, although there’s no timetable for a fix yet.

The Dev Team must have been conflicted about this jailbreak. On one hand, they were able to allow any device running iOS 3.2 or higher to jailbreak just by visiting a simple website, but in doing so, they were revealing a very dangerous exploit that is now in the wild, just waiting to be adopted and easily deployed against unsuspecting web users. Furthermore, the nature of this exploit makes a quick response by Apple inevitable: this jailbreak solution may go down as the most quickly neutralized on record.

It’s also got to be a nightmare for Apple. Counterintuitively, the only way right now to “close” the security hole inherent in all iOS devices is to jailbreak your phone, then install the PDF Loading Warner from Cydia. Jailbroken phones might actually be more secure right now than unjailbroken ones. Apple needs to fix that, as quickly as possible.

If you’re an Aperture user frustrated with your Mac’s inability to read your new camera’s RAW shots, Apple has just sent their latest Digital Camera RAW Compatibility Update slaloming down the Software Update chute, emblazoned with the version number 3.3.

Most of these cameras are micro four-thirds or similarly mirrorless cameras. The update adds native OS X RAW support to the following models:

• Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
• Olympus E-PL1
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10
• Samsung NX10
• Sony Alpha DSLR-A390
• Sony Alpha NEX-3
• Sony Alpha NEX-5

The update extends RAW compatibility to Aperture 3 and iPhoto ’09 users, and weighs in at just 5.6 MB.

In order to save battery life, Apple very intelligently limited the kinds of API calls multitasking apps could make in the background under iOS 4 to audio, VOIP and location. It’s a clever compromise, but it leaves a lot of common multi-tasking applications in the lurch: for example, your newsreader can’t update your list of RSS feeds when the app isn’t in focus.

The makers of Pastebot, a clipboard manager for iOS devices, were frustrated by the limitations of iOS’ multitasking capabilities, so they figured out a clever solution to keep Pastebot running in the background: they programmed it to play a silent audio file so that Pastebot was always kept in memory and didn’t need to be relaunched between every copy.

Needless to say, Apple wasn’t entirely thrilled with this solution, and rejected the app… but it was only because Pastebot played a silent audio track without user approval in the background, and that music’s only purpose was to keep the app in memory. The fix was simple: offer users the ability to choose which track Pastebot loops in the background. If a user wants to specify a blank track, so be it.

Apple was happy with this solution. It makes me wonder whether the same approach could be used with other apps like Reeder, or 1Password Pro, or Instapaper, that might benefit from running in the background.

[via Daring Fireball]