Recent Articles
Responsible journalists being beaten down by the Man
Not really. Actually, its just some immature jackassses from Gizmodo who have since been banned from the CES events for life.
The story starts when the Gizmodo guys decide that it would be funny to take a ‘TV b Gone’, which is a handheld device that turns off television sets like a creepy universal remote control of death.
The guys then decide to take several of these devices to the CES (Computer Electronics Show) in Vegas. CES is a billon dollar symposium of new technology displays…everyone who is anyone has a booth and they are there for one reason only: to sell their technology.
So the Giz guys take these TVb Gone devices and start walking by displays of televisions that are being used for showing presentations and flyers and are used by presenters. And they turn them all off.
Isn’t that hilarious! They are turning off the technology needed to demonstrate the technology being presented at a trade show about technology, which is the field they cover on their technology site. Get it? Isn’t that just hilarious!!!
They really showed those jackasses who spent millions of dollars in product development and marketing and investments. Let’s see how Sony feels the next time Gizmodo asks for a preview of a new device, or how Microsoft’s Bill Gates responds to another interview request when he learns that these guys shut down all of the tv sets being used to demo the XBox 360.
There’s an old saying ‘don’t burn your bridges’. Luckily Giz didn’t do that - they just turned them off for a gag.
PS: THey owe Motorola big time…that was a shitty thing to do.
“There’s Something in the Air”
AppleInsider has posted some pics from the Moscone Center, site of MacWorld 2008. The images show banners from Apple proclaiming “There’s Something in the Air”.
My guess: Macbook Nano with built-in EVDO/WiMax/EDGE. Or perhaps a cluster network of some sort like that used by the OLPC. Or Bluetooth iPods. Or miniature oxygen tanks attached to all devices.
NetNewsWire (and other NewsGator apps) are now free
NewsGator, maker of NetNewsWire and other fine apps, have made all of their non-commercial products free as of today.
NetNewsWire is probably the premier RSS feedreader on the Mac, giving users a Mail-like interface and the ability to manage as many compliant feeds as they wish.
In a post on his blog, developer Brent Simmons says:
By free I mean both that we’ve released it from its cage and that it costs no money. Zero dollars.Upgrades are free. It’s free for new users. It’s freeware.
You can download it right away. Here are the change notes.
NetNewsWire is not alone—we’ve also made FeedDemon, NewsGator Inbox, and NewsGator Go! free.
Why go free? Nick Bradbury and Greg Reinacker explain it better than I would, but it boils down to this: the software is great marketing for our enterprise software; and the more users we have, the better able we are to calculate relevance and importance.
I dream of being able to make it so you spend less time reading stuff you don’t care about—I want the important news to go right to the top.
Oh, and did I mention that NNW integrates with the fantastic (and our new sponsor) 1Password? Because, yeah, it does that too…
iSlots for iPhone
UPDATE!
If you are looking for a slot game that’s NOT for a jailbroken iPhone, there are two available in the iTunes App Store now:
Lucky 7 Slots
Reel Deal Slots
If you are like me (addictive personality and a penchant for shiny things), you like casinos. In fact, you probably like slot machines because they provide just enough payoff to make you feel less like crap for spending 16 hours in front of one as you progressively get so drunk that you can no longer remember how much money you started with.
Good times, noodle salad.
Anyway, to the point - I’m not a game player. Never have been…no coordination and no patience for strategy. So I only have a couple of games on my iPhone. iSlots is one of them and I absolutely love it. Available via Installer, it is a very realistic looking and sounding game that provides just enough fun to keep me distracted but manages to only spend fake money.
New PC vs. Mac commercial released - ‘Referee’
Poor Hodgeman. Makes me feel so bad for the lowly PC.
11 year old boy ‘ownz’ iPhone hackers and devs
Whatever happened to the age of innocence, when puppies and kittens were cute and cuddly, and the sun shone down upon the white picket fences and ice cream socials? Why, I remember when I was 11 years old and the worst trouble I ever got into was when I pointed that toy gun at President Reagan and then stole an ambulance. Boy oh boy was my Mom cranky about that one - I was grounded for a month!
Why can’t kids just be kids these days? Where has that wide-eyed wonder gone?
http://digg.com/apple/iPhone_1_1_3_Prep_is_a_Malicious_File_DO_NOT_INSTALL
Evidently a young man of the tender age of 11 has created an XML file that is part of the iPhone 3rd party Installer application. The XML file will mess with a users iPhone by uninstalling several other apps that have been previously installed from the Installer source.
A few thoughts:
- The social engineering done by this kid is awesome. He created a website, capitalized on the lust-worthy 1.1.3 update by creating the actual installation (as simple as it may have been), convinced people to ‘prep’ their iPhones for that update. Quite a busy holiday break, eh?
- What he did is minor…no permanent damage was done and at worst a user has to click ‘install’ on a few programs. Doesn’t make it ok, but perhaps this shouldn’t be seen as a HACK ATTACK but more of a ‘look how insecure 3rd party stuff is’. This is the reason Apple hasn’t released the SDK yet…security is no joke.
- STE looked up the domains registration info, called the listed number and then talked to the father of the 11 year old boy. Can you just imagine what THAT conversation was like? Me, I’d think it was pretty cool and would start looking at early college placement for young Zero Cool. (STE blog link)
- The propensity of net nerds to get their boxers in a bunch over something like this is hilarious…I can’t help but laugh as they vent their frustrations on an 11 year old who gamed them.
- No comment from TUAW yet - the point being that most of the apps uninstalled were by their resident hackerista, Erica Sadun.
Al-Qaeda offers cellphone video downloads
Link to story
So many questions…
- Where can I find these?
- Will viewing them land me in Guantanamo?
- How do we know they are real and not some CIA faked propaganda?
- How is it possible for these to be uploaded and not traced? For petes sake, the RIAA can find anyone who downloads the latest craptastic Britney Spears song, but the ‘war on terror’ team can’t find out who has ostensibly uploaded an Al Qaeda manifesto?
- Do they use any DRM? Is there an iPhone version? Why don’t they have an iTunes podcast?
Such a bizarre world we live in now. 
CAIRO (AP) — Video messages of al-Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri can now be downloaded to cellphones, the terror network announced as part of its attempts to extend its influence.
The announcement was posted late Friday by al-Qaeda’s media wing, al-Sahab, on websites commonly used by Islamic militants. As of Saturday, eight previously recorded videos were made available including a recent tribute to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the former al-Qaeda in Iraq leader killed by U.S. forces in Iraq in June 2006.
In a written message introducing the new cellphone videos, al-Zawahri, al-Qaeda’s No. 2 figure, asked followers to spread the terror group’s messages.
“I asked God for the men of jihadi media to spread the message of Islam and monotheism to the world and spread real awareness to the people of the nations,” al-Zawahri said.
Videos playable on cellphones are increasingly popular in the Middle East. The files are transferred from phone to phone using Bluetooth or infrared wireless technology.
Clips showing former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein’s execution in December 2006 showed up on cellphones soon after his death. In Egypt, images showing police brutality have been passed around via cellphones including one video that showed an arrested bus driver being sodomized with a stick by police in the fall 2006.
Video and audio tapes from various Islamist groups including al-Qaeda are available on militant websites but require a computer and a fast Internet connection — often rare in the region — to download.
But the eight videos currently available to download to cellphones by al-Sahab range in size from 17 megabytes to 120 megabytes, requiring phones to have large amounts of free data capacity. Al-Sahab has promised to release more of its previous video messages in cell-phone quality formats.
The terror network has been growing more sophisticated in targeting international audiences. Videos are always subtitled in English, and messages this year from bin Laden and al-Zawahri focusing on Pakistan and Afghanistan have been dubbed in the local languages, Urdu and Pashtu.
In December, al-Qaeda invited journalists to send questions to al-Zawahri. The invitation was the first time the media-savvy al-Qaeda offered outsiders to “interview” one of its leaders since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Apple ‘Macbook Mini’ to be Asus EEE based?
With the recent rumors swirling about regarding an Apple sub-mini notebook - as well as Asus divulgence of an Apple tablet PC in the works, it seems almost a given that an Apple sub-notebook will be of the EEE form factor.
Ideally, the ‘Macbook Mini’ would be touchscreen using multi-touch and running a mish-mash of OSX from both the iPhone/Touch and ‘normal’ Leopard. But even if it is released as a traditional notebook (keyboard, trackpad and Leopard), it would be a sure-fire winner.
Reasons it would work:
- OSX would clearly run on the hardware - spec-wise it isn’t out of bounds at all. Turn off a few of the snazzy graphics (or toss in a slightly more powerful GPU) and Leopard would run just fine on a 1ghz CPU.
- The EEE already has a built-in webcam, EVDO capabilities (in the Mini-PCI slot) and other niceties including VGA out and SD slots - perfect for an ultra-portable desktop replacement
- The price point for the EEE ($299-499) allows Apple plenty of wiggle room to create a sub-compact that could still feasibly be priced under $1000 USD - a space that Dell and HP can’t touch
- Apple fans would fall all over it - especially if it were a full blown ISX installation
That being said, there would have to be several enhancements to make it truly Apple’esque:
- The speakers on the sides of the screen have to go. Put them elsewhere and free up that 2″ of space, seriously.
- Firewire and Bluetooth support would have to be added - this isn’t that big of a deal considering the free space on the logic board - but it would have to be done to make it a true Mac.
- Disk space would have to be bumped - the EEE currently ships with 2, 4 and 8gb. But there are numerous manufacturers offering 16, 32 and even 64gb of SSD (solid state drive) storage.
- Desktop (and even full-size notebook) synchronization would be handy - taking your Macbook Mini on the road, making document or library changes and then having different versions on your home system would be a pain for the end user. I’m confident a solution (other than .Mac) could be found though.
For Apple, the door is open to create something truly unique, and with Asus already making strong inroads with the EEE, it only makes sense that the two companies would put their heads together and release something like the Macbook Mini.
TSA Travel Alert - Laptop batteries
Just a heads up for those of you traveling in these early months of the year. The TSA is no longer allowing laptop batteries to be in your checked baggage as of January 1st 2008.
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/assistant/batteries.shtm
The TSA rules are (as usual) arbitrary and a little stupid - but they can be expensive and cause you trouble if you violate them.
So, a couple of notes and suggestions:
- Your laptop should NEVER, EVER be checked unless it is in a padded case with a hard-shell cover (such as those made by Pelican) - wrapping it in a towel doesn’t count. If it is damaged while checked, the airline will not take responsibility - meaning you eat the cost.
- If you are carrying extra batteries, put them in your laptop bag with your laptop per the rules on the TSA link above.
- If you *do* carry an extra battery, and *do* check it - make sure it adheres to their criteria (at the above link, again)
- Do not taunt happyfunball
Good luck, and safe travels.
[EDIT]
A great article here for those interested in more stupid TSA tricks.
Two very handy apps - WinClone and Salute
The guys over at TwoCanoes have a couple of very cool apps that may save you some time and energy.
First up is Salute, which pays homage to the Windows ‘three fingers salute‘, which as any Windows user knows is ctrl-alt-del and saves you from typically inexplicable and painful software crashes. This version, for your Mac, offers you the pabilty to:
- lock your screen with a screensaver (you need to enable that on your system first - click the question mark in Salute to learn more)
- open Terminal - to kill those pesky apps from the command line
- open Activity Monitor - to manage those same crashed apps using a GUI
For best results, put it in your Login Items (System Preferences/Accounts/your username/Login Items). I find it is useful to quickly lock my screen by hitting ctrl-cmd-del, then ‘enter’ once more in qck succession, sicne ’screensaver’ is thoughtfully the default button.
My only suggestion or ‘wish list’ item for this app is to see an option to start the ‘Force Quit’ dialog in future iterations.
As is though, it is already part of my computing routine.
The next app from TwoCanoes is WinClone, which lets BootCamp users make disk images of their Windows partitions for easy backup/restoration to other systems.
As an IT guy who has to deal with a growing number of Win/Mac scenarios, I have a feeling I will be using this one quite a bit in the future!
Both of these apps are free, but you can donate to their future development by using the link on the WinClone page or by sending donations to donations at twocanoes.com.
