When the best in portable music players of today just isn’t quite good enough, just add in a little bit of rich mahogany, shag carpeting and tacky wallpaper, it doesn’t get much better than this!
This looks cool.
Alex Brooks:
There are a number of baffling points here though, why would Apple only release an iPad with LTE capable of working on the 700Mhz band which is only used in North America? And then why on the full knowledge that the new iPad has 4G that doesn’t work in the likes of Australia and Europe did it insist on advertising so?
I admit to finding this confusing as well. Why go through the mess of being investigated in a number of countries when you could avoid it?
Apple could argue that the iPad is 4G compatible around the world, but the carriers just don’t support it yet, I suppose. That argument is flimsy at best.
Sir Jonathan Ive, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Industrial Design, has won the “British Visionary Innovator” award given out by the UK’s Intellectual Property Office in honor of World IP Day. The designer topped a list of ten notable designers, inventors, and other creative people, including Tim Berners Lee, J.K. Rowling, and Simon Cowell.
Jony deserves all of the awards and accolades he gets.
Reuters:
A court in Mannheim ruled on Wednesday that Microsoft infringed Motorola Mobility’s patents and ordered Microsoft to remove its popular Xbox 360 gaming consoles and Windows 7 operating system software from the German market.
This is getting ugly.
The Web font revolution that started around two years ago has brought up a topic that many of us had merrily ignored for many years: font rendering. The newfound freedom Web fonts are giving us brings along new challenges. Choosing and using a font is not merely a stylistic issue, and it’s worth having a look at how the technology comes into play.
Jessica Conditt for Joystiq:
Westfall (or so he calls himself) began a Kickstarter for Mythic: The Story of Gods and Men, an RPG from Little Monster Productions to rival World of Warcraft and Skyrim, built by a team of former Activision Blizzard developers. The project asked for $80,000 and it had raised $5,000 until, three days ago, it was canceled. Little Monster didn’t say why it was canned, but backers accused the whole thing of being fake.
Street justice!
And 58% of Moms want an iPad vs 18% who want a Kindle Fire.
Clearly Moms are very smart.
Erik Slivka for MacRumors:
The Travis County Commissioners Court has just given official approval for a package of tax incentives designed to secure Apple’s commitment to expand its Austin, Texas campus and add over 3,600 new jobs at the site.
So much for the plan being “in peril,” as an official at the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce claimed last week.
Jawbone the company behind uniquely-designed eponymous Bluetooth earpieces, is introducing a scaled up version of its tiny Jambox speaker system – the Big Jambox. It’s available for pre-order today and costs $299.99. The company plans to begin shipping The Big Jambox by mid-May.
Like its little cousin, the Big Jambox connects to an audio source via Bluetooth. It works with iOS devices and Macs – anything equipped with Bluetooth audio connectivity – and incorporates a battery that Jawbone says is good for 15 hours of use between charges. What’s more, it operates as a speakerphone so you can use it to talk on your iPhone or other devices running VoIP software or FaceTime.
It’s made out of stainless steel and weighs 2.7 pounds, and will come in colors and finishes: Graphite Hex, White Wave and Red Dot. Buttons at the top let you adjust volume, skip tracks and stop or pause playback; a 3.5mm audio input on the side lets you connect non-Bluetooth devices. There’s also a micro USB port for connecting to a Mac or PC; an accompanying “MyTALK” Web site gives Jambox users access to exclusive apps and downloadable content.
James Brightman for GamesIndustry International:
Mobile developers looking to get some financial assistance with their projects for iOS or Android may have a new ally in AppStori, a Kickstarter-like funding platform specifically for mobile apps and technologies.One of the differences for AppStori, however, is its community focus; it’s not just about donations but support, feedback, collaboration, and the ability to find talent.
That’s what makes this different: You don’t just have to contribute money. You can support a project you really like, and if you’ve got skills the developers need, you can even be part of the project. Given the creative talent in the game business, this could make a real difference in how games are made.
(Edited 1:01 PM – information about funding goals removed.)
Rory Cellan-Jones for BBC News:
The Advertising Standards Authority has widened its inquiry into the advertising of the Apple iPad.The BBC understands the regulator is not satisfied that Apple has complied with an agreement to amend claims about the latest iPad’s 4G capabilities.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) – the UK’s regulator of advertising – is examining claims that Apple has incorrectly advertised the iPad as 4G compatible, when it is not, in fact, presently compatible with the 4G that is being rolled out in in the UK. Customers have complained, so the ASA is continuing to scrutinize how Apple is advertising the iPad’s capabilities.
Jim and Dan talk about making friends in Ireland, the Ull conference, WWDC, Google Drive vs. Dropox vs. iCloud, Sprint and unlimited plans, Malware, Pawn Shop guitars and amps, and Dan’s new Greta.Sponsored by Sourcebits and Squarespace.
Katie Fehrenbacher for GigaOM:
Apple is planning to build a massive 4.8 MW fuel cell farm for a data center that will consume 20 MW, according to Apple’s latest figures. Apple is also building an adjacent 20 MW solar panel farm at the data center. While Greenpeace has given Apple low marks for building its data center in North Carolina, where the grid has a lot of coal power, Apple actually seems to be going to significant lengths to build its own clean power sources at the site itself.
Helen A.S. Popkin for MSNBC:
He had the means and the opportunity, but we may never know the motive of an 11-year-old student who urinated on a couple dozen laptops left unattended at Upper Allen Township Elementary in Pennsylvania.In a report now bemusing Mac fan forums across the Internet, the Upper Allen Township Police Department states that “the cart and computers were damaged beyond repair, resulting in the loss of over $36,000.”
Apparently such “accidents” are not covered under warranty by Apple, which won’t touch them because they’re now biohazards.
Erica Ho for Time:
At the heart of the matter, most of the controversy stems from the “gateway sexual activity” line, which remains vague and was not clearly defined before the bill went to vote. Some detractors argue that it could unreasonably punish teachers for allowing students to cuddle, hold hands or even hug, whether in the halls between classes or at a school dance.
Burying your head in the sand doesn’t make things go away.
Judge Richard A. Posner:
“I deny the second half of Apple’s motion (seeking prohibition of the deposition) as frivolous and the first half (seeking substitution) as untimely. I’ve had my fill of frivolous filings by Apple. The next such motion, and I shall forbid it to file any motions without first moving for leave to file.”
“We can confirm that the Australian ‘Wake Up’ campaign, which involves a series of experiential activities taking place across Sydney and Melbourne, was created by RIM Australia,” RIM said in a statement.
So RIM, not Samsung, was behind the pathetic marketing stunt.
AllThingsD:
As the person who six years ago this month revealed in BusinessWeek that Apple had incorporated in Nevada where the corporate tax rate is zero, I found the account by Charles Duhigg and David Kocieniewski of the many financial tricks that Apple employs to minimize its tax exposure fascinating. Who couldn’t love phrases like “Double Irish with a Dutch Sandwich” to describe arcane accounting and legal tricks?But the implication the story leaves you with that Apple is somehow doing society a disservice by not paying its fair share of corporate taxes is simply wrong on many levels.
Perfect example of the “read all you can” theory. The New York Times account is getting a lot of notice but Arik Hesseldahl adds some more details the Times missed or didn’t include.
Sophos grabbed headlines last week when it declared that one in five Macs was subject to malware. So I decided to download the software and give it a try myself to see what it could come up with. I was one of the 20 percent. But there’s a catch, so read on.
As a matter of historical fact, Macs have been less likely to get infected by malware than their Windows cousins. Macs remain more secure than Windows to this day. That’s not to say that there are no malware threats on the Mac – indeed there are. But they happen infrequently enough to be the exception to the rule.
Still, that doesn’t mean that Macs don’t get exposed. In fact, if you get any reasonable amount of spam in your inbox, chances are that malware has entered your Mac’s gravitational pull like a rogue asteroid bound for the inner solar system. That’s because malware is a matter of fact in spam – if it’s not a phishing attempt to scam you out of your bank account information, the rogue e-mail often contains a payload – an attachment you’re encouraged to open. If you’re a Windows user.
But along the way, filtering algorithms used by mail software do an increasingly effective job making sure you never see these e-mails. I see spam and junk only rarely with my primary e-mail addresses.
So where was the Sophos software finding these malignant tumors in my e-mail circulatory system? Gmail, specifically. In the junk bucket.
I ended up uninstalling Sophos. I found the whole process too disruptive, from the installation to the initial scan to the constant maintenance activity. Quite frankly, the payoff wasn’t worth the effort – it was just to verify that the system I have in place is working.
I don’t need to be warned every time I get a malware payload in the junk folder of one of my mail accounts. I am already using effective enough tools (in the form of junk filtering on both client and server) to rid myself of that threat.
If the malware threat to the Mac develops, it’ll be time to rethink this strategy.
One other thing: If I was a corporate citizen in a heterogeneous computing environment, this story would have ended very differently. In fact, under those circumstances, I’d be crazy not to have some sort of anti-malware filtering in place.
A great Joy of Tech comic.
Five months after replacing the longstanding co-CEOs, Heins desperately needs more time to right the now-struggling company and he likely has next to nothing concrete to offer his restless audience in terms of new products and services.
RIM is screwed.
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I’ve been to countless conferences over the last 20 years, speaking, attending and talking to developers, but never have I attended a conference organized as well as Úll in Dublin, Ireland last week.
Úll (Irish for Apple) is a developer conference aimed at giving “workshops, keynotes, talks and in-depth presentations on all the aspects of building, designing and marketing your apps.” It did that and so much more.
Most of the conferences I’ve attended fall down on the details. Intentions are always good, but the execution is often faulty. That’s where Úll really stood out. From the moment you arrived until the very end, the attention to every single detail of the conference, from badges to dinner, was well thought out and executed.
Of course, the conference wouldn’t have been successful without quality speakers and they delivered on that too. Michael Lopp, John Gruber, Matt Gemmell, Josh Clark, Aral Balkan and so many more interesting people entertained and informed the attendees.
There was also plenty of down time to mingle with the developers and speakers to ask questions, share your opinions and make friends.
Úll organizers Paul Campbell and Dermot Daly are truly a class act. They care about the developers and speakers — and it shows.
If you are looking for a full complement of professional, creative, commercial audio visual solutions from the simple to the complex in this fast paced, dynamic marketplace, you may consult a professional A/V Company like Signal Solutions for professional Commercial AV Installation services.
I couldn’t help myself. I love The Swedish Chef.
Reuters:
Apple Inc began talks earlier this year to stream films owned by EPIX, which is backed by three major movie studios, on devices including a long-anticipated TV, according to two people with knowledge of the negotiations.
I may be on the outside with this one, but I believe Apple is looking at this market for a future product.
I just love the Chateau de Noisy in Belgium.
More CSS3 goodness. Although I don’t agree with what they said about being careful of CSS3 because of the older browsers that don’t support it. It’s time to move forward.
Laura M. Holson for the New York Times:
Relationships are hard enough. But the rise of social media — where sharing private moments is encouraged, and provocative and confessional postings can help build a following — has created a new source of friction for couples: what is fair game for sharing with the world?
It may seem like common sense not to overshare online about your relationship, we’re still collectively working out the rules of online etiquette. It may be a good idea to get this out on the table early on in the relationship to avoid problems farther down the road.
New York Times:
Apple’s headquarters are in Cupertino, Calif. By putting an office in Reno, just 200 miles away, to collect and invest the company’s profits, Apple sidesteps state income taxes on some of those gains.California’s corporate tax rate is 8.84 percent. Nevada’s? Zero.Setting up an office in Reno is just one of many legal methods Apple uses to reduce its worldwide tax bill by billions of dollars each year.
"Finding Portland" video
“Finding Portland” was produced, shot, and edited in 51 days during March and April.Comprised of 308,829 photographs taken from over 50 unique locations, “Finding Portland” tells the story of the city and its many faces.It took an average of 3.8 hours to make each second of this film.
I think this shooting technique can make even the ugliest city look magical.