Device Brings iPhone Access to SD Cards
February 9, 2010 by admin
A common complaint among iPhone owners
is the lack of expandability. iLounge
reports that the problem will be solved in April, thanks to the
ZoomIt SD card reader that plugs into the iPhone’s dock connector.
ZoomIt’s
site says, “Get ready…our product will be announced Tuesday,
February 9” but they’re already taking orders—and offering a $10
discount off the $59.95 retail price—for those who order now.
Shipments are scheduled to begin in April, and “the first 250
buyers will receive a free 4GB SDHC card from Kensington Technology.”
They don’t provide any details on the
device yet, but from their pictures it appears to be about 1.25” x
2”. The add-on lets you access files on an SD card using the free
zoomIt
app in the iTunes store. The app has a file manager that lets you
transfer files back and forth between the SD card and your iPhone,
but it isn’t clear how much you’ll be able to access data on an SD
card directly from iPhone apps. All they’re saying so far is that
you can “display/view a file with a format supported by the SDK
3.0.” But they do say you can take a picture and store it directly
to the SD card, and there’s an interface to iPhone email to let you
attach files or photos to messages. ILounge says it includes support
for file types including MS Office apps and PDF. Future plans include
support for streaming music and videos (meeting Apple’s DRM licensing
checks) from SD.
It will be interesting to see how much
effect the reader has on battery life.. The fact that their app includes a battery status
indicator would seem to be a hint that the hit is noticeable. But for
those who have been waiting for the ability to take more tunes on the
road, it will probably be well worth it.
Capture Your Screen With QuickTime
February 8, 2010 by admin
Hey
A few months ago I mentioned about Taking Time Lapsed Screen Shots With Terminal, it was a script which would take a screen shot every couple of seconds of your desktop. This is useful if you are taking a time lapse movie, but it is not useful if you actually want to show people videos of your desktop. I have previously written a post on iShowU which can take movies of you desktop. This post will show you how you can do this for free using QuickTime Player which comes with Snow Leopard.
To capture your desktop video open QuickTime Player in your Applications folder. Then from your File menu select “New Screen Recording”. This will open up a little widget with a record button as shown in the image below. From the down arrow you can select a couple of options, first the sound input. If you want to select your audio which your computer makes you can either use a Male to Male cable and plug it in your input and output on your Mac or you can download and install SoundFlower, which allows you to pass audio into QuickTime. Other options from the flippy down arrow include the quality and the save location.
When you are ready you can start recording. Press the little red record button and it will start recording what ever is on your screen. When you have finished recording press the stop button in your Menu Bar.
Once as you press stop QuickTime will do a little bit of processing and your video will be available to view. Note that it will record at what ever your screen resolution is set to, as a result it will more than likely produce a large HD video, which is really good for playing back but not that useful if you want to share with your friends. So its worth trimming the video before you compress it, this way you have the least amount of video to compress. To trim the video go to Edit > Trim and cut out the beginning and end of the video to what you want. Every bit you cut off is less you have to compress down the line making the final video file smaller.
When you have trimmed your video you can now save it for final use, although the final video is already saved in your Movies folder (or other location if you specified it) its worth compressing the video. Go to File > Save As or File > Save For Web. The former is good for saving for use on your computer, since you can select 480p resolution, among a variety of others. The latter is good if you plan on putting it on the web. Have a look at the settings and pick on which you think is suitable for you. If you want more options it may be worth opening the movie in the older version of QuickTime and using that apps options.
There you have it. Capturing your desktop as a video couldn’t be simpler. If you want to learn more about QuickTime I recommend Mac OS X Snow Leopard: The Missing Manual or Apple Pro Training Series: QuickTime Pro. There are many resources out there so look around.
Want to catch up on the latest Tweets about this site, join the MacTricksAndTips Tweet RSS Feed.
Capture Your Screen With QuickTime
Related posts:
- Video Capture Your Desktop
- Create Stop Motion Animations In Quicktime
- Automatically Play Videos In QuickTime Player
Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one
February 8, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Gaming, Multimedia, Apple, iPhone, App Store, SDK, iPod touch
Game Developer Research has published its 2009/10 survey of video game developers, and the results are pretty impressive for the still relatively fledgling iPhone platform: The number of developers who are working on mobile games increased by 12 percent, and there are actually twice as many developers working on iPhone games as are working on the Nintendo DS and Sony’s PSP handheld consoles.
That’s a pretty amazing number, though it’s not quite a surprise when you consider it. First of all, Nintendo DS and PSP publishing takes a much larger investment than Apple’s $100 developer fee and an SDK download. Second, while the DS and the PSP are certainly selling a lot of games, they’re not actually releasing nearly as many as the hundreds of thousands of apps on the App Store. Finally, new DS and PSP games sell for $30 or $40, while new App Store games sell much closer to 99 cents. So the fact that there are lots more people moving to the much more open and accessible platform isn’t really that surprising.
Continue reading Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one
Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The iPad Could Mean Big Trouble for AT&T’s Network, FCC Warns
February 8, 2010 by admin
People are excited about the arrival of the iPad (or at least, some people are), but the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is a little more apprehensive about what the device could mean for AT&T’s wireless 3G network. In an official FCC blog posting at Broadband.gov, Director of Scenario Planning Phil Bellaria and Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Deputy Chief John Liebovitz expressed that concern.
Bellaria and Liebovitz didn’t specifically mention AT&T by name, but it seems fairly obvious who they’re talking about in the FCC blog post last week, especially given that the iPad so far only has one official carrier in the U.S.:
?With the iPad pointing to even greater demand for mobile broadband on the horizon, we must ensure that network congestion doesn’t choke off a service that consumers clearly find so appealing, or frustrate mobile broadband’s ability to keep us competitive in the global broadband economy.
The blog post also recalls a time not too long ago when AOL’s unlimited internet usage plan caused connection and service problems, and how that time mirrors our own:
The congestion problem circa 1996-97 revealed an intense latent demand for Internet access. Similarly, wireless network congestion today reveals intense demand for wireless broadband. Widespread use of smartphones, 3G-enabled netbooks, and now, perhaps, the iPad and its competitors demonstrate that wireless broadband will be a hugely important part of the broadband ecosystem as we move ahead.
Finally, Bellaria and Liebovitz leave off with the conclusion that AT&T and other mobile broadband providers must expand their spectrum offerings to ensure that a similar congestion problem doesn’t happen again. No doubt, AT&T is taking steps to galvanize its network (which it knows is in trouble already) against the demand increase it has to have anticipated as a result of the iPad’s introduction, but will it be enough?
This problem is one that affects the fundamentals of mobile communication in this case, unlike before with AOL’s home Internet access issues. Even though it doesn’t make as much sense from a profitability perspective, AT&T has to make every effort not only to anticipate demand, but to over-prepare for the iPad’s release. If there’s one lesson the telecom should’ve learned from its ongoing iPhone usage problems, it’s that half measures will only continue to exhaust the patience of its subscribers.
I realize that a just-in-time approach to bandwidth probably makes more financial sense, but surprise everyone by taking a slightly longer view, AT&T. Presumably the next-gen iPhone will be available on your network, too, as an exclusive or otherwise, so factor that into the estimates of what you’ll need to provide for the iPad’s launch. Stay just one step ahead of the game instead of two steps behind and maybe you can go some of the way towards improving your terrible reputation.
Related GigaOM Pro Research:
How AT&T Will Deal With iPad Data Traffic
Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one
February 8, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Gaming, Multimedia, Apple, iPhone, App Store, SDK, iPod touch
Game Developer Research has published its 2009/10 survey of video game developers, and the results are pretty impressive for the still relatively fledgling iPhone platform: The number of developers who are working on mobile games increased by 12 percent, and there are actually twice as many developers working on iPhone games as are working on the Nintendo DS and Sony’s PSP handheld consoles.
That’s a pretty amazing number, though it’s not quite a surprise when you consider it. First of all, Nintendo DS and PSP publishing takes a much larger investment than Apple’s $100 developer fee and an SDK download. Second, while the DS and the PSP are certainly selling a lot of games, they’re not actually releasing nearly as many as the hundreds of thousands of apps on the App Store. Finally, new DS and PSP games sell for $30 or $40, while new App Store games sell much closer to 99 cents. So the fact that there are lots more people moving to the much more open and accessible platform isn’t really that surprising.
Continue reading Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one
Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Game developers on iPhone outnumber DS and PSP two-to-one originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Loopt teams with Mobile Spinach for check-in discounts, Booyah talks about MyTown
February 8, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Software, iPhone, App Store
If the iPhone has a leading app genre, aside from gaming, I’d say the current surge of “check-in” apps is probably it. Sure, back when the App Store first opened up, Twitter apps were everywhere (and they’re still being made daily, it seems), but in terms of a genre that can only exist on a location-aware device like the iPhone, “check-in” apps like Foursquare, Gowalla, and so on, are making their mark right now. Here’s news on two such apps continuing to grow on the App Store skyline.
First up, Loopt [iTunes link] has announced a partnership with a company called Mobile Spinach to start trying to monetize this kind of app usage. Mobile Spinach delivers local ads, and Loopt says that it’ll be using their location-based social networking service to bring specials and deals to users from wherever they check-in from. Note that while Apple doesn’t necessarily want location-based advertising as the sole purpose of an app, it seems to be all right with location-based advertising as an extra feature like this. Loopt tells us at TUAW that it’s a great deal for the company, as it is “an easier and cost-effective way to do online/mobile advertising,” and that it means “Loopt users can get great free offers on everyday things they want in need just by walking around in the neighborhood.” It’ll be interesting to see just how useful this extra advertising can be.
After the link below, read about how MyTown finally got the success they’d been hoping for.
Continue reading Loopt teams with Mobile Spinach for check-in discounts, Booyah talks about MyTown
Loopt teams with Mobile Spinach for check-in discounts, Booyah talks about MyTown originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Loopt teams with Mobile Spinach for check-in discounts, Booyah talks about MyTown originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
When bloggers collide on the streets…
February 7, 2010 by admin
Change Default iCal Event Length
February 7, 2010 by admin
Hello
This is going to be a quick tip for any users who regularly use iCal. When you create a new event, either in the day, week or month viewer you will realise that the length of the event is one hour long, for most people this is fine. However if you regularly have meetings which are half an hour long, or book rooms for two ours at a time, it may be beneficial and more efficient to adjust the default meeting time. This means you don’t have to fiddle around with the length slot if you regularly use the same event length.
This trick, as many tricks on this site do, uses Terminal. Open it up from Applications > Utilities. Then type or copy and paste, the following and hit enter.
defaults write com.apple.iCal 'Default duration in minutes for new event' 15
This will change the default event length to 15 minutes. To see the results re-open iCal if you already have it open. The number at the end represents how long the new iCal event will be. You can change this to any length you want, 10 for ten minutes in length or 120 for two hours in length. Don’t make it too small otherwise it may be difficult to see the event in iCal. For example if you set the iCal event to 1 minute long, all you will see is a small strip in iCal and you may find it difficult to adjust the time.
If you want to reset it back to the default time of one hour, simply change the value to 60. You could delete the preference option with this command:
defaults delete com.apple.iCal 'Default duration in minutes for new event'
Again, restart iCal to see the effect. Note that if you don’t restart it will take about 10 minutes for the preference to kick in. Restarting allows you to see the effect straight away.
If you have any questions of comments please leave a comment below. If you want to find out more iCal tricks, either use the related links below. If you fancy a cool book to ready with lots of tips and tricks I recommend Snow Leopard: The Missing Manual. Its a good book with plenty of tricks.
Want to catch up on the latest Tweets about this site, join the MacTricksAndTips Tweet RSS Feed.
Change Default iCal Event Length
Related posts:
- Quickly Edit iCal Event Titles
- Change The Default Text For Anything
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Patent suggests location-based social networking for iPhone
February 7, 2010 by admin
Imagine you and a friend are on a phone call, and both of you own iPhones. You’re trying to meet up somewhere downtown in a city neither of you know very well, so the best answer you can give your friend when he asks, “Where are you now?” is “Uhhh…” followed by several seconds of silence. It’s already possible to share your location using the Maps app on the iPhone — find your current location, tap on the blue marker on the map, tap “Share Location,” and then send it to your friend either as an e-mail or MMS. Then your friend receives the e-mail or MMS with your location, opens it in Maps, and has the option of finding directions to your location from his current location.
If that sounds like a lot of unnecessarily complex steps to answer the simple question of “Where are you,” you’re in luck, because according to a new patent application, Apple agrees with you. By putting “Request location info” and “Release location info” buttons on the call screen in the Phone app, it would be possible to share your location or request someone else’s with a single button press. The same process applies — the iPhone polls its GPS to find out where you are, then transmits that info to your friend’s iPhone — but instead of having to jump through all the hoops yourself, the OS handles it for you in the background. Once your phone receives a request for location info it comes up in a notification, probably very similar to the notifications location-based apps already use when they request permission to use location data. If you agree to release your location data to the caller, it’s transmitted in a fully encrypted signal to the caller’s iPhone. Your location data would then show up on your friend’s iPhone, complete with the option to find directions.
Continue reading Patent suggests location-based social networking for iPhone
Patent suggests location-based social networking for iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 07 Feb 2010 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Patent suggests location-based social networking for iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 07 Feb 2010 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Another Publisher Uses iPad as Leverage for Price Hike
February 7, 2010 by admin
Despite Amazon’s knee-jerk banishment and reinstatement of its books following a price increase of its books, publisher Macmillan isn’t the only one looking to introduce a new, more lucrative pricing structure. HarperCollins is also eager for renegotiation, and now, Hachette Book Group has also joined the growing contingent of those looking to charge more for their electronic wares.
This is what’s called the new “agency model” of pricing, which allows the company serving the content to take a cut. Apple’s own system calls for a 30 percent take of the revenue on all apps (and now books) sold through its online store. Amazon recently introduced a similar pricing structure for certain books and apps. It looks like major publishers are unwilling to absorb the cost of the seller’s cut, preferring instead to pass it along to consumers.
Hachette CEO David Young, however, in a letter sent out detailing the new pricing plans, claims that book publishers will not make more money using the agency model, claiming the opposite, in fact:
[W]e make less on each e-book sale under the new model; the author will continue to be fairly compensated and our e-book agents will make money on every digital sale. We’re willing to accept lower return for e-book sales as we control the value of our product–books, and content in general. We’re taking the long view on e-book pricing, and this new model helps protect the long term viability of the book marketplace.
Call me skeptical, but I can’t help but feel that these publishers are acting more out of self-interest than anything else. It may be true that they actually make less on every book sold using the agency model for electronic distribution, but it’s probably also true that the books cost much less for them to create than print versions, too. I’d be willing to bet that they end up profiting more on a per copy sold basis in the end. Hachette makes other claims in his letter about how the deal is actually beneficial to consumers, despite the upfront price hike:
There are many advantages to the agency model, for our authors, retailers, consumers, and publishers. It allows Hachette to make pricing decisions that are rational and reflect the value of our authors’ works. In the long run this will enable Hachette to continue to invest in and nurture authors’ careers–from major blockbusters to new voices. Without this investment in our authors, the diversity of books available to consumers will contract, as will the diversity of retailers, and our literary culture will suffer.
It’s good spin, but it’s spin nonetheless. The bottom line, no matter how Hachette, Macmillan, or HarperCollins try to spin it, is that rather than introducing competition that will result in lower prices for book-buying customers, Apple’s iPad has in fact spelled the end of the $9.99 bestseller, for both Kindle and iPad users. Apple had to offer publishers an incentive to come over to its side, but the cost of that bargain is unfortunately one we as the buying public will be paying for.
At least in the short term. A longer view reveals a different picture. Apple needed to gain access to the ebook market, and so was willing to make concessions regarding price. Publishers jumped at the chance to get out from under the tyranny of what amounted to Amazon’s ability to set prices unilaterally. But is it a case of “out of the frying pay, into the fire?”
If Apple’s power play succeeds, Amazon could conceivably be forced to close up shop (though I still don’t think I’ll ever stop reading on my Kindle in favor of the iPad). If and when that happens, Apple will occupy the spot that Amazon once did, and will be able to dictate prices to publishers, much like they did and still continue to do with record labels. It’s a rare case where a monopoly could actually benefit the buying public, but only if you’re willing to pay more than paperback prices in the meantime. I’m not sure I’m willing to do that.
Related GigaOM Pro Research: Evolution of the e-Book Market
