The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

David. Pogue. Is. Awesome.

Aside from the obvious reasons -- creator of the "Missing Manual" book series, New York Times Circuits columnist, all-around-great guy -- he does one thing no other tech pundit can pull off: he parodies well-known songs and turns them into tech classics. He usually debuts a new one every year at Macworld, and each year they get better and better.

And Pogue's done it again, this time creating an original music video called "iPhone: The Musical" about the drudgery of owning a Phone of Yesteryear, longing for an iPhone, and finally making the glorious purchase. Both the song and video -- some of it recorded with guest singers at the Apple Store Fifth Avenue iPhone launch -- are incredibly clever and humorous, and definitely worth a watch.

You can also check out some of Pogue's older song parodies at his website.

I kept running into this: I wanted to type contractions like "he'll" or "we'll," but they were a hassle: without the apostrophe, they're both words on their own, so the keyboard software wouldn't recommend the contraction. I'd have to click the punctuation button, then hit the apostrophe to form the right word.

But nope, there's a better way: simply add a third "l." Type "helll," and the keyboard software will recommend "he'll." Type "welll," and the keyboard software will recommend "we'll."

Sweet.

[Update:] This also works with "were" and "we're." Type an extra "e" ("weree") and the software recommends "we're."

Long day. We're all tired. But you can't end any great 13-hour-in-line experience without a quick wrap-up gallery, to, you know, give you the feel of actually being there. I didn't have a camera on hand, so Charlie Deets was kind enough to shoot a plethora (+2 vocab points) of photos for me.

All in all: great experience. Sure, I could've slept until 1 p.m., saw Ratatouille, had a nice dinner, and showed up at one of the many deserted at&t stores in the area at 5:45 and left with an iPhone at 6 p.m. But honestly: where's the fun in that?

Check the gallery below for some simple photo fun.

Fulfilling my duties as Intrepid Blogger, I took a quick poll of the people in line here at the Apple Store Oakbrook to see which cell carrier they're on, and if they're on another (Verizon, Spring, etc.), were they willing to actually cancel -- with the fee -- their contracts.

Of the 42 people I polled (i.e. those who didn't give me the don't-talk-to-me look of death), the results came in:

• 27 people were on AT&T.
• 8 people were on another carrier, but didn't need to cancel their contracts (either they pawned them off or were not on contracts in the first place).
• 7 people were on another carrier and flat-out canceled their contract, fee and all.
• 13 times I mistakenly said "Cingular" instead of "at&t".
• 14 people have read and/or are regular readers of TUAW.

Please note that this poll is completely scientific and 100% reflective of the iPhone purchase demographic.

A nosy -- but helpfully so -- reader scrounged around the iTunes package files and discovered an image in the Help directory (/Contents/Resources/English.lproj/iTunes Help/gfx/) called "ringtone.gif." The image is a plus sign next to a bell -- add a ringtone, anybody? This helps confirm disputed reports that you can actually add custom ring tones to your iPhone.

For the record, this doesn't mean the feature actually exists (yet) in iTunes -- just that it's likely, if not now, then in a future update. Guess we won't know 'til 6ish tonight.

Thanks Judson!

Apple loves them their videos: first the iPhone Guided Tour, then the Keyboard video, and now ten separate, easy-to-digest videos -- cleverly titled "Finger Tips" -- demonstrating various iPhone functions and offering some pointers to make good use of your new multi-touch monster. Tips include:

1. Silence the ring.
2. Delete a message.
3. Create your favorites list.
4. Assign a ringtone.
5. More song controls.
6. Browse in Cover Flow.
7. Magnify to edit.
8. Mail preferences.
9. Set a passcode.
10. Reset your iPhone

You can also watch all the Finger Tips in one video.

Thanks, Fraser Drew!

Apple today published a page listing all Apple-branded iPhone accessories and their prices. A brief overview:

• The Bluetooth Headset falls in line with the rumored $129 price tag, and also comes with an iPhone Dual Dock and the Travel Cable. The headset "delivers up to 5.5 hours of talk time and up to 72 hours of standby time."
  
• The basic iPhone Dock will set you back $49
• The "Dual Dock," which plugs into the iPhone and charges the Bluetooth Headset also costs $49
  
• The standard stereo headset will set you back $29
• The iPhone Bluetooth Travel Cable, which lets you charge your headset while you're syncing your iPhone (it connects to the bottom of the dock connector): also $29
• And the iPhone TTY Adapter, designed to accommodate the iPhone's recessed headphone jack and let you plug in any .5mm headphone into the iPhone is a simple $9 [Update: Reader Mike corrects my stupid mistake: the TTY adapter is designed to work with TTY systems, "which allows the deaf to communicate via telephone." But it can double as an adapter for headphones.]
  

Apple has also officially introduced the "Works with iPhone" logo: "Look for the 'Works with iPhone' logo," says Apple, "to find electronic accessories designed to connect specifically to iPhone and certified by the developer to meet Apple performance standards."

Also on the page are details about compatibility with current iPod accessories: Many accessories, like chargers and speakers, will work, even if they haven't been "certified" for use with the iPhone. The iPhone will warn you when you plug in an "uncertified" accessory, and will offer to switch to Airplane Mode, which would eliminate possible audio interference from the accessory -- but also prohibit you from making calls.

Check all the deets at Apple's site.

Thanks Fraser Drew!

Alright. I'm here. I'm set. 5 a.m. No wasting time, man, no wasting time.

I'm sitting in front of the Apple Store Oakbrook here in Oak Brook, IL., along with sixteen other crazies. The first in line, a nice lady by the name of Jamene Reynolds, got here at 3-freakin-a.m. The rest trickled in a little after that. It's no Michigan Avenue line, but it continues to grow with each passing minute. One kid's getting paid $15/hour, saving a space. Another says if he doesn't get an iPhone, "he'll have to go streaking" (but he may have been joking...?). iPhone Hysteria seems ripe.

We managed to organize ourselves into a stable line -- the Apple Store employees are no help as of yet; they stand at the door, mocking us with their insider-ness -- and things seem orderly. And we're all excited.

Stay tuned with TUAW and our beloved bros at Engadget for the bestest iPhone coverage on the 'net. Only thirteen hours to go. Let iDay (lame) begin!

[Update:] If anyone's at -- or will be at -- the Oakbrook store, I'm about the eighth person in line, wearing a black hoodie, probably sitting on the floor, and most likely fiddling on my MacBook Pro. Feel free to say hi! I forgot how boring these lines actually are.

Thank you, Wired.

The #1 hindering factor in purchasing an iPhone -- at least for most people I know -- is that they're mired in contracts with other, lesser-blessed carriers like Verizon or T-Mobile. And often cancellation fees are steep, too steep to warrant a cancellation just (hah, just) to buy an iPhone. (Imagine tacking $200 to that $600 price tag.) Well, the good folks -- particularly Daniel Dumas -- at Wired has you covered with 8 ethically-questionable-but-incredibly-clever tips to salvage your soul from the wireless devils.

A few of the gems include changing your address to an area where your provider doesn't offer coverage (nulling the contract); demanding the physical paperwork (if they can't produce it you're free); or faking your own death. Check the full article for more tips, details on how to get it done, and the odds of each tip's success.

Dragging a file from one folder to another is one of the Great Innovations of Modern Times. It's like the web, or sporks. But sometimes it's a hassle: what if you want to drag a file to a folder...inside another folder? Dum dum dummm...

In comes another Great Innovation of Modern Times: the spring-loaded folder. This allows you to drag a file to another folder through a folder hierarchy. Makes no sense? Give it a try:

1. Click and hold a file to drag it.
2. Move the file over a folder and wait a few seconds. The folder opens.
3. Still holding the file, drag it over another folder. That folder opens.
4. Repeat as necessary.

Release the file when you're in the folder you want, and all the excess folders close out. You can make the process even quicker by hitting the spacebar key when you're hovering the file over the folder, instead of waiting those few second for the folder to spring-load itself.

Nifty, eh?

[Update:] Two more great tips from readers in the comments (they could do this job for me): From serenity: "Another simple one is that you can change the time it takes for the folder to "spring" in the Finder preferences." Hit Cmd+Comma to open Finder Preferences. And another from aptenergy: "Also, if you drag your item out of a folder that's been spring loaded, it will automatically close." Thanks guys!