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Filed under: iTS, Multimedia, iTunes, Apple, Music

Apple launches iTunes Preview for external browser links

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Nov 13th, 2009

This is the kind of thing that probably should have been done a long time ago, but Macworld is reporting that Apple has launched iTunes Preview, a page that appears when you click an iTunes link (like this one) and your browser sends you over to iTunes. Previously, you just got that placeholder page that said "One Moment Please" and asked if you wanted to open the link in an external application, but with iTunes Preview, you get a nicely laid out page with information and reviews (and your browser still opens up the iTunes store).

Currently it only seems to work with music -- movies and television only get a small thumbnail, and applications get the same old gray page. But that'll probably change before long -- it's much smoother to see what you're clicking through to, and of course there's the added bonus for people who don't actually have iTunes installed. As MacWorld points out, there are actually no "preview" buttons on the page -- you can't listen to music there, only click through to the iTunes store. But like I said, it's better than a blank window and a browser popup asking for your permission. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see this grow a lot more in the future.

Tags: apple, features, information, itunes, itunes store, itunes-store, ItunesStore, listen, macworld, movies, music, preview, release

Filed under: TUAW Business

iMac touchscreens, iPod HD radio and iPhone sync issue fixed

by Victor Agreda, Jr. (RSS feed) on Nov 9th, 2009

Thumbnail for Gigaware adapter brings HD Radio to iPod touch and iPhone for $80 Gigaware adapter brings HD Radio to iPod touch and iPhone for $80
Up until now, there have been just two ways to get HD Radio in a portable, handheld solution: buy a Zune HD, or opt for Insignia's NS-HD01. As of today, Gigaware is changing all that...		 Thumbnail for New iMac and MacBook touchscreens debut, thanks to Troll Touch New iMac and MacBook touchscreens debut, thanks to Troll Touch
Troll Touch -- the fun little company with the unfortunate name -- have announced more of their award-winning analog resistive touch kits for 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMacs as well as unibody Macs...
Thumbnail for Gigabyte fixes iPhone sync issue with BIOS update Gigabyte fixes iPhone sync issue with BIOS update
The Intel P55 Express chipset snafu that caused iPhones to lose their syncing minds has now been remedied -- at least by one motherboard maker.		 Also of interest:

All above via Engadget

Tags: blog post, BlogPost, engadget, information, news

Filed under: Hardware, Software, Odds and ends, iPhone, App Store, SDK

More AR, this time with Twitter, on the iPhone

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Jul 9th, 2009


Here's another augmented reality iPhone app that might be slightly more useful for those of us outside of London than the Nearest Tube app we showed off the other day. TwittARound is a Twitter client (currently in beta) for the iPhone that uses your location info, compass, and the 3GS' video camera to place tweets close to your location in a realtime video view, so that the effect you get is like pop-up notes on the landscape. Very cool indeed. Unfortunately, it seems many of these AR (augmented reality) apps may never see the light of day, as some developers are saying Apple doesn't provide any public API calls for the live video (hence this petition from the burgeoning AR community).

There are other issues here too, though, even if Apple does open up all of the APIs needed for a project like this. Twitter doesn't actually include location information with each tweet, so what you're actually seeing (I'd imagine) is the location of each Twitterer. What you'd like to do with an app like this is walk around and use it to get information about what you see (look through the app at a line outside a concert hall, for instance, and see people talking about who's playing inside). But unfortunately, unless they have some way of seeing exactly where those tweets come from, they'll all still be from each Twitterer's location, not where the tweet was actually sent.

But maybe Twitter or some other app can start including that location (Brightkite is already location-based, and works with Twitter), and then we can get real-time information from where we actually are on an AR screen like this. There's still a few obstacles, but once those are evened out, the possibilities are very exciting.

Tags: augmented-reality, brightkite, compass, information, iphone, iphone-3gs, location, twitter, video

Filed under: Multimedia, Software, Freeware, iPhone, App Store

Shazam updated to 1.7, adds location awareness

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Jun 19th, 2009

Shazam is an app that's been on my iPhone since the beginning, and in fact, everyone should have it. Besides the fact that it's free, it's useful in a very innovative way: if you hear a song anywhere that you don't know the artist or name of, just pull up the app to hear it, and it'll tell you what you're listening to. I still use it occasionally to find new music that I hear and like out in the world, but I never really paid attention to updates -- they usually just got included in my monthly or so "download all updates" click. Apparently Shazam's been updating something fierce, however, and the newest version has all kinds of functionality that you might not expect.

At some point, they added in Twitter integration, so if there's a tune you want to share that way, you can do so. There's always been a way to share them via email, too, and they've spruced that up a bit by calling it a "postcard" (conveniently also giving your friends a chance to buy the music you hear, and probably put some change in Shazam Entertainment Ltd.'s pocket -- it is a free app, after all). But the most interesting new feature is that Shazam now tracks your location when you "tag" a tune, so that eventually, you'll be able to look at a map of where you found all this new music you like.

Sure, it wasn't exactly a pressing feature, but it is cool to see your "musical journey," and have that information about not only what you tagged but where you tagged it. Shazam is an app that's probably on your iPhone already, but it's worth another look.

Tags: app, app-store, artist-name, awareness, free, identify, information, iphone, location, music, musical-journey, shazam, song-name

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Software, Odds and ends, Developer, App Store

Fighting sockpuppet reviews on the App Store

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Feb 3rd, 2009

In this modern age of information, it's easier than ever to see what people think of a product, whether it be a new lawnmower, a console game, or an App Store app. But it's also easier than ever to try and tweak public opinion, and while there are many official avenues that will accept anonymous opinions, there aren't so many that will help you weed out the legit from the not-so-much.

App Store reviews have been controversial from the beginning -- while they can be helpful for buyers, you often have no idea just who's leaving comments or what their real agenda is. Njection, the makers of Nmobile (which we played with a while ago) are having a huge problem with what they're calling "sockpuppet" reviews on the App Store.

Someone (they believe this person is in cahoots with their competitor) is posting bad reviews on their app and trying to trash them and their product elsewhere (including in a comment here on TUAW). And unfortunately, as they say, they don't really have much recourse against this behavior -- they've appealed to Apple, who've replied that they'll leave comments up, unless they're offensive or extremely false. Apple's own guidelines for reviewing apps asks that the reviewers deal with apps on their own merit rather than attacking competitors, but that seems to be more of a recommendation than a firm rule.

Njection says the comments have kept consumers from trying out their apps, though it seems difficult to actually track how many people haven't tried your app (and why). It'll be interesting to see if Apple makes other changes to the review system if this sort of thing rears its ugly head more often. At this point, it seems devs just have to deal with it by doing damage control when necessary and making their app good enough that "sockpuppeting" doesn't strongly affect public opinion.

Continue reading “Fighting sockpuppet reviews on the App Store”

Tags: app-store, apple, competitors, information, njection, nmobile, policy, reviews, sockpuppeting, tuaw

Apple updates Apple ID site, finally allows editing

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Nov 29th, 2006

Apple has updated their My Info site to allow more Apple ID editing goodness. It's been a while since I've taken a crack at changing any of this information, but last I remember, it wasn't possible to change the actual email correspondence address of one's Apple ID. The My Info site offers a slim, effective UI for adjusting your contact and shipping info, as well as setting your Apple communication preferences (do you want email/mail/phone calls, etc.). Too bad there isn't a new option called "alert me the next time you're about to rev one of your products 15 days after I buy the old 'n busted model."

Thanks Brandon M

Tags: apple, apple id, AppleId, communication, contact, info, information, my info, MyInfo, preferences

Filed under: Software, Productivity, Internet Tools

Packrat 0.87 released with page link editing, creation

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Aug 4th, 2006

Packrat, an offline Backpack client that I just can't say enough about, has been updated to version 0.87. Though it is another minor version point update, it features the ability to edit links, including dragging one page onto another to create a link. With all its other abilities of editing pages, tags, lists, and notes, as well as being able to create new lists and notes, Packrat is becoming a more powerful client by the day.

Packrat is a Universal Binary, with a demo available, while a licenses costs $24.95.

Tags: backpack, client, information, offline, packrat, PIM, productivity

Filed under: Software, Productivity, Internet Tools

Hawk Wings lists 10 Mac OS X tools for Getting Things Done

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 15th, 2006

Tim Gaden at Hawk Wings has compiled a list of ten Mac OS X tools that can help you implement the Getting Things Done philosophy in the way you work. The tools are broken down into three categories: email clients, dedicated GTD apps and web-based solutions for that ultimate cross-platform effect.

Mail.app, of course, starts off the list. Once combined with a few Smart Folders and the powerful Mail Act-on and MailTags plugins, Mail.app can become a most powerful GTD tool indeed. Other featured tools include kGTD (an OmniOutliner Pro template), a Todo.txt script for the ultimate in plain-text GTD, EasyTask Manaager (a stand-alone app without the GTD learning curve), iCommit (a web-based PHP tool), Backpack, Gmail and even wikis.

Check out Hawk Wings' list for more ideas and tools to help you, well, get things done.

Tags: backpack, getting things done, GettingThingsDone, gmail, gtd, hawk wings, HawkWings, icommit, information, kgtd, mail, mail act-on, mail.app, MailAct-on, mailtags, manage, management, omnioutliner, organized, tim gaden, TimGaden

Filed under: Software, Productivity, Internet Tools

Brainstorming and project management with Curio

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 13th, 2006


It's too bad I didn't know about Curio from Zengobi when I was writing the Get Organized post, as it seems to take quite an interesting approach to collecting, jotting down and organizing information. Billed as an app that "promotes visual thinking gathering and shaping your ideas", Curio definitely seems to be more like a sketchpad than many other similar applications. You can literally place anything anywhere on the page, and includes tools for sketching and drawing - just look at the screenshot which includes an image, lists, an embedded video and some chicken scratch.

Curio doesn't stop there though. It also includes a project center, presentation mode, a powerful search companion, tags, LinkBack support, project archiving, web/.Mac publishing and iPhoto exporting. I haven't played with this app yet, but I'm downloading a demo as I type up this post to play with later. Some features, however, are only included in certain editions, so check out Zengobi's feature comparison chart to determine which edition is right for you. A demo is available, while full licenses start at $39.

Tags: collect, curio, data, information, organize, project, research, sketch, zengobi

Filed under: OS, Rumors, Software

LeopardTracker.com

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jun 19th, 2006


Tired of sifting through newsfeeds and googling for tidbits on Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard? Maybe LeopardTracker can help put an end to your obsessively sleepless nights - it's a new site that does all that searching for you and catalogs Leopard-related articles for anxious Mac users everywhere. Of course, no one but The Steve and Apple's engineers really know much about this next version, but the site documents the rumors and table-scraps from Apple's own announcements, as well as articles and blog posts that criticize the areas where Apple's OS fails and could still use some polish. Links are also organized into categories, such as Finder, Hardware, Virtualization, etc., to help you get your Leopard on a little easier. Check it out.

Tags: 10.5, article, articles, blog, information, leopard, mac, os x, OsX, post, posts, rumor, rumors, update, upgrade

Filed under: Software, Cool tools, Productivity, Internet Tools

Bare Bones Software releases Yojimbo 1.2

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jun 7th, 2006

Yojimbo, the information collection app from Bare Bones Software that helps you 'master the onslaught', has been updated to version 1.2. Among the additions and improves are a Quick Start movie for new users that launches on first startup, search term highlighting, browser bookmarklets for one-click bookmarking or web archiving in Yojimbo, AppleScript importing and much more.

A 30-day fully functioning demo is available, while Bare Bones offers full single user, family and educational licenses for $39, $69 and $29, respectively.

Tags: bare bones, BareBones, bookmark, information, management, manager, software, update, upgrade, URL, web archive, WebArchive, yojimbo

Filed under: iPod Family, Software, Internet Tools

Pod2Go becomes Life2Go, adds WeatherBug, other improvements

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jun 6th, 2006


Pod2Go, the versatile information manager for your iPod, has updated to v1.6.4 with various improvements and a name change to Life2Go (Did Kevin get a call from Apple about his choice in application names?). A v1.0 is also available for Windows (traitor!), though I don't know if that is a recent development with this name change.

Updates to the application itself including switching to WeatherBug for all weather information, significant changes to the Notes output and Mail storage, more specific syncing progress and more.

A demo of Life2Go is available, while a full license runs for $12.99.

Tags: contacts, gas, information, ipod, life2go, movies, news, PDA, pod2go, RSS, sync, synchronizing, syncing, weather

Filed under: Software, Productivity, Internet Tools

Packrat can now edit Backpack notes, too

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on May 10th, 2006


I don't mean to post an update every time the developer of Packrat sneezes, but this one is for those anxiously waiting for editing functionality (including when offline) with their Backpack account. I just noticed on Packrat's product page that the feature list now says: "New: edit your lists and notes." Sure enough, it works just like the lists update I mentioned a week ago.

Packrat offers a free demo, and a license will run you a mere $24.95.

Tags: Backpack, collect, edit, editing, feature, function, functionality, information, list, lists, note, notes, Packrat

Filed under: Software, Productivity

OmniOutliner, OmniOutliner Pro 3.6 released

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on May 4th, 2006

The Omni Group has finalized version 3.6 of OmniOutliner and OmniOutliner Pro, their "amazingly flexible program for creating, collecting, and organizing information." The final version itself doesn't usher in any mind-blowing new features aside from the built-in help being fully localized, but check out their release notes for all the new features they rolled out in previous 3.6 beta releases if you haven't been keeping up.

Version 3.6 is a free upgrade for existing 3.0 customers, and is available from the Omni Group's site.

Tags: collect, ideas, information, note, note taking, NoteTaking, OmniOutliner, organize, organizer, organizing, thoughts

Filed under: OS, WWDC

Sneak preview of Leopard at WWDC

by Jan Kabili (RSS feed) on Apr 18th, 2006

Are you dying for a sneak peek at Leopard, the next incarnation of OS X? If so, book a ticket for San Francisco in mid-August. Apple has announced, on its site and by email to customers, that it will offer a preview of OS X Leopard at  WWDC 2006, scheduled for August 7-11.

The Apple site briefly describes five WWDC session tracks -- Application Technologies, Development Tools, Graphics and Media, Information Technologies, and OS Foundations --  but doesn't provide details about specific sessions. If you're considering going, try to get your boss to pick up the registration fee, which is a stiff $1295-$3500 before June 23 and even more after that date. If you're a student, don't overlook Apple's Student Scholarship Program. We told you before -- but it's worth a reminder -- that applications for a free WWDC ticket through that program are due on April 28.

Tags: developer, development, foundation, graphics, information, Leopard, Mac OS X Leopard, MacOsXLeopard, media, OS X, OsX, technology, World Wide Developers Conference, WorldWideDevelopersConference, WWDC, WWDC 2006, Wwdc2006

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