Normally the Lonely Planet guides for iPhone are $15.99, so any way you look at it, getting the San Francisco guide (iTunes link) for free is a great purchase. At worst you'll see if you like the Lonely Planet way of doing things in a travel guide and at best you might discover something new in San Francisco. Yep, the guide is free in anticipation of WWDC, allowing attendees to do a little sightseeing if Apple's sessions aren't enough for you.

I've only spent a bit of time with the app (I'm not in San Francisco, so testing the "nearby" functions won't happen until next week), but if you're familiar with the Lonely Planet guide books, you'll be pretty familiar with the content here. The app has a really long list for the table of contents, something I felt could be handled better. If you want to find travel information, for example, you'll have to scroll somewhere about 40% down -- this is not optimal if you need info in a hurry. In fact, scrolling through longs lists is so annoying Apple gave the iPod app a search tool and Coverflow browsing. Luckily the LP guide provides a text search which I found quite useful.

Browsing content is terrifically easy, with a slim design that allows you to move forward and back between articles, increase text size or go back up to whatever screen you were previously at, like a search page. Speaking of those searches and the content, a cursory search for Moscone brought up no precise info on the convention center. It is mentioned in a reference to Yerba Buena, but otherwise lacks details.

The map suffers from static information and a lack of one-way street info (kind of important in cities filled with them, but only if you drive). I much prefer the maps and interaction of the AAA Discounts app, complete with animation and cleaner graphics. There are complaints about missing hotels and whatnot, but I've never fully trusted any guidebook to find every hotel and restaurant. Plus, there's always Urbanspoon and a plethora of apps for discovering new places to eat around you.

Obviously if you are ever planning to travel to San Francisco it'd be hard to turn down a free app so full of info. I don't think it'll replace anything like your Maps app, or Urbanspoon, or Yelp-based apps, but that's not the point. As a guide full of history and photos, hotel and restaurant data, workable maps and tons of "getting around" data, the Lonely Planet San Francisco City Guide is incredibly handy.

With WWDC right around the corner, the bloggers at TUAW have compiled a list of predictions for WWDC '08. While we are not sure what will be released, this is a fun list of what we think might be coming, or things that we really want. Be sure to voice your predictions in the comments, and by taking part in our poll.


Steve Sande
I'll take ".Mac rebranding and expansion to iPhone and Windows, 3G iPhone, iTablet, and Mac nano" for $500, Alex!

Robert Palmer
I think we might find out what the next "big cat name" will be for 10.6. [We're pretty sure we know what that'll be.] I think we'll start to see a development toolset for bringing all of Apple's devices together. Imagine a novice user being able to create a small app that runs on the iPhone, as a Dashboard widget, and maybe as a widget for some future Apple TV in one build. To do that, we need the next generation of Apple development tools. That's what we might begin to see at WWDC.

Joshua Ellis
Flash on the iPhone, 3G, and I'd really love to see that iTablet and Mac nano action.

Mike Schramm
We'll see 3G and new .Mac for sure, and I think we'll see some more official iPhone apps from Apple, in addition to everything else from the App Store. I don't think we'll see any other new hardware (a redesigned MBP may be in the cards, but an iTablet or Mac Nano is a no), but I do think we'll see a years-off glimpse of 10.6 -- with Leopard out and updated, Apple needs to start up some more OS hype.

Chris Ullrich
iPhone 2.0 with 3G and video shooting capability. .Mac rebranding with new features similar to Google Apps and accessability to Windows users. iPhone 2.0 applications and some details on the next version of OSX code named "insert name of big cat here."

Cory Bohon
We'll definitely see some .Mac rebranding going on, some new "mystery hardware," and a sneak peak at what's beneath the hood of Mac OS X 10.6. I don't think we will see the iPhone 2.0 firmware hitting the streets just yet, and I think that Mac OS X 10.5.4 might be right around the corner.

Brett Terpstra
Enterprise solutions on the iPhone (I know, generic prediction). MBP update. Announcement that Apple was actually serious about using me.com, followed by a Keynote presentation with focus group study data indicating that it's actually a really, really good name.

Michael Rose
Can't wait for the over-the-air sync of .Mac/MobileMe, and I don't even own an iPhone! I think we'll get a launch date for the App Store and an on-sale date for iPhone 2, but neither of them will be during the show. I think we'll see a 10.6 seed preview and the Mac Nano... and maybe, just maybe, the iPhoneBig.

Scott McNulty
I'm with the crowd on the .Mac rebranding, and the 10.6 dog and pony show. We'll see (I think) iPhone 2.0, but what I'm really hoping for is a redesigned MacBook Pro. I'm about ready to replace mine, and I'd love to get one with a keyboard like the MacBook's.

Now, it's your turn.

Click To Play

Yesterday we made a trip to 240 Stockton Street, a gorgeous old art deco building overlooking Union Square in San Francisco. A short elevator ride up and we were taken on a quick tour of the Bently Holdings SF office-- an office that runs everything on a Mac. They are really serious about it too (check out the posters). We also got a sneak peek inside one of the most exclusive spas in town: Kamalaspa. Very swank, and in true fanboy form their fish tank is stocked with the fish from Finding Nemo. Take a look at the video for what might be the holy land for you Mac techs out there.

If you're a Mac user in San Francisco next week we're going to be around to take your picture. In fact, what we'd really like to do is tape your story. We're on a hunt to hear as many Mac stories as possible. What's a Mac story? Anything positive or remarkable about your Mac experience. That time you showed a coworker how they can save as a PDF, or how cool you thought Sherlock was back when it was released, or how the Chooser changed your life. We'll be hovering around Moscone all day Monday through Wednesday and would love to hear the tale.

And if you're not in San Francisco? Dial up your favorite video-sharing service on the internets and tag the video with TUAW. Post a link below if you like, and we might just feature it one day. Nothing about how you stopped the alien invasion with your PowerBook, OK? Oh, and we're looking for Mac stories, which means we'd rather not have a zillion "my iPod is teh awesomes" videos. The Mac is the truly definitive Apple experience, which is why we're itching to hear how the little platform that could serves you best.

Valleywag is reporting that the trendy-yuppified Marina district on the north end of San Francisco will soon be graced with what will be the third Apple Store in the already high-tech city. The store will replace the Walgreens at 2102 Chestnut (there's another 24 hour location 2 blocks away), a block down from Peet's, and neighboring the Gap. The location will be 6,600 square feet, and is being designed by the same architects (Bohlin Cywinski Jackson) who designed the 5th Avenue cube. A plan for the exterior of the structure will be presented to the city planning commission on March 22nd.

Say what you will about the Marina (and those who frequent it!), it's about to get a lot more interesting.

While we Mac geeks are having a grand old time here at Macworld, it would seem that some San Francisco natives aren't that thrilled. This article in the San Francisco Gate bemoans the fact that parking will be tougher, the city will be more crowded, and congestion will be up. It does go on to mention that Macworld isn't the largest convention, and since no streets are being closed for it traffic shouldn't be too bad. Plus, as the article points out, Macworld brings in lots of cash, and who can argue with that?

Greenpeace today, as part of its GreenMyApple.org initiative, "greened" Apple's flagship San Francisco retail store to raise awareness of toxic substances present in electronics manufactured and sold by the Cupertino, CA company. Greenpeace members handed our flyers while a large-scale projector was set to RGB 0,255,0 and pointed at the iconic glowing Apple on the stores facade. This TUAW reporter was there, camera ready, to document the dramatic display. Click through to the gallery.

OK, I'll confess: I really wish I could go to Macworld Expo next week. Since I'm in the unfortunate 40% of TUAW bloggers who aren't making the western swing, the most important question for me is "How can I live vicariously through my colleagues, and help them make the best choices about where to eat, things to see and places to go?"

The folks at Mindjet (makers of mind mapping application MindManager Mac 6) feel my pain. The Mindjet blog, celebrating the company's first appearance at the Expo, is featuring a mindmap San Francisco-style covered with suggested dining, tourist activities and local intelligence. You can send in your suggestions as well and possibly win a copy of the MindManager application.

Here's my dining suggestion: if the weather holds up, take the F streetcar down to the Ferry Terminal Market for lunch. Back in August (at WWDC) it was the best place to take in the view and some excellent sushi; might be too chilly in January to sit outside, but you never know.

[via Macworld]

Get your frequent flier miles ready boys and girls, cuz IDG has just announced the event highlights for the Macworld 07 (of course, if you're a lucky SF resident, you can probably hang onto those miles). Key speakers include Kevin Smith (yea, the), as well as the New York Times' own David Pogue. Of course, Mr. J's keynote has been confirmed again, and let's not forget it should shape up to be quite the event considering IDG added a second hall.

Personally, I'm with reader boom bam boom bam bam's comment: I think we should turn Steve's 'Boom!' into a drinking game.

One of our sister blogs, The Digital Music Weblog, dug up a video of an anti-DRM demonstration by that DefectiveByDesign crew we blogged yesterday. This demonstration was in San Francisco, and from the editing of the video, it looked pretty successful - if you count talking to roughly two people successful. Maybe the hazmat suits threw off potential anti-DRM converts, causing them to think the group was there for some kind of a real cause.

Does anyone else see the irony in the use of music they have absolutely no rights to? I don't think they're helping the 'we're consumers and we deserve whatever we want to be treated fairly' cause by trampling on a band's music rights.

TUAW reader Nolan B noticed that ADC (Apple Developer Connection) student members can now apply for a scholarship to WWDC 2006, Apple's annual World Wide Developer Conference, being held August 7-11 this year in San Francisco. Scholarship winners receive a free ticket which includes total access to all technical sessions and special events - a $1595 USD value in all.

Applications are due April 28th, so you'd better get crackin'. Check out the scholarship rules  and WWDC FAQ sections for more information, and then wait patiently until June to find out if you'll be attending WWDC on Apple's dime.

Here is an odd story for your Sunday morning. A woman was out jogging in San Francisco when she was struck by a car and left unconscious by the hit-and-run driver. She had no ID on her at the time, but police did take the iPod she was using to a local Apple Store. The employees then used the iPod's "...identifying information" (serial number?) with Apple to ID the owner. All of this begs the question:

Is there nothing this device can't do?!?