The amount of advancement in technology and computing is enormous. A couple years back the average consumer didn't have even remotely the access of computing power accessible to them we do now. In fact, scientists estimate that in 2030 a computer will be more powerful than the human brain at its full capacity. Humans, in general, have relied more and more on computers for everything.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
iOS4 Review
Two days ago I made a post about iOS4. Today I thought I should make a hands on review. Anyways, I took some screenshots and decided to rate iOS4 on some key aspects.
1. Functionality and ease of use
2. New features
3. Eye candy
First up is functionality and ease of use. iPhones and iPod touches in general have a reputation of being super stable and crashes being rare. Also being easy to use. But all of of power users agree that iPhones and iPod touches are very limited. iPhones lack things that some of the most basic phones have been able to do for years.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
HTML5 Rocks!
Google Voice now Open for Everyone!
Slightly over a year ago, (At the Google I/O I believe) Google released a preview of Google Voice. The web-based phone with text and voice mails. It was service that allowed you to have one Google Voice number and for that, later, to ring all your phones. Also they had a brand new way of voice mail. When people called you and left a voice mail their voice was turned into text. Which you could later hear. They allowed you to make unlimited national calls in the US & Canada. And if you need to make an international calls you can make "...low-priced international calls and more"
The thing was that it was not open to everyone. You had to fill out a form and after a lengthy period of time (For me it was a couple of weeks) you got an invite. Today Google announced that "after lots of testing and tweaking, we’re excited to open up Google Voice to the public, no invitation required." That means you head on to www.google.com/voice and create an account.
If you haven’t yet tried Google Voice or just heard about it, try it out and give Google some feedback. Apple and Google are some of the few companies that care about customer support. (IMHO) If haven’t seen what Google Voice can do yet, the video below provides a clear view of what it is, in about 2 minutes.
The Video is/was not made by LA Tech. As such, this video does not express or imply the opinions of LA Tech or its employees.
The thing was that it was not open to everyone. You had to fill out a form and after a lengthy period of time (For me it was a couple of weeks) you got an invite. Today Google announced that "after lots of testing and tweaking, we’re excited to open up Google Voice to the public, no invitation required." That means you head on to www.google.com/voice and create an account.
If you haven’t yet tried Google Voice or just heard about it, try it out and give Google some feedback. Apple and Google are some of the few companies that care about customer support. (IMHO) If haven’t seen what Google Voice can do yet, the video below provides a clear view of what it is, in about 2 minutes.
The Video is/was not made by LA Tech. As such, this video does not express or imply the opinions of LA Tech or its employees.
Monday, June 21, 2010
iOS4
iOS4 has just been released today! This update will bring a boatload of new features some very noticeable others not so much. Anyways, only some iDevices will be supported fully. And some not at all. If you want to know if you're supported cross your fingers and read some more.
iPod touch 1G- Sorry, no update
iPhone 2G- Nada here either
iPod touch 2G- Only some features including: Game Center, Unified Inbox, Folders, iBooks, iAds
iPhone 3G (Mine)- Also partial support. Game Center, Unified Inbox, Folders, iBooks, iAds
NOTE: (Icons and wallpapers don't go together on 3G-Steve (Paraphrasing). I think jailbreakers disagree)
iPod touch 3G- Multitasking, Folders, Game Center, Unified Inbox, iBooks, iAds, Wallpapers for Homescreen
iPhone 3GS: Multitasking, Folders, Game Center, Unified Inbox, iBooks iAds, Wallpapers for Homescreen
iPhone 4: Everything
iPad: iOS 4 update later this year
Major Changes
iOS4 brings minor usually unnoticed changes to iDevices as well as some major features. Some of the biggest ones are: Folders, Multitasking, Spellcheck, and springboard wallpaper. As well as iAds to some people.
Folders- Folders should be somewhat self explanatory. Some cool features about folders is that you just drag on app on another. It creates a folder intelligently named by the categories of each of the apps. A great perk is that it has amazing speed and integrates amazingly with OS. This will be most appreciated by Jailbreakers using categories.
Multitasking- Multitasking has long been the holy grail for iPhone users. Many complain that other phones can do it, so why doesn't the "magical" device do it. Simple: Apple only releases something when its rock-solid and utterly stable. Multitasking is no different. Especially when you do it better. Some apps which are "multitasking ready" don't really run in the background. They save where they left off and close. Comparable to "hibernate" on PCs.
Spellcheck- To me this is a feature I have been waiting for. It allows my iPhone to be better suited for work needs. If I'm unable to get home and need to work on something. I just open up notes and when finished email it. Now I don't have to painstakingly proofread myself on the tiny screen. Interestingly enough, spellcheck has recently become a nuisance to some who regularly swear on their phones. Auto-correct (bundled with spellcheck) now replaces profanity.
Springboard wallpaper- This is a feature I have been waiting endlessly for from apple. I happily download iOS4 even though it took me like 4 hours total. I knew it was worth it. I then tried to set it as my wallpaper. Didn't work. Eh... not too bad; 1-800 MY APPLE. 20 minutes with some guy who doesn't know what he is talking about. "Just reinstall" I've finally had enough and ask to speak with someone more senior. He begrudgingly agrees. The guy promptly says 3G is not supported. At least he knew what he was talking about. Sad, I say hangup and wish I had an iPhone 4. Anyways to all you lucky 3GS and New iPhone 4 owners :P Just kidding! Have fun!
iPod touch 1G- Sorry, no update
iPhone 2G- Nada here either
iPod touch 2G- Only some features including: Game Center, Unified Inbox, Folders, iBooks, iAds
iPhone 3G (Mine)- Also partial support. Game Center, Unified Inbox, Folders, iBooks, iAds
NOTE: (Icons and wallpapers don't go together on 3G-Steve (Paraphrasing). I think jailbreakers disagree)
iPod touch 3G- Multitasking, Folders, Game Center, Unified Inbox, iBooks, iAds, Wallpapers for Homescreen
iPhone 3GS: Multitasking, Folders, Game Center, Unified Inbox, iBooks iAds, Wallpapers for Homescreen
iPhone 4: Everything
iPad: iOS 4 update later this year
Major Changes
iOS4 brings minor usually unnoticed changes to iDevices as well as some major features. Some of the biggest ones are: Folders, Multitasking, Spellcheck, and springboard wallpaper. As well as iAds to some people.
Folders- Folders should be somewhat self explanatory. Some cool features about folders is that you just drag on app on another. It creates a folder intelligently named by the categories of each of the apps. A great perk is that it has amazing speed and integrates amazingly with OS. This will be most appreciated by Jailbreakers using categories.
Multitasking- Multitasking has long been the holy grail for iPhone users. Many complain that other phones can do it, so why doesn't the "magical" device do it. Simple: Apple only releases something when its rock-solid and utterly stable. Multitasking is no different. Especially when you do it better. Some apps which are "multitasking ready" don't really run in the background. They save where they left off and close. Comparable to "hibernate" on PCs.
Spellcheck- To me this is a feature I have been waiting for. It allows my iPhone to be better suited for work needs. If I'm unable to get home and need to work on something. I just open up notes and when finished email it. Now I don't have to painstakingly proofread myself on the tiny screen. Interestingly enough, spellcheck has recently become a nuisance to some who regularly swear on their phones. Auto-correct (bundled with spellcheck) now replaces profanity.
Springboard wallpaper- This is a feature I have been waiting endlessly for from apple. I happily download iOS4 even though it took me like 4 hours total. I knew it was worth it. I then tried to set it as my wallpaper. Didn't work. Eh... not too bad; 1-800 MY APPLE. 20 minutes with some guy who doesn't know what he is talking about. "Just reinstall" I've finally had enough and ask to speak with someone more senior. He begrudgingly agrees. The guy promptly says 3G is not supported. At least he knew what he was talking about. Sad, I say hangup and wish I had an iPhone 4. Anyways to all you lucky 3GS and New iPhone 4 owners :P Just kidding! Have fun!
Google I/O
Google's I/O conference has come to the end. Unfortuantly google's I/O doesn't seem to get as much hype as Apple's WWDC. Therefore there were some pretty groundbreaking things that happned you might not have heard of. For example: Google has released two new products! :D
1. Android Froyo 2.2
2.Google TV
"You lost me at 2.2. Is this some boring techno babble?"
Yea..No, Froyo is a new Android OS. That means that it will bring exciting new features. Think iOS4 or OS3. Most android phones (Go Android!) will get it. Nexus One is first in line to get Android Froyo.
For More see Froyo
"Google TV? Whats next Google Car?"
Honestly, wouldn't suprise me; It's a "...company on sterioids, that has a finger in every industry." This, IMHO is a good idea but relativley poorly implemented. The idea is: We watch a lot of TV but we should be able to watch TV when we want and not let TV change our scheduales. Many of us will watch TV shows and movies on the computer. Why? Becuase its on our time. So the soloution, mix the best the web has to offer and the best TV has to offer.
The problem is people have already done this. That in and of itself does not mean anything. Phones existed, Apple made it better. iPhones existed (IMHO) Google made it better. So, to have something thats already there you gotta make it better! Google has not been able to introduce something that will make me buy their google TV extension. If their were two exactly the same TVs one had Google TV and one didn't and the diffrences was $50 or more I would choose the one without. Why? Google TV adds convinience. Nothing else. Where am I going with this? There are many other ways to do this. Windows has already done this.
For More see Google TV=Disappointment
1. Android Froyo 2.2
2.Google TV
"You lost me at 2.2. Is this some boring techno babble?"
Yea..No, Froyo is a new Android OS. That means that it will bring exciting new features. Think iOS4 or OS3. Most android phones (Go Android!) will get it. Nexus One is first in line to get Android Froyo.
For More see Froyo
"Google TV? Whats next Google Car?"
Honestly, wouldn't suprise me; It's a "...company on sterioids, that has a finger in every industry." This, IMHO is a good idea but relativley poorly implemented. The idea is: We watch a lot of TV but we should be able to watch TV when we want and not let TV change our scheduales. Many of us will watch TV shows and movies on the computer. Why? Becuase its on our time. So the soloution, mix the best the web has to offer and the best TV has to offer.
The problem is people have already done this. That in and of itself does not mean anything. Phones existed, Apple made it better. iPhones existed (IMHO) Google made it better. So, to have something thats already there you gotta make it better! Google has not been able to introduce something that will make me buy their google TV extension. If their were two exactly the same TVs one had Google TV and one didn't and the diffrences was $50 or more I would choose the one without. Why? Google TV adds convinience. Nothing else. Where am I going with this? There are many other ways to do this. Windows has already done this.
For More see Google TV=Disappointment
Android 2.2 Froyo
As I said before Google released Android 2.2 Froyo. This brings an enormous amount of features. One of the most request features is tethering. Yes, tethering. The long time yearned for feature is now coming to Froyo. It will be available through USB cable or through a portable hotspot. That means you cut the stupidity of a $100+ plus a $30 bill. Get an android and you only get 1.
If you're switching from an iPhone or have an iTunes library listen up. You're not gonna want to abandon all your songs. Froyo allows you to stream all of your non DRM music. That means you can still keep your music even if you cant fit it all onto your android device.
Another much request feature is Flash. It includes Flash 10.1. Flash 10.1 is critical because it is optimized for mobile devices. This proves once again that Flash can and wants to do well. Just, Apple has ridiculously high standards. This means that you won't see any blue cube icons. Instead, you'll see a full flash app. Yep, free movies on Hulu. (Currently I'm stuck with an iPhone but I'll never make that mistake again.)
There are also some under-the-hood improvements. Froyo is incredibly faster than its previous version Eclair. It has a JIT compiler. A Just In Time compiler. This means games will be much smoother and faster. At the I/O conference they ran a test with two exactly the same phones running the exact same game. (Modified for the purpose of the test to be more graphically intense.) The only difference one had Froyo with the JIT compiler and one didn't. Each Time the screen dropped below 30 frames per seconds the screen would flash red. After a couple seconds Eclair didn't even flash anymore it just kept red.
If you're switching from an iPhone or have an iTunes library listen up. You're not gonna want to abandon all your songs. Froyo allows you to stream all of your non DRM music. That means you can still keep your music even if you cant fit it all onto your android device.
Another much request feature is Flash. It includes Flash 10.1. Flash 10.1 is critical because it is optimized for mobile devices. This proves once again that Flash can and wants to do well. Just, Apple has ridiculously high standards. This means that you won't see any blue cube icons. Instead, you'll see a full flash app. Yep, free movies on Hulu. (Currently I'm stuck with an iPhone but I'll never make that mistake again.)
There are also some under-the-hood improvements. Froyo is incredibly faster than its previous version Eclair. It has a JIT compiler. A Just In Time compiler. This means games will be much smoother and faster. At the I/O conference they ran a test with two exactly the same phones running the exact same game. (Modified for the purpose of the test to be more graphically intense.) The only difference one had Froyo with the JIT compiler and one didn't. Each Time the screen dropped below 30 frames per seconds the screen would flash red. After a couple seconds Eclair didn't even flash anymore it just kept red.
Photo courtesy of Gizmodo
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Thoughts on Apple & Flash
As you probably know Google and Apple are not getting along, and both of them are making very clear especially Google at their I/O. Me, liking Google, most people will think "He obviously likes Google more than Apple." The thing is, that's only half true because its not that simple. The two companies have two different views on technology and its distribution &and administration.
Apple for example, doesn't like Flash because they believe in an open web. Also,they seem to have merged Flash and Adobe. I don't like flash. That doesn't mean I don't like Adobe. If they create open sourced HTML5, CSS3, and other tools, I would respect that. Just not Flash. I don't like flash because I believe the average user should be able to view the web in its entirety without the use of plug ins. I also believe that there's a better way to include multimedia in a website without plug ins. To add to the list, Flash tends to be a resource hog
Now, back to Apple. I love Apple products. I love the iPhone, iMac, iWork, iPad and other stuff. Now, where do they fall short? Forums everywhere resound this: They are incredibly closed and proprietary. What does that mean? Apple chooses what you can and can't buy (App store). Apple chooses on what devices you can and can't hear music (DRM protection). They also decide what your apple device looks like. (Low customization levels) On the other hand Google is probably one of the most open fortune 500 companies you will ever see. Android is open sourced and free. And they realize people use flash! People except fan boys wont just drop flash 100% because apple says so. If i were CEO I would stop creating flash but would not hesitate to use it.
Apple for example, doesn't like Flash because they believe in an open web. Also,they seem to have merged Flash and Adobe. I don't like flash. That doesn't mean I don't like Adobe. If they create open sourced HTML5, CSS3, and other tools, I would respect that. Just not Flash. I don't like flash because I believe the average user should be able to view the web in its entirety without the use of plug ins. I also believe that there's a better way to include multimedia in a website without plug ins. To add to the list, Flash tends to be a resource hog
Now, back to Apple. I love Apple products. I love the iPhone, iMac, iWork, iPad and other stuff. Now, where do they fall short? Forums everywhere resound this: They are incredibly closed and proprietary. What does that mean? Apple chooses what you can and can't buy (App store). Apple chooses on what devices you can and can't hear music (DRM protection). They also decide what your apple device looks like. (Low customization levels) On the other hand Google is probably one of the most open fortune 500 companies you will ever see. Android is open sourced and free. And they realize people use flash! People except fan boys wont just drop flash 100% because apple says so. If i were CEO I would stop creating flash but would not hesitate to use it.
Agree, Disagree? Vote below...
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