iPhone 2.0 Software Update

Published July 12th, 2008 in Egotistic and Apple. 0 Comments

G’day, mates. I’m back, if only to pipe-up about the iPhone 3G, things I’m digging in the iPhone 2.0 software update, things I’m not digging, things I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen reported elsewhere, a few opinions about the selections available through the App Store, and more. Consider this a living-post, as I’m going to be leaving this tab open all weekend, and will be adding to it and hititng “publish” relatively often:

THOUGHTS ON THE 3G

Especially after reading Uncle Walt and Fruity-Cousin Pogue’s early reviews of iPhone 3G, I think anyone who already owned an iPhone and couldn’t wait to run out and get the 3G is a fool.

In their reviews, and every review that has come since, it has been clear that the best part of the iPhone 3G, by far, is the software. The same software that any iPhone owner could download, free of charge as an update, starting earlier today.

The five big notable changes on the 3G are: 1.) 3G (which, I’ll admit is big…but big enough to upgrade?), 2.) Rudimentary GPS, 3.) a flush headphone jack (the recessed jack being one of Jon Ive’s few foibles in his overwhelmingly triumphant career), 4.) upgraded speaker (yes, still only one, which I haven’t seen anyone outwardly and enthusiastically praising) and 5.) a (less aesthetically-pleasing) glossy plastic back. After updating the software, those are the only five differences between iPhone 1.0 and iPhone 3G.

Look, I’m not going to harp on for hundreds of words on why I think original iPhone users who are ditching for the 3G are fools, though I could, but I will say this: in my eyes, it’s clear that this “new” iPhone is more of a moderate half-step than a true upgrade. If you’re still under the oppression of a RAZR or similar crêpe, it would be a fantastic purchase for you. If you have an iPhone in your pocket right now though, buck-up and wait a year…I’ll bet you that $200 you’re itching to part with that we’ll be seeing the true second coming right around then.

THINGS I’VE NOTICED IN THE SOFTWARE UPDATE THAT HAVEN’T BEEN REPORTED ANYWHERE, TO MY KNOWLEDGE AND, IF REPORTED, CERTAINLY NOT TO THE POINT OF SATURATION

- On a drive tonight while trying to find a 12-pack of Colt .45 (I was unsuccessful, giving up after 3 stores…), I decided to see if the iPhone’s Maps App could “locate me” any faster than before. To my surprise, it did…but that’s not nearly the biggest shock. The “locate me” option is now a toggle; meaning you can set it so it’s either on or off. As I drove down Route 33 in Chicopee, the blue crosshaired-circle updated every 30-45 seconds, following me. It was far from accurate (that said, Western Mass isn’t exactly a burgeoning metropolis…YMMV), but it worked, dammit. iPhone 1.0, after upgrading software, now has ghetto-ass tracking GPS!

UPDATE: I tried this again today on a trip to Hartford (I was going to look at a car, but made a few more stops. Still, no Colt .45 12-pack; this would not be a problem if I were still in Savannah, let me tell you), and it worked again. It’s far from desirable (the G and the A on ghetto-ass should be capitalized, that’s how bad it is), but hey, it works.

- I used the phone for about an hour-and-a-half after upgrading, downloading and playing with apps, then used G-A T GPS for about 20 minutes. In that time, it went from almost fully-charged to almost fully-empty. I usually get fantastic battery life; so this is a big disappointment. Hopefully, things’ll be back to normal tomorrow after a full charge. Word is that the 3G’s battery life is abysmal.

- Tapping the top-bar now brings you to the top of a scrollable page, system-wide. To my knowledge, this was only available in Safari before today. This could be my favorite new feature.

- When you flip on airplane mode, you can manually turn Wi-Fi on while leaving the EDGE antenna off. I’m pretty sure you couldn’t do that before.

- I know it’s been reported ad nauseam, but the iPhone can now take screenshots. You can do this by quickly tapping the home and the lock button. When you do this, the screen will flash, and whatever was on your screen will be sent to your camera roll as a JPEG. I’m not here to report on that, however. I am here to report on how frustrating it is that Apple includes these things, yet does not inform their users of it. Take a look at their iPhone 2.0 Software Update page. No mention of the screenshot capability. It’s stuff like this that leads to me getting an email with an attached JPEG from a friend, exclaiming “I found a glitch in the new iPhone software.” All I’m saying is that it kind-of sucks that, since Apple doesn’t provide a comprehensive list of new or updated features, some of us are lead to believe that there are glitches in the system, or even worse, do something (like snap a screenshot) by accident and can’t figure out how to do it again.

THE FEW APPS I’M ACTUALLY GOING TO USE

From my initial browsing of the App Store, I’d hazard a guess that it’s about 92% shite, with 6% good, and 2% fan-flucking-tastic. This seems about on-par for most 3rd party software, so I will be doing what I usually do when looking to load up a new computer with sweet apps: pick out a scant few early favorites, scout any industry-specific and niche apps that pique my particular fancy, but ultimately, I’ll wait for the internets to tell me what’s fantastic and what I can’t live without. Until then, I’m not dropping a friggin’ dime (except for maybe on that MLB app…).

- Remote (Free): I suppose it isn’t odd that the only app I truly love is the only free one directly from Apple. I think I would’ve been happier if the App Store only had about a dozen apps which were this perfectly designed and executed.

- eBay & PayPal (Free): I’m an art junkie, and I troll eBay for prints constantly. eBay’s mobile site left a lot to be desired, and while this app isn’t ideal…it’s much better than what I had yesterday. Same goes for PayPal.

- Twitterific (Free w/ads, $9.99 w/o): It seems like the best option so far, but why is it so jumpy…and why does it need to teach me how to use everything? If I’m using Twitter, I think it’d be fair to assume that I’m familiar with poking around software to figure stuff out. I know I can turn off the hints, and I did, but still…they’re superfluous. UPDATE: Also…it would be really cool if all of my Twitterific clients could sync. That way, I wouldn’t have to flip through the same tweets on my iMac, MacBook and iPhone. I don’t think this is do-able (or else someone would’ve done it already), but it’d be awesome if it was.

- INSTAPAPER (Free): Instapaper is a web-based service that I love. It allows you to bookmark any article, and they will hold onto the link at their site. Doesn’t sound that revolutionary, but it is really neat. Basically, it allows you to create a newspaper for yourself that’s always available. Personally, whenever I come across an article that is too long to read right then, or that I’m interested in but not at that moment, I just hit a link in my bookmarks bar and…BAM…I know it’ll be there for me the next time I have a free moment and feel like reading something. As simple as can be. When the iPhone came out, the site was optimized as a Web App, and even would convert your articles into text-only pages for minimal load. I use it ALL THE TIME.

The App Store app seems to take one step forward, and two steps back. On a manual “update,” it’ll actually download the last ten articles you bookmarked to your phone for offline reading. That is awesome, especially when you’re out of coverage. BUT, it takes back the ability to skip stories and review stories you’ve already read (which you may have only half-read, and are now going back to finish). Marco Arment, Instapaper’s developer, has stated on the Instapaper site that a premium version may be available in the future for a small fee. Well, sign me up. For now, though, I’m keeping both the Web App and the App Store app on my homescreen.

A FEW APPS I’VE NOTICED THAT NO ONE’S SCREAMING ABOUT, BUT PROBABLY SHOULD BE NOTED

- JAMD: This is a news aggregator from Getty Images that gives you about one-to-three paragraphs per story…only, here’s the twist: each story comes with 30+ accompanying pictures from the Getty Image archive. The best part is the presentation of the images, which appear in a stack, and really abuse the multitouch platform (in a good way) with flinging and pinching galore. Where most of the news aggregators I’ve tried seem like carbon copies of previous web apps, this one goes ahead and does something that a web app couldn’t do. (Well, that said, I’m no code-monkey, but I’m pretty sure web-apps couldn’t pull this off…) UPDATE: After using this a little further, it appears a lot of the stories are puff pieces (celebrity, human interest, etc.). This makes sense, seeing as that’s the stuff that Getty specializes in…but, that said, it no longer holds a spot on my phone.

- INSTAPAPER (Free) - See above.

APPS I’M KIND OF SHOCKED AREN’T AVAILABLE (YET)

- ESPN Apps - Yeah, I’m a bit of a homer on this one (I work for The Worldwide Leader), but it doesn’t make sense. ESPN widgets come packed on every Mac. The ESPN Podcenter podcasting Web App is one of the best ones out there. The company has a primary goal of carrying their “WWL” status into the mobile realm as well…so, wouldn’t that include finding a place on the most popular mobile device? Considering ESPN’s Disney connection, it makes even less sense. (Disney, with Steve Jobs on its board, owns ESPN and was one of the few companies who beta tested the iPhone 2.0 software) I’m sure ESPN iPhone apps are coming…but…I’m kind of shocked that they weren’t there, right out of the gate.

- TiVo Scheduler - I love the TiVo remote scheduling site, but it’s a pain to use on the iPhone. For a company that’s always seemingly on the edge of death, I’d think it would be a good move throw a small team on whipping up an iPhone scheduler app in a week or so. I’d also think this is coming; but, again, this seems like the type of thing that would’ve been good, off the top.

I think I’m done for now. I’ll leave this, as is, for a bit…then I’ll break it into separate posts, by section, for archiving’s sake.

Cracked MacBook

Published March 28th, 2008 in Editorial, Tech and Apple. 2 Comments

Just joining the meme. Mine cracked ages ago.

HOPE

Published February 4th, 2008 in Politics, Culture, Design and Art. 1 Comment

18-1

Published February 4th, 2008 in Sports and Patriots. 0 Comments

I’m the guy who had trouble sleeping last night because a bunch of millionaires who play a game for a living choked and then went home to their supermodel girlfriends or hot wives.

Since the details of the game, from the Pats defense showing its age to Opie Manning’s amazing 4th quarter sack-elusion for a 36 yard toss, will be rehashed for days and weeks to come, I’m putting the details aside and will rather focus on a few questions I’m left with:

1. Which is a better story: 19-0 or the Giants playing the David role and defeating the de facto NFL Giant?

Clearly, it’s the Giants winning. Or, rather, the Patriots losing. Why? Because it was so unexpected. Everyone loves an underdog, especially when it is going against a team that is undefeated and found guilty of “cheating” earlier in the season. 19-0 would’ve been a coronation, and the media would’ve been forced to gush and coo, and discuss “best team of all-time” and “best coach of all-time” and all those nauseating topics. The building up of a dynasty followed by their crash back to the realm of the NFL mortal at the hands of an underdog is definitely a more enjoyable story (for most).

2. Are the Patriots the Yankees of the NFL?

Ugh. This is a topic I’ve thought about a lot, throughout the whole season. Full disclosure: I’m a Red Sox fan, I hold baseball closer to my heart than football, I’m dating a Yankees fan, and I despise the Yankees. All season long, I’ve maintained that there was no basis in the comparison. This morning, I’m not so sure. The thing that has always irked me about the Yankees is how they always seemed (to me, at least) to trot out onto the field assuming they were going to win. As if they were inherently better, and that they deserved it simply for being them. This perennial assumption is what killed them in games 4-7 of the 2004 ALCS. Unfortunately, in the two weeks leading up to Super Bowl XLII, I began to see signs that these Patriots may have been assuming they were going to win. Once they took the field, it was clear to me that they were holding on, knowing that in the 4th quarter, Tom Brady would march down the field and lead them to a score and they’d once again be champions. They played as blasé as they could, assuming this would happen. To their credit, they were right: it did happen…but it happened just a minute or two too soon, leaving time up there for Opie to create a march of his own. Add this to the national disdain for both teams, their links to “cheating,” and their falls from grace in recent times…and the Patriots are probably more similar to the Yankees than I’d be willing to openly admit.

3. What happens next?

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about Belichick, it’s that he doesn’t enjoy being embarrassed. The Patriots loss to the Colts last season due to their sub-par receiving corps, and their reaction of picking up Moss, Welker and Stallworth is one example. His personal reaction to Spygate is another. The embarrassment of this loss dwarves all of their other embarrassments combined. I have faith that they will make the right moves to improve the team substantially over the spring and summer, and that this embarrassment will serve as a humbling point for all involved. I have faith that they will make at least one trip, if not more, back to the big game during the Brady/Belichick era. But, unless they do something truly special in the next season or two (ie. 19-0, for real), this loss…and not their previous three wins or regular season winning streaks…will define the way this team is historically looked at, fair or not.

It’s going to be a long off-season. I want to go take a nap.

Movie Pitch

Published December 20th, 2007 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I went and saw No Country for Old Men yesterday after two previous failed attempts to see it. I try and see all of the Best Picture nominations each year, and although the list isn’t out yet, No Country for Old Men seems to be a shoe-in to get a nom.

I didn’t like it. I didn’t hate it either. I wouldn’t say it’s a bad movie. I just don’t see what the hype’s about. That’s not what this post is about, but quickly: Yes, all of the actors (aside from Woody Harrelson, that is) nailed it; with Javier Bardem scaring the poop out of me and Josh Brolin finally successfully stepping out from his own headband-wearing Goonies shadow. Let’s just say that two thirds of the flick dazzled the heck out of me, and then it went all faux-intellectual on me. I haven’t read McCarthy’s book, but I suspect it had one or two more subplots that fleshed out that final third that are absent here in an attempt at the WTF moment.

What this post is about is an idea I had for a flick while watching the flick. There’s this one scene where Javier Bardem blows up a car. The film takes place in the desert of Texas mostly, with one or two (living) humans on screen the majority of the time. In the car explosion scene, there are plenty of extras. That’s when I got the idea:

Someone should make a movie that on the surface is boring and predictable. A romantic comedy or coming-of-age flick. Set it in New York, because every third movie takes place in New York. This would be the type of flick that holds your interest, but no one in the audience will really get invested in. On first viewing, most would call it mediocre and an example of how most modern flicks are formulaic and therefore suck.

So, you’re asking, what’s the hook? Here it is: practically every scene would take place in the background of a scene from another movie or TV show. The trick to making it work would be to recreate those scenes, calling in favors from the original actors, and keeping this hook a secret until its release. The DirectTV ads (like the one with Sigourney Weaver as Ripley) give me faith it could technically be done. And since, on the surface, it’s such a boring film it shouldn’t be hard to keep pre-interest low.

On the second or third viewing (or after the buzz picks up), watching it would be a whole new experience. As a viewer, the characters in the story would become the secondary focus. The fun of the film would be trying to spot and identify the scene. If the writing is witty and clever enough, the characters could drop hints and references in dialogue without directly referencing the hook. Wouldn’t that flick become an instant cult favorite? The viral marketing opportunities alone for a movie with that hook make my mind race and boggle.

Dear Hollywood, I’ll be taking bids for this idea through the comments system below. I know you guys are in a tough spot with the writer’s strike and then the possible actor’s strike after that, so it won’t come cheap…and if you steal the idea, I’ll be forced to shoot you in the face with a knife.

Only $19! Cheap!

Published November 13th, 2007 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments

What is it about Salvation Army stores that attract awesomely creepy
clown paintings?

FFFFOUND!

Published October 28th, 2007 in Design and Art. 8 Comments

I just joined and have an invite to the social image sharing site (or as Alexander Bohn at Speak Up! calls it, a “Randomly Curated Other People’s Images White Background Site”), FFFFOUND!

Jason Kottke has been writing about FFFFOUND! lately if you need some background on what it’s all about. As always with Kottke, it’s good stuff well put.

First person to contact me (in a manner other than the comments below) and ask nicely gets the invite.

My fresh new page on FFFFOUND! is http://ffffound.com/home/nagle/found/

“I just told you I have a Wii…

Published October 28th, 2007 in Culture. 3 Comments

…why in the world would I want to pre-order Rock Band? It’s not even coming out for Wii.”

Gamestop employees are some of the most inept creatures on the face of our retail driven planet. Thankfully, with my purchase of Guitar Hero III for Wii, I’m finally out of Gamestop credit. (Upon leaving Savannah, I traded in a bunch of DVDs to Gamestop for credit because I no longer watched them and didn’t want to move them. It was the easiest option.)

I’m with Matt, Gamestop’s out…Target’s in. I’ll get to the reasoning after a little yarn about a half hour of my afternoon, as spent at the Chicopee Gamestop:

I walk in and ask if they’re sold out of GHIII:Wii. I’m answered with a question: “Did you pre-order it?” A valid question. “No,” I responded.

I expected a response in the vein of “We only have pre-orders left. Sorry, bud.” or “Okay, you’re lucky. We have a few, let me grab you one.”

Instead, my “no” was met with another question: “Have you pre-ordered Rock Band?”

Wait…WHAT?!?

I responded with the line from the title of this post, and was met with “Oh, my bad. This register isn’t working…you’ll have to get in the other line.” Jesus help me. I opted to walk around the store, seeing that the line for the other register was dense. After 10 minutes and the thinning-out of the line, I re-encountered the dolt from before.

He burps. “Whew, that Tailgate is killin’ me. You ever eat there? Tailgate in South Hadley?”

No, seriously, Jesus help me. I, yet again, respond with a “no.” “Good stuff, but man, it’s killin’ me now. What can I do for you?”

I sighed, “Guitar Hero III for Wii. You never answered me before. Do you have any?” We went through the “Did you pre-order?” dance again, and finally he emerged from the backroom with the game and guitar. “You wanted it with the guitar, right?”

“Uh, yeah. That’s the only way it’s sold. It’s the first Guitar Hero on Wii.”

“Oh, my bad.”

He put it up on the counter and scanned it. I went to grab it and look at the back of the box, and he pulled it back, denying me. “Did you want to pre-order Smash Brothers?” “No, thank you,” I responded. “Super Mario Galaxy?” “No.” (To his credit, he didn’t ask if I wanted to pre-order Rock Band again.) “How about Need for Spee…?”

“Look, I don’t want to pre-order anything…I just want my game and I want to go.” I presented him with my “Edge” card, which had the credit on it.

“This won’t help you,” he said.

“What? It has credit on it.”

Take a guess at what he said next…3…2…

“My bad.”

A scant half hour later, I was back in my car with what I had come for. In my goal of brevity in writing, I didn’t even mention how many fellow customers I witnessed getting jerked with…made to feel guilty and left twisting in the wind for a moment for committing the sin of not pre-ordering…even thought there was clearly plenty of GH to go around. Repeatedly, customers were told that they only had “a few” left, all while I witnessed at least a dozen leave the store in the time I was there.

So anyway, Matt makes a good point. (Inside man aside.) If I hadn’t had credit at Gamestop and was planning on paying for the game like a normal person, odds are I could’ve walked into Target, asked an employee to unlock a case, paid, and walked out in 10 minutes or less. No pressure to pre-order. No guilting. No guessing whether it was in stock or not. No regurgitation of that morning’s breakfast.

You’d think that a smaller retailer would equal better service. Ultimately though, if the smaller retailer is really a big evil bastard that utilizes a lot of pushing/guilting on their customers and is only disguised as a small retailer based on square-footage alone…the no-service-’til-you-need-it service of a big store like Target is so much more pleasant.

(It helps that at Target you can pick up a toaster and some TP along with whatever game you came for.)

Mabel Pupperelli

Published October 16th, 2007 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Testing Flickr blog posting from the iPhone. Pay no mind.

What Am I Doing?


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Flickr

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