December 2011
42 posts
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2011 In Summary
For me it’s been a pretty good year. I have seen a constant increase of new visitors to my site, which pleases me greatly, and I have been asked to contribute to other sites, namely the Bagel Tech network and Macsessed. Getting the opportunity to write for an even bigger audience has been a major thrill for me and I love to keep doing it. In other words: keep the requests for guest posts...
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Best of 2011
It’s the time of the year when we all collectively sit down in our lounge chairs, pour a glass of brandy and reminisce over the past 12 months or so. Last year I made a summary of things things I thought were interesting and personally found to be the best in a few different categories. And why change a winning concept this year? So here follows the things in a few, almost random, categories...
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 9 →
Oh dear, I find an article, read it and become so irate that the only reasonable course of action is to record a podcast episode about it!
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Engadget: 60beat GamePad connects to iOS devices,... →
As far as a real, physical controller goes this looks just fine and dandy. I have no objection to having something along these lines for games on iOS, or any modern smartphone or tablet computer for that matter. What I mind is the connector and the cable, which I would much rather see be replaced with a bluetooth connection.
But like I said, it’s not bad for what it is. Just hope that there...
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Engadget: Japanese vending machine doubles as WiFi... →
A lovely initiative by Asahi! Judging from the limitations and specifications given, they have really used their noggins to come up with a clever solution too. 50m radius of WiFi signal, 30 minutes of usage per session, no strings attached.
Best of all, in my humble opinion, is that they actually have taken security fairly seriously and will make a WPA2-PSK option available. Sadly, it’s not...
DigiTimes: Apple to unveil two versions of... →
I just love when there is a new Apple/iPad/iPhone rumor, specially from DigiTimes! Of course I couldn’t resist this one, so let’s take a look at how likely it is, shall we?
Apple is set to unveil its next-generation iPad - which will come in two versions - at the iWorld scheduled for January 26, 2012, according to sources at its supply chain partners.
And iWorld is more or less the...
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 8 →
Due to the technical difficulties of yesterday, there is a double-whammy of podcast episodes today! Feel free to dive into my ramblings about IT and education.
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webOS Nation: Review - HP TouchPad Go →
A look at what could have been if HP had stuck to WebOS instead of fumbling up almost everything over the last year or so. Quite interesting device from several perspectives, specially the 1:1 resolution compared to the bigger TouchPad and improved performance over the same.
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 7 →
Capcom releases Mega Man X on iOS. Man records podcast episode about it…
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 6 →
Back after the Christmas break, it’s time to tear into all those leftovers that need to be taken care of before the new year! This episode is all about Hasbro and what they think of the Transformer Prime tablet computer form Asus.
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Holiday break
Today is the day when I and my family celebrate Christmas. This is not a particularly religious time for me, as I have for many years celebrated Christmas as the joyous time when everybody gets together to eat lots of tasty food and give presents to each other during the very dark period of the year.
This means that this website will not be getting any updates until next week, when I start...
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The Verge: PayPal trialing NFC retail payment... →
I guess I will just have to get an Android phone as soon as I see any store that supports this around here.
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ZDNet UK: SOPA clause could outlaw Tor →
It would seem that one particular clause in the SOPA could make services like TOR (The Onion Router) quite illegal.
In my opinion, this whole SOPA deal is one big scary bundle of making the Internet a hyper-controlled information walk-path, rather than a information superhighway. I don’t harbor any illusions that anonymity is perfectly alive and well online, and this isn’t exactly...
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TheStreet: 5 Big Apple Releases to Expect in 2012 →
I like when people make summaries about what we can expect in the future for many reasons. This particular summary focuses on what we can expect Apple to release in 2012, which is appropriate given that 2012 is right around the corner.
There are just a few, small, things that kind of hurt my eyes when I read this article. Besides the horrible toolbar thingy that latches on to the bottom of the...
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Macworld: Apple reportedly buys Israeli SSD-maker... →
Yet another company with some very interesting technology got gobbled up by Apple. From what I can tell this could indeed lead to better and more reliable storage as well as larger storages spaces in future Apple products. Not a bad thing exactly. Do go read the article from Macworld for more of the nitty gritty stuff, but be prepared for a bit of a read.
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Macworld: Seagate, Western Digital slash hard... →
I can’t say I’m neither surprised nor happy about this. At least it seems like my personal favorite Western Digital hard drive series, the Scorpio Black, will continue having a five year warranty for the time being. I hope to abandon conventional hard drives as soon as possible!
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 5 →
Well would you look at that! I managed to get another episode up and this time I talk about Person Of The Year, according to Time Magazine and some things I found over on DigiTimes.
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Twitter for iOS 4.0
I was initially going to give Twitter for iOS 4.0 a bit more time to grow on me, but I have pretty much given up on that now. As I tweeted earlier, I just find myself cheating on twitter for iOS with my new favorite twitter app; Tweetbot.
Let me first off state that I have been using the official twitter app on my iPhone since it was first released and I have been pleased with how it worked. It...
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ZDNet: Internet BitTorrent Spies →
Regarding the YouHaveDownloaded site that popped up the other day, Steven J. Vaughan-Nicols does some really good explaining of the whole situation. Do go read it!
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Practically Efficient: Why I still use paper and... →
A very interesting read on how some quite old methods and devices can still be relevant today. Don’t underestimate the paper and the pen! I’m sure they will be around for quite some time to come.
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Junkyard Jumbotron →
A jumbotron that is essentially system agnostic, yet functional and clever in every single aspect? I would say that that is exactly what the Junkyard Jumbotron is and I urge you to go check it out if you are in the least bit interested in technology, art or just doing awesome things.
(Link goes to a video that explains the project)
[Via: Mikael Winterkvist, Macken]
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ZDNet: iPad 2 as a serious writing machine... →
Yet another interesting article about how to use the iPad as a writing machine and the benefits of using it as such a device. Like I have said so many times before, I’m growing more and more convinced I can live with only an iPad in the not too distant future.
[Via: Daring Fireball]
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Twine : Listen to your world, talk to the Internet →
For the first time in a long while I found an interesting project on Kickstarter. If you have ever wanted a dirt-easy way to get some sensor input for a project, but never been too good a programming, this might be right up your alley. It comes with an accelerometer and moisture sensor right out of the box and it can be expanded for more sensors if you need. A very cool project that I can see many...
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 4 →
Despite being a late-ish Friday evening, I had some green tea and managed to record another episode. Get it while it’s hot, should be in your favorite podcast fetching application shortly!
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Matt Gemmell: Low Expectations →
What can I say? Gemmell makes some excellent points and you owe it to yourself to read his article. Preferably also to spread it to more people, but that’s your choice.
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Wired.com: Nintendo's Miyamoto Stepping Down,... →
The phrasing is a bit odd in regards to what Miyamoto is actually going to do. As I see it, he is going from being an executive and supervisor to a director. You could call it going back to his roots, as this was more or less what he did in the first bunch of years after being hired at Nintendo.
Labeling it as a “stepping down” really gives you the impression that he is hanging up the...
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Engadget: Google's Eric Schmidt sees Google TV... →
It’s pretty vague to say “most” and give no real context, but I think I see where Schmidt is coming from. I would speculate that he and the Google folks are counting on a “iPad effect” to occur in the TV realm. What is that, I hear you ask? Allow me to elaborate a bit:
Well before the iPad was even announced we got a barrage of rumors flying around, all talking about...
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Wired: Could Playing Videogames Be a War Crime? →
I hate myself for linking to this article since it has such an obvious click-baiting headline. Basically the International Committee of the Red Cross is taking a look at video games, but not in the interest of making it a warcrime to play Battlefield or Gears of War. That would be silly. No, video-games are getting better in both audio and video but they are still not reality.
Seen as a training...
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M.I.C. Gadget: Unibody MacBook Air Knockoff Review →
We all know that many companies are inspired by Apple when they design their own products. Sometimes they take it a bit too far and it just becomes silly. But even despite that, most companies at least put some kind of effort into making their products their. This can not be said for the rip-off that is the AirBook.
No matter what way I choose to look at it, I just see a product that’s...
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Don't Be A Free User (Pinboard Blog) →
minimalmac:
What if a little site you love doesn’t have a business model? Yell at the developers! Explain that you are tired of good projects folding and are willing to pay cash American dollar to prevent that from happening. It doesn’t take prohibitive per-user revenue to put a project in the black. It just requires a number greater than zero.
So, today I recorded a future episode of the...
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Grand Theft Auto III: 10 Year Anniversary Edition... →
Rockstar Games has made the day official and it’s not long before we can once again wreak havoc in Liberty City, only this time it’s anywhere we bring our smartphone or tablet. The list of devices isn’t too surprising and I rather they draw some hard lines compared to have a bunch of gamers suffer over stuttering or inferior game experiences.
I’m still a bit worried about...
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Harry McCracken: How the iPad 2 Became My Favorite... →
Mr. McCracken has been featured here not too long ago, but now he has put out a whole article about what he really likes about the iPad. One of the more interesting pieces on the iPad that I have stumbled across lately. Definitely worth a read and there are some brilliant examples of when the device shines like nothing else. Do go check it out, it’s time well spent!
[Via: Lessien]
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 3 →
A new episode of The Streak Speaks is up, and it’s all about the Apple TV (set) this time! Go get it while it’s hot and toasty! (or just press ‘update’ in your favorite podcast fetching application)
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What Blag?: ‘Fuck You, Paypal’ →
Thinking about using PayPal to accept donations? I’d advice you to read this article by Chris Martucci first. Let’s just say that things don’t always pan out the way you would like.
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Attack vector Mac OS X →
Here is my latest article over on the brilliant Bagel Tech network. This time it’s all about computer security, more specifically on Mac OS X. Please go check it out and let me know what you think in the comments.
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iPhone Cases by Alisdair Binning →
I’m normally not a fan of iPhone cases, mostly because they just look far too garish for my taste. They add bulk and an ugliness factor I just can’t stand.
But as with all things, there are exceptions and these cases designed by Alisdair Binning are some excellent exceptions to that rule! The designs are clever and aesthetic, while very reasonably priced at the same time. Since...
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Macworld: Skype flaw reveals users' location,... →
I normally don’t keep Skype running for too long and now it seems like there are even more reasons to keep it that way. I don’t know the exact details, but somehow a security flaw in Skype can be exposed to find out an awful lot about you and what you are doing on your computer. Check out the Macworld article for a bit more information.
Luckily, Microsoft has reported that it is...
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Unofficial Port Of Adam Atomic's Canabalt Arrives... →
Something that might appeal to Mr. Rhone, who on the latest episode of Enough admitted that Canabalt is the one game he has on his iPhone.
Clever people have used their noggins and managed to create a Commodore 64 version of the famous game Canabalt. Utterly impressive and very cool to see what you can do with a 29 year old computer!
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The Streak Speaks - Episode 2 →
Just put up a new episode, all about an Apple rumor that popped up yesterday and has been haunting the Internet ever since.
As always, I would appreciate any and all feedback you care to share with me!
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chpwn blog: Carrier IQ is on iOS →
chpwn:
Carrier IQ, the now infamous “rootkit” or “keylogger”, is not just for Android, Symbian, BlackBerry, and even webOS. In fact, up through and including iOS 5, Apple has included a copy of Carrier IQ on the iPhone.
I think I’m supposed to be more surprised, but I’m not. When I heard of the Carrier IQ stuff I had a nasty feeling that this was available on all platforms,...