It's no secret that Apple has dominated the headlines in computing over the last several years, earning new devotees through consumer-aimed offerings like the iPod, iTunes and the iPhone. Whether purposeful or not, gradually or suddenly, Macs have now roared into the business world, with the user-friendly, intuitive capabilities that appeal to home users demonstrating themselves to be very applicable within the enterprise. Macs also afford freedom and flexibility that's not available with a PC -- the ability to use nearly any operating system, be it OS X, Windows or even Linux.
iPhone Software 3.0 may offer voice control, dialing - report
A new report is backing rumors of Voice Dialing support inside betas of Apple's iPhone 3.0 Software but adds that capability may be just one of several features included in a new Voice Services framework that may also facilitate voice control of the new OS.
AT&T update their 3G networks
AT&T announced that they are updating their 3G networks in order to increase their maximum data flow from 3,6 to 7,2 Mbits/s. This advertisement is not innocent, since the rumours state that the new iPhone expected in June will reach these data flows.
In France, the operators already use the HSUPA standard at 7,2 Mbits/s. So, hopefully one should be able to profit from the next generation of Apple iPhones.
End users, developers seen flocking to iPhone apps on wide scale
A mobile analytics firm has published new findings which show the iPhone taking the majority of the app market -- especially when it comes to the sheer number of users.
Voice dialing coming to iPhone 3.0
Voice dailing (and more) is coming to the iPhone with the OS 3.0 update. Users will not only be able to control the phone by speaking — it will talk back as well.
According to a report from Ars Technica’s Chris Foresman, the new features, code-named “Jibbler,” will be incorporated as enhancements to the SpringBoard app launcher program. Jibbler might be activated by squeezing the iPhone’s headset button and holding it while speaking. When released, the device will attempt to interpret what was said (i.e. “Call Mom”).
The phone will also likely include the same voice synthesis technology found in the new iPod shuffle, either by giving the user an auditory response — “Calling Mom” — or by “reading” data like CD track names back to the user. While the iPod shuffle’s voice prompts are pre-recorded the by the host computer, the iPhone would have the hardware muscle to render voices in real time.
None of these features would require new hardware, so they may just be one of the (probably many) unannounced features of the upcoming iPhone OS update. Ars also found some hooks in the iPhone’s code for accessing Jibbler, so these features may eventually be opened up to developers as well. Voice recognition features are already present in Google’s Search app, albeit handled by a third-party server, so there would certainly be a demand for voice capabilities from developers.
(Via Gizmodo.)
Apple to report second quarter earnings on Wednesday
Apple following the close of the stock market on Wednesday will report results of its fiscal second quarter of 2009 ended March. Bullish Cross analyst and AppleInsider contributor Andy Zaky is readjusting his outlook on Apple to a view that is more commensurate with the increasingly bleak economic environment.
Oracle Acquires Sun
Sun was desperately looking for a buyer, and recently IBM was identified as the potential candidate. However, the price asked by Sun was considered too high by the computer giant, making it run away from 6.5 billion USD deal. Yesterday Oracle announced that it will swallow Sun for an even higher price, 7.4 billion USD cash. Both companies had a very different interest in Sun. IBM could have dropped all Sun's server divisions to only concentrate on its cloud computing technologies, Java and Solaris solutions. For Oracle, a purely software companies dedicated to database management and solutions, Sun brings additional tools while providing a hardware expansion. So, for Oracle this acquisition looks more as a strategic move and integration than for IBM for which it was kind of swallowing a competitor. Oracle CEO Larry Ellison made it clear in a public statement: "Oracle will be the only company that can engineer an integrated system where all the pieces fit and work together so customers do not have to do it themselves. Our customers benefit as their systems integration costs go down while system performance, reliability and security go up". Beyond those words, let's see how Oracle will digest such acquisition and what type of synergy can really be generated.
Full text from "Legal Copy" ad isn't quite PC-specific
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, OS, Retail, Odds and ends, Apple
You've probably seen all of the new Get a Mac ads we posted about on Sunday, and if you haven't yet, go ahead and watch them now. We'll wait. Just let us know when you're back, we'll be playing a little Zen Bound. Done? If you saw the Legal Copy ad, you know that's the one where as PC makes crazy and crazier statements about PC reliability, the screen fills up with unreadable legal copy. Unreadable, that is, if you're watching on a computer, and not so much if you're watching on a huge HDTV.And so yes, MacJournals has actually retrieved and reprinted all of the text that appears in that ad. When Hodgman says "PCs are 100% trouble free," there is a long paragraph about how computers are targeted by spyware and malware, and how you have to install software drivers if you want to use any peripherals, how PC users should back up their systems, and how if they are not under warranty, they are not guaranteed a refund or replacement.
But wait a minute, says MDJ, don't those last few notes apply to Macs as well? Are Mac users able to avoid requiring backups, and is Apple trying to say that even after their warranties expire, they'll be giving out refunds and replacements (actually, they sometimes do that, though it's definitely not guaranteed)? Still, if the PC faithful wanted to nitpick -- and where exactly are the PC faithful these days, again? -- there's definitely plenty of nitpicking to do here. It seems like Apple needed to fill out the text for the joke of the ad, but it's too bad they couldn't just stick with PC problems (and there are plenty of those) rather than include some common computer issues in there as well.
[via Aulia Mastna]
TUAWFull text from "Legal Copy" ad isn't quite PC-specific originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone. What's the deal?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch
Rarely has an iPhone/iPod touch app seen so many ups and downs. People have expected Sling Media to provide a version of their streaming video player for Apple since the iPhone first launched, but it has yet to materialize. In January, Sling demonstrated a beta of SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone at Macworld and created a flurry of excitement.
Three weeks ago Sling announced with a great deal of fanfare that the app had been submitted to the App Store, but so far, all we're hearing are crickets...
Earlier this month AT&T changed its published Terms of Service to directly prohibit apps like SlingPlayer Mobile from operating on the AT&T network. After a major meltdown from AT&T customers, all the carrier could say was "whoops, we didn't mean it -- that was a mistake".
Last week, an anonymous tipster with a dubious domain told TUAW that he worked for Apple and stated that the company was going to reject the app because AT&T couldn't support the bandwidth demands. Of course, carriers do support the SlingPlayer on other phones, including the BlackBerry and several Windows Mobile phones.
So, here we are, more than three weeks after SlingPlayer Mobile was submitted to the app store, and there's still nothing. Nada. Bupkis. Zlich. In the meantime, Sling Media has alienated many Slingbox owners by intimating that a lot of their older gear won't work with the iPhone app when (or if) it is released.
Continue reading SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone. What's the deal?
TUAWSlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone. What's the deal? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Mac Enterprise Apps and the Evolution of Open Source
It's no secret that Apple has dominated the headlines in computing over the last several years, earning new devotees through consumer-aimed offerings like the iPod, iTunes and the iPhone. Whether purposeful or not, gradually or suddenly, Macs have now roared into the business world, with the user-friendly, intuitive capabilities that appeal to home users demonstrating themselves to be very applicable within the enterprise. Macs also afford freedom and flexibility that's not available with a PC -- the ability to use nearly any operating system, be it OS X, Windows or even Linux.iPhone Software 3.0 may offer voice control, dialing - report
A new report is backing rumors of Voice Dialing support inside betas of Apple's iPhone 3.0 Software but adds that capability may be just one of several features included in a new Voice Services framework that may also facilitate voice control of the new OS.
AT&T update their 3G networks
AT&T announced that they are updating their 3G networks in order to increase their maximum data flow from 3,6 to 7,2 Mbits/s. This advertisement is not innocent, since the rumours state that the new iPhone expected in June will reach these data flows.
In France, the operators already use the HSUPA standard at 7,2 Mbits/s. So, hopefully one should be able to profit from the next generation of Apple iPhones.
End users, developers seen flocking to iPhone apps on wide scale
A mobile analytics firm has published new findings which show the iPhone taking the majority of the app market -- especially when it comes to the sheer number of users.
Voice dialing coming to iPhone 3.0
Voice dailing (and more) is coming to the iPhone with the OS 3.0 update. Users will not only be able to control the phone by speaking — it will talk back as well.
According to a report from Ars Technica’s Chris Foresman, the new features, code-named “Jibbler,” will be incorporated as enhancements to the SpringBoard app launcher program. Jibbler might be activated by squeezing the iPhone’s headset button and holding it while speaking. When released, the device will attempt to interpret what was said (i.e. “Call Mom”).
The phone will also likely include the same voice synthesis technology found in the new iPod shuffle, either by giving the user an auditory response — “Calling Mom” — or by “reading” data like CD track names back to the user. While the iPod shuffle’s voice prompts are pre-recorded the by the host computer, the iPhone would have the hardware muscle to render voices in real time.
None of these features would require new hardware, so they may just be one of the (probably many) unannounced features of the upcoming iPhone OS update. Ars also found some hooks in the iPhone’s code for accessing Jibbler, so these features may eventually be opened up to developers as well. Voice recognition features are already present in Google’s Search app, albeit handled by a third-party server, so there would certainly be a demand for voice capabilities from developers.
(Via Gizmodo.)
Apple to report second quarter earnings on Wednesday
Apple following the close of the stock market on Wednesday will report results of its fiscal second quarter of 2009 ended March. Bullish Cross analyst and AppleInsider contributor Andy Zaky is readjusting his outlook on Apple to a view that is more commensurate with the increasingly bleak economic environment.
Oracle Acquires Sun
Sun was desperately looking for a buyer, and recently IBM was identified as the potential candidate. However, the price asked by Sun was considered too high by the computer giant, making it run away from 6.5 billion USD deal. Yesterday Oracle announced that it will swallow Sun for an even higher price, 7.4 billion USD cash. Both companies had a very different interest in Sun. IBM could have dropped all Sun's server divisions to only concentrate on its cloud computing technologies, Java and Solaris solutions. For Oracle, a purely software companies dedicated to database management and solutions, Sun brings additional tools while providing a hardware expansion. So, for Oracle this acquisition looks more as a strategic move and integration than for IBM for which it was kind of swallowing a competitor. Oracle CEO Larry Ellison made it clear in a public statement: "Oracle will be the only company that can engineer an integrated system where all the pieces fit and work together so customers do not have to do it themselves. Our customers benefit as their systems integration costs go down while system performance, reliability and security go up". Beyond those words, let's see how Oracle will digest such acquisition and what type of synergy can really be generated.
Full text from "Legal Copy" ad isn't quite PC-specific
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, OS, Retail, Odds and ends, Apple
You've probably seen all of the new Get a Mac ads we posted about on Sunday, and if you haven't yet, go ahead and watch them now. We'll wait. Just let us know when you're back, we'll be playing a little Zen Bound. Done? If you saw the Legal Copy ad, you know that's the one where as PC makes crazy and crazier statements about PC reliability, the screen fills up with unreadable legal copy. Unreadable, that is, if you're watching on a computer, and not so much if you're watching on a huge HDTV.And so yes, MacJournals has actually retrieved and reprinted all of the text that appears in that ad. When Hodgman says "PCs are 100% trouble free," there is a long paragraph about how computers are targeted by spyware and malware, and how you have to install software drivers if you want to use any peripherals, how PC users should back up their systems, and how if they are not under warranty, they are not guaranteed a refund or replacement.
But wait a minute, says MDJ, don't those last few notes apply to Macs as well? Are Mac users able to avoid requiring backups, and is Apple trying to say that even after their warranties expire, they'll be giving out refunds and replacements (actually, they sometimes do that, though it's definitely not guaranteed)? Still, if the PC faithful wanted to nitpick -- and where exactly are the PC faithful these days, again? -- there's definitely plenty of nitpicking to do here. It seems like Apple needed to fill out the text for the joke of the ad, but it's too bad they couldn't just stick with PC problems (and there are plenty of those) rather than include some common computer issues in there as well.
[via Aulia Mastna]
TUAWFull text from "Legal Copy" ad isn't quite PC-specific originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone. What's the deal?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch
Rarely has an iPhone/iPod touch app seen so many ups and downs. People have expected Sling Media to provide a version of their streaming video player for Apple since the iPhone first launched, but it has yet to materialize. In January, Sling demonstrated a beta of SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone at Macworld and created a flurry of excitement.
Three weeks ago Sling announced with a great deal of fanfare that the app had been submitted to the App Store, but so far, all we're hearing are crickets...
Earlier this month AT&T changed its published Terms of Service to directly prohibit apps like SlingPlayer Mobile from operating on the AT&T network. After a major meltdown from AT&T customers, all the carrier could say was "whoops, we didn't mean it -- that was a mistake".
Last week, an anonymous tipster with a dubious domain told TUAW that he worked for Apple and stated that the company was going to reject the app because AT&T couldn't support the bandwidth demands. Of course, carriers do support the SlingPlayer on other phones, including the BlackBerry and several Windows Mobile phones.
So, here we are, more than three weeks after SlingPlayer Mobile was submitted to the app store, and there's still nothing. Nada. Bupkis. Zlich. In the meantime, Sling Media has alienated many Slingbox owners by intimating that a lot of their older gear won't work with the iPhone app when (or if) it is released.
Continue reading SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone. What's the deal?
TUAWSlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone. What's the deal? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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