Steve Jobs announced the iPhone development platform at last week's Worldwide Developer Conference to sighs of disappointments. Mac developers were anxious to develop new applications for the the most anticipated consumer electronics device in years, only to be told they should code fancy websites instead. The 9-minute iPhone development demonstration during the WWDC keynote was a bit confusing for anyone new to Apple widget development. In this post I'll break down a few Apple widget components, transport you to the iPhone development world, and explain a few restrictions and lock-downs common in the mobile phone industry. Dashboard under the…
Today marked the end of Apple Computer after 30 years. The company has come a long way from kit computers assembled in a garage, capitalizing on at least one eureka moment a decade that causes people to rethink the intersection of cutting edge hardware and software. The release of the Mac in 1984 combined the best available hardware with commercial software utilizing the best ideas developed at Apple and research labs such as Xerox PARC. The release of the iMac in 1998 changed consumer views on personal computing, adding a colorful and quiet device to our desktops, placing an…
Google CEO Eric Schmidt is now an Apple Computer board member. He joins Fred Anderson of Elevation Partners, Bill Campbell of Intuit, Millard Drexler of J. Crew, Genentech CEO Arthur Levinson, politician Al Gore, and Jerry York of Harwinton Capital. The group was already interconnected outside of the Apple boardroom. Al Gore is a Google advisor and Google invested in Current TV, Gore's television station. Bill Campbell was an early management advisor to Larry Page and Sergey Brin and helped hire Eric Schmidt. Arthur Levinson is on Google's Board of Directors. Are closer times ahead for these two powerful brands?…
Apple is looking for ways to cut down on wait times at its stores' checkout lines and roaming WiFi-enabled processing stations in the hands of each employee may be the answer. The same employee helping you pick out the right set of headphones for your iPod can scan product barcodes and take payments via credit card right on the spot. Your receipt will sent to you via e-mail just in case you need to make a return or file an expense report. The handheld devices Apple uses in its store are powered by Windows. More information is available in…
Nike teamed up with Apple to offer new products and services combined with the iPod nano. The new partnership will include electronics, clothing, and online services for people who like to listen to music while working out. Apple claims 50% of iPod owners use their music players during a workout. The new campaign is called Nike+ and features community and social networking components. The first product is the Nike+iPod Sport Kit, a $29 accessory connecting your shoe and your iPod. Runners can place a small sensor under their shoe insole and connect a receiver to their iPod nano to…
Tony Fadell helped develop handheld devices for General Magic and Philips. Tony had a vision of a portable MP3 player complemented by an online music store. His startup, Fuse, couldn't get VC financing to build the product. He shopped the idea around to big companies such as Real Networks and only one company decided to experiment with his idea, hiring Tony as a contractor to build a prototype in two months. The first review on Slashdot in October 2001 called the product "lame" and "not very exciting" for lacking wireless and a bigger hard drive. The product idea became the…
Disney just announced the acquisition of Pixar for about $7.4 billion. 2.3 Disney shares will be exchanged for every Pixar share, including the shares of Pixar's largest shareholder, Steve Jobs, who owns 50.6% of all outstanding shares. Jobs joins the Disney board of directors as part of the deal which is expected to close this summer. Tags: disneypixarstevejobs…
I arrived at the Apple Store in downtown San Francisco today right before the first shipment of iPod nanos arrived via FedEx. I had to wait a little while, but I am now the proud owner of an iPod nano 4 GB in black. I already have a 1GB iPod shuffle but my biggest frustration was not being able to see what I was going. I would often load my iPod shuffle with just a few tracks — podcasts at the beginning followed by music — to avoid not knowing where anything was. My shuffle barely ever contained over…
Would you like to get your hands on the latest Apple product as soon as it hits your local Apple Store? You can go online at the store or from anywhere in the world to reserve a product when it becomes available.
Apple released the Mac mini and the iPod shuffle at this morning's MacWorld Expo keynote address. The Mac mini is available for $500 in an anodized aluminum enclosure housing a 1.25GHz G4 processoor, 40 GB hard drive, 256 MB of RAM, slot-loading Combo Drive, and ATI Radeon 9200 graphics card with dedicated memory. The iPod shuffle is available in 512 MB and 1 GB flavors for $100 and $150 respectively. The music player has no display and doubles as a USB data stick. The new iTunes Autofill feature should be very interesting for loading up the latest podcasts. What is…
Apple has posted a support document to help users pick up and carry their iMac G5. Before moving your computer, make sure all cables and cords are disconnected. Pick up the iMac G5 by grasping both sides of the computer. Carry it to wherever you wish….
Apple announced the new 17″ and 20″ G5 iMac this morning. 1.6GHz or 1.8GHz PowerPC G5, widescreen LCD, and a NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra graphics card. This computer is just what the "it just works" families have been waiting for. I know this computer will make my parents happy and cut down on a lot of office clutter. Add a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse for a complete wireless experience you can tuck in a drawer when not in use. The biggest issue Apple needs to overcome is the price difference over a starter Dell. I priced a Dell…
Jon Lech Johnasen, Mr. DeCSS, discovered Apple's public key for Airport Express audio streaming. He also released JustePort, a command line utility to stream MPEG-4 Apple Lossless files to an Airport Express. The stream is encrypted with AES and the AES key is encrypted with RSA….
Motorola and Apple announced a partnership to transfer songs from iTunes to a Motorola phone via a USB or Bluetooth connection. Before Steve Jobs made the announcement Ed Zander held up an iPod and a Motorola phone and said "It would be great if we could just figure out a way to bring these two devices together." The start of something bigger?…
I just sold my Compaq TC1000 Tablet PC and bought a 1.5Ghz 15-inch PowerBook. So far I am satisfied with my purchase. I wanted a computer to hold all of my work. I had a Tablet and a desktop machine and I was never sure which one had the data I needed. A desktop replacement laptop seemed like the perfect response. Size matters. The TC1000 has a 10.4-inch screen. The quality of the screen is a bit cloudy, a result of protecting the surface from pen scratches. I wanted a bigger screen. Choosing an OS. My desktop PC is…
Alex Salkever of Business Week would like to see an iPod IPO. For Apple, the best move right now is to spin out iPod and pocket the cash, because Wall Street's current euphoria marks the market's peak. Although Apple would be loath to admit it, digital music players are on the verge of commoditization….
Pepsi drinkers had a one in three chance of winning a free iTunes download, but only 5% of all winners redeemed their winning code, according to News.com….
Wired author Leander Kahney now has an Apple blog, Cult of Mac available in Wired's Web space. Should be a good way to promote his new book, The Cult of Mac published by No Starch Press, due in September….
