Bryen's Notebook

Apple announces Mountain Lion without a major press event

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:11:50 -0500

Apple announces Mountain Lion without a major press event:

John Gruber at Daring Fireball put together a great post on how Apple is changing things up with press interaction. In years past, we certainly would have seen the announcement of an operating system heralded by a major press event. Not so with their latest news of OS X Mountain Lion. Click the link above and read what John has to say about his personalized press event.

(via A Soldier’s IPod Is Found 6,000 Miles Away In Cone...

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 15:57:00 -0500

(via A Soldier’s IPod Is Found 6,000 Miles Away In Cone Hospital | digtriad.com)

Neat story about how a soldier’s lost iPod is found and returned. It’s nice to know there are still people out there doing the right thing.

laughingsquid: Mr. Happy Man, Documentary About A Man on a...

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 19:48:29 -0500

laughingsquid:

Mr. Happy Man, Documentary About A Man on a Mission to Spread Happiness One Motorist at a Time

I had a chance to see Mr. Barnes in person while visiting Bermuda. He actually is as well regarded by the people there as this video represents. His story is inspirational and well worth sharing.

The Real Reasons Apple Will Ship a 7-Inch iPad Mike Elgan,...

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 19:48:45 -0500

The Real Reasons Apple Will Ship a 7-Inch iPad
Mike Elgan, cultofmac.com

Samsung is going all-out to promote the Galaxy Note as the company’s new iPhone killer.
The now-famous Superbowl ad imagines a scenario in which iPhone fans waiting in line outside Apple stores for the next phone see a guy using a Galax…

Here’s a persuasive argument on why Apple will eventually roll out a 7-inch iPad. I remember when the party line was that Apple wasn’t going to get into ebooks - and we all know how that changed. So let’s hope a mid-sized iPad is really coming sooner rather than later.

Penguin Group Terminating Its Contract with OverDrive

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:50:59 -0500

Penguin Group Terminating Its Contract with OverDrive:

libraryjournal:

In a stunning development, Penguin Group has extricated itself from its contract with OverDrive, the primary supplier of ebooks to public libraries.

Starting February 10, Penguin, which had recently instituted limitations on library lending for ebooks and audiobooks, will now no longer offer any ebooks or audiobooks through OverDrive.

“Looking ahead, we are continuing to talk about our future plans for ebook and digital audiobook availability for library lending with a number of partners providing these services,” said Erica Glass, in a prepared statement.

Somebody That I Used to Know - Walk off the Earth (Gotye -...

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:50:10 -0500

Somebody That I Used to Know - Walk off the Earth (Gotye - Cover) (by walkofftheearth)

Just came across this video. Very cool.

Apple said to hold 'iPad 3' event first week in March

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:14:43 -0500

Apple said to hold ‘iPad 3’ event first week in March

By AppleInsider Staff
Published: 08:40 AM EST (05:40 AM PST)

—>

Apple will reportedly hold a media event the first week in March in San Francisco to unveil its third-generation iPad, which is expected to go on sale soon after it is unveiled.
Citing unnamed sources, AllThingsD reported on Thursday that Apple’s so-called “iPad 3” will debut at a special event to be held the first week in March. That means the next-generation tablet will be shown off in the next three to four weeks.
Author John Paczkowski said the device will be largely the same as rumors have suggested, with a high-resolution Retina Display in the range of 2,048-by-1,536 pixels along with a “much faster” processor and improved graphics processing.
Paczkowski also asked a source whether 2012 will be “the year of the iPad 3,” and they reportedly said, “what do you think?” Last year at the iPad 2 unveiling in March, Apple killed off rumors that a new iPad model would launch later in the year by declaring 2011 the “Year of iPad 2.”
Last year, the iPad 2 was unveiled at a media event at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts on Wednesday, March 2. Thursday’s rumor suggests that the new iPad will debut at a similar point in the year. The month of March kicks off on a Thursday in three weeks.
The rumored date comes as a flurry of pictures claim to show components for Apple’s third-generation iPad, including one that purports to be a high-resolution Retina Display manufactured by Sharp for the anticipated tablet’s 9.7-inch touchscreen. Separately, a pair of reports claim to show both the outside and inside of the device’s back panel, suggesting it will include space internally for a larger battery.

via appleinsider.com

I’m keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that this is the case. I was an early adopter of the original iPad, but skipped the iPad 2. Now I’m ready for an upgrade.

good: Most Americans Want a Walkable Neighborhood, Not a Big...

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:55:08 -0500

good:

Most Americans Want a Walkable Neighborhood, Not a Big House

The symbol of American success often involves having the biggest house possible, but our outsized fantasies seem to be shifting. It turns out most of us value nearby stores and parks rather than McMansions. Luckily, that’s probably where we’re headed.

Read it on GOOD→

Amazon nears deal with Viacom as it readies standalone video subscriptions

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:14:00 -0500

Amazon nears deal with Viacom as it readies standalone video subscriptions

By Josh Ong
Published: 11:30 PM EST (08:30 PM PST)
Amazon is reportedly close to finalizing a Web video licensing agreement with Viacom and is nearly ready to launch a standalone video subscription service that would challenge Netflix.
People familiar with the negotiations between Amazon and Viacom told Reuters that a deal could be announced as soon as this week. Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman teased last week that the company would announce a new online deal this week, but he declined to provide more details.

Amazon has already reached agreements with major studios including CBS, Warner Bros, Fox, Sony, NBC Universal and Walt Disney for its Prime Instant Video service, but the company is believed to have ambitions for a standalone service as well. People who have spoken with Amazon executives told the publication that the online retailer is looking to create a non-Prime video service to spur sales of the Kindle Fire tablet.

Multiple sources said Amazon is currently in negotiations with Hollywood studios to expand its licensing rights and add to its library. Though the company does compete with Apple’s iTunes to offer digital videos for purchase or rental, it is apparently also set on going after Netflix in the subscription video market.

The Kindle Fire arrived last November with a low $199 price tag. Amazon bundles a 30-day free trial of Amazon Prime with the tablet in hopes of drawing customers into its ecosystem. Prime costs $79 a year and offers customers free two-day shipping in the U.S. for most items in addition to access to video content.

The company relies heavily on content sales since the Fire is believed to be sold at a loss. Amazon’s net income declined by 57 percent last quarter even as Kindle sales shot up by 177 percent year over year. The company declines to provide specifics on how many Kindle devices it has sold, though it has indicated that sales are in the “millions of units.”

Analysts on average believe Amazon sold five million Kindle Fire units last quarter, though Sitfel NIcolaus’ Jordan Rohan estimated last month that the company shipped as many as six million during the period.

A recent survey revealed that 29 percent of Kindle Fire owners, which made up six percent of respondents, plan to spend more at Amazon over the next 90 days. That’s compared to an average of 20 percent of consumers. The company could, however, face problems with customer satisfaction, as the same survey showed that only 54 percent of Kindle Fire owners are “very satisfied” with the device, compared to 74 percent of iPad owners who answered a November survey.

Downloads of Amazon’s video offerings saw healthy growth last quarter after the Kindle Fire release. Instant video purchases or rentals more than doubled during the December quarter, while the number of Prime Instant Video streams jumped up almost 300 percent year over year, the company said last month.

For its part, rival Apple has reportedly been met with resistance in its own efforts to negotiate subscription streaming deals from Hollywood and TV studios. Last November, CBS executive Les Moonves revealed that he had rejected an “advertiser split” online streaming offer from Apple because it refused to enter into “success-based or non-guaranteed” agreements.

Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu said late last year that Apple hopes to offer content subscriptions with customized channel lineups, but licensing agreements for such a service have turned out to be “much more complicated” than current deals. Separately, Jefferies analyst Peter Misek said he believes Apple may choose to work with existing cable providers for its rumored connected television set. His claims gained some credibility soon after when The Globe and Mail reported that Canadian telecommunications companies Rogers and Bell Canada already have a prototype “iTV” in their labs.

via appleinsider.com

Okay, this is something that I could really get behind. As the owner of a Kindle Fire and a Roku box for streaming Amazon video to my TV, I could hop on board with an Amazon Video Subscription in a heartbeat. I’ve been using the free Amazon Prime instant videos for awhile now, but have often found myself wishing that there was a greater selection to choose from.

I recently cancelled my Netflix account out of frustration over their price changes and the lack of account management features. When you have streaming devices in a family context, you need a way to manage access to viewing history and basic parental controls would be nice. There is content that, while suitable for my wife or myself, I wouldn’t want younger children to have access to. Netflix doesn’t effectively implement a way to separate viewing history and reccomendations between parents and kids.

My wish for an Amazon subscription service would be competitive pricing and basic account management. If their past actions are any indication, I would say that competitive pricing is a given. Also, when it comes to providing recommendations Amazon currently provides a way to edit how past purchases are used. Let’s hope they follow through and incorporate that process into their video subscription service.

thedailywhat: RIP: Florence Green, believed to be the world’s...

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:43:14 -0500

thedailywhat:

RIP: Florence Green, believed to be the world’s last remaining WWI vet, passed away Saturday night in her sleep. She was 110.

Green, who served as an Officer’s Mess Steward in the Royal Air Force during the Great War, was less than two weeks shy of her 111th birthday.

The King’s Lynn, Norfolk resident joined up at age 17, two months before the armistice. Her daughter, June Evetts, says Green didn’t talk much about her time in the military, but was “proud of her service and loved the people she worked with.”

Last February, the United States lost its last surviving doughboy, Frank Buckles. Two months later, Claude Stanley Choules, the last living World War I combat veteran, passed away at 110.

[bbc.]

Save Your Mac’s iWork Documents Directly To iCloud Michael...

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:30:44 -0500

Save Your Mac’s iWork Documents Directly To iCloud
Michael Steeber, cultofmac.com

As of this point, the current version of iWork for Mac has absolutely no iCloud functionality, while the iOS version fully supports it. This tends to be frustrating when moving files around, as it makes what should be a straightforwa…

I can’t help but think that Apple will eventually get around to enabling this functionality directly into iWork on the Mac. In the mean time, this solution might prove useful.

Bookle brings ePub reading to the Mac Serenity Caldwell,...

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:06:39 -0500

Bookle brings ePub reading to the Mac
Serenity Caldwell, macworld.com

While reading ebooks on your iOS devices is fairly pleasant, thanks to Apple’s iBooks app, the company has yet to release any such program for the Mac. To fill this void, Tidbits Publishing and Stairways Software have collaborated t…

This is something I will need to check out. It has always seemed odd that Apple never came out with a desktop version of iBooks.

Review: Bluelounge Shell for iPad 2 Jim Gresham,...

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 09:22:57 -0500

Review: Bluelounge Shell for iPad 2
Jim Gresham, mactrast.com

There are plenty of ways to protect your iPad 2, but there are few great ways to safeguard your favorite iDevice… enter the Shell ($29.95, link). Created by Bluelounge, an award-winning design studio, the Shell is a hard snap-on cover for t…

This is just what I’m looking for in an iPad case. I’ll keep an eye on this and see if it is adapted for the iPad 3.

Apple Clarifies iBooks Author Licensing Situation in New Software Update

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:51:42 -0500

Apple Clarifies iBooks Author Licensing Situation in New Software Update:

I’m sure this clarification will be welcome news to anyone interested in using iBooks Author.

teachersworldwide: On the continent of Africa, the use of...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:10:00 -0500

teachersworldwide:

On the continent of Africa, the use of mobile technology and online content in various forms is gaining steam as a way to bypass some countries’ most significant education hurdles, including rural settings, limited electricity, and a lack of educational resources. Experts say mobile technology—whether cellphones, laptops, MP3 players, tablet computers, or e-readers—is likely to aid many African countries in making a leap in education that was impracticable not long ago. (via Education Week: Mobile Devices Address Tech. Equity in Africa)

Having spent an internship in East Africa, it is so exciting to see reports like this. Mobile technology provides the opportunity to make a considerable impact on education in this area. Hopefully, this trend will continue to grow.

cnbc: Apple iTV Coming Late This Year It’s almost time to line...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 12:14:08 -0500

cnbc:

Apple iTV Coming Late This Year

It’s almost time to line up at the Apple store, again. New evidence suggests that Apple iTV is coming soon.

Full Story

Photo: Getty Images

Saladin Ahmed's Blog

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:58:00 -0500

Saladin Ahmed's Blog:

Just saw that the author of the book I ordered had a blog. Click the link above to check it out.

Just pre-ordered “Throne of the Crescent Moon”...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:49:13 -0500

Just pre-ordered “Throne of the Crescent Moon” by Saladin Ahmed. Looks like an exciting fantasy read and should be arriving right when I finish up the book I’m currently working on.

nationalgeographicmagazine: Photo Gallery: A Photographer’s...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:46:43 -0500

nationalgeographicmagazine:

Photo Gallery: A Photographer’s Guide to iPhone Photo Apps
(from left to right, row by row; click on each photo for a larger view and caption with the iPhone app used)
● Art Deco Detail, Latvia (SynthCam) ● Billboard Poster, Poland (Pic Grunger) ● Fall Leaves, Cape Cod (TiltShift Generator) ● Mexican Restaurant, California (SuperPopCam) ● Neptune’s Fountain, Poland (Hipstamatic) ● Palm Tree, Lithuania (6x6) ● Portrait, Scandinavia (Plastic Bullet) ● Tivoli Gardens, Denmark (Adobe Photoshop Express) ● Still Life, Scandinavia (CameraBag) ●

Don't Hold Out For "Strange" February Event, iPad To Be Announced In March -- AppAdvice

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:02:00 -0500

Don’t Hold Out For “Strange” February Event, iPad To Be Announced In March

BY Joe White on Fri February 03rd, 2012 iPad 3

It’s hardly surprising to hear The Loop’s well-connected Jim Dalrymple note that, according to his sources, Apple isn’t planning on holding a “strange” event in February. Despite the oft-unreliable Macotakara’s claims of two events in two months (for February and March) – which we told you about yesterday – it would appear that Apple, as many originally expected, is looking to hold one single event in March, at which the iPad 3 will presumably be announced.

The tablet itself is expected to feature a quad-core processor, along with support for LTE, though nothing has been announced by Apple. The processor, we think, is a given; support for LTE is also likely – many thought this might launch with the fifth-generation iPhone, though AT&T did note that its first LTE iOS device would be the iPad 3, back in June last year. If this does happen, we can expect the iPhone 5 to follow suit later in the year.

As always, we’ll keep you posted.

via appadvice.com

This seems to be consistent with what I’m hearing from other places on the web. Guessing that the rumor mill is going to heat up all through February. It’s going to be fun watching how this all plays out.