July 2010
24 posts
Ars: Apple looking into slow iOS 4 performance on... →
Marco Arment:
And as soon as you plug either device into iTunes, if it doesn’t already have iOS 4, it prompts you to update to this OS that dramatically reduces performance of already-slow hardware
I would not describe the reduction in performance as ‘dramatic’. Worse, yes, but not dramatic. It is still a great device.
Marco Arment: The Kindle update →
I’ll have my iPhone for emergencies, but powered off to conserve its battery.
Airplane Mode conserves battery very well. I love this feature just for that. In fact, I put my iPhone in Airplane Mode every night. Power is saved but without the need for booting and shutting down.
I have not tested leaving the iPhone unused and in Airplane Mode for as long as six days but I expect any loss of...
More on Avoiding Mobile Carriers
I forgot to mention text messaging in my earlier post commenting on John Gruber’s iPhone 4 review. Read that before this.
It would be great if the standard iPhone Messages app would send messages over WiFi when possible. O2 charges me 10p per message, which can really add up. I should think it is needless to say that I would also like to be able to receive new messages via Apple’s push...
Old Article: John Gruber’s iPhone 4 Review →
This is very late but I have comments on two bits from John Gruber’s iPhone 4 Review at Daring Fireball.
First, where he quotes his iPhone 3G review:
Apple sometimes seems to be the lone consumer electronics company that pays any attention at all to the tactile response of buttons.
Nintendo pays a lot of attention. Probably the other games console producers as well but Nintendo definitely...
YouTube and Web Apps on iOS
Earlier this month, Google released a new version of the YouTube mobile site. (Blog post and video)
First a screen shot of something that amused me with the YouTube web app.
I am not really valid to comment on how the app compares to the built in Apple-made YouTube iOS app since I don’t use use YouTube interactively. I just watch videos that are linked to from other sources.
I want to...
Kottke: Phone etiquette →
Using a phone for an unrelated task when talking to someone is rude.
It is also inefficient multitasking.
Minimal Mac: Of Mice and Magic →
I even have a use case for one [a Magic Trackpad] – My media center is an iMac and, due to its station on a shelf, there is just not enough travel room for a mouse.
I can’t quite picture what this setup looks like but it sparked thoughts of using a computer on a TV screen from a chair or sofa. I agree that a trackpad is better suited to this situation than a mouse as you do not need a...
Magic Trackpad →
Apple releases a trackpad for desktop Macs, and then there are people like me who buy mice to use with MacBooks. Is the choice good? I really don’t know; I find mice so much better for moving the cursor compared to trackpads.
Reeder for iPhone takes on the iPad style
The latest version of Reeder for iPhone uses the black rather than light status bar, with rounded corners on the navigation bar just like the iPad. This style suits Reeder very well.
YouTube — iOS 4.0 on iPhone 3G →
John Gruber’s comment:
It’s a lot funnier if you have an iPhone 3GS or 4.
It is funny, but for me it’s funny because it’s true. That Safari performance is very typical.
Ars Technica: Apple responds to Congress, swears... →
Since iOS 3.2, however, Apple has used its own database of known cell tower and WiFi hotspot locations to assist in determining a particular device’s location, especially for devices that lack separate GPS hardware.
That explains how they know where my Time Capsule is even though it’s wireless network is closed, encrypted and transmits at low power. The ‘spy’ is an insider,...
Mac OS X Utilities folder →
minimalmac:
When was the last time you checked out your Utilities folder? Well, if you answer was “What’s that?” then let me explain. Inside of your Applications folder is another folder called Utilities that is filled with a sorts of wondrous things that most people either don’t know or completely forget is there. Even veteran Mac users are guilty of this. I know I am.
...
Looks, Physical Design and Technical Advantages
Nokia statement via Engadget:
we prioritize antenna performance over physical design if they are ever in conflict
Does this statement confuse physical design — an immensely broad term — with appearance?
John Gruber seems to think so, based on his comment:
Judging by how their phones look, must be a lot of conflicts.
The iPhone 4’s external aerial not about looks. It provides many...
Are You Using a Broken Tool? | Bridging the Nerd... →
On looking for better tools:
these alternate tools aren’t within arms reach when it’s time to make the biscuits. Software is the same way: sometimes we’ll use a tool that brings us nothing but pain and we know alternatives exist — we just don’t take the time to find them and make them work
Lots of examples come to mind, but there are probably more weak tools I use and have not spotted.
...
The Holy Grail Of Ubiquitous Plain-Text Capture |... →
minimalmac:
Ubiquitous capture — that is, the ability to snag any thought or idea any time and anywhere it happens to crop up — is a key component to nearly every productivity philosophy. You want to capture those fleeting ideas before they’re gone, and you don’t want to waste brain power obsessing over remembering it until you can write it down somewhere. Below, I’ll walk you through the best...
Moving Email Messages Between Accounts on iOS 4
I only noticed this in iOS 4 but it might have been there before.
There is a back button labelled ‘Accounts’ when in the move message mode in Mail. This allows moving messages to mailboxes on other accounts. This strikes me as a very advanced feature for a pocket sized device.
On another note, I think the explanatory text shown at the top is poorly worded. It reads “Move this message to a new...
URLs in User Interfaces
With iOS, the file system exists as an interface for developers and not for users. I believe that URLs should go the same way and we should accelerate this process where we can.
There are examples of ‘normal users’ not understanding URLs, such as the ‘facebook login’ disaster on ReadWriteWeb and other sites. Generally, I think that URLs are unsightly, hard to remember, slow to type and easy to...
The Bullet on the iOS 4 Keyboard
In iOS 4, the bullet (•) has been added to the hold press list for the hyphen. This matches the iPad keyboard.
The bullet is also available on the right side of the secondary punctuation keyboard as in previous versions of the iPhone OS.
The result is that iOS 4 on the iPhone is consistent with both the iPad and iPhone of the past, but now has a character available from two places on the...
Small Observations on iOS 4
Time can now be set automatically. It determines the time zone automatically as well. This is very welcome. No need to worry about not being able to set time to second accuracy, which always bothered me.
Most of the built-in app icons look redrawn. Not Stocks though. The clouds on Mail looked different to me and I have not noticed South America being so clear on Safari. Overall, I think the...
Early Impressions of iOS 4 Performance on my...
I am finding the performance of iOS 4 noticeably worse than OS 3.1.1
I often come across delays where there should not be delays. This is not entirely new: it happened with past versions of the OS but nowhere near so often.
When the phone is locked, there is sometimes a delay between pressing the home or lock button and when the screen comes on. Also screen often freezes for up to about three...
Status Update
No posts for quite a long time. I have been busy and it did not help that I had no Internet connection on my Mac or iPhone.
I am now in Germany. I’ll be working here for a few weeks this summer.
Well, when I said no posts, there was this one. I wrote that on the flight over; I was using ‘Airplane Mode’ for its main purpose for once. Then I had no Internet connection for about eight days while...
