Category: Apple, Technology — Chuck @ 12:03 pm
Here’s a summary of the apps I’ve tried on my iPhone. I’ll keep this list updated as my experience evolves.
Purchased Apps
Super Monkey Ball ($9.99) - A clever game with amazing graphics. The control of the game (tilting the surface on which the monkey ball rolls) is done by tilting the device, using the accelerometer. I need a lot of practice, but I’m sure I’ll get it.
Enigmo ($9.99) - Another interesting game that consists of directing the flow of water droplets. This one is drag-and-drop rather than accelerometer, but it is fun.
Free Apps
AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) - This is a great IM client that partly replaces the need for costly SMS messages. I look forward to this becoming a standard.
AOL Radio - Sure… I could listen to music loaded from iTunes or carry an old-fashioned pocket radio, but this is a handy alternative with lots of radio choices.
Break - a game like breakout. I haven’t played it much yet, but it works well.
Bubbles - drag your finger around on the screen and bubbles appear along the path.
Google Mobile App - handy access to Google. I’m not sure if I’ll use this since the search is built into the browser, but it’s free, so I’ll give it a try.
Movies - When you need information about what movies are showing where, this is handy. It also provides quick access to IMDB.
PhoneSaber - This is a silly-but-fun application that displays a light saber and when you swing the phone around it makes sounds that Darth Vader would be proud of.
Remote - a handy replacement for the remote control hardware that Apple includes with its media devices (AppleTV and computers).
SnapMyLife - I loaded this, but I haven’t used it yet. I believe it is a way to photo-record your experiences, associating the photos with your location.
Twitteriffic - the great Twitter client made by the IconFactory. I use the Mac client and, not surprisingly, it feels just right on the iPhone if not better because I can report what I’m doing no matter where I am.
Urban Spoon - A fun restaurant finder with a Jackpot-style interface. Within a metro area, you have three criteria - all of which can be random or locked: geographic area, type of food, and price group. You spin the unlocked wheels and see which restaurant it yields. If you don’t like what it gives you, keep on spinning.
VoiceNotes - a voice recorder. I haven’t used it yet, but it seems like I might.
Yes|No Free - the equivalent of a coin-toss. I doubt I’ll keep this, but I want to hang on to it long enough to use it next time I need to decide about calling a poker bet.
YPmobile - a nice Yellow Pages client. I’m glad that AT&T did a good job with this one. I was scared that we wouldn’t have any apps ready for the initial release.
Zenbe Lists - a handy way to maintain lists. It’s perfect for to-do and grocery lists. The online version is just right for updating via the computer and easily syncs with the iPhone client. The interface is well-designed. I added this one to the main row of my iPhone because I want quick access to it.
Removed Apps
I’ve downloaded these apps and given them a try, but decided they weren’t what I needed. So far, all of them are free, so there’s no loss other than time.
Evernote - I thought this would be my note and list manager. It is accompanied by an client application for the computer. Both clients have an awkward interface and it may be good at maintaining complex information, but it is not easy with simple lists. Basic notes are hard to read, for example. The syncing is good, but it all comes down to interface and Zenbe is better. I haven’t yet removed the client from my computer, so I might give it another try.
reQall - This was my second try for a note/list manager, but I can’t quite figure out if its role is to help you keep up with stuff or to improve your natural memory.
Loopt - this app maintains your location and communicates it to other applications. Unfortunately, it does so through SMS and that’s just not practical.
Whrrl - this app lets you share your location with others, but the interface was not clear. I’m not sure if there was a problem in my area, but it never seemed to reflect my location.
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Category: Apple, Technology — Chuck @ 8:48 pm
Lots of my iPhone-carrying friends are on the fence about upgrading to the new 3G iPhone. I have one of the “old” iPhones and I am planning on getting a new one, but it’s not because mine is lacking in features. The free software upgrade and access to many new applications have made the old models new.
The App Store is a very convenient system for software distribution. Some people might complain that Apple is maintaining too tight a grip on the market, but I don’t mind. It’s nice to feel confident that the apps aren’t corrupted with problems that will damage my device. Apple takes a cut from the profit made on the apps, but it’s amazing how many free ones are available. Most of the apps that I’ve downloaded didn’t cost me a cent.
So why I am I still planning on getting a new iPhone? It’s because I’m going to give my existing one to Lexie.
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Category: Home Stuff — Chuck @ 7:16 pm
We had a nice rain today and the yard was thankful. After it completed, Lexie and I stepped out onto the back porch to take in the rich green beauty of the cool damp yard. Lexie looked over at the back of the house and noticed something odd. There were lots of little things on the wall. She pointed them out to me and we realized there were millions of millipedes. Actually hundreds is more accurate, but they were millipedes.
I had my iPhone with me, so I took some photos. The millipedes are hard to see so you might need to click on the thumbnails so you can look closely at the full size versions.
This is the view looking down from the back porch:
To get a closer look, I went down to ground level and took a shot through the bushes:
This is the first time we’ve ever seen this. I wonder if it will be the last.
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Category: Entertainment — Chuck @ 11:11 pm
My friend Robb and I went to see M. Night Shyamalan’s new movie, “The Happening.” I think this was the most disappointing movie I have seen at a theater in my adult life. Granted, I don’t go out to see many movies these days thanks to Netflix and other entertainment sources, but I felt confident that a movie from Shyamalan would be worth the effort - and the ten bucks. Boy, was I wrong.
I was disappointed for multiple reasons. If you’ve seen the previews, you’ve seen all the interesting parts. There’s a slow, pitiful plot that has those scenes inserted into it. The performance from Wahlberg wasn’t terrible. It wasn’t great, but that didn’t really matter. It wasn’t enough to make up for the empty story.
– Spoiler Alert (although that’s not saying much) –
The way the story goes, the self-mutilative and suicidal behavior of the people is caused by something in the wind… some sort of neurotoxin given off by plants. No one knows why, but there are theories that it could come from nuclear reactors or the government. There’s even a reference to the decrease in the honey-bee population.
A few months after the happening, a scientist is being interviewed and suggests that it was nature sending a warning to the humans. The interviewer points out how odd it was that the event was limited to one portion of the country and that folks might be willing to believe it was such a warning if it had occurred in at least one other location. The movie ends with a scene in Paris in which we see the beginning of another “happening.”
Robb and I just looked at each other and grumbled. Apparently, Shyamalan has become a messenger for the environmental cause. This movie could have been co-written by Al Gore. It’s not as though I don’t care about the planet, but I expected a Hitchcock-esque move complete with an unpredictable twist at the end. The only surprise at the end was that there was no surprise.
I have to say that Shyamalan has lost my respect. I think that many others will join me in doubting his work from this point forward. What a shame.
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Category: Apple, Technology — Chuck @ 11:02 am
Next week there will be two conferences offered by a couple of big names in the computer industry.
One of them is the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference. You’ve probably heard about this. After all, it is sold out. On Monday’s keynote speech, Steve Jobs will be announcing something big. Rumors all seem to agree that it will include the next version of the iPhone - potentially a 3G version, maybe with GPS.
But as Michael Gartenberg points out, the important part of the conference is not the announcement of the new phone hardware, but the updated OS, available for all iPhones old and new, that provides a software development platform. This has attracted developers that, previously would never have considered developing for the Macintosh platform. This platform has established the iPhone and iPod as mobile Apple computers. Personally, I can’t wait to see what the future holds for the iPhone, the Mac* and even AppleTV.
Oh, yeah… What’s the other conference I referred to? That would be the Microsoft IT Professionals Conference. You didn’t know about that one? You haven’t read everyone blogging about that? Doesn’t Microsoft control the industry?
Lexie and I were discussing the disparity between the contributions Microsoft and Apple. While Microsoft certainly has the OS market share, no one gets excited about their announcements. Compare this to Apple, whose announcements are far more likely to be revolutionary. I’m not so much of a fanboy that I think Apple is perfect, but I do recognize the positive impact of their products.
* At the WWDC, the banners display “OS X Leopard” without “Mac” so it looks like the Apple may be planning to use “Mac” to define the desktop and laptop hardware with “OS X Leopard” on it, but expand “OS X” to also encompass the OS of phones and TV.
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Category: Home Stuff — Chuck @ 7:19 am
Today - Wednesday, May 21 - I’ll celebrate the best thing that’s ever happened in my life: my marriage to Lexie. This is our fourteenth anniversary.
Why it is that she would have me fourteen years ago and continues to put up with me to this day I don’t know, but I sure am glad. I have loved her all along and I know I always will.
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Category: Home Stuff — Chuck @ 8:50 am
Welcome (back) to FreedomMind.
I’ve finally upgraded my blog. The old version was served with Movable Type on my ten-year-old Mac G3 but I figured it was time to upgrade. I’ve replaced the hardware with a G4 and the software with Wordpress.
I’m starting fresh because I couldn’t import the old posts. They were stored in a built-in database that was part of the MT installation instead of MySQL. Maybe I could have, but I don’t know how to do that level of database manipulation.
It took a while for me to get around to this. My office was piled up with boxes, papers, and loads of other stuff. I had some time this weekend, so I motivated myself to clean out the obstacles - including the old hardware - and install the replacement stuff.
I got rid of the CRTs and defunct printer and placed my flat-screen monitors on the G4 and XP box so it looks so much cleaner. There’s still a lot of work to do in the office, but at least I have a start. Not surprisingly, Lexie is far more proud that I started cleaning than of any new blog.
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