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The latest development channel release of Google Chrome contains the ability to sync the browser’s bookmarks. The feature will let you keep the same set of bookmarks on multiple machines as well as store them in your Google Docs. Interestingly enough, Google already has a web-based bookmark service that goes by the name of Google Bookmarks. I wonder whether the plan is to eventually use Google Bookmarks as the back-end sync destination instead of Docs (a much better fit, wouldn’t you say?). If that is the strategy, then it is my opinion that we should get ready for a huge overhaul to the Google Bookmarks service. Read more »
Back in 2008, Microsoft announced Office Web Applications – the web-based version of its ever-popular productivity suite – Microsoft Office. We’ve come across more details recently, with the beta release of Office 2010: the online suite will be made up of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote, will be capable of synchronizing with the desktop, will be platform and browser-independent, but will contain less features than the desktop versions of those programs. That should not be an issue, however, since most Office users use very few features in Office.
The suite will be available to everyone for free via Windows Live and to corporate users through different distribution channels. Since the announcement, such questions as “How would this affect Google Docs/Apps and the Zoho office suite?” have been widely discussed topics. Let’s take a pragmatic look at what we should really expect from Office Web Applications. Read more »
Earlier in May, word got out that Apple is planning to invest $1 billion in a server farm. The facility, to be located in the State of North Carolina, will follow a similar (albeit smaller) $600 million undertaking by Google. As could be expected, analysts, bloggers, and the Twitterverse the world over speculated about the possible uses for the investment, but I don’t think anyone hit the nail squarely on the head. I think Apple will use its new server farm to completely cut the cord between its iPhone product line and the desktop. And it will do so in a big way. Read more »
While writing a post about jailbreaking (still in progress), I came across a jailbreak app called iRealSMS. In my opinion, this is one of the few apps that makes jailbreaking not only a good idea, but also a complete necessity. I have used this app (along with its less powerful sibling, iRealQuickSMS) and I can say that once you’ve used it (and been spoiled by it), going back to the regular process of texting is a displeasure.
What it does
The concept of iRealSMS is very simple: it allows you to send and receive SMS messages without quitting a currently-running app. iRealSMS runs in the background. Whenever an SMS arrives, the app displays a pop-up screen with a text entry box and a few options. The important thing to note here is that it does not close the open app the way the default Messages app does.
From the incoming SMS pop-up, you can send a reply, call the sender, or ignore the entire thing altogether (see screenshot above). When the screen is tapped to place the cursor in the text-entry box, a keyboard pops up for a quick reply (see screenshot below). After the reply is sent, iRealSMS goes away, allowing the app that was running before receiving the SMS resume.
There is also an option to send an SMS without leaving the current app. I use the volume up button to open the quick send box (press once, more than once increases volume). Now a standard feature when it comes to messaging apps, iRealSMS operates in landscape and portrait modes. Read more »
We all love Apple. Well, most of us do. The last few years, especially since the Vista launch, modern media has pushed on us the virtues of owning a Mac. Most of the top names in the tech blogosphere use Macs, and support almost all of Apple’s products. Leo Laporte, Ryan Block, and Peter Rojas are all self-admitted Macs (though they all come clean to using PCs). The “in” thing to do in the industry is to be a Mac. While this may put Apple in a position to become the leader in the PC industry, there are several reasons as to why Apple doesn’t want to and cannot do so.
Apple has long been the underdog of the PC industry. Right before Steve Jobs’ return as iCEO, we can see that this was for a good reason. Apple’s product line-up was a mess and the company was suffering through its worst years ever. Apple started out as a company that was all about the ability to “Think Different.” With Jobs’ return to Apple, this concept was embraced again, and the company started producing computers for the people. The original iMac and iBook are perfect examples: a colored and translucent computer was all about style and appealed to a younger audience. On the other hand, Windows PCs of the day were still considered the computers of choice amongst the tech elite and the business world.
Cut to today
Apple’s lineup of computers is amazing, to say the least. An Apple computer represents the latest and greatest in hardware: processors, graphics cards, RAM, connectivity technology, and enclosure engineering are all top-notch. The Mac lineup caters to both personal and business users and does so with extreme precision. Yet Apple is still the underdog of the personal computer market, having approximately 10% of U.S. market share. And this is exactly where the company needs to and wants to be, give or take a few percentage points.
One of Apple’s greatest strengths is its ability to manufacture both the software and the hardware that combine to make an amazing piece of machinery which outperforms all competition. But this level of performance comes at a price: the company’s second-greatest strength is the margin it enjoys. The last bevy of financial reports have pegged profit margin in the area of 30% or higher. Compared to rival companies such as Dell and HP, that’s an astounding number! It has turned Apple into a company that’s not only debt-free, but one that also enjoys tens of billion of dollars in the bank (and other short-term investments). But why can Apple charge so much more for its computers while other companies try so hard to earn even a 5 percent margin? Read more »
Project Trident is a new scientific tool kit by Microsoft that aims to revolutionize the way academia deals with the increasing onslaught of experiment data. In the past, as well as today, a scientist would design an experiment, collect the data, analyze the data using some sort of programming, and review the results. The big hang up in all of this was the programming involved to bring the experiment to life: a programmer was brought in to make one-off programs for a specific experiment. Any changes to the experiment would require the programmer to make revisions. If another scientist wanted to perform the experiment elsewhere, there would be another programmer involved to write the experiment code. This became an ever-increasing problem of inefficiencies and wasted time. Microsoft to the rescue. Read more »
Google Voice (GV) is the new version of GrandCentral from Google. It is a service that gives you one number for all your phones. Currently, it is only available to existing GrandCentral users, but it will be available to new users within the next few weeks. The service, in its current guise, is completely free, so you don’t have to worry about your wallet screaming at you. Google Voice comes packed with many features. The basic premise is simple: to start things off, you pick your own international number and register your existing phone numbers, be they landlines or cell phones. From there, you use your existing phones to call into GrandCentral, from which you can call the entire United States for free. For a nominal fee, you can make calls to the rest of the world. The rates are often less than traditional international rates and are more in line with what Skype charges for its international calls.
In late 2005, GrandCentral was founded by Craig Walker and Vincent Paquet. Fed up with having to run to the other side of the house to answer the home phone, they wanted a way to take all their phones and voicemail in-boxes and unify the experience. In essence, GrandCentral never aimed to replace your phones, but to glue them together and give them more features, all to make your voice communication easier. In July of 2007, Google acquired GrandCentral for $95 million. The founders were happy to accept the partnership knowing that they could do more with Google behind them. Just a few weeks ago, Google officially announced Google Voice, which is the new version of GrandCentral.
So what exactly can Google Voice do for you? Read more »
Dropbox – the awesome storage, synchronization, and sharing application – is getting some much-requested changes. In an email to current users, the Dropbox Team announced that it will be making changes to the service’s undo history, introducing a new feature called “LAN Sync,” and making numerous performance improvements. The team also announced the forthcoming of an iPhone app. Read more »
It looks like Sony has finally realized that other mobile devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch are beating its PSP at its own game (forgive the pun). The Japanese electronics giant has hinted that it might open its PSP Go to third party applications other than games. The PSP Go is the latest addition to the PSP family, the successor to the PSP 3000.
In an interview with CNET, Sony’s Al De Leon said that while PSP content “will mostly be games, there’s an opportunity to look at non-gaming applications.” Well, Sony, it’s about time! The PSP is already an excellent device and the Go form factor – with its slide out gamepad – takes that to the next level. It’s never really been clear to me why Sony hasn’t given developers the ability to develop and publish non-gaming apps to the PSP. Perhaps it’s indicative of the company as a whole, you know – missing the iPod opportunity, missing the mark on the PS3, and having a very steel-fisted approach to any kind of modifications (read: hacks) to its devices.
YouTube has just released YouTube XL, which is YouTube – formatted for your big screen. Over the course of the last few months, competitors such as Boxee and Hulu have been increasing the quality of their videos, with Hulu on Boxee on Apple TV (did you get all that?) seen as the ultimate set-up in streaming on-demand web video. Today, YouTube has upped the ante with its aptly-named XL version. Read more »
The latest development channel release of Google Chrome contains the ability to sync the browser’s bookmarks. The feature will let you keep the same set of bookmarks on multiple machines as well as store them in your Google Docs. Interestingly enough, Google already has a web-based bookmark service that goes by the name of Google Bookmarks. I wonder whether the plan is to eventually use Google Bookmarks as the back-end sync destination instead of Docs (a much better fit, wouldn’t you say?). If that is the strategy, then it is my opinion that we should get ready for a huge overhaul to the Google Bookmarks service. Read more »
