Apple, put Cover Flow in other products!

(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)

One of the features that really wowed me about the original iPod touch was Cover Flow. Cover Flow in iTunes (and later in Finder) is also pretty good on the Mac. But where Apple went wrong is the exclusion of Cover Flow in the iPad and the Apple TV. Cover Flow would be amazing in these two products; not just for music, but also for movies. Being able to scroll between movie covers on Apple TV would be as cool as using Kinect on the Xbox 360 to scroll through movies.

Now I know not everyone would want Cover Flow on their iPad or Apple TV, but that's what preferences are for. There could be an on/off toggle for this feature on both devices. I think Apple could sell a ton more devices if they included Cover Flow. I'm really hoping they understand this soon and add the feature in an upcoming update to the operating system.

WebOS is going open source

HP announced recently that they are making WebOS available to the open source community. People will be able to tweek it and put it on any device they see fit. (provided you know how to tweek software to work on any device)

It would be interesting to see someone rework the software to run on Intel Core i7 processors. WebOS currently runs on ARM processors

Flipboard for iPhone and iPod touch

I mentioned it before and now it finally happened. Flipboard has come to the iPhone and iPod touch. You can easily import your setting from the iPad using your Flipboard account. Happy reading!

Apple thinks 2 days is too late

Apple recalled the graphics card in my MacBook Pro; however when I went into an Apple store to get mine replaced, I was 12 days late. My computer was experiencing problems with the faulty recalled graphics one month prior, but I was stuck in bed for the past month with severe pneumonia. Unable to leave the house, I missed the deadline by 12 days. When I showed up at the Apple store on that 12th day, they refused to replace it under the recalled agreement. Instead, they said I'd have to pay over $500 to get the graphics replaced. I explained my illness, but they didn't care. I've bought at least three new Apple products per year since 2007, so I'm a pretty good customer. Apple doesn't care, they wouldn't bend their rules for anything.

Thank you so much Apple, you really care about your customers.

Apple TV vs. Google TV

I reviewed Google TV last year, and though the Android 3.1 update this Fall has brought with it the Android Marketplace and better UI, the Google TV still falls short in my opinion.

I recently picked up an Apple TV for the ability to mirror my iPad 2 on it. Due to an issue I'll be buying a new TV later this year.

Both devices have their shortcomings, both are far from perfect. Overall I will say that the Apple TV is my preferred box of choice. One thing I used Google TV for a lot, was Podcasts. Apple has a larger selection of Podcasts, and all the ones I watched on GTV are also available on ATV. And yes, I realize that you can manually add podcasts to GTV that don't show up in their Podcast list, but it's more of a hassle. Especially when those Podcasts are listed on the Apple TV Podcast list. Also Apple TV makes it easier to watch movies I have stored on my computer. Just throw a movie into iTunes, and it plays on Apple TV. I'm not talking about just movies you buy on iTunes, I'm talking about DVDs that you rip to your hard drive. To do this on Google TV, I have to put the movies on a USB hard drive (or flash drive) and load up Media Player on GTV. And even then, there is a chance GTV will choke on the video and not play properly.

Now if you do buy movies from iTunes for some reason, well those only play on Apple TV. I bought one of the first movies to appear in the iTunes Store, just to test out the quality. After I found out the dreaded DRM prevented me from burning to a DVD, I stopped buying from iTunes. It just doesn't make sense, buy the DVD and rip a digital copy yourself. Luckily a lot of movies these days come with digital copies, so you don't have to rip as much as you used to.

ATTENTION MOVIE STUDIOS:
Speaking of digital copies, UltraViolate is a horrible piece of shit. STOP IT MOVIE STUDIOS! If you want to include a digital copy, make it a REAL digital copy. You used to include codes that worked in iTunes (for iPods, etc.) or Windows Media Center (for Zune). Just continue doing that, people still had a choice (iPod or Zune), but now you took that choice away. People MUST use your crappy software to play the UltraViolate movies. And you have to create TWO different accounts just to watch the UltraViolate movies on your computer.

What I don't like about Netflix

Originally the model for Netflix was DVDs in the mail for a flat fee per month, similar to how it is now with streaming. But here's the kicker, as a bonus you were able to stream some of the movies for FREE over the Internet.

Then Netflix decided to make a business out of streaming, and for $2 extra you could get DVDs in the mail.

Then Netflix decided to charge you a 60% price hike, going from $10/month to $16/month to get streaming plus DVDs.

Then they announced Qwikster as a way to "make people less pissed." However, it just made people more pissed.

Then they dropped the Qwikster idea, but are keeping the 60% price hike.

Oh well, their streaming content was very limited anyway. I used Netflix for a while, and was not impressed at all. Needless to say, I don't use their service anymore. Their lackluster collection of streaming content left a bad taste in my mouth.

New UI for Google iOS app

The Google iOS app has received a new UI tht makes it look more like the website than the previous version did. He Google app is a universal binary that runs on iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

Citizen Kane on Blu-ray

I recently acquired Citizen Kane on Blu-ray, which was released only a couple of months ago. Loaded with a ton more bonus material than the DVD, watch this video of my explaining what you get in the box.

Apple TV, older sets beware!

Do not buy an Apple TV if your set is older than 6 years. That is how old mine is, and Apple TV decided it was too old to behave correctly. I am stuck with a 480p image, if I try to manually change it the screen goes blank. Other devices, such as my Google TV, blu-ray player, and cable box all receive the full 1080i single. However, I can't even get the meager 720p that the Apple TV is limited to. I bought the Apple TV mainly for iPad 2 mirroring, however look how awful this picture looks.

I am disapointed in Apple's ability to get a simple thing like resolution on older sets correct. Especially when every other box I connect works just fine.

Flipboard is coming to the iPhone soon

I have spoken of Flipboard before, and it is my favorite app on the iPad. Now it will be coming to the iPhone in the not-to-distant future. The app was updated Thursday, and in the changelog is the following:

Flipboard Accounts. Create an account to access your Flipboard on a shared iPad or on the upcoming release of Flipboard for iPhone.

The bolding was added by me for emphasis. This is great news for anyone who likes to read their news on the go, and enter areas where an iPad is too large to follow. And with the inclusion of this new syncing account, your Flipboard will be the same no matter which iOS device you decide to read it on.

If you have multiple iPads, you can give it a try right now. (or just wait for the iPhone version to be released)

iOS 5.0.1 is here

Today there was a minor update to iOS 5, and as Steve Jobs promised, the Over-The-Air (OTA) delta software updates work quite well. Unfortunately, I was hoping for some kind of notification of the update, which there was no sign of. At least with the old way, when you plugged your iDevice into your computer to sync, iTunes would notify you of an update. But now that syncing to iTunes (or iCloud, if you choose) is done wirelessly, there is no notification of such an update to the software. I found out after reading about it on other blogs.

In no time at all, I successfully updated all my iDevices wirelessly. If you haven't done so yet, grab the update. Just go to Settings -> General -> Software Update then choose to download the update. You will need a battery of at least 50% before it will let you install however. I had to plug my iPad 2 in, as it only had 33% battery. After plugging it into a power source, I was able to install.

Flash is dead on Mobile

Today Adobe announced that they will be stopping development of the Flash plug-in for mobile devices, in favor is HTML5. This will hopefully get more web developers to design their websites with HTML5 instead of Flash. Somewhat of a victory to people (like me) that absolutely hate Flash. Flash is a huge resource hog, it slows systems down, causes them to overheat, and can even crash a computer. I hated it back when it was called Macromedia Flash, and I hate it even more now. For those too young to remember, the company Macromedia created Flash and later bought by Adobe.

The reason I say it's only somewhat of a victory, is that Flash is still being developed for the desktop/laptop computer. Also Adobe said they will still support current mobile devices that already have Flash installed on them. This gives web developers little incentive to redesign their sites to remove Flash, but hopefully in the next few years as more and more people browse the web with their mobile device instead of a computer, maybe then we will finally be able to browse a Flash-free Internet.

Google TV 2.0 is released

I have mentioned the shortcomings of Google TV last year, and now Google TV is finally going to be half way decent. With the update, comes the Android Market, and an improved UI. The update isn't coming to all boxes at the same time, but will be showered down to all the boxes over a 24 hour period. I have yet to receive the update on my Google TV box, but I know others that have. If you're the owner of a Sony Internet TV device, expect the update today. Those with Logitech Revues will receive the update at a later time.

Contributions Steve Jobs has made

With the help of Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs revolutionized the computer industry by providing the first commercially successful personal computers.  This opened the door to other companies also manufacturing PCs as well.

Steve also saved animated film with Pixar.  Animation was  starting to die, Pixar teamed up with Disney to release Toy Story, and the rest is history.  (Disney has since bought Pixar)

With all the pirated music on the Internet, the music industry was losing money.  Then came the iTunes Store, which legitimized music downloads by selling them.  Now iTunes is the #1 music store in the country, which rivals "brick and mortar" stores in sales.

With everyone blogging these days, the printed word was starting to die.  Steve saved newspapers and magazines by giving them a new outlet to sell their products; that outlet being the iPad.

Remember the days when people used to handwrite letters?  A lot of younger people don't.  With e-mail, sms, mms, instant messaging and the like, the Postal Service is slowly dying.  Now you can create cards on your iPhone or iPod touch and they will be mailed out by post.  This could very well save postal workers from losing their jobs.

iOS 5 is out

iOS 5 has been released, but a lot of people are reporting problems installing it. This may be due to the Apple server failing under heavy pressure right now. The iOS 5 update brings the following features:

Facebook for iPad

Facebook for iPad has now officially been released, finally! The app will now allow for things that were impossible in Mobile Safari (such as video and photo uploads).

Steve Jobs, you will be missed.

Yesterday Apple announced that Steve Jobs died. I would have wrote this that day, but I wanted to wait until I could gather my thoughts. Steve Jobs was a true visionary and he will be deeply missed. He changed the world, not just the world of computers, but the world of humanity as a whole. Steve Jobs has a way with words, he could sell anything to anyone, but the thing he was most successful in selling was a dream. A dream that the world could change for the better. He provided the tools to get the job done. The iPad changed the way doctors delivered care to their patients, and the way autistic children could communicate with their parents. Over the years the Mac computers became more and more environmentally friendly, the Mac mini uses the smallest amount of watts in any desktop computer and each computer is highly recyclable. Steve dared to think differently, and that's what set him apart from the rest. When others told him he couldn't do something, he tried even harder to do it.

Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not found of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can praise them, disagree with them, quote them, disbelieve them, glorify or verify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them.. Because they change things.

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart."
– Steve Jobs

Dogfooding?

What the what?

Mac OS X on an iPad

That's right, I'm so awesome!

Update: Here is a video

Why require Internet if "We don't use Internet"

Cablevision claims that they don't stream TV shows over the Internet, that their iOS app in fact streams the show from your cable box. However, then why is an Internet connection required? If you ever lose connection, your TV watching is interrupted by this notice:

I think Cablevision should stop lying and get their act together. Not only does their services randomly go down often, but don't block my TV streaming access on an iPad just because YOU screwed up my Internet again.

Cablevision doesn't have an eye for detail

During a recent commercial for Optimum Wi-Fi Cablevision was trying to show off two women in a salon, one with an iPad on Wi-Fi and the other with an iPad on 3G. However, it was very clear that BOTH iPads were Wi-Fi only (the back of the 3G iPad looks different).

This is almost as bad as TV shows that mention SIM cards on phones that are clearly CDMA phones (CDMA phones don't use SIM cards).

Pay attention to detail, or look like an idiot.

Windows 8 Developer Preview

I just installed the Developer Preview of Windows 8 and discovered it has a similar "one account, login everywhere" approach as Google Chrome OS. Anyone familiar with Chrome OS will know that logging in with your Google Account brings over all your settings, so any Chrome OS computer becomes your personal computer. Well it seems like Microsoft has taken this approach with Windows 8 (login with a Windows Live ID). I think this is a good approach to take, as it makes it easier to upgrade to a newer computer in the future.

Shut up about iCal

Several blogs have posted about what they dislike about iCal in Mac OS X Lion. The one thing that is on the top of most of these lists is the leather theme iCal now has. Whilist some of the listed items have some validity (such as not being able to see the calendar list all the time), I think it is just stupid to dislike iCal because of the theme. If it bothers you that much, you can use Lion Tweaks to get back the chrome theme. I happen o like the leather theme, but if I didn't, that is still no reason to cola in about it in a blog post. The Macworld blogger admitted to being paid by the word, perhaps that s why he choose to blog about stupid things like this. These so-called "tech blogs" should reconsider what they post sometimes.

Google finally releases Blogger app

If feels good to be able to blog from the bathroom!

On a more serious note, after years of neglect, Google FINALLY released an iOS app for their Blogger system. Head over to the iTunes App Store to get it now. 100% free.

Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO

Link 1
Link 2

Those two PR links from the Apple website says it all.

I would like to thank Steve Jobs for all the work he has done. Tim Cook has huge shoes to fill. Jobs was named CEO of the decade in 2009 by Fortune.

My thoughts on Apple and the Kindle app

Numerous tech blogs have expressed their concerns that the removal of store link in Amazon's kindle app for the iPhone and iPad will make it harder to buy books. I don't agree, all the removal did was add an extra step. Manually launch Safari instead of have it launch for you. Every other step is exactly the same. Even when the store link was present, I still hated buying kindle books on my iPad because the interface was horrible. Luckily Amazon fixed the iPad-unfriendly UI with the creation of their Cloud Reader.

Amazon introduces the Kindle Cloud Reader

Amazon has launched a new cloud-based version of its Kindle app, called Kindle Cloud Reader accessible from read.amazon.com. The new Kindle Cloud Reader is compatible with the iPad (iOS4+), Chrome and Safari. Which means the web app can be run on Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, and Chrome OS.

Since Amazon had to remove the link to their store in the Kindle app for iOS due to Apple's policy change, this new web app seems like a step in the right direction for Amazon to take back some of the control Apple took away.

The web app mimics the look and feel of the native iOS app and even lets you read content offline. However the reading experience is lackluster. Advancing a page is boring, there is no page turning animation like there is in the iOS app. Although I found shopping for books to be much more enjoyable than it is on the main Amazon website. As a result, I tend to buy books via Kindle Cloud Reader, and read them via the Kindle iOS app. That way you get the best of both worlds.

Links:
Kindle Cloud Reader
Kindle app

Nassau County Police, getting paid to do nothing?

It seems like a dream job, getting paid to do nothing. Well that's what the Nassau Country Police Department is. Recently a man in his mid-to-late 20's received a death threat while in Mineola, NY and contacted the police. The police refused to do anything, telling the man "if anyone wanted you dead, you'd be dead already" and didn't take the man seriously. I was in the area and overheard the conversation. I'm appalled by how the police reacted, and brushed off the complaint like it was nothing.

Is this the kind of attitude we are suppose to expect from the police? Aren't they suppose to protect people? It is our tax dollars that pay for the police, so they work for us. That is something the police seem to forget.

Update to Kindle app removes Store button

In compliance with Apple's stricter rules for iOS apps, Amazon updated their Kindle app today to remove the button linking to their store. Google Books also has been updated with the link to their store removed as well.

You heard it here first.

Just got my Spotify invite

I had to wait about a week, but I finally received my invite for a free Spotify account tonight. Played only one song so far, but looking forward to playing many more. I just wonder if the free accounts will continue to be unlimited streaming once Spotify has been out for a while in the U.S.? Only time will tell.

Mac OS X Lion is now out

Now you can finally download Apple's latest operating system, Lion (Mac OS 10.7), assuming you're currenly running the latest version of Snow Leopard (10.6.8). Lion is only available via the Mac App Store, no buying a disc this time around. Your Mac will need to be powered by an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, i5 or i7 processor. Weighing in at 3.49GB, the download could take up to an hour, but once downloaded the actual nstall process s much shorter. Lion will set you back $30, though the price tag is inexpensive, the real cost is in losing some of your PPC apps; since Lion no longer supports Rosetta.

Facebook now offers video chatting with Skype

Facebook partnered with Skype to bring you video chat. Just click this link to get started. You will need to install a Java plug-in and then you can start video chatting with others (provided they also installed the Java plug-in for video chat).

Apple issuing refunds for Final Cut Pro X

For those that bought Final Cut Pro X and has been unhappy with it, Apple started issuing refunds earlier this week. Just contact them with your complaint, and you will get a refund. This is against their normal "All sales are final" rule. Due to all the complaints, Apple is giving in with refunds to keep customers happy.

Final Cut Pro X released today

It's June, and just like Apple has promised the new Final Cut Pro X is now available in the Mac App Store. Accompanying the $299.99 Final Cut Pro X, is Motion 5 and Compressor 4 at $49.99 each; bringing the full suite to $400.

Though some may disagree with me, I still think the price tag is too high. For years, if you owned a previous Studio release, you could upgrade for only $300 (example: owning Studio 2 and upgrading to Studio 3). However, with the new suite of apps, it will cost you $400, that's $100 more and you don't get the full suite of apps you once had.

Final Cut Studio 2 included:

Final Cut Pro 6
Soundtrack Pro 2
Motion 3
DVD Studio Pro 4
Compressor 3
Color
LiveType
Cinema Tools
Apple Qmaster
Apple Qadministrator

Final Cut Studio 3 included the same, but minus LiveType; all at an upgraded price of just $300.

Now you have to pay $400, and you only get 3 of those apps. What started as 10, is down to just 3... and you pay more for them!

Thank you Apple so much for screwing over your loyal customers.

Incubus LIVE from Berlin only on Livestream!

Friday 6/17 at 3pm EDT, streaming live is the Incubus concert from Berlin. You can watch it below:

Watch live streaming video from incubus at livestream.com

double E environment ends season one

As I'm sure some of you know, double E environment concluded its first season on June 4th. It will be back in the fall with all new episodes, and I am also excited to announce that it also has a new mobile skin. When browsing from an Android or iOS device, you'll notice a new mobile-friendly layout. The same is true for if you visit this blog, a new mobile version awaits you!

double E environment

For anyone that doesn't already know, there is a great environmental show on the Internet called double E environment. I hope everyone checks it out and takes away a lesson or two they can then pass on to others.

Osama bin Laden is dead!

Osama bin Laden was announced dead on CNN a couple of hours ago, you can watch the President's speech below:

Netflix - Google TV vs. Wii

I decided to test out Netflix on both the Google TV and Nintendo Wii, to see which was better. I found that the audio quail on the Wii is much better than that on the Google TV. This is disconcerting because the Wii is just using analog audio cables, whilst Google TV is using an HDMI cavle for both digital video and audio. Normally digital audio has better fidelity than analog audio, but not in this case. I know I mentioned in the past my disappointment with Google TV, but this is just pathetic. Even for a product with as many shortcomings as Google TV, this is one area where it should have won; however it failed miserably.

iPad apps worth a look

After installing and using over 300 iOS apps, I decided to assemble my top must have list for all my readers.

All prices listed here are subject to change (as they often do in the App Store). As of the date of this posting, these prices are accurate.

These are my top 8 apps that I think are worth everyone checking out. At #8 is the only game on this list, it is called iCut Deluxe and cost $2.99. This is a great game for those that enjoy solving puzzles that work the brain.

iCut Deluxe
$2.99

Next up at #7 is AppStart for iPad and it's free. This app is good for everyone to install because it actually teaches you how to use your iPad, as well as offer suggestions for app you may which to buy. Some people have commented in the App Store that AppStart is just a giant advertisement, so take this app with a grain of salt. Some may find it useful, others may not.

AppStart for iPad
FREE

At #6 is iBooks and is also free. Not only is this app a great e-Reader for e-Books, but it also lets you view PDFs. One thing I enjoy most about this app is the ability to create your own collections. Have one bookshelf for cookbooks, another for children books, etc.

iBooks
FREE

#5 is Dropbox and is free. It allows you to sync files between various computers, and also your iOS device. Just drop a file in your Dropbox folder on your computer, and it suddenly appears on your iPad.

Dropbox
FREE

#4 is GarageBand and cost $4.99. Great for music composers. Allows you to create songs using a variety of instruments, and also includes a voice recorder.

Garageband
$4.99

#3 is iMovie and cost $4.99. If you're into recording videos on your iPad, iPod touch, or iPhone then you'll enjoy the ability to edit the video directly on the same device. I don't particularly like iMovies, but unfortunately there is no Final Cut Pro app for the iPad.

iMovie
$4.99

#2 is Pages and cost $9.99. The most productive app on this list, Pages lets you take word processing mobile. You can export your Pages documents to PDF and MS Word, unfortunately the ability to export to Plain Text, Rich Text, and ePub has been lost on the iPad version.

Pages
$9.99

#1 is a tie between Flipboard (free) and Atomic Web Browser ($0.99).

Flipboard is an RSS reader that uses page flip animation and a magazine style to present the content in an organized and tidy way. Flipboard has replaced most of the news apps on my iPad, because I can get all the same content via the RSS feeds.

Atomic Web Browser has completely replaced Safari for me. Unfortunately there is no way to actually "replace" Safari as the default, so links in email messages will still open in Safari. Atomic is great because it lets you mask the User Agent as another browser, this is especially useful on sites that limit access on mobile browsers, such as Facebook.

Flipboard
FREE

Atomic Web Browser
$0.99

Most of the apps on this list are universal, so they will work on the iPhone and iPod touch as well as the iPad. The iPad-specific apps are: AppStart, GarageBand, Pages, and Flipboard.

If all you own is an iPhone or an iPod touch, I would still recommend the above universal apps: iCut Deluxe, iBooks, Dropbox, iMovie, and Atomic web Browser.

Handy iMovie Trick

After wondering why videos I imported into my iPad via iTunes weren't editable in iMovie (iPad version), I decided to do some research into the matter.

Only video that is encoded as 720p (30 fps) can be edited in iMovie. So a way to ensure that video you import to your iPad will be editable in iMovies, do the following.

First, open iMovie on your Mac.

Next add the video you want to be editable in iMovie on iPad. Then in the "Share" menu, select "Export Movie" and choose "HD 720p" as your export option.

Finally open iPhoto and import your videos in it. After doing a sync in iTunes, open iMovie on your iPad and you'll find the videos you just imported!

Happy editing!

Why I hate Disqus

What I hate about Disqus is that it's very limited on mobile devices, like the iPad. It doesn't let you post using a Twitter or Facebook account, like you can on a regular computer. They want you to use a special Disqus account on mobile devices, and I don't think that's right. The purpose of Disqus commenting on websites is to end the need for multiple accounts, however requiring people to make a Disqus account defeats the purpose of Disqus. I always use my Twitter account when on websit that make use of Disqus commenting, however I am unable to when on a mobile device. One of the benefits of Disqus is that all your activity is logged, so others can see a list of the websites I commented at and how often. However, if I was to make a Disqus account, would it have the comment log my Twitter account (via Disqus) has? I won't make a Disqus account, so I have no way of knowing for sure, but I doubt it. It is beyond me, why Disqus doesn't give you the same options on mobile devices, that they give you on desktop or laptop computers.

Facebook blocking iOS devices from Chat?

As some people are aware of, Facebook doesn't have an official iPad app because Mark Zuckerberg doesn't think it's needed. Which means there are only two solutions, either use the Facebook website via iPad, or use one of the 3rd-party Facebook apps (which in my opinion, all have horrible user interfaces).

The problem with using the Facebook website on your iPad, is that you can't chat!  Pictured below is Facebook via both the default Safari and Atomic Web Browser (99¢ in iTunes App Store).

However, one of the great things about Atomic, is that you can change the User Agent (identify it as a different browser). When I change the UA in Atomic to identify it as a Desktop browser, rather than an iPad browser, you see pictured below that Chat on Facebook does indeed work.

This proves that the lack on Facebook Chat on the iPad is not a limitation of the device, it is Facebook blocking access from the device itself. What is confusing, is that if Mr. Zuckerberg is going to block access, why not make an official iPad app?

Flipboard

Being someone that likes to keep up with what's going on in the world. My first mission after receiving the iPad 2 in the mail, was to replace my iPhone-only news apps with their iPad counterparts; NYTimes, BBC News, CNN, etc. One of the apps I found most useful is Flipboard. Being an iPad-only app, I've never had a chance to experience Flipboard before, despite hearing of it previously.

Besides grabbing tweets from people you follow, Flipboard will also let you follow anything that has an RSS feed. It takes those feeds and puts them together in a magazine-style format for easy reading. I found it especially pleasurable that I could catch up on all the latest news from TreeHugger.com using the simple magazine style of Flipboard.

If you own an iPad, give Flipboard a try. You might just fall in love with it, the way I have.

Considering donating to the Red Cross? Read this first!

Please, if you want to help the victims of Japan, that's great, but don't just blindly send your money to the Red Cross because that seems like the thing to do.

The Red Cross supports animal research; by giving them money you are supporting it too.

If you want to help, there are countless other organizations that you can send money to who are truly compassionate to ALL life and do not fund animal experiments.

You are not helping if you're going to support the senseless murder of one living being to help another.

Please be mindful of your actions and the effect they will have.

Beware of SF Planet

S&F Corporation A.K.A. SF Planet is a merchant on Amazon.com. Last week I purchased a webcam from them, it arrived on Monday. The camera was a knock off from China, not only was it not the name brand I purchased, it didn't even work! It was of flimsy constriction and wasn't detected by my computer.

I was shocked to find out that SF Planet would sell counterfeit products on Amazon, but apparently they do. I have since contacted Amazon, and straightened the mess out. They emailed me a return shipping label, and I returned the package. According to the tracking number they supplied me with, it should arrive to Amazon by tomorrow, at which time they will refund me.

This is a warning to anyone who is considering buying something from SF Planet (S&F Corporation), look elsewhere on Amazon. It's always a gamble when buying from a 3rd party merchant, which is why I prefer to buy directly from Amazon, however sometimes they don't sell what I need. Hopefully this information helps out others that are considering purchase on Amazon.com.

Google Chrome review

Wanting to give Google Chrome a thorough test, I decided to make it my default browser in October of 2010. It has continued to be the sole browser I used until today, when I decided to switch back to Mozilla Firefox.

There were some things I liked, and most things I didn't like about Chrome. Most notably was how long it took to load websites. With some sites, Chrome was on par with Firefox (a couple of Google-owned sites even loaded a fraction faster); however most sites loaded slower. Especially the sites I tend visit the most (such as engadget.com), these sites take half as long to load in Firefox. Making Google's claim that Chrome is faster, seem like a fable.

Speed aside, there were things about Chrome that I did like. The extensions (such as Google Reader, Twitter, Web Developer, etc.) all featured smooth animation, and good integration. Another thing I like is that the Sync feature is built-in, whilist it's a separate plug-in in Firefox 3.6 (however, it IS built into Firefox 4.0 Beta).

Google Chrome seems like an overall solid web browser, and I will continue to use it from time-to-time. However, my browser of choice remains to be Mozilla Firefox.

iPhone 4 on Verizon!

I just wanted to write a quick blog post mentioning that today at 11:07AM, Verizon just announced in NYC that the iPhone 4 will be "available early next month" on Verizon.

The phone will be priced at the same rate it currently is for AT&T. $199 for the 16GB, $299 for 32GB AND mobile hotspot is included; up to 5 devices.

When asked when the phone will go on sale, Verizon said the following:
"On February 3rd our existing customers will have an opportunity to pre-order. On February 10th, everyone will be able to order online, in stores, or in Apple stores."

When asked if the CDMA iPhone is exclusive to Verizon, they said the deal was non-exclusive. So maybe the iPhone will also come to Sprint and other CDMA carriers in the future?

Since Verizon uses CDMA, you can't use voice and data at the same time (you can on GSM). Verizon also chose to use their 3G network over their newer 4G LTE network. Also, as with other CDMA phones, there will be no SIM card. There will also be no international roaming, so you can't use an American Verizon iPhone in Europe.

It’s the same iPhone 4 that came out last June for AT&T, which means this June AT&T will get the new iPhone 5 (one year refresh on Apple products). So the Verizon iPhone will be a year behind in hardware technology.


Although it's the older 3G network, and you can't use voice and data at the same time, I will still most likely be getting an iPhone on Verizon. I stated multiple times before why I hate AT&T for their past evils, so the Verizon iPhone (although somewhat limited) is welcomed by me. I will be enjoying my new phone when it comes out next month. However, I will probably wait until June when Apple announces the iPhone 5 and hope that it's for Verizon as well as AT&T. No point in rushing things if it turns out a 4G LTE iPhone for Verizon will be just around the corner, no is there?

Story not interesting enough for Help Me Howard and 7 On Your Side

Last year I sent my story to both Help me Howard and 7 On Your Side - neither of which got in touch with me about it. I sent the 7 On Your Side one via email, so I'm not sure on their policies. However, when I called to send the story to Help me Howard via telephone, the automated voice said "If we find your story interesting, we will contact you." - The keywords being IF and INTERESTING.

My story is this:

The City University of New York (CUNY) hid the fact they were overcharging me on tuition through secretive code in the bills. Unless you were on the "inside" and knew what all the secret code meant, you had no idea what you were being charged for. Going from a SUNY school (which only charged around $300 per class) to a CUNY school (which was charging $1,080 per class), I assumed since it was in the city, it was more expensive. You also have to keep in mine that I have a learning disability which skews the reality at times, so looking at the bill it seemed normal to me; I didn't think to question it. When one of my Greek friends at the school informed me I was paying the same "out of state" tuition she was, I immediately went to the registrars office to get it fixed. Although they did change it to in-state student, so future semesters would be charged less, they refused to refund me for past semesters. Nearly $5,000 was stolen from me due to CUNYs error in having me down as the wrong type of student. They claimed they sent me paperwork to declare that I was an in-state student, they never did. Then they claimed they wouldn't refund me because I took too long to ask for a refund, but I asked as soon as I found out. I would have asked sooner, but I didn't know due to their coded bills.

I was even harassed by CUNY and told if I didn't stop calling them to ask for a refund, they would have me arrested. Not only are they holding my money hostage, they are doing anything they can to shut me up and keep this story out of public ears. I'm surprised they didn't have me killed yet. What CUNY is doing is wrong, and I can't get help from anyone. Help me Howard should change his name to I may consider it if it's interesting and will help my TV ratings, Howard