rob's blog

Well iOS 4.1 Gold Master came out yesterday, if you are an Apple developer, you can download the update a week early.  For those who do not know, a Gold Master (GM in software speak) is what a version is called that is final and, in the "old days", was sent to the plant to be burned on CD, still common in the game world.  I downloaded the latest and greatest as I has heard that it did solve the performance issues of iOS 4, 4.0.1, and 4.0.2 on the iPhone 3G.  I have not yet upgraded to an iPhone 4 yet, a friend at work spent 5 hours in line just a week ago to get one, I don't need one QUITE that bad.

I have had my iPad since it was released here in Canada in June and this is my list of applications that have/make the iPad a great tool.

Productivity/Utility

• Evernote - Free - From Evernote Corp. turns your iPad into a note taking machine, and once you have an account setup, you can access your notes on your desktop/laptop/iPad. Free accounts are limited to 40 MB a month, I have yet to ever exceed 5 MB in a month but if you are into attachments, the $45/year for a premium account is well worth the price.

Here is a sunset shot that I got while camping out at Miquelon Lake Provincial Park

So unless you have been living under a rock for the past month, you know that the rest of the world got access to the iPad on May 28, 2010. I guess I was one of the "lucky ones" who got one (32 GB 3G + WiFi), though I did not find it that difficult, check FutureShop store stock online, went to the store and was in and out in less than 15 minutes with a shiny new iPad. The store had about 20-30 iPads running the model gamut.

I have not yet activated a 3G data plan yet, just WiFi for the last week, and overall I think that WiFi would satisfy most users.

Setup was relatively painless, though iTunes did complain about the 3G model having no SIM card installed at first, but then it moved on. I already have a MobileMe account so after connecting that I had all my contacts and calendar information on my iPad. Some other set-up to connect my other e-mail accounts, all of them IMAP so I have instant access to all my e-mail.

Finally AT&T today announced the release of data tethering for the iPhone in the US, and in the process they have basically alienated the user they have, and priced the plans to discourage any new users from ever signing up with them. It is not just iPhone planes either, they have basically turfed all of their "unlimited" plans, the ones capped at 5 GB for all smart phones. If Verizon or Sprint get the iPhone this summer, we might hear next week at Apples WWDC keynote, I think AT&T will see a mass exodus of iPhone users as every issue I hear about the iPhone basically relates to AT&T's poor network (dropped calls, lost texts and voice mails).

MacWorld has a good break down of what the changes entail here.

Most people have heard of, seen, or touched an iPhone; and millions more use them every day. They are a very handy and convenient device, so much so that people tend to accumulate a lot of personal information (contacts, notes,web sites and their logins, etc) on them.

This makes the device a prime target for attackers, both pranksters and malicious ones. If you leave you phone unattended anywhere, chances are, someone is going to pick it up and look at it and try to do something, so your first defence is to have a passcode set for your device, you can configure this in the devices Settings -> General -> Passcode Lock screen. This screen will allow you to select a four digit passcode that must be entered to access your device when unlocking it, you should also set the Auto Lock setting to immediate.

This will stop the casual person from picking up your iPhone and doing most things, they can still make an emergency call and answer your phone.

Well the folks over at MacHeist have put together yet another impressive bundle of great Mac software for only $19.95 (US).

For those unfamiliar with the MacHeist, what they do is get a bunch of great independent developers to come together and offer up a bundle of software for a great price. 25% of all proceed are donated to charity, you can see a full list of the charities on the MacHeist web site. When you buy a bundle, you can choose to give to all or pick the ones that you want to support. Basically a win for you (great applications), a win for the developers (more exposure), and a win for the charities.

This nanoBundle includes the following titles, listed with their retail prices:

• MacJournal - $40
• RipIt - $20
• Clips - $27
• CoverScout - $40
• Flow - $25
• Tails Of Monkey Island - $35 (Unlocked when 50,000 bundles are sold)
  

I found out today that podcaster and author Tee Morris has unexpectedly lost his wife, leaving him and his 7 year old daughter (a.k.a. Sonic Boom) to pick up the pieces of their life. Being a husband and a father of three, I can't imagine what this is like.

I have listened too and enjoyed many fine hours of Tee's podcasts of his books, and I have a couple dead tree versions too, he is a fine author and I hav ebeen a fan ever since I heard "Billibub Baddings and the Case of the Singing Sword"

ChipIn if you can, my heart goes out to you Tee.

Here is a classic parody of taken from the courtroom scene in the movie "A Few Good Men"

Not something that you see everyday, but this is a good one, read the notes for a good laugh:

"Good news is that I truly out did myself this year with my Christmas decorations. The bad news is that I had to take him down after 2 days. I had more people come screaming up to my house than ever. Great stories. But two things made me take it down.

First, the cops advised me that it would cause traffic accidents as they almost wrecked when they drove by.

Second, a 55 year old lady grabbed the 75 pound ladder almost killed herself putting it against my house and didn't realize it was fake until she climbed to the top (she was not happy). By the way, she was one of many people who attempted to do that. My yard couldn't take it either. I have more than a few tire tracks where people literally drove up my yard."