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For those of you unaware, the Facebook CEO posted the following to his Facebook page:
For a CEO with a high profile such as Zuckerberg, that probably wasn’t the smartest of things to do. After all, journalists didn’t just write about Mark Zuckerberg making the claim, no, they wrote about the Facebook CEO dissing Apple.
Zuckerberg thought he could make this controversy vanish by simply deleting his post. Oh, if it were that simple. Not only is this not the equivalent of the flashing Men-In-Black pen–we won’t all simply forget it happened–but it keeps the story going. Why did he delete it? Did Apple pressure him? Blah, blah blah.
Online reputation tip: Deleting a post only ever works, if you have an explanation or apology to go along with it!
So remember, just like elephants, the web never forgets.
-- Jay Taylor
iVirtua Editorial Team
The global financial recession created a strong impact on every industry and was the same with solar energy industry too. The demand for solar energy dropped down by 17% in 2009. This is a harsh reality faced by the energy industry, as its getting slowly resurrected from recession. The global financial recession had created a decrease in the demand for energy, after a long time. This had put a temporary restraint on the growth of power industry, but the worldwide long term energy demands is increasing now, and is anticipated to become double by 2050. With the rise in concerns related to climatic change, the prospects of solar energy industry is much more than any other power industry.
Experts say that the recession was a blessing in one way or another, as it helped may companies to focus on long-term strategic plans to strengthen their solar energy products, and enter the energy market with more confidence than before. In the latest report published by Energy Information Administration (EIA) the improving US economy is focusing more on lucrative renewable energy resources to meet the day to day needs. This is a great boon for solar energy industry and other renewable energy resources.
On examining the information provided by Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) we can find that the U.S. trade association has almost 500 solar energy investment companies
In terms of the solar electric power installed, till fiscal 2008, Germany ranked first, with Spain, Japan and U.S following Germany. But in fiscal 2008, Spain outdid Germany in the number of new installations.
The number of solar PV installations around the world reached 5.95GW in 2008, showing a growth of 110%.
There are many environmental advantages of using solar energy. You can generate electricity from solar energy without any unwanted air or water emissions, noise or vibrations. This doesn’t create any impact on your habitat and doesn’t have any environment polluting waste products.
This energy resource doesn’t have any fuel risk, like fossil ad nuclear fuels. You don’t have to worry about the volatility of fuel prices or the risks of delivery. Although the amount of sunlight received and its timing can vary, you can have a properly designed and configured reliable system that can help in providing lasting and electric supply at a fixed price.
Unlike other energy resources solar power generating system can be conveniently placed at the customer’s site, as sunlight is an energy which is universally available. Thus solar power reduces the expense and energy loss associated with the transmission and distribution from large plants to end users. For people who seek environment friendly energy resource, solar energy is the most perfect choice, equally applicable for rural and urban resources.
Solar energy projects have many subsidy programs. Most of the governments support the solar energy projects with subsidy programs.
You can know more about the benefits of using solar energy, for power generation, from the websites and articles from leading energy research firms. Or you conduct a web search for the keyword ‘News On Renewable Energy’, for latest research journals and articles.
WWDC 2010: The iPhone 4's new 326 pixels/in retina display - Over 300px the eye can't differentiate between pixels
“Second: this is a biggie. Something we call the retina display. What’s that?” Chuckles. “In any display, there are pixels — here’s four of them. We start off by dramatically increasing the pixel density, 4x in the same amount of space.” Why’s that important? We get far more precision… and we play tricks like adding some gray pixels to help fuzz it for the eye. When you zoom out, you get REALLY crisp images. It has 326 pixels per inch. There has never been a display like this on a phone.” “Why’s that important? We get far more precision… and we play tricks like adding some gray pixels to help fuzz it for the eye. When you zoom out, you get REALLY crisp images. It has 326 pixels per inch. There has never been a display like this on a phone.”
People haven’t even dreamt of a display like this. It turns out there’s a limit around 300px per inch that the human eye can’t differentiate between the pixels — text looks like you’ve seen it in a fine printed book, unlike you’ve ever seen on an electronic display before. It’s extraordinary.”
Demo time: iPhone 3GS “with our widely-praised display on it” vs. the iPhone 4. “Look at that difference. We had to get special projectors for this because most can’t display all the dots we put in the Retina Display!” Interestingly, they haven’t scaled any of the interface elements and targets — it looks the same, just sharper. Uh oh, network troubles up on stage. Steve: “You could do me a favor by getting off of WiFi.” Nice hat tip to the Google IO keynote foibles. Switched to backup iPhone 4, errored with: “Could not activate cellular network.” Laughs. “Yeah, I know…” Steve’s given up on web pages — showing photos now. “It kinda comes down to what do you want to be looking at all day long? … I’ll try one more time here. Well, I’m sorry guys, I just don’t know what’s going on. Scott, you got any suggestions?” Someone shouts “Verizon!” 3.5-inches, but 4x more pixels than the iPhone 3GS. 326px per inch. 800:1 contrast ratio, 4x that of iPhone 3GS. IPS — provides much more accurate color and much higher resolution. You can’t make an OLED display with this resolution, we think it’s quite superior.” “Again, the Retina Display has 78% of the pixels on an iPad right in the palm of your hand. iPhone OS 4 makes it so your apps automatically run on the Retina Display — but they look even better, because we render your text and controls in the higher resolution. Your apps look even better without doing any work!” But if you do a little work and put in higher resolution artwork, they’ll look stunning — so we suggest you do that. … We think this is going to set the standard for displays for years to come. It may be the most important single component of the hardware, and we’ve got something here now that’s like the best window on the planet. So that’s the Retina Display.”
This year WWDC sold out in 8 days. There were over 5,200 attendees from 57 countries.
Afterr dicussing the iPad and the way it has changed the way we “experience the web, email, photos, maps, video,”
Steve Jobs went on to tell the audience that over five million iPads have been sold to date, one every three seconds. The iPad is now in ten countries.
There are now 8.5k native iPad apps in the App Store… they’ve been downloaded 35 million times. That’s about 17 apps per iPad.
Steve talks more about the business case for iPad apps He showed off iPad app Elements and referred to an email stating that they “earned more on the sales of Elements for iPad the first day than on the past 5 years of Google ads on periodictable.com” he went on to say that “This is what we LOVE to hear from you guys.”
In terms of the iPad he said that “As you know, you can create highlights, you can also make notes. Now you can make notes. In addition, we’ve added a control to just tap and bookmark a page — under ToC you’ll see all the notes, highlights, and bookmarks.”
They also announced PDF support in iBooks After Big applause he described how you can now view PDFs. “We’ve put a little selector at the top — books and PDFs. You get a whole new bookshelf just for PDFs, they just look gorgeous.”
Running a small side business can provide a few more options: you don’t have to show up at a set time and you can use skills you already have. Not all will be perfect for everyone, of course, and I’m sure that you’ll have a few ideas of your own after reading this list. If you’d like to share any other business ideas, please add them in the comments.
Selling collectibles — From antique books to teddy bears, there are plenty of opportunities to buy and sell collectibles. It’s important to familiarize yourself with the collectible of your choice but if you choose something that you’ve been collecting for a while, you’ve got a head start.
Locating apartments — It can take time to sort through apartment listings, but you can make some money by finding the perfect apartment for a renter.
Baby proofing — New parents often prefer to bring in an expert to make sure their home is safe for a new baby.
Calligraphic writing — If you’ve got elegant handwriting, you can pick up gigs writing or addressing wedding invitations, holiday cards and more.
Selling coupons — Search on eBay for coupons right now and you’ll see thousands of listings for coupons. It’s just a matter of clipping and listing what you find in your Sunday newspaper.
Pet training — A surprising number of people don’t know where to start in training a pet. Even teaching Rover simple commands like ‘Sit’ and ‘Stay’ can bring in a few dollars.
Running errands — A wide variety of people want to outsource their errands, from those folks who aren’t able to leave their homes easily to those who have a busy schedule.
Researching family trees — Amateur genealogists often call in experts, especially to handle research that has to be done in person in a far off place. If you’re willing to go to a local church and copy a few records, you can handle many family tree research requests.
Supplying firewood — The prerequisite for selling firewood is having a source of wood; if you’ve got some land where you can cut down a few trees, you’ve got a head start.
Hauling — As more people trade in their SUVs for compact cars, hauling is becoming more important: people have to rent a truck or hire a hauler for even small loads.
Image consulting — Image consultants provide a wide variety of services, ranging from offering advice on appearance to teaching etiquette.
Menu planning — For many people, the trip up in eating home-cooked or healthy meals is knowing what to prepare. Meal planners set a schedule to solve certain dietary problems.
Microfarming — Cultivating food and flowers on small plots of land allows you to sell produce easily.
Offering notary public services — Notary publics can witness and authenticate documents: a service needed for all sorts of official documents.
Teaching music — If you’re skilled with a musical instrument, you can earn money by offering lessons.
Mystery shopping — Mystery shoppers check the conditions and service at a store and report back to the store’s higher-ups.
Offering research services — Just by reading up on a topic and compiling a report on it can earn you money.
Personal shopping — Personal shoppers typically select gifts, apparel and other products for clients, helping them save time.
Pet breeding — Purebred pets can be quite value, especially if you can verify their pedigree.
Removing snow — During the winter months, shoveling walks can still be a reliable way to earn money. You might be asked to take care of the driveway too.
Utility auditing — As people become environmentally-concious, they want to know just how efficient their homes are. With some simple testing, you can tell them.
Offering web hosting services — Providing server space can be lucrative, particularly if you can provide tech support to your clients.
Cutting lawns — An old standby, cutting lawns and other landscaping services can provide a second income in the summer.
Auctioning items on eBay — Want to get rid of all your old stuff? Stick it up on eBay and auction it off.
Babysitting — Child care of all kinds, from babysitting to nannying, can offer constant opportunities.
Freelance writing — If you’ve got the skills to write clearly, you can sell your pen for everything from blogs to advertising copy.
Selling blog and website themes — Do a little designing on the side? Customers that don’t want to pay full price for a website will often pay for a template or theme.
Offering computer help — Particularly with people new to computers, you can earn money by providing in-home computer help.
Designing websites — It may require a little skilled effort, but designing websites remains a reliable source of income.
Selling stock photography — For shutterbugs, an easy way to put a photography collection to work is to post it to a stock photography site.
Freelance designing — Check with local businesses: you can provide brochures, business cards and other design work and get paid a good fee.
Tutoring — Math and languages reamin the easiest subjects to find tutoring gigs for, but there is demand for other fields as well.
Housesitting / petsitting — Stopping in to check on a house or pet can earn you some money, and maybe even a place to stay.
Building niche websites — If you can put together a site on a very specific topic, you can put targeted ads on it and make money quickly.
Translating — The variety of translating work available is huge: written word, on the spot and more is easy to find even on a part-time basis.
Creating custom crafts — No matter what kind of crafts you make, there’s likely a market for it. Etsy remains one of the easiest places to sell crafts.
Setting up a wi-fi hotspot — With a little bit of equipment, you can set up a wi-fi hotspot and charge your neighbors for the access they’ve been ‘borrowing.’
Selling an e-book — You can write an e-book about almost anything and put it up for sale online.
Affiliate marketing — If you’re willing to market other companies’ products, you can earn a cut of the sales.
Renting out your spare room — From looking for a long-term roommate to listing your guest room on couch surfing sites, that spare room can make you money.
Offering handy man services — Handling small household tasks can provide you with plenty of work, although you’ll probably be expected to have your own tools.
Teaching an online class — Share your expertise through a website, an online seminar or variety of other methods.
Building furniture — For those with the skill to create handmade furniture, selling their creations is often just a matter of advertising.
Providing personal chef services — Personal chefs prepare meals ahead of time for customers, leaving their customers with a full freezer and no mess.
Event planning — From planning corporate events to bar mitzvahs, an event planning business can require plenty of work and offer plenty of pay.
Installing home safety products — Particularly as Baby Boomers age, people able to install handrails and other home safety products are in demand.
Altering / tailoring — If your sewing skills are up to par, altering garments is coming back as people try to stretch more wear out of their clothing.
Offering in-home beauty services — Hair cuts, makeup and other beauty services that can be performed at home have a growing demand.
Business coaching — Helping others to establish and develop their businesses can provide many opportunities to earn money.
Writing resumes — Writing resumes can provide a reliable income, especially if you can put a polish on a client’s credentials.
There are plenty of offers that claim to provide you with the opportunity to make thousands of dollars a week. Unfortunately, none of these businesses will provide that sort of income, but they aren’t scams either. They were chosen because they all require a minimum investment to get started — some require nothing more than a flyer advertising your business. Even better, if you do enjoy any of these businesses, there is a potential with most of them to continue to expand — perhaps even to the point of going full time.
This is Apple’s first electronic book store, and it allows users to download and buy books on the move. Deals have already been struck with publishers, including Penguin and HarperCollins. Once a user has bought a book, it appears on a virtual bookshelf, complete with cover art, and can then be read on the device in full colour. Users can even change the font of the books they are reading. It uses the open-source ePub format, which means books downloaded will be compatible with other devices.
iWork
Apple has developed a special iPad version of its iWork software suite, which makes it possible to create and view documents, spreadsheets and presentations on the device. That makes it a real rival to a laptop, because it can be plugged into a projector. The device can also view slides in PDF files via Adobe Acrobat.
Connectivity
The iPad has wireless internet as standard, but there’s also a 3G option – you would have to pay a mobile phone tariff, but the device would then always be connected to the internet.
Applications
The key selling point of the iPhone has become the vast library of applications that can be downloaded for it – from train information to video games. The iPad will take that model, play all the same apps, but also nurture a new market for a different kind of software, using its larger, multitouch interface.
Web, email and iTunes
Effortless use of the internet will be crucial to the success of this device. Apple’s aim is to make the web seem “more intimate”. With a touchscreen interface, email is easier than on the iPhone. And an iPod is built in: connect it to speakers via WiFi and this is a great device to use on the sofa.
Specifications
Estimated UK launch: June/July
Price: currently from $499
Memory: 16/32/64GB
Screen: 9.7i
Official Site: http://www.apple.com/ipad/ The high-resolution, 9.7 inch LED-backlit, IPS display on iPad is remarkably crisp and vivid. Which makes it perfect for web browsing, watching movies, or showing off photos. It’s also been designed to work in any orientation — portrait or landscape. And because it uses a display technology called IPS (in-plane switching), it has a wide, 178° viewing angle. So you can hold it almost any way you want, and still get a brilliant picture, with excellent color and contrast.
7:12
samengland: photos, music, tv shows, contacts, cal, bookmarks, apps
7:13
samengland: "if you lose your ipad and get another one you can back it up on an iphone"
7:13
samengland: wifi - also have 3G
7:13
samengland: built in
7:13
samengland: cost - in the US
7:13
samengland: 2 plans
7:14
samengland: 250mb data per month $14.99/month
7:14
samengland: UNLIMITED play for $29.99
7:14
samengland: AT&T only
7:14
samengland: please tell your friends and colleagues about LiveTechEvents.com
7:15
samengland: activate the ipad on the ipad itself
7:15
samengland: but how much does the device cost?
7:15
samengland: international
7:15
samengland: NO INTERNATIONAL DEALS IN PLACE YET
7:16
samengland: deals hoped for by summer internationally
7:16
samengland: email....
7:17
samengland: uses GSM microsims only
7:17
samengland: ibook store, carry 1000s of books
7:18
samengland: pricing?
7:18
samengland: $999?
7:18
samengland: aggressive pricing...
7:19
samengland: THE DEVICE WILL COST AT $499
7:20
samengland: IPAD WILL COST $499 for 16GB
32 GB $599
64GB $699
$130 more for 3G on each model
$829 for 3G+64GB
7:20
samengland: 6 models
7:20
samengland: Lowest price $499 (no 3G, 16GB)
7:21
samengland: Google offers books for free, true
7:21
samengland: iBook store is ebooks (ebooks on the ipad)
7:21
samengland: external keyboard
7:21
samengland: plug in to it
7:21
samengland: like a netbook!
7:21
samengland: plug ipad in to keyboard and charging dock
7:22
samengland: also protective case like sony reader
7:22
samengland: book style
7:23
samengland: 24 months data + 64GB IPad 3G will cost a total of $1549 same cost as an imac
7:23
samengland: the ipad is SQUARE in shape
7:25
LiveTechEvents: keyboard same size as laptop keyboard?
7:25
Why will buy the iPad?
Me!
( 61% )
Not me...
( 39% )
7:26
LiveTechEvents: no new iPhone as of yet
7:26
Which iPad would you buy?
16GB
( 24% )
32G
( 26% )
64GB
( 50% )
7:27
LiveTechEvents: please vote in polls
7:28
LiveTechEvents: everyone getting the livestream ok? promo video showing now
7:28
LiveTechEvents: it has no phone capabilities
7:28
LiveTechEvents: resolution is 2x size of an iphone, apps are pixel-doubled
7:29
LiveTechEvents: no HD, no 720p
7:29
LiveTechEvents: we have feedback due to bandwidth issues
7:29
LiveTechEvents: @junjunb true, but $130 more 3G on any model
7:29
LiveTechEvents: The apple website hasn't been changed a lot which is strange normally theirs a teaser page up.
7:30
LiveTechEvents: there are 6 models
7:30
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Apple seems to have rushed this product out.
7:31
LiveTechEvents: 2 weeks were given to NYT to develop their app - it looks unfinished like a website from 1997 based on tables?
7:31
LiveTechEvents: people already know how to use the iphone/ipod touch so they will find this easy apparently
7:31
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I'd still recommend someone buy a netbook you can get a lot more for your money.
7:31
LiveTechEvents: ibook store, app store, itunes store 125million accounts with credit cards
7:32
LiveTechEvents: the processor is NOT INTEL it is just apples own 1GhZ processor (intel atom is 1.6Ghz and a netbook costs ~£250) most have built in 3G too (dell mini more, samsung NC, lenovo ideapad)
7:33
LiveTechEvents Discussion:In the UK the iPhone is currently on Orange, Vodafone and o2 so the iPad will probably be with one of those two, probably o2 at first.
7:34
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I think the iPad would look better with a wide-screen display watching films on the iPad won't be a pleasant experience.
7:36
LiveTechEvents: It has a lot of potential, who will wait for version 2?
7:37
LiveTechEvents Discussion:The games played were extremely poor they crashed and were fuzzy. Also the iBook application doesn't look as usable as the Kindle.
7:37
LiveTechEvents: is the kindle dead?
7:38
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Amazon will most likely slash the price of the Kindle to make it more competitive and plus you don't have to pay data charges.
7:40
Are you disappointed with the iPads features?
Yes
( 46% )
No
( 54% )
7:40
LiveTechEvents: Please sign up to email updates at LiveTechEvents.com main page for updates on future major tech events. Max 2 emails per year (No spam!)
7:41
LiveTechEvents: David, yes the iPad uses Micro SIM Any carrier that can handle micro-SIM will work and no contracts.
7:41
LiveTechEvents: They said earlier that international data deals would be June/July but micro sim cards would probably just work
7:42
LiveTechEvents: micro sim doesnt need contracts
7:43
LiveTechEvents: No more announcements - no iPhone
7:43
LiveTechEvents: If the iPad had a front and pack camera, that would be a great addition. Imagine Skype - video conferencing on an ipad!
7:44
Would you like the iPad to have a camera for Skype Video Conferencing?
Yes
( 94% )
No
( 6% )
7:44
LiveTechEvents: Theres apples big mistake - 96% people think the device should have two cameras
7:45
LiveTechEvents: No OLED screen but 10 hour battery life - good viewing angle almost 180 degrees
7:45
LiveTechEvents: its quite big, 9.7 inch screen with 3/4 inch bezel
7:46
LiveTechEvents Discussion:http://www.apple.com/ipad/ - website is up.
7:46
LiveTechEvents: Would this device leave the house that often? Why do we need 3G? Whats wrong with free Wifi in starbucks
7:46
LiveTechEvents: with the stand this is also a good aeroplane device
7:46
Who wants to pay £130 more for 3G? Or will you just stick with Wifi?
I want 3G
( 32% )
Im fine with Wifi
( 68% )
7:47
LiveTechEvents: screen is very responsive, A5 chip (probably ARM) is very good
7:47
LiveTechEvents: photo app responds fast
7:47
LiveTechEvents: we will have a hands on in approx 10 mins
7:48
LiveTechEvents: ****************
Please sign up to email updates at LiveTechEvents.com main page for updates on future major tech events. Max 2 emails per year (No spam!)
****************
7:52
LiveTechEvents:
****************
Please sign up to email updates at LiveTechEvents.com main page for updates on future major tech events. Max 2 emails per year (No spam!)
****************
7:53
LiveTechEvents: it docks in landscape with a keyboard
7:53
LiveTechEvents: calendar feels like a calendar (cork board etc)
7:54
LiveTechEvents: "real world experience"
7:54
LiveTechEvents Discussion:@Rufex its a lot like the iPhone OS, we're getting a demo of the iPad soon.
7:55
LiveTechEvents: No Adobe Flash on iPad <<<<
7:55
LiveTechEvents: 1024-by-768-pixel resolution at 132 pixels per inch (ppi)
7:55
LiveTechEvents: screen's aspect ratio is closer to 4:3 than 16:9
7:55
LiveTechEvents: its square
7:56
LiveTechEvents: @JSWolf - closer to 4:3
7:56
LiveTechEvents Discussion:For anyone who's wondering what it looks its like a large iPod Touch.
7:57
Sam: ****************
Please sign up to email updates at LiveTechEvents.com main page for updates on future major tech events. Max 2 emails per year (No spam!)
****************
7:57
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Though your eyes might get tired after a long reading period, unlike the Kindle
7:57
Sam: iphone games are blown up x2 - look fuzzy
7:59
Sam: All iPhone apps which are blown up for iPad are VERY fuzzy - will all iPhone app developers make their apps for iPad too?
7:59
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Unfortunately iWork isn't as fully featured as Microsoft Office, maybe MS will develop an iPad app?
7:59
Sam: No multitasking - unmodified iphone OS
8:00
Sam: It might LOOK better but your eyes will kill after a couple of hours
8:00
Sam: Apple event is not over
8:00
[Comment From Rufex]
REALLY?! NO multitasking? do they simulated at least?
8:00
Sam: Rufex, yes!
8:01
[Comment From Rufex]
thats where kindle wins! its basically a book!
8:01
[Comment From junjunb]
since its 3g, the underground teams will make way for phone capabilities
8:01
[Comment From Doeloe]
i expected more from apple
8:01
[Comment From junjunb]
yup.. but i think its not wise to buy right of the bat.. im SURE there are a lot of bugs still..
8:01
[Comment From Kristian]
phone app could be Skype or video conferencing with Tandberg Movi
8:01
[Comment From james]
good pricing
8:02
Sam: 114,000 people watching THIS live stream
8:02
[Comment From Ken]
I don't think a netbook can beat the 499 deal
8:02
[Comment From Lee]
Agreed, it seems they did rush it. I waited for the updated iphone, and I will wait for this as well.
8:02
[Comment From Rufex]
its not the same as a netbook, touchscreen, smaller, easily carried...
8:02
[Comment From scott]
Still AT&T? What about all of us who cannot get AT&T? This is such a huge .. horrible issue. People complain about AT&T, I would just like to have the OPTION to use it. They will not give me service.
8:03
[Comment From Lee]
Only reason I can think of getting one, is if Adobe and Coral release fully functioning versions of Photoshop, Illistrator and Painter. It would be like having a piece of digital paper.
8:03
Sam: That would be good - CS4 apps on iPad
8:03
[Comment From karli]
fuck of ipad
8:03
[Comment From GeeK]
The Ipad outpriced the kindle
8:03
[Comment From Ucopmok Mok]
for me kindle is not dead because kindle still have the majority online book
8:03
[Comment From Guest]
what the hell about macbook pro updates?
8:04
[Comment From Salem]
32 is the best
8:04
[Comment From Dizaat]
Is there going to be an new iPhone today?
8:04
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Dizaat - unfortunately no
8:04
[Comment From Ucopmok Mok]
it would be great if i can play the many facebook games on the iPad,
8:04
Sam: No flash!
8:04
[Comment From Rufex]
but its much more than the kindle!! cant compare different things!
8:04
[Comment From DVE]
will you be able to use graphical programs like photoshop? Or programs like office word
8:04
Sam: DVE - just iWork
8:05
[Comment From Carl]
is there an SD card reader on the side so we can upgrade the storage?
8:05
[Comment From Lee]
A built in stylus would of been nice...
8:05
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I agree but the Kindle is good at what it does iBooks looks like an afterthought
8:05
[Comment From Guest]
USB ports????
8:05
Sam: No SD card reader, No USB ports
8:05
[Comment From Lee A]
Why are people comparing the Kindle to iPad? They're two different products
8:05
Sam: The iPad directly competes according to appl
8:06
Sam: however just like when they compared the Nintendo DS to iPod Touch
8:07
[Comment From Diogo]
Is there going to be a new macbook pro today?
8:07
Sam:
****************
Please sign up to email updates at LiveTechEvents.com main page for updates on future major tech events. Max 2 emails per year (No spam!)
****************
8:07
[Comment From Carl]
Missing GPS!!! Would be great in the RV!!!
8:07
LiveTechEvents Discussion:No it was just the iPad launched today.
8:07
Sam: True - no GPS is as big a failure as leaving the camera out!
8:08
Sam: Demo hall - 60 iPads
8:08
Sam: where was the 'One last thing'?
8:08
Have you signed up to updates on the main page at http://LiveTechEvents.com Yes
( 18% )
I will right now
( 14% )
I dont want to
( 68% )
8:09
[Comment From carmen]
I wanted USB ports and flash and would like multitasking, front facing camera, tethering. Without tethering, I wouldn't bother with a data plan. Anything else can be synced. I still love it, but I'll wait.
8:09
Sam: Do you think they were creating it for a year?
8:09
Sam: front facing camera would be great on Skype
8:10
[Comment From dylan]
im a little disappointed, i expected much more after a year of creating it!!!!
8:10
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Dylan, I think they rushed it.
8:12
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Future updates in the coming years will make it a more compelling product. It did take apple more than a year to add copy and paste.
8:14
[Comment From dylan UK]
i personally think they just bought 10inch touchscreens and added the ipod touch software onto it! theres nothing 'new' on it, its all been seen before
8:14
[Comment From Rufex]
haha! a year for copy and paste! true!
8:14
Sam: Please refresh http://www.livetechevents.com and subscribe to email updates. These will be sent out only before major events. Thank you for supporting us. We are a FREE service.
8:15
Sam: A front facing camera would be a welcome addition to version 2, along with GPS
8:15
Sam: The iBooks bookstore is up now
8:16
Sam: 9000 in our stream today. Thanks for watching. Please refresh http://www.livetechevents.com and subscribe to email updates. These will be sent out only before major events. Thank you for supporting us. We are a FREE service.
8:16
9000 in our stream today. Thanks for watching. Please refresh http://www.livetechevents.com and subscribe to email updates. These will be sent out only before major events. Thank you for supporting us
I already joined
( 67% )
I'm about to now...
( 33% )
8:17
Sam: Front facing camera is a fundamental assent. What 3G operator would you rather it be exclusive to in the UK?
8:17
[Comment From dylan UK]
yes sam, as soon as they add a front facing camera i will get one. maybe they will bring out an add on? when will apple learn we like cameras on our gadgets?
8:18
[Comment From Rufex]
so, really? how much better than an iphone is it? more powerful processor, more RAM Im sure, but software the same still with no multitasking, and apps the same but enlarged and not in a good way...
8:18
Will the iPad fulfil a need in your life if you choose to buy one?
Yes
( 25% )
Np
( 75% )
8:19
[Comment From r1]
are they gonna announce the new iphone 4g?
8:19
LiveTechEvents Discussion:not today
8:19
[Comment From raymund]
so when we will get front camera?
8:19
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Probably in the next 1-2 years
8:19
Sam: Processor is almost 100% faster though no multi task and also the fact that iphone apps are being used are a big pitfull, the font size will be very big and games and graphics pixellated
8:19
Sam: Remember most iPhone apps are designed for THUMBS not HANDS.
8:19
Sam: This will cause big problems in the UI of apps
8:20
Sam: What about the ASUS nvidia tablets coming out? Competitors?
8:20
[Comment From Sunny]
iphone os 3.2? any word?
8:20
Sam: No word of this Sunny
8:21
[Comment From Rufex]
technology for the iphone existed long before its appearance but due to price issues no such phone was launched. only apple can launch an expensive thing like that and their people will buy it..
8:22
[Comment From Rufex]
will this ipad have the same success as their iphone?
8:23
Sam: Almost 10,000 people joined us today for our coverage. Thank you for joining us! We are a 100% free service. Please join our email list at http://www.livetechevents.com (refresh the page) - we will send max 2 emails per year to notify you when we do live coverage of MAJOR tech events. We will improve our coverage in the future and ensure that video quality is better and you will hear our audio discussion. This is the first event we covered and it went well!
8:23
[Comment From raymund]
will this works as a phone with the 3g connection?
8:23
Sam: No it will not, but it has 3G for data
8:23
Rufex: nope! no phone capabilites!
8:24
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Nobody really knows what the iPad will do, the iPhone had a purpose what purpose does the iPad have
8:24
Rufex: HP's tablet should should come up anyday now!
8:24
Sam: GPS would be cool on the iPad
8:24
Rufex: that should be another interesting event and something which we can compare with the ipad through and through...
8:25
What would you most liked to have seen on the iPad?
Front facing and main cameras
( 55% )
GPS
( 5% )
Tethering
( 0% )
Stylus
( 0% )
OLED Screen
( 40% )
8:26
Rufex: also, the possible name iSlate was so much better!
8:27
LiveTechEvents Discussion:yeh although I would have thought apple would be starting to move away from adding 'i' to the front of everything.
8:27
[Comment From Sunny]
to be honest i told myself i would never get an iphone, but then i became a sucker to marketing and what not and eventually got one myself. maybe the same thing with the ipad in a few years?
8:28
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Sunny, well apple certainly knows how to market a device, and I think you'll start seeing iPad's being used in your local Starbuck soon enough.
8:28
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Almost 10,000 people joined us today for our coverage. Thank you for joining us! We are a 100% free service. Please join our email list at http://www.livetechevents.com (refresh the page) - we will send max 2 emails per year to notify you when we do live coverage of MAJOR tech events. We will improve our coverage in the future and ensure that video quality is better and you will hear our audio discussion. This is the first event we covered and it went well!
8:28
Rufex: hopefully not Sunny! I mean, I'll never get tired of saying it! Two iphones and an ipad and still? No MULTITASKING?? REALLY?
8:29
[Comment From Jon Wolf]
What is the screen's aspect ratio?
8:33
[Comment From Sunny]
i dont have a macbook. well.yet maybe in about 6-9 months, but i dont think opting for an ipad would be a alternative choice? or would it?
8:34
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Sunny what kind of things would you be doing on your computer?
8:34
Rufex: I think that an ipad would never fullfill as many needs as you may have as a macbook...
8:36
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Rufex, I'd agree I think people need to realise that the iPad is basically a larger version of the iPod Touch but with a few more capabilities.
8:36
[Comment From diogo]
i need to buy a new pc, i'm thinking to buy the macbook pro, should i wait for thenew update?
8:37
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I would wait as I'm sure it's imminent.
8:37
Rufex: true! a large ipod touch is a more accurate comparison than a large iphone
8:37
[Comment From Rod Lewis]
So, I'm not the only person who wants a camera for Skype
8:38
Rufex: Guess not Rod...
8:38
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Rod, it seems a lot of people want a front facing camera.
8:38
[Comment From p0ps]
for me as a Painter, it's what I've always wanted. As a browser, social networker, emailer, reader, movie watcher, music watcher - it's got all I need. I'll get the 3G 16GB ASAP
8:39
Rufex: the painter part is really interesting!
8:39
LiveTechEvents Discussion:p0ps do you think the screen will be accurate enough to produce good paintings?
8:39
Rufex: But I'd strongly suggest you test it before you buy it!
8:39
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Almost 10,000 people joined us today for our coverage. Thank you for joining us! We are a 100% free service. Please join our email list at http://www.livetechevents.com (refresh the page) - we will send max 2 emails per year to notify you when we do live coverage of MAJOR tech events. We will improve our coverage in the future and ensure that video quality is better and you will hear our audio discussion. This is the first event we covered and it went well!
8:39
[Comment From Chris]
As a designer... I really wanted a stylus for sketching!
8:40
[Comment From p0ps]
yes, I can make it work. I can do it on the iPhone with Brushes, this will be better.
8:40
Rufex: Exactly! And what about software? Will there be good software for painting and photo editing?
8:40
Rufex: If you can do it with the iphone then go ahead!
8:41
Rufex: We have to give it to them though... If you're fine with 16Gb and no 3G, then 500 bucks is an excellent price!
8:41
[Comment From p0ps]
I expect the iPhone app developers will do a good job with making the fantastic apps available from phone to pad.
8:41
[Comment From tehbomb]
where can I watch the video
8:41
Rufex: Provided their touch screen is as good as the price...
8:42
p0ps: It has 10 finger multi-touch, correct? That's pretty sweet.
8:42
Rufex: I assume the screen is capacitive and supports multitouch... Is that the case?
8:42
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Yes it's both
8:42
p0ps: They demoed Jobs typing with all 10 fingers.
8:43
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I'd like handwriting recognition. I think it'll be a pain using the keyboard.
8:43
[Comment From DVE]
using it as a wacom tablet on our mac would be great too
8:45
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Now your talking, it would be cool if it worked out of the box as a secondary surface for the mac computers.
8:45
[Comment From diogo]
imminent like days? weeks?
8:45
p0ps: and a remote for TV & Macs
8:45
LiveTechEvents Discussion:more likely weeks.
8:46
LiveTechEvents Discussion:p0ps, let's wait for the jail breakers to get their hands on the iPad!
8:46
p0ps: Yes this is waiting to be hacked big-time.
8:47
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Almost 10,000 people joined us today for our coverage. Thank you for joining us! We are a 100% free service. Please join our email list at http://www.livetechevents.com (refresh the page) - we will send max 2 emails per year to notify you when we do live coverage of MAJOR tech events. We will improve our coverage in the future and ensure that video quality is better and you will hear our audio discussion. This is the first event we covered and it went well!
8:47
[Comment From diogo]
this ipad can't replace a wacom tablet,right?
8:48
LiveTechEvents Discussion:No I doubt it will 'officially' .
8:49
Rufex: I dont think that apple is ready to drop the i on front the names of their products. I believe their goal is that you hop on your iCar and go to your iOffice to work, have a delicious iLunch, finish the day, stop at an iBar for a beer and go home to eat and sleep with your iWife.
8:54
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Almost 10,000 people joined us today for our coverage. Thank you for joining us! We are a 100% free service. Please join our email list at http://www.livetechevents.com (refresh the page) - we will send max 2 emails per year to notify you when we do live coverage of MAJOR tech events. We will improve our coverage in the future and ensure that video quality is better and you will hear our audio discussion. This is the first event we covered and it went well!
8:56
Rufex: This was the first event covered by you guys?
8:56
Rufex: Excellent work!
8:56
Rufex: Clearly you did a great job! It's the first time I seek out to watch some live show due to my poor latin american width band and already I ended up here!
8:56
Rufex: Cheers!
8:57
LiveTechEvents Discussion:it was indeed we plan to do more in future, glad to hear it.
8:57
Rufex: bandwidth.. you know what I mean...
8:57
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I do indeed.
9:00
[Comment From Sam]
does the ipad have snow leapard
9:00
LiveTechEvents Discussion:No it's based on the iPhone OS
9:01
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Any other questions you want answering?
9:03
Rufex: it has VGA out support or AV out via dock connector and converter cable... thats interesting...
9:03
LiveTechEvents Discussion:that would be good, but it's something the iPod's/iPhone's have been able to do for sometime.
9:05
[Comment From john]
is ipad going to be consider as computer or something else?
9:05
Rufex: It's definitely not a computer...
9:05
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I would say something else, like the iPhone/Touch it can't really compete with a computer.
9:06
Rufex: It's software is not powerful enough to be one...
9:06
[Comment From convert]
That was me, windows user until I was 33yrs old, starting with a tandy. On the macbook for 1 week and I knew I'd never ever go back to windows.
9:07
Rufex: We'll all be using linux or other free software OS by the end of the decade... Ubuntu is only getting better and the new Gnome that comes out in April shall rock!
9:08
LiveTechEvents Discussion:I'm all for Ubuntu it's a great OS.
9:09
LiveTechEvents Discussion:Right, that's a wrap folk we're over and out, remember if you want to stay up to date with Live Tech Events please join our email list at http://www.livetechevents.com (refresh the page) - we will send max 2 emails per year to notify you when we do live coverage of MAJOR tech events.
Edit Delete
9:10
LiveTechEvents Discussion:thanks for participating, head over to iVirtuaforums.com if you have any more questions about the iPad.
After years of rumors, speculation, and leaks, Apple today announced its long-await tablet, the iPad.
Chief executive Steve Jobs complemented the introduction of the new device with a new e-bookstore, called iBooks, together with partnerships with four major publishers, and showed off new versions of its iWork application and third-party applications.
Jobs kicked off the company's launch event in San Francisco on Wednesday by highlighting the history of the company's mobile products. "We're the largest mobile device company in the world," he told the audience, showcasing the iPhone and the company's line of MacBook products.
"There is room for something in the middle," he told the crowd. "If there's gonna be a third category, it has to be better at [Web browsing, e-mail, photos, video, music, games, and e-book reader]—otherwise it has no reason for being."
While netbooks have attempted to address the space, Jobs added, "netbooks aren't better than anything…They're just cheap laptops."
The key, he insisted is the tablet—a new device the company has christened the "iPad," one of several rumored names, including the "iSlate" and, simply, the "Apple Tablet." The iPad features a 9.7-inch, full capacitive multi-touch IPS display, weighs 1.5 pounds and measures 0.5 inches thick—"thinner and lighter than any netbook," according to Jobs.
Pricing for the iPad starts at $499 – far lower than the early $1,000 projections of many analysts. The 16-, 32-, and 64-GB devices run $499, $599, $699 – with an additional $130 for 3G capability. The device will begin shipping in March.
For the chipset, the company went in-house, designing a 1-GHz Apple A4, contrary to rumors that the device would be powered by an Intel or Samsung chip. The iPad comes in three capacities: 16-, 32, and 64GB. It features built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, an accelerometer, company, speaker, and microphone.
The iPad has a built-in iTunes store, for music playback. Itcan also do video, naturally, either via iTunes for movies and TV shows, or via third-party apps like YouTube and YouTube HD. The device syncs to Macs and PCs via USB, in much the same manner as the iPhone, so users can transfer content like movies and music from iTunes.
According to Jobs, the device gets 10 hours of battery life. "I can take a flight from San Francisco to Tokyo and watch video the whole time." It also features a month of standby time on a single charge, he said.
Apple is offering two 3G data plans for the device: $14.99 a month for 250-MB or $29.99 for unlimited data. "Data plans usually cost about $60 a month," Jobs told the crowd.
Contrary to early Verizon partnership rumors, the plan is available solely through AT&T. No contract is required. "International plans will be in place by June," Jobs added. Those uninterested in 3G data will be able to use the device with Wi-Fi, of course.
Jobs surrendered the stage to a number of content providers. First off, Mark Hickey from video game publisher Gameloft showcased a first person shooter for the device called Nova.
Travis Boatman from EA showcased a the upcoming title: "Need For Speed: Shift". "Building for the iPad is like holding an HD display up to your face," he told the crowd.
Martin Nisenholtz from The New York Times took the stage to show off "something special for the iPad." The paper's layout on the device mimics a standard newspaper. "We think we've captured the essence of reading the newspaper," he told the crowd. "A superior experience in a native application." The application also lets users play video, making newspaper reading a multi-media experience.
Developer Steve Sprang showcased an application called Brushes, which is already available as an iPhone app. In iPad form, the application takes advantage of the device's significantly increased real-estate, offering a deep artistic canvas experience. The app, according to Sprang, will be available when the iPad launches. Chad Evans from MLB.com also showcased a new app for the device featuring live video.
Jobs came back on stage to take a shot at Amazon's successful Kindle. "Amazon has done a great job of pioneering [e-readers]," Jobs told the crowd. "We're going to stand on their shoulders for this." The new e-book reader for the iPad is titled, fittingly enough, iBooks. Apple partnered with a slew of major publishers, including Penguin, Harper-Collings, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and the Hachette Book Group to provide content for the device's online book store called the iBookStore.
Unlike the Kindle, the iPad displays titles in full color. The screen's animation lets users flip quickly through the pages of the book. Users can even change the font of the books they're reading. The device utilizes the nearly universal ePub format for its titles.
For more business-minded users Apple has developed a special iPad version of iWork, making it possible to create and view spreadsheets on the device. The device can also view slides in Keynote and PDF files via Adobe Acrobat. iWork applications will run $9.99 a piece and will be compatible with Macs and projectors.
Apple is also offering a number of accessories for the device, including two docks. The first is a picture dock, which lets the device stand upright for video and image viewing. The other has a built-in keyboard, transforming the iPad into a more fully functioning netbook of sorts. Apple's case also lets the device stand upright.
Below will follow a tranbscript of iVirtua's traditional live coverage from our new subsidiary
By now, you've seen the Windows 7 commercials and read the reviews. PCMag will have far more to say in the coming days and weeks about the quality and performance of Microsoft's Windows 7 OS, as well as how it stacks up against its primary competition, Apple's Snow Leopard. But have you ever wondered what it would be like if you could watch executives from both companies really have at it? Not with snarky commercials, but with an honest discussion of the technologies that drive these operating systems? It won't happen, of course, but this is pretty close.
A couple of weeks ago, I got a surprise offer: Apple wanted to go on record and talk about why Snow Leopard is better than Windows 7. Apple's Senior Director of Mac OS X Product Marketing Brian Croll gave me his side of the story. Then I interviewed Microsoft's Jay Paulus, Director, Product Management Windows Client, to let him make his case. Although the interviews were conducted separately, I've tried to blend the comments to make it something of an ex post facto debate. It seems fair enough, as each side knew I would be talking to the other. What I ended up with is a good-old-fashioned debate, in which I play the moderator—and occasional fact-checker. It may not settle the question of which OS is better, but goes into a lot more technical detail than the 30-second spots that will be all over TV this holiday season.
Editor's Note: To reiterate, the interviews with Mr. Croll and Mr. Paulus were conducted separately—at no time were all three parties speaking to each other at the same time, and while they did respond to these topics and questions, I have added some detail to my moderator sections in order to put Mr. Croll and Mr. Paulus' responses in the proper context.
The 64-Bit Question
Lance Ulanoff: Let's start with 64-bit. For perhaps the first time in operating system history, average consumers are aware of the 64-bit choice and thinking about whether or not they need or want to use it. Mr. Croll, what does Apple bring to the table here?
Brian Croll: We have one version of Snow Leopard. Contrast that to Windows, which has six versions and adds a lot of complexity. Their product matrix gets really complex very fast. Then multiply by two, because you have to know if you want 32- or 64-bit.
In 2003, we started adding 64-bit technology. Apple went from a 32-bit to 64-bit environment without any issues for customers. Now we can allow 64-bit apps to run entirely on a 64-bit Intel processor. The major system apps now run in 64 bits. We architected Snow Leopard to allow the whole system to run in 64-bit mode on a 64-bit chip, not partial. (Ed. Note: But the vast majority of Macs will still run the OS kernel in 32-bit mode.)
Application developers can package up applications to put both 32- and 64-bit binary in one package. We never wanted the consumer to have to decide, and app manufacturers do not have to offer two versions.
LU: Mr. Paulus, your rebuttal?
Jay Paulus: We do have two versions. When you buy media, it comes with both in the box. We recommend people with 3GB or more of memory install the 64-bit version. (Ed. Note: You cannot upgrade from a 32-bit version of Vista to a 64 bit version of Windows 7. You must do a clean install.)
I think the transition to 64-bit is hard. It takes work to transition to 64-bit. Apple knows 64-bit is hard. They wanted to take credit for the work they did. OS X 10 Snow Leopard doesn't boot into 64-bit by default. And switching between 32-bit and 64-bit causes a big performance hit. The only SKU that boots into 64-bit by default is OS X server. Tough position for them to take, as much as I like their 64-bit logo.
We've had 64-bit and drivers since 2003 on Windows XP. Pretty hard for them to claim a lead on that.
LU: What about Microsoft's two-version approach, as opposed to one binary?
JP: I think it's representative, a pretty good way to make transition. As the hardware and software catches up and people have more and more memory in the systems, 64-bit makes more sense. The fact that they can make a choice, is that a bad thing?
Programming for Multicore
LU: Modern computers now feature multicore CPUs. However, consumers aren't always sure if their operating systems or apps are taking full—or any—advantage of all those cores. What are you guys doing in the multicore space?
BC: We took a step back and rethought the problem. It's a big deal for developers to get the most out of multicore systems. Programmers usually have to write apps differently if there are two, four, or eight cores. Grand Central lets the operating system figure it out. We'll shield the developers from having to worry about it. It's a big breakthrough in software. For application developers to take advantage of it, they only need to add a couple of constructs to their code. It's minimally invasive to the current set of code.
The primary benefit is speed (how fast it goes on screen) and responsiveness, if I click on something on the screen how quickly it comes back.
JP: It's a tough computing problem, the multicore, multithreading, programming across GPU and CPU. These are tough problems, no doubt. Anyone who does this wants to take credit. I feel like Apple is playing catch-up in this realm. We've had threads and fiber since 2000. The Windows 7 kernel is the same kernel as Window Server 2008 [R2]. I would hold our granular scheduling and multicore scaling up to theirs any day of the week. They're providing a queuing mechanism. People will still have to design their apps to be multithreaded. I reject the fact that it's going to fundamentally alter the way people are building apps to be multithreading or multicore.
Programming for Multicore
LU: Modern computers now feature multicore CPUs. However, consumers aren't always sure if their operating systems or apps are taking full—or any—advantage of all those cores. What are you guys doing in the multicore space?
BC: We took a step back and rethought the problem. It's a big deal for developers to get the most out of multicore systems. Programmers usually have to write apps differently if there are two, four, or eight cores. Grand Central lets the operating system figure it out. We'll shield the developers from having to worry about it. It's a big breakthrough in software. For application developers to take advantage of it, they only need to add a couple of constructs to their code. It's minimally invasive to the current set of code.
The primary benefit is speed (how fast it goes on screen) and responsiveness, if I click on something on the screen how quickly it comes back.
JP: It's a tough computing problem, the multicore, multithreading, programming across GPU and CPU. These are tough problems, no doubt. Anyone who does this wants to take credit. I feel like Apple is playing catch-up in this realm. We've had threads and fiber since 2000. The Windows 7 kernel is the same kernel as Window Server 2008 [R2]. I would hold our granular scheduling and multicore scaling up to theirs any day of the week. They're providing a queuing mechanism. People will still have to design their apps to be multithreaded. I reject the fact that it's going to fundamentally alter the way people are building apps to be multithreading or multicore.
Backing Up
LU: Okay, let's talk about backup—something everybody needs, but no one really does. Windows Backup has been around for a long time, but isn't widely used. Apple's Time Machine arrived with Leopard and deep integration with the hardware. Where are we now with OS-based backup?
BC: Time Machine versus Windows Backup: We built it in with Time Machine. It's easy to use, easy to restore, easy to understand, easy to search. There's a huge qualitative difference between what you get on a Mac and what you get on Windows.
JP: There's been some work done to make Windows Backup easier to use. It does a good job of full-system backup. If you have pictures scattered around the disk, you can send them to Library view—Backup is smart about picking up files from wherever they are. Another feature that is key is Previous Versions. It was called Time Warp and we have had it since Server 2003. It manages previous versions of files and is running by default on disk—it's a file system feature. There's no separate disk. It doesn't protect you from disk failure, but lets you go back in time to previous versions of files.
Upgrade Paths
LU: Perhaps one of the most stressful things users face is the act of upgrading their OS. With Windows 7 coming out, people will be making choices and possibly upgrading their OS. Mr. Croll, what's Apple's perspective on what's happening with Windows 7?
BC: Over 60 percent of the people are out there running Windows XP. I will point out that Microsoft more or less left the XP users behind. So I'm not understanding the logic.
LU: Mr. Paulus, Brian has a point. There were a lot of netbooks sold over the last 12 to 18 months, and the vast majority of them shipped with Windows XP.
JP: The majority of people get their new OS with a new machine, so the notion that we're leaving behind a vast set of people, I'm not sure I accept that. The fact is that Windows XP shipped eight years ago and hardware and software has moved on. We made a tough choice and I hope in the end that it's the right choice. It's a bit disingenuous for Apple guys to talk about us leaving people behind. On positive side, Windows 7 will run really well on those netbooks.
Windows users aren't left behind to the degree that people who are running those old Macs are being left behind. If you didn't buy a Mac since the Intel transition three years ago, you are really getting left behind. (Ed. Note: Snow Leopard only runs on newer, Intel-based Macs.)
What's Inside
LU: After years of integrating utilities and even full-blown apps from competing products in the operating system, or as part of the OS package, Microsoft made an about face this year and is letting end users decide whether or not they want to download Mail, Messenger, Movie Maker and other apps. Why?
JP: Pulling things out allows us to update them on a more regular basis. There's more customer value, the apps are more directly integrated with the cloud offerings. I think that people will realize that that's the way they want it: software plus service. Those upgrades are free. Apple can say they include it in the OS, but they also charge you for the upgrade.
LU: Mr. Croll, how do you view the debundling of applications?
BC: We build everything in and put together a package that works beautifully out of box. Microsoft is going in a different direction, pulling out Mail, and other apps and having people download them. For example, we have Exchange support in Snow Leopard. You have to buy Microsoft Office to get Exchange support in Windows 7. We bundle that right out of box.
JP: The premier client for Exchange is Outlook. If you want the full-fidelity experience, you want Outlook. For those that don't want to buy Outlook, there's Outlook Web Exchange. It's a strong, high-fidelity client.
What's Different
LU: In the race to build the best operating system, where do each of you think you stand? What sets you apart? Mr. Croll?
BC: Mac OS X is much simpler than Windows. We're more advanced from a technological standpoint. Windows 7 still has DLL and the Registry, still has defragmenting, still needs activation. We don't make users enter in activation codes.
LU: It's a fair point, Mr. Paulus. Microsoft has done many things to Windows 7, but couldn't change some of the fundamentals like the DLL and Registry.
JP: So what? Yeah, we've got the Registry and DLL, so what? It's not something we talk about. We do a lot of work around reliability and performance. Getting into notions of replacing Registry and DLL, it just doesn't become relevant.
LU: What about Mr. Croll's activation and technology comments?
JP: Apple has a different model. They charge you a lot of money for the hardware and charge you again for the OS. We're selling you the OS. We use the activation to help ensure that you have genuine versions of Windows out there.
Pricing
LU: Let's talk about pricing. There are free operating systems out there, like Linux, but, as we can see from market share, free does not necessarily translate into mass-market adoption. How do the two of you see price and the OS?
BC: With Snow Leopard, the upgrade price is $29 for Leopard users or $49 for a family pack with five licenses. With Windows 7 Ultimate, the upgrade is $119 for Home Premium and $199 for Professional—that is really expensive software.
LU: Jay, I know Microsoft has one $30 plan for students. What else do you have to say about pricing?
JP: Snow Leopard is much more akin to a service pack and Apple is charging $29. We don't do that. Windows 7 demonstrates a lot of customer value and priced at a pretty attractive price point. Most users get their OS automatically when they buy a new system. With Apple, you're going to be paying an Apple Tax. You're going to have to buy their expensive hardware just to get in the game.
Making the Choice
LU: Okay, here's your opportunity to make your case for your OS. Mr. Paulus, why Windows?
JP: I would say it's all about value, choice, compatibility, and simplicity. Value we've talked about that lot. There is value in a Windows ecosystem with nearly a billion users and thousands of PCs manufactured. Having lots of apps and systems drives a lot of end-user value. Stack any PC up against a Mac, we'll win pretty comfortably.
Windows 7 was designed around simplicity. It offers innovative features that set it apart, including Jump Lists and HomeGroup. A whole bunch of things that we think will make Windows 7 land as a game changer. I think the game has changed.
LU: Mr. Croll? Why should people choose Snow Leopard?
BC: Over last ten years we've been adding a lot of features, and it all culminated with Leopard. It's the best-selling software product Apple has ever done. It added things like Cover Flow and Time Machine. For Snow Leopard—the goal was to make a better Leopard. Mac OS 10 was made up of 1,000 different projects. For Snow leopard we refined 90 percent of them. Mac OS 10 continues to be much simpler than Windows.
Orange has announced that it hascome to an arrangement with Apple to sell the iPhone in the UK, whereit will be the only network other than O2 to sell the iPhone 3G and 3GSin the UK. Orange announced the deal in a short statement, although details on pricing tariffs and availability are yet to be revealed.
"OrangeUK and Apple have reached an agreement to bring iPhone 3G and 3GS toOrange UK customers later this year. Orange globally now offers iPhonein 28 countries and territories," said the statement. "Orange,which has the largest 3G network covering more people in the UK thanany other operator, will sell iPhone in all Orange direct channelsincluding Orange shops, the Orange webshop and Orange telesaleschannels, as well as selected high street partners.
28th September 2009, 08.30am:Orange UK and Apple have reached an agreement to bring iPhone 3G and3GS to Orange UK customers later this year. Orange globally now offersiPhone in 28 countries and territories. Orange, which has the largest 3G network covering more people in theUK than any other operator, will sell iPhone in all Orange directchannels including Orange shops, the Orange webshop and Orangetelesales channels, as well as selected high street partners. Apre-registration site for customers to log their interest has alreadybeen launched at www.orange.co.uk/iPhone. More information on pricing, tariffs and availability dates will be released in due course.
O2 has responded to the news that Orange will be stocking the iPhone by confirming it will continue to stock the device. "We'reproud that we've been able to offer an exclusive iPhone deal to our 20million customers for the last two years. We always knew that iPhoneexclusivity was for a limited period of time, but our relationship withApple continues and will be an ongoing success," an O2 spokespersontold TechRadar. "We have over 1 million iPhone customers and they remain very important to us. "Weaim to offer our customers the best devices on the market, includingbecoming the home of Smartphones and we are really pleased to now addanother device in the Palm Pre. "We also offer award-winningcustomer service and benefits, which is why more people choose O2 thanany other network in the UK." Network blow O2 has recently been under fire for failures in its data provision,and this new announcement will be another blow to the network as it'sjoined by Orange in stocking both the iPhone 3G and the 3GS. Thespeculation regarding O2 losing exclusivity of its iPhone range hasbeen rife for months, although it was expected that only the iPhone 3Gwould be offered to other carriers, with O2 retaining its status as thesole stocker of the 3GS. O2 will still be the exclusive stockistof the new Palm Pre when it debuts in the UK next month, but given thisis over 10 months since the device was announced it's not going toattract interest in the same way the iPhone has over the years. We'restill awaiting news on whether Orange will drop the price of the iPhonecompared to O2, but we'll bring you news as and when we get it.
Orange recently revealed plans to merge its UK network with DeutscheTelekom's T-Mobile to create a business with 28.4 million customers. If given the go-ahead, it would be the UK's largest provider, overtaking Telefonica's O2, with about 37% of the mobile market. "Thatwould be good for Apple," said Mr McQueen. "Then, around three quartersof the UK market will then have access to the iPhone." O2 hasoffered the handset in the UK since its launch in 2007. In February, itsaid it had sold more than one million of the handsets. The launch of the latest iPhone 3GS in June significantly boosted sales, with many stores running out of stock. The phone has also allowed the firm to win subscribers from other networks, according to analysts. However,the rise of smartphones - which have the ability to surf the web andsend e-mail - has put a burden on the O2 network, according to MrMcQueen. "IPhone users to tend to use data quite extensively - perhaps more than anticipated," he said. "Orange has always a good data network and if the T-mobile deal goes through it would allow them to share the burden." O2 will continue to sell the handset in Britain, alongside iPhone rival the Palm Pre. The Palm phone, described by some as an "iPhone killer", will be available exclusively to O2 from 16 October. O2 said that it always knew that its exclusive deal was for "a limited period of time". Thenew agreement with Orange brings the UK into line with many othercountries around the world which have multiple operators that offer theiPhone. In countries where exclusive deals still persist, suchas the US, some customers choose to "unlock" their phones using thirdparty software so they work on an unlicensed network. However,Apple has warned that the practice can cause "irreparable" damage to ahandset and has engaged in a game of cat-and-mouse, releasing periodicsoftware updates which prevent unlocked phones from working correctly.
The Roberts solarDAB Radio is one of the best innovations I've seen in the DAB radio market for sometime. Whilst most radio makers try and compete with the iPod by offering you the ability to stream music from your computer Roberts has taken a step back and produced a radio that's proud to live up to it's DAB title with a little twist.
As I said this is a true DAB radio with one special feature, a solar panel. Whilst at first it may sound gimmicky it's actually quite useful. Once you get the radio you'll need to leave it to charge for 24 hours then your set to go. Leaving it in a sunny spot for a few hours won't use any of it's internal battery, just as long as you have enough solar 'juice'. A handy level indicator on the display shows the power level generated by the solar panel.
From a design standpoint the solarDAB is very functional and good looking. With five buttons and two giant rubberised knobs this would be a great gift to give to a family member who isn't much of a techie. Whilst it's been pointed out to me that the screen is a little small it does make up in clarity and brightness and you'll have no problem using this out in the garden without having to cover the screen to see what you're looking at.
The aerial is detachable which is great for people who travel and comes with a standard headphone jack and a line in socket for iPod playback.
The speaker is good for a small radio and like most Roberts radios the sound is rich and warm. The radio is best suited for people who leave radio 4 on all day.
Whilst the green ECO badge isn't officially accredited mark it's certainly a lot cheaper to run than any other DAB radio on the market today.
You can pick up the solarDAB radio in white, black, red, green and of course the obligatory pink. Amazon are currently selling the radio for £68.00 but you'll be able to get a better deal on the web if you do you do a bit of digging.
I'm really impressed with the solarDAB and whilst I have a few niggles I'll defiantly be recommending this radio to all and sundry. This is a clear step away from the norm for Roberts who are synonymous with making those 'old' looking DAB radios and this can only be a good thing for a company renowned for it's excellent sounding radios.
The Good
One of the best looking radio's I've seen in a long time.
Being able to charge the device whilst using it at the same time.
The retractable ariel, great for taking the device away on holiday.
The Bad
It's only DAB, no FM which isn't great if you plan on taking it abroad.
The small screen can be an issue for some people.
We live in Britain, so finding sufficient sunlight can be an issue.
Specifications
Does the solarDAB work? Yes it does. There's a little sliding scalethat appears on the display when the product is exposed to usablesunlight, with the number of bars displayed representing the amount ofpower being delivered by the unit’s solar panel. Roberts says if lessthan half the ten bars are showing, then there's enough power beingprovided to assist the unit’s rechargeable batteries, and the radiowill operate for longer than it would if just relying on therechargeable batteries alone. If more than half the bars are illuminated, then the photovoltaiccells can power the radio on its own and have some juice left over torecharge the batteries too. If all the little LED bars are lit, well,you're laughing. The radio can operate without the battery pack at all,but this doesn't produce very satisfactory results.
We found that the panel was pretty sensitive. We placed it behind aheavily frosted window on a moderately sunny day and there was stillaround half the bars showing. Indeed, a nice sunny windowsill is theradio's preferred spot. But it is outside that it really comes into itsown. Even moderate sunlight means the radio can keep going for reallylong periods of time, even at a decent volume. On its own, withoutassistance from the panel, the radio can manage around a quoted andbasically accurate 27 hours of playback. If the weather is really good,it can keep going as long as the sun shines, in theory at least. Links
You may have installed countless add-on in Firefox to enhance yourusing experience, but if you want to get the most out of Firefox, youreally have to hack your way into the about:config.
The about:config page contains most (if not, all) ofFirefox configuration options. It is so far the most effective, and themost powerful way to tweak and enhance your Firefox performance. Hereare 28 of the popular tweaks.
Accessing your about:config page In your Firefox, type about:config in the address bar.
You will be shown a warning page. Click the “I’ll be careful, I promise!” button to proceed.
On the main page, you will see a long list of configuration entries. Enter the name of the key you want to update in the “Filter” field. The list will narrow to only the entries that match your keyword as you type.
To modify the value, simply double click on the entry value field and update the entry. That’s all!
Isn’t that simple? Now, let’s get to the tweaking.
1) Adjust the Smart Location Bar’s Number of Suggestions In Firefox 3, when you start typing in the location bar, a drop-downlist of suggestion URLs will be shown. If you want it to show more than12 suggestions (12 is the default), you can adjust the browser.urlbar.maxRichResults keys and get it to show the number you want.
Config name: browser.urlbar.maxRichResults
Default: 12 Modified value: Set to your desired number of suggestion. If you want to disable it all together, set it to -1 2) Disable the session restore function Firefox 3 automatically saves your session every 10 secs so thatwhenever it crashes, it can restore all your tabs. While this is auseful feature, some of you might find it irritating. To disable thisfunction, toggle the value of browser.sessionstore.enabled to False Config name: browser.sessionstore.enabled Default: True Modified value: False if you want to disable the session restore function 3) Adjust the Session Restore Saving Frequency Same as above, if you decided to keep the session restore featureon, but want to reduce the session saving frequency, change the valueof browser.sessionstore.interval so that Firefox will save the session at a longer interval.
Config name: browser.sessionstore.interval
Default: 10000 (in msecs, equivalent to 10secs) Modified value: Set it to your desired value. 1000 means 1 sec and 60000 means 1 minute. 4) Enable Advanced Color Profile Support Firefox has this advanced color profile features that display higherimage quality. It is not enabled by default as it has a negative effecton the performance of the browser. If you are concern with the imagequality rather than the performance, you can activated it via the gfx.color_management.enabled setting
Config name: gfx.color_management.enabled
Default: False Modified value: True (if you want to activate the color profile support feature) 5) Disable Antivirus Scanning This is mainly for Windows users. By default, Firefox 3automatically scan the downloaded file with the default anti-virusapplication to make sure it is free of virus. If you download a bigfile, it could take a long time for the whole scanning process tocomplete. To increase the performance of the browser, you might want toconsider disabling the anti-virus scanning via the browser.download.manager.scanWhenDone key.
Config name: browser.download.manager.scanWhenDone Default: True Modified value: False (if you want to disable it) 6) Configuring The Scrolling Tabs When you opened many tabs, Firefox will not keep on reducing the tabwidth. Instead, it shows a scrolling bar so that the min width (100px)is conserved and you can scroll to find your tabs. If you are those whodon’t like the scrolling tab function and prefer Firefox to show allthe tabs, regardless how small it is, you can set the value of browser.tabs.tabMinWidthto 0 to disable it. Similarly, if you want Firefox to display more tabsbefore showing the scrolling button, you can reduce the default valueto a lower value, say 75 pixels.
Config name: browser.tabs.tabMinWidth
Default: 100 Modified value: 0 if you want to disable the scrolling functions, other values to set the min width value 7) Show/Disable Close button on Tabs Some people love to see the Close (the red X) button on every tabs, but some hate it. Whatever is it, you can configure it to your preferences via the browser.tabs.closeButtons setting.
Config name: browser.tabs.closeButtons
Default: 1 Modified values:
0 – display a close button on the active tab only
1- display close buttons on all tabs
2- don’t display any close buttons
3- display a single close button at the end of the tab strip
Extend Scripts Execution Time In Firefox 3, a script is only given 10 seconds to respond, afterwhich it will issue a unresponsive script warning. If you are hooked ona slow network connection, you might want to increase the scriptexecution time via dom.max_script_run_time to cut down on the frequency of the no script warning.
Config name: dom.max_script_run_time Default:10 (in secs) Modified value: 20, or any values greater than 10 9) Handling JavaScript Popups When you come across a site that executes a javascript open newwindow function, and if the popup window is without all the usualwindow features, i.e. back/forward/reload buttons, status bar etc,Firefox will automatically treat it as a popup and will not open it asa new tab. However, if you find this to be a nuisance and wanted toopen all new windows in a new tabs, you can specify it via the browser.link.open_newwindow.restriction setting.
Config name: browser.link.open_newwindow.restriction Default: 2– Open all JavaScript windows the same way as you have Firefox handlenew windows unless the JavaScript call specifies how to display thewindow
Modified values:
0 – open all links as how you have Firefox handle new windows
1 – do not open any new windows
2- open all links as how you have Firefox handle new windows unless the Javascript specify how to display the window
10) Enable Spell Checking In All Text Fields The default spell checking function only checks for multi-line textboxes. You can get it to spell-check for single line text box as well.
Config name: layout.spellcheckDefault Default: 1 (spell checker for multi-lines text boxes only) Modified values:
0 – disable the spell checker
2 – enable the spell checker for all text boxes
11) Open Search Box Results In New Tab When you search using the search box at the top right hand corner ofthe browser, it will display the search results in the current tab. Ifyou don’t want the search to interfere with your current tab, you cantweak the browser.search.openintab to make it open in a new tab.
Config Name: browser.search.openintab
Default: False Modified value: True (open search box results in new tab) 12) Lower The Physical Memory Used When Minimized This tweak is mainly for Windows users. When you minimize Firefox,it will send Firefox to your virtual memory and free up your physicalmemory for other programs to use. Firefox will reduce its physicalmemory usage, when minimized, to approximately 10MB (give or take some)and when you maximize Firefox it will take back the memory that itneeds.
The preference name does not exist and needs to be created.
Right click on the background and select New->Boolean. Enter the name when prompted: config.trim_on_minimize Enter the values: True 13) Speed up your Firefox Several tweaks required for this
Config name: network.http.pipelining Default: False Modified value: True Config name: network.http.proxy.pipelining Default: False Modified value: True Config name: network.http.pipelining.maxrequests
Default: 4 Modified value: any value higher than 4, but not more than 8 Config name: network.http.max-connections Default: 30 Modified value: 96 Config name: network.http.max-connections-per-server Default: 15 Modified value: 32 14) Increase/Decrease the Amount of Disk Cache When a page is loaded, Firefox will cache it into the hard disk sothat it doesn’t need to be download again for redisplaying. The biggerthe storage size you cater for Firefox, the more pages it can cache.
Before you increase the disk cache size, make sure that browser.cache.disk.enabledbrowser.cache.disk.enable is set to True.
Config name: browser.cache.disk.capacity Default: 50000 (in KB) Modified value:
0 – disable disk caching
any value lower than 50000 reduces the disk cache
any value higher than 50000 increases the disk cache.
15) Select all text when click on the URL bar In Windows and Mac, Firefox highlights all text when you click onthe URL bar. In Linux, it does not select all the text. Instead, itplaces the cursor at the insertion point. Regardless which platform youare using, you can now tweak it to either select all or place cursor at insertion point.
Config name: browser.urlbar.clickSelectsAll Modified value:
False – place cursor at insertion point
True – select all text on click
16) Autofill Address in URL Bar Other than the smart location feature, you can also get your URL bar to autofill the address as you type the URL.
Config name: browser.urlbar.autofill Default: False Modified value: True (Have Firefox autofill the address as you type in the URL bar) 17) Same Zoom Level For Every Site Firefox remembers your zoom preference for each site and set it toyour preferences whenever you load the page. If you want the zoom levelto be consistent from site to site, you can toggle the value of browser.zoom.siteSpecific from True to False.
Config name: browser.zoom.siteSpecific Default: True Modified value: False (enable same zoom preferences for every sites) 1 Setting your zoom limit If you find that the max/min zoom level is still not sufficient foryour viewing, you can change the zoom limit to suit your viewing habits.
Config name: zoom.maxPercent Default: 300 (percent) Modified value: any value higher than 300 Config name: zoom.minPercent Default: 30 (percent)
value: any value 19) Configure Your Backspace Button In Firefox, you can set your backspace to better use by getting it to either go back to the previous page or act as page up function.
Config name: browser.backspace_action Default: 2 (does nothing) Modified value:
0 – go back previous page
1- page up
20) Increase Offline Cache If you do not have access to Internet most of the time, you mightwant to increase the offline cache so that you can continue to workoffline. By default, Firefox 3 caches 500MB of data from supportedoffline Web apps. You can change that value to whatever amount of yourchoice.
Config name: browser.cache.offline.capacity Default: 512000 (in KB) Modified value: any value higher than 512000 will increase the cache value 21) Auto Export Firefox 3 bookmarks to bookmarks.html Unlike the previous version, Firefox 3 backup the bookmarks file in places.sqlite rather than the usual bookmarks.html. Since bookmarks.htmlallows us to export and sync our bookmarks with other browser, it willbe very useful if Firefox 3 can backup the bookmark to the bookmarks.html as well.
Config name: browser.bookmarks.autoExportHTML Default: False Modified value: True (auto export bookmarks file to bookmarks.html) 22) Disable Extension Compatibility Checks This is useful if you want to use an extension that is not supportedby your version of Firefox badly. It is not recommended, but you canstill do it at your own risk.
Right click and select New->Boolean. Enter extensions.checkCompatibility in the field. Enter False in the next field.
Right click again and select New->Boolean. Enter extensions.checkUpdateSecurity into the field and enter False into the next field.
23) Disable Delay Time When Installing Add-on Everytime you wanted to install a Firefox add-on, you will have towait for several secs before the actual installation starts. If you aretired of waiting, you can turn the function security.dialog_enable_delay off so that the installation will start immediately upon clicking.
Config name: security.dialog_enable_delay Default: 2000 (in msec) Modified value:
0 – start installation immediately
any other value (in msec)
24) View Source in Your Favorite Editor This is very useful for developers who are always using the ‘view source‘ function. This tweak allows you to view the source code in an external editor.
There are two configuration need to be made:
Config name: view_source.editor.external Default: False Modified value: True ( enable view source using external text editor) Config name: view_source.editor.path Default: blank Modified value: insert the file path to your editor here. 25) Increasing ‘Save Link As‘ timeout value When you right click and select the ‘Save Link As…‘, thebrowser will request the content disposition header from the URL so asto determine the filename. If the URL did not deliver the header within1 sec, Firefox will issue a timeout value. This could happen veryfrequently in a slow network connection environment. To prevent thisissue from happening frequently, you can increase the timeout value soas to reduce the possibility of a timeout.
Config name: Browser.download.saveLinkAsFilenameTimeout Default: 1000 (1 sec) Modified value: any value higher than 1000 (value is in msec) 26) Animate Fullscreen Toolbar Collapse mode In Firefox’s fullscreen mode, toolbars and the tab strip are hiddenat the top of the screen and only shown on mouseover. To draw attentionto this, there is an animation of the toolbar sliding upwards andoff-screen when fullscreen mode is toggled on. For performance issue,the animation of the collapse of the toolbar only appear for the firsttime. For some reason that you may love/hate the animation, you canadjust Browser.fullscreen.animateUp to switch it on/off for every collapse.
Config name: Browser.fullscreen.animateUp Default: 1 (animate the toolbar collapse only the first time) Modified value:
0 -disable the animation
2- enable the animation for every collapse
27) Autohide Toolbar in Fullscreen mode In fullscreen mode, the toolbar is set to autohide and appear uponmouseover. If you have a need to view the toolbar at all time, you cantoggle the value of browser.fullscreen.autohide to False to always show the toolbar.
Config name: browser.fullscreen.autohide Default: True (always autohide) Modified value: False (always show the toolbar) 2 Increase Add-On search result If you go to Tools->Add-ons->Get Add-ons and performa search there, Firefox will only fetch and display 5 matching results.If you want Firefox to show more than 5 results (say 10), you canadjust extensions.getAddons.maxResults to get it to display more results.
Config name: extensions.getAddons.maxResults Default: 5 Modified value: any value more than 5 This list of about:config is definitely not the complete list. If you have any tricks not listed here, please add it in the comment.
Sensia is a revolutionary internet-connected digital audio system with Flow technology and a large colour touchscreen, giving you a unique wayto enjoy internet radio content and podcasts, DAB and FM radiostations, your own music collection via Wi-Fi, online apps, Facebook and also Twitter and uniquebroadcast material.
Pure Digital -- DAB and WiFi radio extraordinaire -- has just made live a product portal for its forthcoming Sensia, which looks to be a serious leap forward in terms of features and design. For starters, this product ditches the typical retro vibe and goes for something entirely more Jetsons-esque, and while many of Pure's past radios have had some sort of display, the 5.7-inch touchscreen (640 x 480) is certainly a first. Boasting DAB and FM tuners, this device is also equipped with an 802.11g module that lets it pull down radio streams from the web as well as stream other media from networked PCs / storage. Other specs include twin 3-inch full-range drivers, an RF remote, optional rechargeable battery and a 3.5 millimeter socket for connecting those "other sources." Moreover, users will be able to tap into a variety of applications, from weather to news to Picasa to social networking. If all goes well, it'll ship before the holidays for £249.99 ($406).
PURE, the world’s leading radio maker presents Sensia, the world’sfirst high resolution DAB digital and internet-connected radio with aunique, large colour touchscreen which delivers a state-of-the-art andintuitive user-interface. Incorporating PURE’s award-winning ‘Flow’technology, Sensia is a revolutionary radio with a large 5.7” 640 x 480high resolution colour touchscreen. Sensia gives users a unique way ofinteracting with internet and radio content including: podcasts andlisten again services; DAB/DAB+* and FM; a growing set of custom PURE‘Apps’ such as weather, news, Picasa, Facebook or Twitter; and newbroadcast material such as station slideshows**. Sensia is also a mediastreamer enabling users to listen to music stored on a home computer ornetwork storage device via Wi-Fi technology.
Paul Smith, PURE’s general manager says: “PURE made its name as thecompany behind the success of DAB. We’ve since created a market leadingand multi award-winning, internet-connected product range with our Flowseries. Sensia is the next major innovation from PURE, which I amconfident will bring radio to a whole new ‘Facebook’ generation whilestill inspiring our traditional customer base. Radio will never be thesame again.”
Sensia has an extremely sophisticated touchscreen interface whichallows users to view and interact with the radio like never before:scrolling and spinning lists, tapping to select, sliding controls andswiping to change views. Users can choose between a multi-panel and afull screen view. The screen consists of a visual panel for viewingApps, station slideshows or album artwork; a list panel for scrollingthrough lists of radio stations or music stored on a PC; a now playingpanel and a control bar for operating Sensia.
Sensia is destined to be the centre piece of any room with adistinctive, elliptical shape and four striking colour choices: Brightred, vivid yellow, sleek black and cool white. A moulded stand issupplied, which allows the user to angle the radio to an optimumviewing position and a matching remote control completes the look.
A bespoke microsite has been created for Sensia atwww.touchmyradio.com which includes a 3D interactive overview of Sensiaas well as a virtual guide with a voiceover by Christian O'Connell,Absolute Radio’s breakfast DJ.
As with the award-winning Flow range, Sensia connects to The PURELounge, our own radio and media portal (www.thelounge.com) which actsas the index to the best of internet audio content and where users canregister their radio as well as save and organise favourites. Alsoavailable from The Lounge and via Sensia is a unique selection of PURESounds to relax you to sleep or wake you in a positive frame of mind.
Sensia also features PURE Clearsound technology for 30W RMS ofimpressive stereo sound; an input for an iPod/MP3 player; an alarm;countdown timer; sleep timer and a headphone socket. Add the optionalrechargeable PURE ChargePAK to listen to internet content anywherewithin range of the Wi-Fi network or to DAB and FM radio when furtherafield. Sensia also comes with a clever RF remote control which allowsusers to control the device from up to 10m away without directline-of-sight.
Sensia will be available in time for Christmas at just £249.99 (SRPinc. VAT) from all good stockists. For more information, please visitwww.touchmyradio.com, www.pure.com, www.thelounge.com or call 08451489001.
Editor’s Notes:*DAB+ is a new and enhanced version of DAB and is now being adopted bymany countries as their platform choice for digital radio. It’s likelythat it will be a few years before UK broadcasters take up DAB+, butthe majority of PURE products are already ‘DAB+ ready’.**Where supplied by the broadcaster
About PURE PURE is the world’s leading maker of broadcast andInternet-connected digital radios, the number one supplier of digitalradios in Europe and the creator of the world’s most popular and iconicdigital radios.
PURE radios increasingly support all the broadcast standards in the DABfamily used across Europe and beyond. PURE leads the way inInternet-connected radios with its Flow technology and the PURE Loungeportal (www.thelounge.com). Designed and engineered in the UK, all ofPURE’s products are manufactured with the environment in mind and atethically audited facilities. PURE is a division of ImaginationTechnologies Group plc. See www.pure.com. See http://www.touchmyradio.com/ for more
The past few weeks have come with two major reveals for the weirdoswho follow online social networks. The first was big news. Twitter’sinternal documents leaked and the identity-crisis of earth’s most popular start-up is now public. The second was more under the radar but just as important. In a memo that went out to staff, the CEO of MySpace admitted that their users are caught between three competing notions of what MySpace is or should be.
Twitter and Myspace are different companies in different markets butthere is a lot of evidence to suggest that they share, and will alwaysshare, the exact same problem. MySpace and Twitter are hugely popular for uses neither company anticipated.The mission of each company is so vague that their products arestretched and molded into a variety of different uses. Instead oftargeting and building their business around one of these users they take their sudden popularity as a sign they have a killer product. They don’t.
Scale is Everything
When an industry is in transition or an idea like ‘social networking’ is still being fleshed out, getting explosively popular without knowing the nuances of why is a curse.Twitter is young but in my opinion, it’s already too late. It has growntoo big, too fast, for too many different purposes. It will take 2 orthree years but Twitter will be lapped by a variety of similar services with focus and actual business models; how Facebook developed in response to MySpace sheds light on what kind.
How MySpace Scaled
Since its inception MySpace has gone after users as if they werePokemon’. MySpace managers ran competitions on sign ups and theemployes used a slew of methods to capture. The result was a sprawlingnetwork of users but by 2005, it seemed to be working. If you looked at the stats, MySpace was an utter phenomena. It destroyed Friendster and after it was purchased by Murdoch it was getting all types of press and valuations. What the raw stats didn’t tell you is that user habits on the site looked something like this:
The problem with this way of scaling is simple. When a new cultural practice, like ’social networking’, is in the grass roots stages of development you can’t assume that people are going to your site because they like it.Your competition doesn’t really exist yet. What they might like are certain aspects of your productor they might be using parts of it in ways you never designed. The onlyway to address this is to study your users obsessively, focus on aparticular experience, then update your product accordingly.
Because MySpace grew in so many different markets at a single timeand gave users so much space to use the service how they liked, they’ve never been in a position to either watch or effectively control this experience. How do you update a product without knowing its target? You don’t. MySpace at its height and the current MySpace look remarkably similar, it lost control to its users. It has gone from being hailed as one of the best acquisitions ever made to a drain on News Corps portfolio. The results look like this:
How Facebook Scaled
When it comes down to it the mechanisms of MySpace and Facebook are not that different.Thepieces and concept are nearly the same. Both are constructed of userprofiles, avatars, walls, interest spaces, groups, photo capabilities,and a friend confirmation/listing process.
Facebook distinguished itself philosophically and pragmatically. Zuckerberg’s biggest insight into designing the site was that you are online who you are in real life. Facebook was one of the first social networks to emphasize genuine identityinsofar asthey required full names, university email addresses, and deleted accounts that used aliases. The second was pragmatic. Facebook launched in a single target market. In this case, of course, it was Harvard.
What this enabled was a less abstract more manageable mission.Instead of having to define what an ‘online social networking space’was supposed to be for everyone, Zuckerburg just had to answer forHarvard. As Facebook became popular on campus, he was able to see directly into how his peers interacted with the site and was able to update the product to help them use it more efficiently. Becausethey were all college students, the feedback he was getting was focusedand nuanced. Having less users also meant they could redesign theirentire product without pissing off disparate subsections. The resultwas an incremental evolution. The Facbeook that started at Harvard looks radically different than the one we use today. It worked.
How Twitter Scaled
Twitter grew much like MySpace. It ran competition for signing upusers, aliases were allowed, and it grew in multiple markets at theexact same time. Twitter started as a group SMS texting service then became popular for something wholly different. By restricting the length of a message the site inadvertently addressed one of the oldest problems in group communication. How do you hear many voices at a single time? Twitter’s answer is dead simple. 140.
This little restriction has produced a fascinating, highly-addictive product. If you look at the stats, Twitter seems to be working. It’s one of the most popular websites in the world and now has an excess of 44 million members.For those who invested or employees that had stock options, it must bean incredible feeling. I have grown to love Twitter but in my opinion we are rapidly approaching its peak.Its parallels toMySpace in 2006 are explicit. Twitterhas been bootstrapped for a vast number of uses and while its exciting to watch, its service is not containable . Like MySpace, Twitter is getting pulled in a variety of directions:
Why Twitter Will Dissolve and Turn into Detroit
The ability to hear and communicate messages with a group is what brought Twitter its initial wave of users but the real allure of Twitter, the reason it has caught the imagination of the press and millions of users, is something much more abstract. On Twitter, you can hear a public. Of course, there isn’t just one public, there is an infinite number.Whether it’s your country, your college, your city, or a shared nicheinterest like nyc media,everyone belongs to many publics and most everyone has a natural curiosity about what’s happening inside of them.
Twitter offers a way to manage how you see these publics. The problem is that its 140 character restriction is a blunt instrument. The site does not reflect the potential or nuance in which a public can speak to itself online.
Twitter as a network is an ungodly mess. From the onset, the site has allowed users to register aliases on custom URLs and because of it, usernames are inconsistent and confusing. It’s hard to find people who you know and its often even difficult to deduct wether that person is who they claim to be. Twitter is mobbed by impersonators,some of them hilarious, others manipulating. Twitter addresses thisissue recently by creating a ‘Verified Account’ stamp, its sloppy butmore importantly, perpetually incomplete.
There are a host of other problems related to reputation and maintaing users but the biggest issue concerns its identity, which is also where the leaked documentsgot interesting. Twitter employees are so clearly uncertain about whattheir product is even doing. Shots at it swayed from, “Twitter is fordiscovering and sharing what is happening right now,” to, “Twitter makes you smarter, faster, more efficient and more powerful.”
Twitter became popular before it had a mission. What this means is that its employees and investors will forever be trapped in boardrooms having these inane cyclical discussions about its identity. Twitter will either perpetually be simple insofar as its millions of users will have to hack the service to reflect their own values or it will roll the dice on a focus, put the site through chronic redesigns, and risk a mass user exodus.Either way its top talent will likely get frustrated and leave thecompany. Its top users will drift to something else then jump.
How Twitter will Resolve
The first thing to realize is that thereprobably isn’t going to be just one product to replace Twitter, therewill be several and they will battle it out or find niches. I see theirdesign following two trends with a potential for a hybrid.
The first trend is a service with the most minimal centralization possible. Both Dave Winer and Anil Dash have discussed plans for such a product. Winer calls his the RSSCloud and Dash describes the project more generally as the Push Buttonweb. The RSSCloud grew from discussions with Jay Rosen over frustrations with Twitter and how its users have been bootstrapping. The line of thought is that your data belongs to you, not Twitter, and you should be able to use your data how you like with as little brand interference as possible. The proposal is to build RSSCloud, a loosely coupled service that will push your data to any website in real time.
The second is a product that is centralized but has an elegant way of organizingits content and attracting users. This is a product that would look andscale much like Facebook. It would start in a single target market anddevelop as a place for users to hear and communicate to thatpublic. Ideally it would begin in a cloistered network like auniversity where establishing members is as easy as checking their .eduemail address.
Addressing what’s wrong with Twitter isn’t going to come from thin air. It’s going to take a lot of time, development, and platform competition.
Many will soon be working on this, myself included. What will fill the blank is likely to define modern news production.
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