And of course the beautiful but understated wallpaper photo.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
My phone front
Have you ever seen such a stylish iPhone front? Only one page of apps, and even that page mostly clear, due to folders.
And of course the beautiful but understated wallpaper photo.
And of course the beautiful but understated wallpaper photo.
Calibre and the pad (updated)
The unique ebook (ePub) handling and news/articles-fetching app calibre (preferred spelling is with a lower-case c) is now updated to work automatically with uploads to the iPad, so I'm trying it again.
They also refined the logo. Old on the left, new on the right. Very nice:
calibre is a very clever app. There are scripts for a ton of web sites, so it can extract just the articles and present them in readable form. I've had people make me custom scripts for my favorite sites like TOP and Luminous Landscape. And both those and other sorts of ebooks in the broadest sense, it will convert to a readable format for whatever e-reader you use, Sony, Kindle, iPad, etc.
(Update/explanation) You select what you want from its long list of news sites and magazines, and it fetches the content from the web as often as you like. And then when you plug in your preferred deviced, it's uploaded automatically to with each Update being an "ebook" of collated articles, with linked headlines, each publication separate. In the case of the iPad, it uploads to Apple's iBooks reader, which gives the best reading experience I've tried yet with calibre.
They also refined the logo. Old on the left, new on the right. Very nice:
calibre is a very clever app. There are scripts for a ton of web sites, so it can extract just the articles and present them in readable form. I've had people make me custom scripts for my favorite sites like TOP and Luminous Landscape. And both those and other sorts of ebooks in the broadest sense, it will convert to a readable format for whatever e-reader you use, Sony, Kindle, iPad, etc.
(Update/explanation) You select what you want from its long list of news sites and magazines, and it fetches the content from the web as often as you like. And then when you plug in your preferred deviced, it's uploaded automatically to with each Update being an "ebook" of collated articles, with linked headlines, each publication separate. In the case of the iPad, it uploads to Apple's iBooks reader, which gives the best reading experience I've tried yet with calibre.
iPh cam comp
A reader was asking about comparisons between the camera in the new iPhone 4 and those of other smart phones. Here we go. (Summary: it does really well, even against some with more pixels.)
"Apple said the quality of the camera parts is more important to capturing good photos than a high megapixel count. Our lab’s test results support that theory, showing that a 5-megapixel camera can shoot higher quality images than an 8-megapixel camera."
It amuses me to think that in theory you can work as a journalist with only an iPhone 4 and a foldable keyboard. The photos and video are certainly good enough for web use, you can write on it with no trouble, I've tried, and you can email in the results to your editor, or post it yourself in various ways. And of course it's a phone too, in case a journalist ever needs that. That's just ridiculous for something you can have in a pants pocket. (My ThinkOutside foldable keyboard fits easily in a pants pocket, it does not even have to be a large pocket.)
Remember JenniCam?
Remember JenniCam? As big as Amazon, in the nineties. Imagine if she'd been pretty too.
I get the same feeling from the very little I've seen of "cam sites" as from the very little I've seen of "reality" shows: it bores me to tears. If I want to see and hear ordinary people discussing ordinary things, I don't have to use fancy digital technology, it's all around me.
Another thing which bores me: blending gadgets. Every time a new gadget appears, millions of people want to see it perish in a blender. Me, I felt that once I'd seen it once, I'd pretty much seen it.
Update:
Jan says:
Strangely, I actually liked JenniCam. I even have a sticker "I'd rather be watching JenniCam". I shit you not.
Unfortunately she stopped taking care of her looks and body, gained a lot of weight, stopped being interesting and quit.
I would be interested to hear about her again, but according to Wikipedia she keeps a low profile now.
-
I get the same feeling from the very little I've seen of "cam sites" as from the very little I've seen of "reality" shows: it bores me to tears. If I want to see and hear ordinary people discussing ordinary things, I don't have to use fancy digital technology, it's all around me.
Another thing which bores me: blending gadgets. Every time a new gadget appears, millions of people want to see it perish in a blender. Me, I felt that once I'd seen it once, I'd pretty much seen it.
Update:
Jan says:
Strangely, I actually liked JenniCam. I even have a sticker "I'd rather be watching JenniCam". I shit you not.
Unfortunately she stopped taking care of her looks and body, gained a lot of weight, stopped being interesting and quit.
I would be interested to hear about her again, but according to Wikipedia she keeps a low profile now.
-
Meditation, iPhone
Well, the meditative project that felt like it should take weeks seems to pretty much have been handled in an afternoon. Still trying to relax though.
Wow, that iPhone is beautiful. I can even read on it. If the next gen iPad has that kind of screen, and is half the weight of the current iPad... holy manana, it's the Jetsons.
I understand why Apple in recent years is so much in love with all-metal products. They really seem like high-end products. Luxury. But it's a problem with weight. Apple, please find a solution to this for tablet and notebook products, all right?
The Kindle is selling really well despite being made of mundane plastic and yet not being cheap. Apple, I'm sure you can make plastic seem like a million bucks if you put your minds to it.
Wow, that iPhone is beautiful. I can even read on it. If the next gen iPad has that kind of screen, and is half the weight of the current iPad... holy manana, it's the Jetsons.
I understand why Apple in recent years is so much in love with all-metal products. They really seem like high-end products. Luxury. But it's a problem with weight. Apple, please find a solution to this for tablet and notebook products, all right?
The Kindle is selling really well despite being made of mundane plastic and yet not being cheap. Apple, I'm sure you can make plastic seem like a million bucks if you put your minds to it.
Friday, June 25, 2010
An announcement
I have decided that I have over-dosed on Internet distractions, so I've decided to take a sabbatical from it. I need to quiet down my mind.
So for an unknown period (couple days, couple weeks, couple months? Lord knows), I will have my computer shut down most of the time, I will cut back drastically on blogging, using Twitter, etc. I'll try to only answer email a couple of times per day, and only answer essential ones.
My commercial sites will be run like usual, of course, that's a business obligation.
If you would like to be notified when blogging is resumed normally, sign up for my Twitter feed, or mail to my Gmail address, which is eolake.
My perception is that I'm going through a highly positive development, just one which for a while requires more peace.
Much appreciate all of you, see you later.
So for an unknown period (couple days, couple weeks, couple months? Lord knows), I will have my computer shut down most of the time, I will cut back drastically on blogging, using Twitter, etc. I'll try to only answer email a couple of times per day, and only answer essential ones.
My commercial sites will be run like usual, of course, that's a business obligation.
If you would like to be notified when blogging is resumed normally, sign up for my Twitter feed, or mail to my Gmail address, which is eolake.
My perception is that I'm going through a highly positive development, just one which for a while requires more peace.
Much appreciate all of you, see you later.
Tip for international iOS users
If you buy an iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad, and you happen to be a user of the iTunes online store in more than one country, take note which country's store you're viewing in iTunes when you plug in the device for the first time. Because this will be the country the device will register with, and you will be forever barred from purchasing or even updating free apps from anywhere else. The only option out is to delete everything on the device and do a full restore.
A said:
I have iTunes accounts for 3 different countries and I've never had any problems buying apps from the different stores on the same device (iPhone or iPad) and I update the apps from the different countries all the time. Yes, having to switch the account with which you are logged in is a pain, but it's not impossible.
A said:
I have iTunes accounts for 3 different countries and I've never had any problems buying apps from the different stores on the same device (iPhone or iPad) and I update the apps from the different countries all the time. Yes, having to switch the account with which you are logged in is a pain, but it's not impossible.
iPhone screen rez, etc
I doubt we'll ever need screens with higher resolution thant the 327 pixels per inch that the new iPhone has. Even with reading glasses, I'm not even near able to see everything it can resolve. If I use a loupe, lots of new details resolve, for example in the tiny icons inside a folder icon.
Are there really people with eyes so good? If so, I envy them.
Apropos the folders, I like them. I found the old system of many apps strewed over many screens to be highly confusing. Now I have reduced all my apps into three folders on one screen, and three or four icons in the dock. (Maybe it's not called a Dock on the iOS, but who gives a flying f**k, it's the same thing, just like the Task Bar on Windows.)
BTW, I'm very surprised to hear that iPod Touches are outselling iPhones! To me, the iPod Touch is a weird compromise: it's not a phone, it's not a tablet, and it's not a good iPod (the controls are much more finicky than the classic iPod, much more difficult to control precisely).
Steve Jobs seemed a bit surprised himself, when he mentioned it.
Are there really people with eyes so good? If so, I envy them.
Apropos the folders, I like them. I found the old system of many apps strewed over many screens to be highly confusing. Now I have reduced all my apps into three folders on one screen, and three or four icons in the dock. (Maybe it's not called a Dock on the iOS, but who gives a flying f**k, it's the same thing, just like the Task Bar on Windows.)
BTW, I'm very surprised to hear that iPod Touches are outselling iPhones! To me, the iPod Touch is a weird compromise: it's not a phone, it's not a tablet, and it's not a good iPod (the controls are much more finicky than the classic iPod, much more difficult to control precisely).
Steve Jobs seemed a bit surprised himself, when he mentioned it.
A riddle
[Thanks to old-time reader Signalroom.]
A man is dating three women and trying to decide which to marry. He gives each of them $5,000 to see what they do with the money.
The first has a total makeover. She goes to a fancy salon, gets her hair, face and nails done, and buys several new outfits. She tells him she has done this to be more attractive to him, because she loves him so much.
The second buys the man a number of gifts. She buys him a new set of golf clubs, some accessories for his computer, and some expensive clothes. She tells him that she has spent all the money on him because she loves him so much.
The third woman invests the money in the stock market. She earns several times the $5,000. She gives him back his $5,000 and reinvests the remainder in a joint account. She tells him she wants to invest in their future because she loves him so much.
Which one does he choose?
Answer: the one with the biggest boobs.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
iPhone 4 camera test
I must say I'm positively surprised by the 5MP camera in the iPhone Four. I would not complain about this quality in a normal compact camera. Well done, Apple.
Firstly, the front camera for self-portraits is a horse of a different hue, and not a good one: don't use it for photos, only for video, and only when necessary. It's much, much "worser" than the back camera:
... And it's only 480x640 pixels, less than a third of a megapixel! No wonder I look distressed.
The front camera though in good light, wow:
Outstanding quality for a pea-sized camera.
In low light, pretty good also:
... Sure, you can tell it's small-sensor work, but it's useable.
The plants picture had a little shadow-lifting done in Photoshop. Otherwise, pictures are as-is.
I would say that for the first time ever I have a phone which includes a camera which makes me feel like I also "have a camera" with me.
I'm also surprised to say that the touch-screen actually make it easier, it seems, to take shake-free pictures. It needs only a butterfly-wing's touch. You don't need to press and overcome resistance.
I transferred the photos to my Mac via "Image Transfer" which comes with OS X.
Is the iPhone 4 a good take-everywhere-camera? It's a big subject. I'd say if you're a architecture photographer or landscape photographer who makes meter-broad prints, no. If you're an amateur who just like to take pictures and put the good ones in web galleries and print some as 8x10 inches, yes.
Firstly, the front camera for self-portraits is a horse of a different hue, and not a good one: don't use it for photos, only for video, and only when necessary. It's much, much "worser" than the back camera:
The front camera though in good light, wow:
In low light, pretty good also:
... Sure, you can tell it's small-sensor work, but it's useable.
The plants picture had a little shadow-lifting done in Photoshop. Otherwise, pictures are as-is.
I would say that for the first time ever I have a phone which includes a camera which makes me feel like I also "have a camera" with me.
I'm also surprised to say that the touch-screen actually make it easier, it seems, to take shake-free pictures. It needs only a butterfly-wing's touch. You don't need to press and overcome resistance.
I transferred the photos to my Mac via "Image Transfer" which comes with OS X.
Is the iPhone 4 a good take-everywhere-camera? It's a big subject. I'd say if you're a architecture photographer or landscape photographer who makes meter-broad prints, no. If you're an amateur who just like to take pictures and put the good ones in web galleries and print some as 8x10 inches, yes.
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