Aug 27
Perhaps Apple will skip USB 3.0 entirely and go with...
I still haven't bitten the bullet and upgraded to a new iMac for a few reasons. One is that I was certain that USB 3.0 would be included, but wasn't. At first I felt that another iMac revision might be coming sooner than expected (early 2011?) with USB 3.0 support, but now I'm not so certain.
The more I think about it, Apple likes to push the envelope, and it's possible the company will forego USB 3.0 entirely and make the quantum leap to LightSpeed sooner than anyone expects.
Developed by Intel, Light Peak paves the way for a new generation of extreme computer input and output (I/O) performance, delivering 10Gb/s of bandwidth, with the potential ability to scale to 100Gbs over the next decade, according to David Perlmutter, executive vice president and general manager, Intel Architecture Group. At 10Gb/second, a user could purportedly transfer a full-length Blu-Ray movie in less than 30 seconds (of course, Steve Jobs doesn't' like Blu-ray, but still....). Intel says...
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Aug 26
Apple wants to shrink the size of a system's...
An Apple patent (number 20100213958) systems and methods for providing a system-on-substrate has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Offices. It involves shrinking the size of a system's circuitry by providing all of the components of the system on the same microchip -- such as the A4 processor used in the iPad.
The patent relates to systems and methods for providing a system-on-a-substrate. In some embodiments, the necessary components for an entire system (e.g., a processor, memory, accelerometers, I/O circuitry, or any other suitable components) can be fabricated on a single microchip in “bare die” form. The die can, for example, be coupled to suitable flash memory through a substrate and flexible printed circuit board (“flex”). In some embodiments, the flex can extend past the substrate, die, or both, to allow additional, relatively large components to be coupled to the flex.
In some embodiments, the die can be coupled to the flash memory through the flex...
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Aug 26
Apple patent involves audio jack with included...
An Apple patent (number 200100216526) for an audio jack with included microphone has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. Embodiments of the invention relate to the field of electrical connectors; and more specifically, to electrical connectors that include a microphone.
Described is a connector for receiving a cylindrical plug includes a body defining a plug aperture and a cavity for receiving the cylindrical plug. A plurality of electrical contacts in communication with the cavity make electrical connections with the cylindrical plug and retain the cylindrical plug. A microphone is coupled to the body such that the plug aperture and the cavity provide an acoustic path to the microphone. The microphone may be at an end of the connector opposite the plug aperture or on a side of the connector adjacent the plug aperture. The connector allows a microphone to be added to a device, such as a mobile telephone, without the need for an additional external aperture....
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Aug 26
Apple patent involves improved video quality for...
An Apple patent (number 200100214448) that involves video acquisition with processing based on ancillary data has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. The company seems to be investigating ways to improve the features of its video editing titles.
The patent relates to processing video images, and more particularly to acquisition of video data with integrated processing using a graphics processing unit. Systems and techniques for processing sequences of video images involve receiving, on a computer, data corresponding to a sequence of video images detected by an image sensor. The received data is processed using a graphics processor to adjust one or more visual characteristics of the video images corresponding to the received data.
The received data can include video data defining pixel values and ancillary data relating to settings on the image sensor. The video data can be processed in accordance with ancillary data to adjust the visual characteristics,...
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Aug 26
I won't be ready to give up my Mac any time soon
One of my favorite columnists (and a friend) is Gene "The Tech Night Owl" Steinberg. Usually, I agree with the Owl, but in a recent column (http://macosg.me/2/rz) he predicted that, by 2015, most of us will rely on an iPad or its successor for most computing-related tasks. However, I just can't see it.
Gene says that only a small number of high-end content creators will continue to depend on the old fashioned personal computer and input devices like current Macs. "Certainly the stellar success of the iPad shows that a lot of people are ready to embrace different user interfaces," he writes. "... On the long haul, the natural evolution of the iPad and iOS are sure to cause a revolution in the personal computer universe."
As I've said before, I find the iPad to be a great, portable device for media and content consumption. For content creation, well, not so much. I do lots of writing/reporting/researching...
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Aug 25
Greg's bite: My dearest apologies to Mattel
By Greg Mills
In recent articles I attributed the embarrassingly flubbed Ken smartphone Microsoft launched as being a product of Mattel, when actually Sharp produced it. I was frankly deceived by the toy like quality of the Kin/Ken, thus never attributing the toy phone to a serious manufacturer like Sharp.
Actually, I am joking at the expense of Mr. Ballmer and the copycat software firm responsible for the Ken's release. Those folks, instead of being fired, were put to work building the (too late to be relevant) Windows 7 Mobile OS. I can't wait to see what wonders they can perform.
Microsoft has lost half its market cap since Mr. Ballmer took over the company from the other Steve. To their credit, Mattel never sued me for defamation or some other legal theory for embarrassing them with my insinuation they had anything to do with the Ken Phone. (I never seem to spell "Kin" the same way Microsoft did). The dilution of the "Barbie" brand...
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Aug 25
Regarding tiltable, touchscreen iMacs
The reports this week of an Apple patent for “transitioning between modes of input" underscores my conviction that we'll see touchscreen iMacs in the near future. I think Apple is preparing us for this with the release of its Magic TrackPad for Macs.
Some feel there's little demand for a touch screen computer. However, the growing popularity of iPhones, iPod touches, iPads and similar devices from Apple and other companies are making touch technology second nature to many people, especially young folks. It's just a matter of time before they want said technology on their computers.
Just as importantly (if not more so), Apple CEO Steve Jobs obviously LOVES touch technology, so it's inevitably going to find its way into all of Apple's line-up.
The patent mentioned previously provides a transition between input modes when the orientation of the display crosses a predetermined threshold. In other words, the display changes when the screen is tilted. Presumably,...
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Aug 25
Greg's bite: Android app store hacked again
By Greg Mills
As I mentioned in this column in the past, the biggest problem Android will face in its attempt to be the "iPhone killer" that actually cuts into Apple's pie is being open source. In the debate over closed vs open software platforms, the issue that comes to the top, in terms of business success, is security for developers.
Android's app store is much smaller: 100,000 compared to Apple's 250,000 apps. What's more, while free apps in both stores are common, far and away the best paid apps are in the Apple App Store. There are a number of good reasons why this is -- and why it matters.
First of all, every app was written by someone called a developer. These people work hunched over a computer keyboard all day, consuming pizza and coffee in mass proportions. It is hard work, and there is a steep learning curve to writing apps that are professional in quality. These apps are more likely to be sold than given away.
There are...
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Aug 24
Patent hints at upcoming 'iMac touch,'...
I've been predicting that we'll see a touchscreen Mac in the near future. And an European Apple patent (W)/2010/006210) -- first reported by the "Patently Apple" site (http://www.patentlyapple.com/) -- reinforces the idea that Apple has plans for a touch screen iMac, as well as a tablet style laptop.
The patent is for "transitioning between modes of input." Transitioning between a high-resolution input mode, such as a mouse-based interface, and a low-resolution input mode, such as a touch-based interface, is described. A change of orientation of a touch screen between a first orientation and a second orientation is detected. Transitioning between the two input modes and corresponding user interfaces (UIs) is based on the detected change of orientation.
A change of orientation can be detected with one or more sensors, such as an accelerometer, position sensors, etc. Transitioning from...
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Aug 24
Apple patents cover gradients, index processing,...
Apple has been granted patents for a variety of items, including the design of the original iPod and iPod touch. Summaries of each are below.
Patent number 7782337 involves multi-conic gradient generation. Disclosed is a technique for computing a complex gradient using multiple conics. In connection with a computer system having a graphics processing unit (GPU) in addition to the normal central processing unit (CPU), gradients can be computed in real time. The conics may be rendered and adjusted in a number of ways, providing a rich palette for creation of gradient graphics. The computational efficiency of the algorithms disclosed herein, when executed on typical GPU hardware, allows rendering frame rates high enough to provide animated gradient images. The inventors are Mark Zimmer and Ralph Brunner.
Patent number 7783589 is for inverted index processing. Systems and methods for improving indexing are described. In one exemplary...
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Aug 24
Apple wants to simplify connecting media players,...
Apple wants to make it easier to connect media players to external devices, as evidenced by a patent (number 7783070) at the US Patent & Trademark Office. It's for a cable adapter for a media player system.
One aspect of the media player system pertains to a docking station that allows a media player to communicate with other media devices. Another aspect of the media player system pertains to a wireless media player system that includes a hand held media player capable of transmitting information over a wireless connection and one or more media devices capable of receiving information over the wireless connection.
Another aspect of the media player system pertains to a method of wirelessly connecting the hand held media player to another device. The method includes selecting a media item on the hand held media player; selecting one or more remote recipients on the hand held media player; and transmitting the media item locally to the hand held media player, and...
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Aug 24
Greg's bite: Clear's new iSpot 4G Mac Wi-Fi...
By Greg Mills
Clear, the new 4G wireless Internet provider "Clear" (associated with Sprint), provided me with a test unit of their new portable WiFi router. I tried it out in Kansas City, Kansas, and when I was able to actually hook up with their new 4G network, it worked fine and is fast. The problem is not with the cool looking 4G device, but with the limited radio coverage available at this time.
As AT&T users can testify to, the wireless device is only as good as the network that supports it. Clear is still building out their 4G network; when it is built out, it will be state of the art. There are a number of devices Clear offers that hook up to the faster 4G network cellular and then pump out a WiFi signal that will run up to eight iPhones, iPads or laptops at pretty much at full Wi-Fi speeds within Wi-Fi range.
The device they loaned me is very cool, something Apple's design guru, Johnny Ives, might have created. It is slick, jet...
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Aug 24
Greg's bite: Apple's Bumping corrections
By Greg Mills
My Bump and pay by phone article that run on Monday had some factual errors that I must correct. I got an email from a nice Lady from Bump Technologies with interesting insight into the "Bump" App I briefly described (http://itunes.apple.com/app/bump/id305479724?mt=8) , as well as interesting information she had regarding pay by smart phone that I must pass this on to you, my readers.
My assumption that the contact information traded between iPhones is done locally turns out to be wrong. It happens in the cloud! My assumption was that iPhones or Androids used Bluetooth to trade contacts. Here is the information Sadie Bascom sent me:
I did however want to offer a correction in a couple of places regarding the Bump app. Firstly, regarding this quote "Then comes Apple with a new Bump to Pay concept." PayPal is responsible for...
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Aug 24
Could the next rev of the Apple TV move me away from...
I'm a Comcast subscriber. I have their "Triple Play" bundle, but the cable company's creep up every month (and, in fact, leapt up instead of creeping last month), so I'm considering making a change. Perhaps the future Apple TV would be my impetus to switch.
Silicon Alley Insider (http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-itv-metered-broadband-2010-8?utm_so...) says the rumored rev of the Apple TV (which some think will be redubbed iTV should at least make a lot of people excited about the idea of using their TVs as living-room computers, especially...
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Aug 23
Greg's bite: Apple's Bump to Pay?
By Greg Mills
We know Apple and other companies have been working on ePay systems using smart phones and some sort of electronic "radio bridge" to make it possible to pay for small things or even a tank of gas, by using your cell phone to pay.
RFID chips already make short range radio information reading devices possible for electronic checkout of a whole cart of goods, for example, simply by walking past an electronic check out point. Each item in the cart has an RFID chip on it that transmits an identification code containing a lot of information when it is hit by strong radio waves of a certain frequency. Bluetooth is another way to do the trick. Sounds cool, but the whole thing has sort of a "big brother," heavy handed feel to it. Can this be the Mark of the Beast or the next big bunko target, stealing you blind while you walk the streets unaware you have been just been financially mugged?
Bank of America and Visa are soon offering a new...
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Aug 23
Computer, videogame degree programs on the rise
If you like video and computer games, the years ahead could be good ones for you as there'll be more and more folks working on 'em.
Approximately 300 American colleges, universities, art and trade schools will offer degrees in video game design, development, programming and art during the 2010-11 academic year, according to new research from the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). The degrees offered at 300 institutions represent an almost 20% increase over 2009-10.
The growing number of educational programs comes as no surprise to Rich Taylor, senior vice president for communications and industry affairs at the ESA (http://www.theESA.com), which represents computer and video game publishers.
"The steady increase in higher education programs is an important indicator about the expanding role computer and video games play in today's world," he says. "While computer and video games have...
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Aug 20
Greg's bite: affordable digital magazines
By Greg Mills
As I have mused in previous articles, digital download content must have reasonable economic market value to flourish. The old concept of "everything on the Internet needs to be free" has slowly evolved into a mixture of both free and paid content.
Apple was really the first to create a "go to market" scheme that worked, selling digital music on line for a dollar a song. It was due to a combination of a serious intellectual property protection system, a neat iTunes interface for both Macs and the PC, iPods that just worked and (Steve Jobs, who was personality able to hammer the music industry into accepting his pricing structure). While there is still some bitching and moaning, Apple's iTunes store is just too big a market for serious music labels to not participate in.
Now, the same sort of pricing issues are being worked out in the publishing industry. Magazines that are currently printed on downed trees are struggling to...
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Aug 20
Waiting for Mac OS X to TRIM down (or up)
I haven't bought one of the new iMacs yet. The SSD options are tempting, though solid state drives are still way overpriced. Plus, I'm waiting for Apple to add support for TRIM technology to Mac OS X.
A TRIM command allows an operating system to inform an SSD which data blocks, such as those belonging to a deleted file or affected by a format command, are no longer being used so can be wiped internally. That's important because the low-level operation of SSDs differs from traditional hard disk drives in the way operating systems handle operations like deleting and formatting. TRIM enables the SSD to handle garbage collection overhead which would otherwise significantly slow down future write operations to the involved blocks, in advance. In other words, it helps maintain optimal performance and extend the life of your SSD.
Or, as Bit-Tech (...
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Aug 19
Apple granted patent for widget manager, more
Apple has been granted a patent (number 20100211886) by the US Patent & Trademark Office for management of user interface elements in a display environment.
A widget manager facilitates management of widgets in a dashboard layer. Management functions can include enablement, preview, importation, exportation, organization, installation, deletion, acquisition, etc. The inventors are Scott Forstall, Imran A. Chaudhri, John O. Louch and Eric Steven Peyton.
Several other Apple patents have also appeared. Here's a summary of each.
Patent number 20100211700 involves methods and systems to dynamically manage performance states in a data processing system. It involves data processing systems that operate in different modes, including a mode which supports providing an output of images through a port on the systems. In one embodiment, a data processing system includes a processing system, a cellular telephone transceiver, and a port which is...
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Aug 19
Apple patent is for 'sticky functionality'...
An Apple patent (20100211910) for sticky functionality has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. And it shows that Apple still has plans for the mouse in upcoming Macs.
The patent relates to graphical user interfaces for computer systems, and more particularly to a user interface which allows easier manipulation of elements of the user interface via a cursor control device such as a mouse. Manipulation of elements in a graphical user interface is aided by allowing the graphical user interface to treat certain mouse button actuation and releases as holding the mouse button in an actuated state.
When predetermined conditions are satisfied, the graphical user interface will treat a mouse button actuation and release as if the mouse button were held in an actuated state. A user can then manipulate elements in the graphical user interface as if the user held the mouse button in an actuated state. The types of manipulation can include the moving of a window,...
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Aug 19
Future idevices could received 'pushed' info...
Future iPhones and iPods may be able to receive "pushed" info to you based on what location you're at. Unfortunately, the pushed info could include ads.
An Apple patent (number 20100207782) for a system and method for situational location relevant invocable speed reference has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. It involves a system for pushing situational location dependent content to data processing system devices traveling to locations for, or in directions of, that place which delivery content is designated as deliverable.
Situational location dependent information is transmitted from a server data processing system to a receiving data processing system. The server data processing system communicates with the receiving data processing system in a manner by pushing content when appropriate. A candidate delivery event associated with a current positional attribute of the receiving data processing system is recognized and a situational location of the...
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Aug 19
Future iPhones, iPads could ID unauthorized users
Upcoming iPhones and iPads could recognize individual users and adjust accordingly, per a new patent (number 20100207721) for systems and methods for identifying unauthorized users of an electronic device at the US Patent & Trademark Office.
The patent is generally directed to identifying unauthorized users of an electronic device. In some embodiments, an unauthorized user of the electronic device can be detected by identifying particular activities that may indicate suspicious behavior. In some embodiments, an unauthorized user can be detected by comparing the identity of the current user to the identity of the owner of the electronic device. When an unauthorized user is detected, various safety measures can be taken.
For example, information related to the identity of the unauthorized user, the unauthorized user's operation of the electronic device, or the current location of the electronic device can be gathered. As another example, functions of the...
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Aug 19
We need more connectivity for our iPads
Despite the talk that we'll see a 7-inch iPad in time for the holidays, I'm dubious we'll see any new incarnation of the Apple tablet before early 2011 Even then I'm not holding my breath for an "iPad mini." However, I would be willing to hold my breath for more connectivity.
Right now you can only use one wired peripheral at a time with an iPad and very few wireless ones. I hope the iPad 2 will support wireless syncing and file exchanges with Macs. Currently, shuffling Pages documents -- among other things -- between the two, is a major pain. And wouldn't the ability to send files to a networked printer be nifty-keeno?
Even though the iPad can't replace my Mac (desktop OR laptop), I'd love to see a hub that lets you connect multiple devices for simultaneous use by the Apple tablet. Sort of like the Camera Connection Kit on steroids. Perhaps said dock could support: a wired keyboard (for those who want to use one; my Apple Wireless Keyboard works just fine with the...
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Aug 18
Greg's bite: MSNBC touts Window Mobile 7
By Greg Mills
Sometimes the tech media runs the most hysterical articles, ones that are so transparently sponsored by big money. Case in point: an MSNBC article (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38741936/ns/technology_and_science-wireless/) touting the unreleased vaporware that is the Mobile Windows 7 platform that Microsoft is busy working on.
Posting a review of vaporware is an exercise in foolishness, especially given Microsoft's lousy track record. They raise expectations to counter innovative products Apple actually releases. The failed Vista, Kin and Zune employees are hard at work putting their vast innovation skills into this coming Mobile OS, which is really Microsoft's "too late, last chance" to even be relevant in the modern smartphone market.
To understand how such...
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Aug 18
Next Apple TV (iTV?) should support 1080 HD
The rumor mill is buzzing that the next rev of the Apple TV -- which some say will be renamed the iTV -- will bring the device out of the "hobby" category and into the serious hardware category. But if, as has been rumored, the Apple TV/iTV doesn't support 1080i or 1080 p HD, there will be those who won't take it seriously. To an extent, I wouldn't blame them.
Of course, Apple has said nothing, nada, nil, naught about any future version of the device, so we may take all Apple TV talk with a grain or two of salt. That said, many reports claim the next gen Apple TV won't output in full HD, but will continue maxing out at 720p -- the same as the current iteration.
If that's the case, connect the Apple device to your HDTV and it will have to upscale the images if it's a 1080p device. That's not necessarily a deal breaker for most folks, but it would be disappointing, to say the least, for some of us.
After all,1080p resolution -- which equates to 1,920x1080...
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Aug 17
Greg's bite: apps are intellectual property
By Greg Mills
Remember the recent flap over Apple using a patent drawing based upon the app of a developer? It turns out if you read the fine print Apple is within its rights to use anything submitted to them. Certainly the understanding is that Apple will play fair. See the contract for submission to Apple's iTunes Store at http://www.apple.com/legal/itunes/us/terms.html .
Apple does try to protect trademarks and copyrights, but you do need to have a copyright to see Apple enforce it (see http://www.apple.com/legal/trademark/claimsofcopyright.html)/
Apps developed for the the iOS platform are intellectual property and the authors do have rights that need to be protected by dong the right things to secure those rights. Since apps are basically written code, they are protectable by electronic copyright...
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Aug 17
Apple wins iPhone, laptop, iMac patents
Apple has won patents from the US Patent & Trademark Office for the screen display on the iPhone and iPod touch, a portable computer, the current iMac incarnation, the latching mechanism on Apple laptops, an audio interface and a cable connector assembly.
Patent number D621,849 is for animated graphical user interfaces for a screen display or portion thereof. The inventors are Freddy Anzures, Bas Ording and Marcel Van Os. Patent D621,845 is for a graphical user interface for a display screen or portion thereof. The inventors are Freddy Anzures and Imran Chaudhri. Both involve the iPhone and iPod touch interface.
Patent number D621,825 is for the ornamental design of a portable computer (the MacBook Pro) Patent number D621,841 is for the ornamental design of a computer. The inventors listed on these patents are Andre K. Bartley, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P....
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Aug 17
There's talk once again of Apple moving into HDTV...
There's talk again that Apple will eventually come out with its own line of television sets. Or at least one model. I'm dubious -- but stranger things have happened.
In October 2008 Nate Lanxon of "CNET UK" started the buzz by reporting that Apple is working on a networked television. He says that these LCD HDTVs will be fully networked, with the ability to stream all your iTunes content from your Mac or PC. They would, he said, function like a standard TV with an Apple TV box, only without the need for the box. Lanxon said the TV's will be akin to Apple's 30-inch display for the Mac "only thinner, streaming iTunes movie rentals over 802.11n, controlled with the Remote app on an iPod touch or iPhone.”
Earlier this year Ezra Gottheil of Technology Business Research told "Computerworld" (http://macosg.me/2/pk) that he thinks Apple wants to be the first to successfully integrate the home office with the...
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Aug 16
Greg's bite: AT&T's 'no bars in...
By Greg Mills
I submitted my original slogan "No bars in more places" to AT&T some time ago and they never got back to me. If anyone notices them using my slogan without compensating me, I plan to sue ...
An article posted at "CNN" titled "AT&T is just bad for the wrong people in the wrong places" glosses over connection issues the rest of us have. Dan Frommer of "Business Insider" presents a scenario the folks at AT&T wish was the truth. Frommer thinks the network problems are mostly limited to shrilled "tech- and media-types limited to New York and San Francisco. While I dispute that rationalization, he does make a valid point that downtown metropolitan areas with tall buildings are a cell system nightmare. See the verbal flowery fluff painting AT&T nice at: http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/mobile/08/13/att.wireless.network/index.html?hpt=Sbin .
If the problem with the AT&T network was just in big cities due to skyscrapers...
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Aug 16
Ninety percent of cell phone drivers concerned about...
According to the latest study from the Consumer Electronics Association, most drivers who use cell phones consider safety their number one priority when in an automobile. It's just too bad that this sentence is modified by "most" instead of "a.."
Twenty-two percent of drivers with cell phones never use their cell phones while driving and other cell phone users will only use the following devices with their cell phones while driving: speakerphone built into cell phone (29%); wireless Bluetooth headset (22%); wired earphone or headset (10%); and wireless Bluetooth speakerphone accessory for your automobile (5%)
Distracted driving is a major issue our nation faces, and while we can all be distracted at times, in-car technology has made huge leaps and bounds to be safer and more-user friendly- incorporating voice activation and numerous other technologies to give us safety and comfort, while reducing the amount of distractions. Not only do Americans spend time nearly...
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Aug 13
Why no USB 3.0 on the latest iMacs, Mac Pros?
I'm still mulling over the possibility of selling my current 27-inch, "tricked out" iMac and buying one of the new models so I can see how the new memory, new graphics card and an SSD drive feels.
On the other hand, those features are nice, but my current iMac is plenty fast enough and Apple didn't include any "gotta have" features in the latest rev of the consumer/prosumer desktop. I was certain that Apple would include USB 3.0, but they didn't. Why? Who knows. I've written Apple about the exclusion, but -- no surprise -- I've received no answer.
Syncing an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch with USB 3.0 would be an improvement. Or Apple could bring back FireWire syncing. Remember how wonderful the syncing of the original iPod was with FireWire 400? But backing up and syncing with the current USB 2 is just painful. Getting back to very short syncs would be a blessing.
-- Dennis Sellers
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Aug 12
Apple wants to beef up graphic equalizers on idevices
An Apple patent (number 20100202630) has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office for a method and system for approximating graphic equalizers using dynamic filter order reduction. It relates to media devices and, more particularly, to equalizer effects for media being presented on media devices.
Improved approaches to flexibly implementing graphic equalizers on media players are disclosed. These approaches provide dynamic order reduction of a multi-band graphic equalizer so that equalizer effects can be timely performed with only limited computational resources. In one embodiment, a media player receives a media item and associated equalizer settings for a multi-band graphic equalizer.
The media player can then automatically (i.e., without user action) approximate the multi-band graphic equalizer with the equalizer settings for the media item using a fewer number of filters. Fewer filters means order reduction, and thus reduction in computational...
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Aug 12
Patent involves better communication between media...
An Apple patent (number 20100205531) has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office for a portable media device including an user interface event passthrough to non-media-playback processing.
A method of operating a portable electronics device can include integrated operation of media playback processing and non-media-playback processing (such as, for example, a game). The method can include receiving an event corresponding to operation of a user interface item by a user of the portable electronics device. The received event can be provided to the non-media-playback processing. The non-media-playback processing can determine whether to cause an action corresponding to the provided received event with respect to the non-media-playback processing.
For an event determined by the non-media-playback processing to not cause an action corresponding to the provided received event with respect to the non-media-playback processing, the provided received event can be...
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Aug 12
Future Macs may change appearance
An Apple patent (number 20100201539) for a computing device with an illuminable portion that can change the device's appearance has popped up at the US Patent & Trademark Office.
The computing device also includes a light device disposed inside the housing. The light device is configured to illuminate the illuminable portion. The inventors are Duncan R. Kerr and Steve P. Hotelling.
Here's Apple's background and summary of the invention: "Most computing devices, including portable computers and desktop computers, give feedback to its user via a display screen or speakers. As is generally well known, display screens are used to display textual or graphical information to a user and speakers are used to output sound to the user. For example, display screens may be used to display a graphical user interface (GUI) and speakers may be used to output music or audio messages.
"Computing devices also give feedback to users via small indicators positioned on the...
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Aug 12
Apple patents involve portable devices, location info...
Three Apple patents have appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. They involve portable devices, location information and power management. Following is a summary of each.
Patent number 20100205472 involves a method and system for operating a portable electronic device in a power-limited manner. Improved techniques to manage operation of a portable electronic device having a substantially depleted battery when power is available from an external, power-limited source are disclosed. In one embodiment of the invention, the substantially depleted battery can be initially charged while a power-intensive operation is delayed. Once the battery has adequate charge to assist the external, power-limited source in powering the portable electronic device, the power-intensive operation can be performed. In this manner, power consumption of a portable electronic device can be managed so that reliable operation is achieved without exceeding limits on power being...
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Aug 12
Future Macs may simplify home automation
An Apple patent (number 20100205528) has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office for wireless home and office application management and integration. It provides systems and methods for managing and controlling networked devices.
A system comprises a host application executing on, for example, a personal computer, and one or more networked devices executing a client application. A networked device includes a consumer appliance equipped with network capability, a digital device such as MP3 players and DVRs, an electronically-controlled device such as a light circuit or other type of circuit, and the like. The host application automatically establishes communication with the networked device. The networked device configures a user interface for user control of the networked device. The host application provides a graphical layout of the networked device. The inventors are Clay Bavor and Jesse Levinson.
Here's Apple's background and summary of the invention: "...
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Aug 12
Apple plans to simplify object animation
An Apple patent (number 20100201692) for user interface for controlling animation of an object has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. The patent relates generally to computer animation and, more specifically, to animating an object using behaviors. It may point to new software or planned tweaks to the Final Cut products.
Per the patent, user can control the animation of an object via an interface that includes a control area and a user-manipulable control element. In one embodiment, the control area includes an ellipse, and the user-manipulable control element includes an arrow. In yet another embodiment, the control area includes an ellipse, and the user-manipulable control element includes two points on the circumference of the ellipse.
In yet another embodiment, the control area includes a first rectangle, and the user-manipulable control element includes a second rectangle. In yet another embodiment, the user-manipulable control element includes...
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Aug 12
Apple wants to turn your gaming performance into a...
If you play video/computer games, have you ever wanted to capture your performance in a comic book? Apple apparently thinks you want to as a new patent (number 20100203979) at the US Patent & Trademark Office indicates.
Systems and methods are provided that record data in a videogame, such as a user's character and performance in the videogame, and generate a book, e-book, or comic book based on the recorded data. A narrative data structure generated from the recorded data may include pregenerated text and images, and may provide for insertion of the recorded data into the narrative data structure. The recorded data may be converted into natural-language text for insertion into the narrative data structure. In some embodiments, the system may record screenshots of the videogame and insert the screenshots into the narrative data structure as illustrations. The narrative data structure may be provided to a location for printing as a book or other publication or may be...
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Aug 12
Greg's bite: Apple's patent app drawing flap
By Greg Mills
I was shocked, as were many other Apple observers that an Apple patent application sported an obvious rip-off of the user interface of an iOS app on the Apple App Store called "Where To?" Apple files hundreds of patent applications on everything they do.
Playing the tech "that is covered by our patent" game in federal court requires all the legal ammunition possible, so they try to protect all their ideas. A recent Apple patent app that was published by the US Patent Office included an illustration, in line drawing form, that was clearly an illustration of an existing iOS App owned by someone else. This gaff was no doubt embarrassing to the legal staff at Apple and I bet someone got their butt in a sling over it.
Apple has a sort of "white knight aura" about it on intellectual property issues. Apple often the target of patent trolling artists hoping to cash in on Apple's success. While certainly, in a competitive market with a...
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Aug 12
Entertainment features on computers a 'must...
A shift is happening in the way young Americans prefer to experience entertainment, with approximately 60% of surveyed college students in the US now using their computers most, and not televisions, for entertainment, according to a survey by the Dolby company (http://www.dolby.com).
Now I would argue that this means Apple should consider offering Macs with built-in TV tuners (or bundled with Elgato hardware/software) and Blu-ray. Sure, Macs are selling like hotcakes. But that doesn't mean Apple can't make 'em even more desirable.
Of the students surveyed, 77% listen to music on their computers and 70% use their computers to watch video. In addition, 64% watch entertainment on their computers with others (regularly, often, or sometimes), as opposed to just 44%of the general population surveyed.
Of college students surveyed, almost 60% expect most entertainment to be computer-based in the future....
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Aug 11
Greg's bite: eBook author payment issues
By Greg Mills
I got an inquiry this morning from an aspiring author who wondered what the threshold amounts are for Apple to cut her a check. That would seem to be an easy question to answer, but little is available either by Googling the key words or by checking the Apple web site.
All I found was this quote from the contract authors must approve to upload their eBooks. I pasted it into this article, and it seems to say that after Apple's cut is taken out and any taxes that might be due are removed the balance due the author is paid when the check is $150 or more.
From Apple's: EBOOK AGENCY/COMMISSIONAIRE DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT, Section 5: Commission; Tax; and Reporting, paragraph (c) "After deducting Apple’s commission, and any taxes collected by Apple under Section 5(f) hereof, from eBook Proceeds, Apple shall either remit to Publisher, or issue a credit in Publisher’s favor, subject to Apple’s standard business practices, including...
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Aug 11
Microsoft's Mac vs. PC site has some points
Microsoft has launched a site (http://macosg.me/2/of) comparing Macs to PCs. Like it or not, some of their points are valid. Let's look at the Big M's main arguments -- and my thoughts on them.
Microsoft point one: "You can't get a Mac that ships with a Blu-ray player, TV tuner, Memory Stick reader, or built-in 3G wireless."
My take: Most Macs now come with a SD card slot, which should suffice for most folks. You can add a TV tuner from companies such as Elgato (although I wouldn't mind if I could get a multimedia Mac with this built-in). It's just a matter of time before Macs get built-in 3G wireless, I think. As for Blu-ray, well, Microsoft has a point there. Sorta. You do have to install a third party Blu-ray player on a peecee.
Microsoft point two: "Unlike Macs, many PCs running Windows 7 support Touch, so you can browse online newspapers, flick through photo albums, and shuffle files and...
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Aug 10
Apple granted patents involving Mac OS X, laptops, the...
Apple has has been granted patents for the ornamental design of a computer display (D621,414, for Mac OS X), a keyboard (D631,402), computing device (D621,409, the MacBook Pro), packaging (D621,256) and an electronic device (D621,397, the Mac mini).
The inventors listed on these patents are Andre K. Bartley, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Steve Jobs, Duncan Robert Kerr, Shin Nishibori, Matthew Dean Rohrbach, Peter Russell-Clarke, Douglas B. Satzger, Calvin Q. Seid, Christopher J. Stringer, Eugene Antony Whang and Rico Zorkendorfer. Also, several Apple patents have appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. Here's a summary of each.
Patent number 7,773,139 is for an image sensor with photosensitive thin film transistors. It involves an image sensor array includes image sensors having photo TFTs to generate photocurrent in response to received images. The photo TFTs each have their respective gate...
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Aug 10
I'm considering one of the iMacs, but....
I have a top-of-the-line previous gen iMac with a Core i7. Someone wants to buy it from me. I'm considering selling it and buying one of the latest, top-of-the-line iMacs. However, that would still cost me a little out-of-pocket expenses.
I'm still not sure the performance difference would be worth a few hundred bucks. The i3's are a big boost from the Core 2 Duos, but the i7 is still the i7. The graphics cards in the latest iMacs are more powerful, but other than that I don't see much reason to switch. Moving to an SSD will definitely speed the boot process up and some apps will feel a little swifter, but they're still way too expensive in my opinion.
If there was USB 3.0 support, I might consider upgrading. If Blu-ray playback was part of the upgrade, baby, I'd be there. But, right now, I just haven't convinced myself to make the move.
Thoughts? Write me at dsellers@applecentral.com
-- Dennis Sellers...
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Aug 10
Greg's bite: How to publish an Apple iBook
By Greg Mills
A lot of what the empowerment of the Internet is all about is allowing everyone to do what has been hard to do in the past. Streamlining and enablement create a sort of democratization of information.
That is what computers and the giant data bases create, as the Internet seeks out the remote pockets of people who have obtained access. Publishing a book used to be a game authors played with hard copy publishers, who had the power to make or break an author. The only other alternative was self publishing a book, which was expensive and likely a money loser as the hard copy book publishers also control the literary market place.
Then the notion of on line e-publishing came along. That changed everything. The process of publishing that book that is sitting on your computer in a word processor file suddenly is becoming easy to do with any Intel Mac and a bit of software. The process is likely to be streamlined soon.
I...
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Aug 09
Greg's bite: BlackBerry agrees to local servers
By Greg Mills
RIM and Saudi Arabis reached a compromise that allows BackBerry servers to be set up in country. The established business method is that all BlackBerry servers were once in Canada.
That hid the servers behind Canadian courts and made national security agencies upset they couldn't monitor BlackBerry email and browsing habits of locals. Last week Saudi Arabia temporarily shut down service to 750,000 Saudi RIM phones to prove they we serious with RIM. THe solution was to continue encrypting the data streams but put RIM servers in Saudi Arabia so the security agency can monitor electronic data on the severs. The data stream is only encrypted between the servers and the phones. The data is unencrypted once it gets on the server.
This solution is sure to be demanded and agreed to by RIM in other countries around the world. This is disaster in the making for RIM as sure as a great storm brewing in the gulf means a hurricane IS coming...
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Aug 09
Despite down economy, smartphone market on an upswing
Notwithstanding the economic downturn, the smartphone market is on an upswing, with consumers increasingly seeking devices that are well designed with innovative features and applications such as touch screen technology, wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) and location-based service (LBS), according to notes Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/). And that, of course, is good news for Apple.
These devices continue to be status symbols in the consumer and enterprise markets, says Research and Markets. In the next couple of years, software is expected to play a major role in the mobile handset market, along with more standardized hardware design, adds the research group. And, again, Apple has a leg up on the competition in this arena.
Mobile operators are likely to partner with significant participants from the Internet community, the media and the entertainment...
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Aug 06
Greg's bite: Lights out for RIM in Sauda Arabia
By Greg Mills
As I mentioned in yesterday's Greg's Bite, RIM is in a bind right now over its method of serving data from a centralized location in Canada and encrypting data streams to customers.
This secure system, which companies love prevents a serious security risk for the national security agencies around the world that have not been able to break the encryption. Holding customer data on local servers is a system where security agencies are able to access customer data locally. Every other smartphone in the world, that I know of, uses the local servers of the cell phone providers in each country. RIM's advantage in using encrypted data streams as an advantage to sell its customers may be about to erode.
As I mentioned in yesterday's article, the advantages of RIM are an established business customer base due to security, the blinking red light and a clicking physical key board. The clicking key board is not exclusive to RIM and touch...
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Aug 06
How about cloud storage with a 'Make DVD'...
Earlier this week I asked if perhaps Apple was planning on replacing IDVD with cloud storage (something I'm personally against). But "MacNews" reader Wayne Folta has an idea that would make it more acceptable to folks like me who like having physical media.
"What if Apple would host your videos in their cloud, and then you could choose 'Make DVD' and assemble a DVD of your chosen videos and have a nicely-printed disc mailed to your chosen recipient?" he asks. "They already do this with iPhoto (get a photo book printed), so it might make sense. More convenient for mom and pop, who won't have to worry about burning a coaster, or trying to figure out how to get their DVD to look 'professional,' with a nice photo printed onto the top side."
Good idea, Wayne. Apple, are you listening?
-- Dennis Sellers
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Aug 05
Greg's bite: Blackberry caves in to Dubai
By Greg Mills
The conflict between RIM and Dubai has been resolved -- and RIM blinked. The issue is that access to Blackberry network data within individual countries is different than other cell phone services, such as an iPhone account through AT&T.
The authorities can go to the various cellular networks to access account information of suspected terror or crime figures, with a warrant issued by a court of competent jurisdiction. The data resides with the cell provider on its servers. The RIM security problem has come up in India, Saudi Arabia and other countries that are beginning to monitor electronic communications on a national basis.
In some cases the cellular networks roll over and give full access to all information they have on an account, or, in the case of AT&T, they are a bit less forthcoming and demand a warrant for every bit of information they give up. Here Sprint is the easy cellular network to provide customer data...
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