harikari.com

I love to IM, but sometimes I feel like I am just talking to myself. 

Here is my most recent example:

[12:31] Cory: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118289311361649057.html?mod=home_personal_journal_left

[12:31] Cory: The iPhone’s most controversial feature, the omission of a physical keyboard in favor of a virtual keyboard on the screen, turned out in our tests to be a nonissue, despite our deep initial skepticism. After five days of use, Walt — who did most of the testing for this review — was able to type on it as quickly and accurately as he could on the Palm Treo he has used for years
[12:32] Cory: Crap. now I want one too!!!!
[12:33] Cory: The article also mentions that it synchs seamlessly with both macs and windows., USING iTunes…
[12:34] Cory: Does that mean that iTunes is being used to synch contacts, etc.? It looks like iTunes is becoming much bigger than music player software.
[12:35] Cory: I don’t know if you recall a previous article I sent you. I think by these same authors that mentioned that iTunes installs Bonjour on windows machines and is actually a robust “OS” in its own right…
[12:37] Cory: http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20070607/youre-using-itunes-but-are-you-missing-some-of-the-fun/
[12:38] Cory: With parallels, iTunes, AppleTV, Safari, and now the iPhone, Apple products are really integrating into the Windows world…
[12:40] Cory: Interesting:
Walt: This first model is missing some features some other smart phones have, like video recording, instant messaging, and real-time GPS navigation. Do you plan to upgrade iPhones purchased now so they have these features? If so, when?Steve: We don’t talk about future products. I will say that the iPhone is the most sophisticated software platform ever created for a mobile device, and that we think software features are where the action will be in the coming years. Stay tuned.

[12:40] Cory: From:
http://mossblog.allthingsd.com/20070626/jobs-qa/
[12:40] Cory: No IM?
[12:41] Cory: Well, I hope I haven’t bored you to death. Maybe you are already dead. Sorry.   

 

Oh well, I must be one of those people who IMs because they like to hear the sounds of the voices in their heads. 

 Is it true that the iPhone doesn’t have Instant Messaging capabilities?

Steve Jobs knows how to work the crowd. At this year’s keynote, he started of by announcing the actual launch of the iTv (branded AppleTV) which was first shown to the public late last year.

Steve Jobs went on to introduce not one, but three killer products, that will revolutionize the industry.

That’s right, the iPod, the iPhone, and some sort of Internet device.

But, it turns out that he is not introducing three individual products but one killer product.

The iPhone. I know, the iPhone already launched last year from Linksys, but this one is different. I am sure the attorneys are already busy working on this.

Basically, it is a subcompact tablet computer (running OS X) combined with a cell phone and an iPOD.

Notice that there is only one button. All other input is through a touch sensitive interface(the entire screen).

From engadget’s take on the iPhone:

Sweet, glorious specs of the 11.6 millimeter device (that’s frickin’ thin, by the way) include a 3.5-inch 480 x 320 touchscreen display with multi-touch support and a proximity sensor to turn off the sensor when it’s close to your face, 2 megapixel cam, 4GB or 8 GB of storage, Bluetooth with EDR and A2DP, WiFi that automatically engages when in range, and quadband GSM radio with EDGE. Perhaps most amazingly, though, it somehow runs OS X with support for Widgets, Google Maps, and Safari, and iTunes (of course) with CoverFlow out of the gate. A partnership with Yahoo will allow all iPhone customers to hook up with free push IMAP email. Apple quotes 5 hours of battery life for talk or video, with a full 16 hours in music mode — no word on standby time yet.

It does so many things, that it is somewhat overwhelming. The Apple Store website has an excellent page about the new iPhone.

Unfortunately this product will not ship until June, but I am sure it will revolutionize the way we communicate and share data.

And finally, Apple Computer, Inc. is now Apple, Inc. With the name change, look for new products for the entire home. Maybe an Apple HDTV? Or how about a line of Apple Smart Appliances.

I can hardly wait until June to get my hands on an iPhone.

According to a new report titled Devices That Tell On You: The Nike+iPod Sport Kit and published by a group of University of Washington graduate students, the new Nike+iPod Sport Kit could lead to all sorts of secret surveillance.

Scott Saponas the lead author on the report believes that anyone could monitor someone’s activities by creating an inexpensive network of computers that would monitor the movement of the person with the Nike+iPod Sport Kit transmitter.

Apparently the Nike+iPod Sport Kit transmits up to 60 feet versus the miniscule 10 inch reach of more common RFIDs on many consumer goods.
From the Seattle P-I article:

Anyone passing by with a sensor in his or her shoe — or a sensor planted in, say, a pocket or backpack — could be tracked.

The researchers outlined a scenario in which “Marvin,” a troubled ex-boyfriend, places detectors at remote locations so he could know when “Alice,” who is carrying a sensor, enters or departs a particular place.

This story has been on the local Seattle news station and this morning on CNN. The news story even shows the students testing their theory on the UW campus. It looked scary with the students monitoring, via laptops, the subject’s movement on campus.
Ultimately, if you are thinking about using this technology to surveil or are concerned that someone would use this technology to surveil you, you should really take an honest look at your relationships and those around you. You have bigger issues than whether this is a threat or not.
In order for this to work, one must secretly plant the Nike+Ipod Sport Kit, have the technological know-how to create a small network of receivers, places to discreetly hide the receivers and protect them from the elements, and a way to retrieve the information. While the receivers could be linked up to an open WiFi connection, I doubt that this would be reliable, as I don’t know anyone who’s WiFi doesn’t regularly drop and need a reboot.

Is it possible? Yes.

Is it plausible? I don’t think so. But someone will probably try to use it.

Ultimately, I do not think this will replace traditional stalking anytime soon.

Walter S. Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal has a review of the Microsoft Zune, a new mp3 player intended to compete with Apple’s iPod.

Next week, Microsoft Corp. will launch the most serious challenge ever mounted to Apple Computer’s iPod and iTunes juggernaut in digital music. The software giant is introducing a portable player called the Zune, an online music store called Zune Marketplace and a new music software program called Zune that links the two. It plans to put plenty of marketing muscle behind Zune, and promises to expand and refine this new product line in coming years.

Looks like Apple might need to update some features on the iPod, as the Zune will feature a larger screen, FM radio, and the ability to exchange songs wirelessly with other Zunes.

The Zune Marketplace, however, sounds like it is going to ‘piss off’ a lot of people before they even use it. You have to deposit money into an account and then lets use points to purchase music, but the exchange rate isn’t 1:1. A song price at 79 points really costs 99 cents. Someone at MS is trying to be clever, but most users are too smart for this and it will turn them off to the service.

Definitely not next ipod ‘killer’:

Placing the Zune next to the 30-gigabyte iPod provides a strong contrast. The iPod is thin, sleek and elegant looking. The Zune looks big and blocky, sort of like a prototype for a gadget, rather than a finished product. It is longer, thicker and heavier than even the 80-gigabyte iPod, which has more than twice its capacity.

(Via WSJ-Personal Technology.)

So, you think that you are cool cuz you own a MacBook Pro? Well, there is a lot more to cool than just owning the right machine, you gotta look the part.

The folks over at Life Clever will help with that. They’ll even tell you where to shop and the total look will only set you back about $160.00. And since you just laid out over $2,500 on your laptop, this makes more than just fashion sense.

I went jogging yesterday around Green Lake with my iPod Shuffle and my faithful companion Lucy (seen below reading about Paris).

While jogging I began to reflect upon the shuffle’s size and design. The Shuffle fits nicely in the palm of my hand with the controls beneath my thumb. Without breaking stride I could crank up the volume, skip a song or stop the music all together. (When jogging with a dog on a crowded path any and all of these may be required.)

Today I was over at the Apple website and wouldn’t you know it, a new iPod Shuffle. Has Apple finally exceeded customer utility? This totally reminds me of this sketch I saw last fall on SNL, in which Steve Jobs introduces several new models as each one becomes obsolete.

While I have yet to see the new shuffle in person, this Apple image indicates to me that it may in fact be TOO SMALL. I for one think that the original iPod Shuffle was just the right size and design. I won’t even get into the new versions’ lack of a USB port for use as a USB flash drive…

Apple made several other announcements today, including the ability to download movies via iTunes and new versions of the other models of Ipods.

Additionally, there was mention of an item code name iTV. Now this is an item that will either be huge or totally ‘Newton’. Anyhow, Apple is making the bold attempt to bridge the gap between the pc and the home entertainment center. Should anyone be able to successfully crack this nut, it would be huge.