PBS Video on How Technology Runs Our Lives

In this video PBS talks about and explains how technology has become apart of our lives and how it affects us all. They talk about new facial technologies and how one country can be wiped out by an internet cyber attack! Sit back and watch this hour long program called Technology: World War 2.0.

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iPhone OS 4.0

Hey guys I know it has been awhile since my last post. I have just been really busy with everything but today I am really excited to share with you iPhone OS 4.0 and my thoughts on it. Yes, I know this was released yesterday but I had some previous jobs I had to do. So here it is.

First I will go over the 4 major new features that were gone over in the keynote because I just don't have time to write about all 100 new features. The first new feature I will go over is multitasking. This is a real big addition to the iPhone OS. One reason for this is because their biggest competitors have been able to multitask on their devices for a long time. Apple claims that they haven't had it on their platform until now because they wanted to wait until they had it just right. What they mean by this is not only the interface of it but while using multitasking you wont kill your battery or lose a lot of the phones power. Multitasking will let the customer play music from other apps while they go into another app. For example a user could be listening to their Pandora account and then close out of it and go into another app and the music wouldn't stop like it use to. Another way to use multitasking is by using VOIP or Voice over IP. This is like taking a skype call and then closing out and staying on the call and being able to go play a game. This is a real big thing for many people. The next big feature that was added is folders. Folders will let the user put all the apps they want in one place. With a simple drop one app on top of another app you will be making folders. You will even be able to name the folders. For those of you that ran out of space because you could only have 180 apps on your device you will now be able to have 2,160 apps with these new folders. The next big feature that was added is an even better mail app. With this new mail app you will be able to have multiple exchange accounts hooked up to the same device. You will also have the option to show all your email accounts in one big inbox so you don't have to keep switching back and fourth between the different inbox. Other parts of the new mail app include being able to open attachments in third party apps, organizing messages by thread, and switching between inbox faster. The last major feature that they showed off was iBooks. Now yes iBooks was released with the iPad but now Apple has brought that same app, book store, and all the other books you have bought to the iPhone and iPod Touch. You can even do this while listening to music. One other cool new thing they talked about and showed but didn't go into much detail was about being able to change you home screen background. You now will be able to have what ever picture you want as your background and it doesn't have to stay black. At the keynote that also went over a new thing called iAD and Enterprise. They also went over the fact that there is now over 1,500 new APIs for developers to use and make their apps do what we just talked about. iAD in a quick little description is Apples new way to put ads in developers apps so that they can keep them free and still make money.It is a really cool and interactive way to put ads in apps. Enterprise is for companies. This will let companies easily deploy many iPhones through out their company. This will also let them make and distribute apps just for their company very easily to every one. A cool new thing about that for them is that they wont even need to plug in their phones and sync the apps they will be able to do it wireless. Now here is the catch this is a direct quote for apple.com " Phone OS 4 will work with iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, and the second- and third-generation iPod touch this summer, and with iPad in the fall. Not all features are compatible with all devices. For example, multitasking is available only with iPhone 3GS and the third-generation iPod touch (32GB and 64GB models from late 2009)."

Now for my feelings and impressions about the new iPhone OS. Over all I am very happy about all the new features and will love to have them on my iPod Touch. The only downfall is that I wont be able to multitask on it because I have the 2nd Generation. This disappoints me very much because this is something that I have been looking forward to for a long time. Now if we put that aside I am extremely happy. I will be able to set one of my own pictures as the background and these new folders will let my organize my minimal app collection. I will also be able to merge my inbox and for me this isn't the biggest thing because I really only get mail in one inbox but when I do get mail from the other mail box I wont have to spend the time to switch to it. Another feature that was talked about but I wont be using is the feature of being able to have multiple exchange accounts. The first and the biggest reason is that I don't even have one exchange account so this doesn't effect me. Now for the iBooks app. I'm not the biggest reader and for that I rarely read at all. When I do read it is in school and during school I cant pull out my iPod and claim to be reading so I most likely won't be using this app but if for some reason I do decide to download a book and read it using this app from what I know the experience will be great. Over all as you can tell I am very happy with the turn out of iPhone OS 4.0 and can't wait to use it this summer.

iPhone OS 4.0 will be available this summer for the iPhone and iPod Touch and then later this fall for the iPad. There is no price that it will be going for at the time. For more information on iPhone OS 4.0 go to http://www.apple.com/iphone/preview-iphone-os/. You can also download the keynote or watch it one apple.com for more information and demos of everything talked about.

For more of my work go to http://applman02-appleworld.blogspot.com/. Thanks.

Things You Never Hear (From a Mac User)

Just a humorous little video about the Mac universe. This is a parody of "Things You Never Hear" by Seth Macfarlane.

Apple NZ and AU Black Friday Pricing Posted

Today the New Zealand and Australia Apple store posted their Black Friday prices on their website. The discounts only apply to the iMac and Macbook Pro with $120 USD off,  the iPod Nano $10 USD, iPod Touch 8gb $25 USD, 32gb $37 USD, 64gb $51 USD. Other discounts would apply to the Apple TV, and other Apple Mac and iPod accessories. This is big leak for the US Black Friday sales and I will update at 12am when the US discounts will be posted.

Our Love For Tech And The Danger It Brings

Two 3.9 Ghz processors?! Get out! I would kill for that kind of horse power in my computer!” This is me about 4 hours ago talking to one of my nerdy friends about how much we adore technology and how paramount it is in our lives. I think that our society has become so dependent on technology that it’s almost become ridiculous or even dangerous. I mean, computers run our water, heat, electricity, factories, food producing, and the list goes on. A lot of people don’t even realize how vital it is in out everyday lives now and how hard it would be to live without such beautiful electronic devices and systems. But would it be too hard?

It’s a little different for me to survive in this world than for most people. In order to physically exist, I pretty much must have my face immersed in some form of screen. Whether it be a phone, computer, or even a television. Considering I’m a technology tycoon and work with computers all day, I would say that two of my main objects in my life that I could never live without would be my computer and my iPhone. Yes, these are very materialistic type possessions, but they also are three things that I could not survive one day without. If I was removed from all computers, phones, and just basically electronics, I might have a mental breakdown. Harsh, but true. My iPhone and computer are as much a part of me as the heart that pumps blood through my body or the air I breathe. It may be odd but it sure isn’t false.

When people think technology I’m sure the word danger doesn’t pop into their mind with it. But will it soon? I’m sure some of you have heard that story about those little girls who became trapped in a storm drain underground in Australia, and instead of calling 911 first, they took out their phones and updated their Facebook statuses with cries for help, instead of calling the one force that was actually trained for that exact kind of event. It has almost become dangerous how much technology has evolved and taken over. I’m sure that everyone knows how many car crashes have occurred due to texting and phone calls. I mean, I’m all for tech and electronics, I am a major geek, but when it starts to cut in the way of my safety, then I would get concerned. Our society has created robots that can show emotion and respond to our requests accurately and promptly, yet we still have no cure for cancer or HIV. It is becoming kind of scary. I mean, we have hotels in space coming out for gosh sakes. It’s unbelievable, amazing, but unbelievable.

Now, I don’t want to go on forever rambling about how far technology has come and how scary and amazing it is becoming, and I’m sure I don’t have to. But, for any other fellow geeks and nerds out there, even if you adore your electronic devices and could not live without them, like me. Please make sure that you put safety and intellect first. That may sound like a dumb suggestion, but you would be surprised by how many people don’t consider their own safety before their own electronics. It is fairly sad, but true. Thank you for taking the time to hear me out, if you have gotten this far. Society and technology is advancing, but the amount that one human can be oblivious to a present danger is always there, and can always remain the same.