Lights That Blink

Then I’m happily felonious.

tags: apple, iphone

Posted by Doug | 2 Comments »

It’s done.

Finally, you can unlock your iPhone from AT&T’s network using easily available online tools, without having to do any work on the hardware, for free (free as in no money, nada, zip).

I expect to see iPhones popping up all over the world for sale now, since they can be used on any GSM network.

tags: apple, iphone

Posted by Doug | No Comments »

Hello, LTB reader(s)! I think it’s to put myself back on the top of this fine blog, and so I’ve decided to say my piece on the announcements of Steve Jobs’ keynote speech at WWDC. Since there’s already a myriad of opinions finding their way onto the web today, I think I’ll keep my remarks short. So, without further ado:

The redesign of Apple.com: Killer.

The presence of noted game dev god John Carmack showing off his next gen engine: 1337.

The presence of an EA exec to announce simultaneous release of new Mac games: Profiteering.

The transparent menu bar in Leopard’s new look: Eyestrain!

The lack of familiar rounded corners in the menu bar of said new look:

The integration of Cover Flow, Stacks, and Quick Look into the new Finder: Slick.

Boot Camp’s unheralded ability to switch hibernation states between Mac OS X and Windows: Awesome. Bogus.

Phil Schiller’s Clutch Cargo comedy involving Steve Ballmer’s face: Hilarious.

Core Animation: Tantalizing.

Safari on Windows: Peculiar.

The idea that all of those “top secret” features needed to stay under wraps until Vista shipped: Silly.

and, last but most certainly not least–

The “use Web 2.0 to develop hosted iPhone apps instead of native ones” copout: Bullcrap.

Isn’t it nice when the news is so easy to digest?

tags: apple, iphone, os-x, safari, windows

Posted by Jamie | 3 Comments »

I don’t believe it! How could my favorite fruit company do this to me?! Don’t they know that I have been pining for the new release of OS X as the cherry on the silicon sundae of a new Mac? How I long for the sublime refreshment of its new features and the unspecified (but surely surprising) zippy tang of its secret ones?

Well, yes, of course they do. I’m also quite certain that they know of my hatred for buggy and unfinished operating systems, and I’m glad that they’ve chosen not to release one as soon as possible. However, I’m no different than any other Mac fan, and it’s not hard to notice that Apple’s primary focus of late is on the new baby in the crib. Heck, this year an entire Macworld keynote was devoted to its charms! I’m just a little peeved that the Mac platform seems to be getting short shrift these days. While it’s true that iPhone is the coolest electronic device in the entire galaxy, it won’t be something for me until the price goes down, features go up, and AT&T cellular service (or a blessed equivalent) comes to my part of the cosmos as part of version 2.0.

All is not lost, though. We should be seeing new consumer Macs rolling out with Intel’s new “Santa Rosa” notebook platform very soon, and since all of Apple’s hardware (save the Mac Pro) is currently built with mobile innards in mind, that means some nice upgrades will make their way across the lineup. Nevertheless, I call upon the Cupertino faithful to make a small sacrifice (perhaps that of an Apple II High-Speed SCSI card) to ensure that WWDC will spill all the yummy secrets of Leopard and Macworld 2008 will really be about the Macintosh.

tags: apple, iphone, os-x

Posted by Jamie | No Comments »