The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs: Happy now, bitches? - "In the list of the dead up above I forgot to mention Palm and Adobe. They are both also dead. So dead, in fact, that I forgot to mention them." - Fake Steve ist klasse.
mobile - 15.2.2006 - 7.3.2008
Special report: Fixing short iPhone battery life - I need to take a closer look at this, as I have the impression that the battery life of my iPhone is suboptimal. The WLAN part sounds particularly interesting - perhaps I can simply turn off WLAN, since I have an EDGE flat rate anyway.
OS 2008 Hacker Edition - Nokia is being mean right now, but still, it should be noted that their OS 2008 (actually written for the N810) is now also available in a Hacker Edition for the old 770. Since with 2008 you get a Mozilla-based browser, it is definitely worth considering. It simply renders better than Opera.
chumby - damn. Still only available in the USA. I also want a useless gadget on the table!
So you’re going to write an iPhone app… - about experiences with the (not yet available) iPhone SDK and software development for the iPhone.
Still no ringtones in Germany - sounds dramatic, but only applies to the iTunes Music Store. You can't buy ringtones. Pretty stupid of Apple. Well, if you save sound files as AAC (e.g. with Amadeus) and then name them .m4r, iTunes sorts them as ringtones. Just wanted to mention that. (And yes, that means I have an iPhone)
an offline Wikipedia reader for the iPhone - ok, outdated with download to the iPhone, but still: that would really be a reason to have an iPhone (the direct and immediate access to Wikipedia and Google alone would almost be worth it, but also to directly access it locally in cases where nothing else works - nice!)
Skype on OS2007HE umm... working... - I still have the 770 and the 800. Hmm. I'm not sure if I want to buy the 810 (already available in the Nokia Shop for Germany), 459 Euros is not exactly cheap ...
Jobs looks forward to hundreds of iPhone applications - oops, this is coming faster than expected. It could get exciting to see what appears when the SDK is available.
Nokia announces N810 Internet Tablet with GPS and OS 2008 - wow. With a keyboard this time. Looks nice.
Mobile Processing - and here is the variant of Processing that creates applications for mobile Java devices (phones, etc.).
New FCC rules may impact Linux-based devices - the FCC thinks that Security-by-Obscurity is a great idea for radio technologies. And undermines both Open Source projects and the security of wireless solutions. Idiots.
Nokia veröffentlicht Browser für Maemo - nice. The Opera on the devices is not bad, but a Mozilla runs a bit smoother, as the Opera is of the older kind.
AT&T Cingular iPhone contract terms examined - will the contracts in Germany contain similar stunts by the end of the year?
Skype comes to Nokia's N800 Linux tablet - hmm. Skype. I guess I'll have to upgrade now. It's not terribly complicated, but having to reinstall my own software is rather annoying. It would be nice if the base system could also be upgraded through the normal package mechanisms.
Linux-Smartphone OpenMoko available from July 2007 - doesn't sound so bad, especially the consumer version in October. It would be the perfect addition to my Nokia Tablet. Funny, Linux might become almost more interesting for me in this area than in the desktop area.
The iPhone Matches Most of Its Hype - sounds good. The flaws would probably not bother me, as a phone is only used as a mobile internet access and only in the most extreme emergency for calling.
Cyborg-Feeling for everyone - if they have the 600 euros. Otherwise, wait for the mass-market version. Techno-phobias and warnings of the downfall of the Western world by the personal environment included.
Devicescape – Connect all your wi-fi devices to any hotspot or wifi network – automatically! - had I already seen this? Never mind, TV repeats everything anyway. Looks interesting, could simplify hotspot usage. Should I install it on the tablet?
N800 & Video playback - oops. Nokia used different chips in the N800 that drastically slow down the screen update (1/3 the speed of the N770).
Mono on Nokia 770/800 - good. This gives chances to get the libSL stories (e.g. Sleek?) flying on the Nokia. And this gives chances for a minimal SL client on the tablet! (not to mention the variety of interesting programming languages that are now also available for the Nokia)
» Wi-Fi hacking, with a handheld PDA - I hope that soon the WiFi hacking tools will be ported and running on the Maemo platform, so that you can get something like this for less than 3500 US$. I already have the hardware ...
M is for monkey - Mono on Maemo. That would be exciting - with the efforts to also support the Mono GUI classes on Linux and the connection with libSL, you could possibly get Sleek (Text-Mode SL client) to run. And thus have a mobile chat solution for SL.
Python for Maemo - playing with Python 2.5 on the Nokia Tablet.
Wikipedia Skins - how to make Wikipedia more mobile-friendly so that the small Nokia screen is better utilized.
Nokia N800 is now public & available! - Wow! Now with built-in camera for video telephony over the internet. And of course still open source and Linux based, faster, cooler ...
Skype for the Nokia Tablet - but only for the new N800. For the N770, there are already two VOIP clients with Googletalk and GizmoProject (and with GizmoProject also one that is based on standards). Nevertheless, it's nice to get the quite widespread Skype as an option, especially with the built-in cam in the N800.
ApplicationRepositories - Maemo Wiki - a list of all currently known application pools for integration into the installer on the Nokia Tablet.
New "Web'n'Walk" data options at T-Mobile - the bureaucratic nightmare (which still seems to be rampant at telecoms) would neigh if it could handle the application form and the 100-page instructions for filling it out ...
Gizmo – A free phone for your computer - now also available for the Nokia 770 tablet!
Phones are disposable products
Well, I've recently become the owner (well, from the company's perspective) of a Sony Ericsson V600i. A fairly new phone, if I understand correctly. Also, not bad in terms of features. But it has a serious bug in the built-in SSL library - some certificates (apparently all those signed with a certain Thawte root certificate) are rejected as invalid. Unfortunately, Google uses something like this for the mail server - I can only access my mail via the web interface with the phone, not via POP3S.
So, in May, I wrote to Sony-Ericsson support. I described my problem and asked for a comment - maybe I can work around the problem. The error causes me to be unable to install the Thawte root certificate, the phone rejects it outright. And the mail client does not allow an override for SSL connections with supposedly invalid certificates - unlike the web browser, which does allow it.
The first comment from support: they had no information about this problem. Great. But my email provided them with some, why can't they just pass it on to the technical department? Well, I described my problem again, in more detail - maybe the first email was too technical for the S-E supporters. And no, the suggestion to contact Google about the problem, or Thawte, is rather silly. SSL certificates are an industry standard.
Well, after my second email to support, the matter is at least being passed on to the technical department. So, a good sign. I thought.
What came, however, was rather embarrassing. Because in the following weeks, nothing happened. I was in the virtual equivalent of a waiting loop - every few days a note that there was still no information on the point from the technical department. Incidentally, a simple and primitive bug to replicate: try to upload the certificate I attached via Bluetooth and see the error message on the phone. Should take only a few minutes to at least confirm that the error was replicated. Well, I was in the waiting loop. For a month (pretty much exactly - the message went to the technical department on the 18th, today is the 19th).
Today, the answer from the technical department came. I can't help it, I have to quote it verbatim:
Our back office has informed us that further development for this mobile phone has been discontinued and that the conflict can therefore no longer be resolved here. This will only be possible with future models. Thank you for your understanding.
Exactly. A relatively new phone, for which there were still delivery delays due to its novelty when it was ordered. A phone that is still under legal warranty. A bug that makes an industry standard only partially usable. A bug that simply disables some functions of the phone. But I am supposed to understand that development has been discontinued. I can buy one of the mysterious successor phones. Or, as offered in the same email, buy more accessories from the store.
Hello? Reality check? You've already ripped me off once, do you really think I'll buy another phone from Sony-Ericsson? Why? So that it will no longer be developed right after purchase and I get the short end of the stick?
Phone manufacturers are just as arrogant and have the same loss of reality as the music industry - no idea about customers, no idea about customer needs, and no idea what a customer expects from a product - that it is at least supported during the legal warranty period, for example.
Take the phone as it is - bugs included? Doesn't matter, it's your problem, customer, not ours. And in the background, the bosses are rubbing their hands together, laughing maliciously, firing employees, and pocketing the big salaries. A pathetic picture, Sony-Ericsson. Quite pathetic ...
Wengophone: VoIP done right - could this be free software that can compete with Skype? Free is only the software, the use of the network infrastructure is tied to a provider and is chargeable.
MGTalk - Google Talk for mobile - unfortunately doesn't work on my V600i yet. No idea why.
Nokia Announces the Internet Tablet 2006 OS Update - very nice, especially since the new release will also work for the old tablet. However, the update is a bit tricky - reinstallation of all applications and data ...
Nokia will preinstall Google Talk - not bad, especially since Google Talk is based on Jabber.
AOL.de Zugang - WiFi Hotspots. And yes, that's the devil. But what can you do when network withdrawal threatens ...
Using Vodafone and Sony Ericsson V600i / V600 UMTS via Bluetooth under Mac OS X - if it's the company phone.
Maemo Development Platform Roadmap - where the Nokia tablet with version 2.0 of the system is heading.
Horizon - a sketchbook for the Nokia Tablet.
CPU/MEM with swap on/off - the load plugin for the Nokia 770 to display memory and CPU load in a version that can enable/disable swap (provided you have set it up accordingly).
MANaOS 0.1.2 is out - MiniMo for Nokia 770 is slowly coming along. Ok, the installation is still a bit awkward (as root rights are required), but as a preview already quite nice.
SonyStyle USA - PRS-500
The Sony eReader PRS-500 - the one with the electronic paper as display - is now out in the USA. 350 US$. But the software for the transfer seems to be only for the PC and somehow I don't read anywhere that you can just normally copy files onto it to read them. I hope they will provide more details that the device can also be used with OS X or other systems - on the other hand, Sony is one of the main proponents of DRM and similar nonsense, so it wouldn't surprise me if the platform remains a closed platform. Then it's probably waiting for the competition ...
RubyForge: Ruby Port to Nokia 770 Internet Tablet: Project Info - Ruby is now also available on the Nokia 770. With Python and TCL, that's quite a number of on-board programming languages.
virtual Bluetooth keyboard
I now have an i-Tech Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard (stupidly pulled the link from the sources - the site is otherwise not sensibly usable and without JavaScript there are no direct product links - clear case of "stupid designer syndrome"). Very nice - the keyboard is projected onto the table and then scanned using an infrared barrier above it. The virtual keys work excellently.
I bought it from Expansys, but they sent me a UK version - the power supply doesn't fit German sockets. The layout is of course always English, but I would like to have the power adapter in the appropriate version (that's why the strange links to adapters from English to Schuko).
Integration with the Nokia 770 is very simple - you just get the Bluetooth Keyboard Plugin and install it. Warning: if the bar with the icons at the top of the display is already full, the Bluetooth icon may no longer be displayed. Then you have to part with one of your status bar plugins.
After that, you just have to go to the plugin settings and, with the keyboard turned on (and reset for safety), select it from the list of available devices and pair it. After that, the plugin automatically recognizes the keyboard when it is turned on - you don't have to connect manually, just restart the tablet, turn on the keyboard and off you go. Turning off the keyboard is also properly recognized by the tablet as a disconnect.
Oh, and this laser-projected keyboard is not only extremely practical, but also absolutely cool.
Bluetooth Security - Bluetooth Security - what's possible, what's being done, what's behind it.
Nokia 770 and Virtual Bluetooth Keyboard - how to connect the Laser Keyboard with the 770.
OpenVPN on Maemo - Porting OpenVPN to the Nokia Pad. Could be quite interesting, as you are now a bit too visible to others over free WLAN hotspots.
MUlliNER.ORG : Nokia770 - a whole range of tools for the Nokia pad, such as the Wireless Tools or dsniff. Interesting for analysis in case of WLAN problems