Game Focus: Endless Runners

The first in a series of who knows how many articles focusing on games for the iPhone and iPad.

Anyone that knows me (or has been following this blog) knows that I'm pretty gaga over my geeky toys. In particular my Apple stuff. With summer officially upon us I started thinking about some of the games I tend to waste my time with and decided to toss together a list (or several) of some of my favorite ones. Since it's a rather long list, I'm going to break it down into types. 

First up, the Endless Runner.

WWDC Keynote reactions

Monday morning, Apple kicked off their developer's conference with their traditional keynote. I was tempted to write my thoughts after seeing the keynote monday afternoon but I decided to wait and watch the video again before commenting so I could avoid any knee jerk reactions.

Now, not much was really said in the keynote, which focuses on a handful of really hot topics. And I'm not a developer at the moment so I haven't seen the beta softwares in depth. So this will be based on what was shown and a few bits from sites that did get the software.

So here goes.

Have you ever read the Loop

The Loop is a blog that mainly focuses on tech and generally Apple tech at that. There are also occassional tech as a society posts as well as music, and beards.

I don't normally post links to blogs etc but I am doing this as a way to say thank you to the Loop and it's founder Jim who, having discovered my iOS articles posted a very praising message about them leading many folks to this humble site. It would seem that a few people found my ideas interesting enough to comment, Google Plus them etc.

I hope that some of those folks might even consider applying to join us girls as a writer. And I hope that everyone that visits here will go and check out the The Loop.

Thanks Jim

Mac OS Wish List

I've gotten so many emails from folks about my iOS ideas that I figured I'd share a few of my Mac ones. I spend more time on my mobile devices so this list is smaller. So small that one article at this point will probably be enough. And really most of this is about apps not the OS itself. 

The Conundrum of Apple IDs and Students

So by now everyone knows that I'm cuckoo for cocoa puffs over Apple stuff. I was over the moon when my niece and nephew (beautiful 10 year old twins) announced that they bumped to the Gifted track at their school. A track which is the test group for using iPads for test books. I knew they would have a lot of fun etc. 

But I've already run into a huge snag. One that I'm a tad shocked Apple hasn't figured out and come up with a solution for. 

You must be 13 years of age to have an Apple ID. 

IOS Wish List: Misc stuff

Okay while writing the rest of my articles a few things popped into my head that don't really fit with the  other stuff. So this is my hodgepodge of other things

Quick access to wifi, bluetooth etc. A lot of folks have been calling for this kind of easy control and I can understand why. I think it would be a great idea and would fit best in the task bar. 

System checks on wifi, bluetooth etc. By this I mean the system detecting when the wifi is on but there's no networks to connect to and alerting users that they might want to turn off wifi to save battery. Same if bluetooth is on and in particular there are no devices paired. 

Better backup schemes. I talked a bit about this with iCloud. Same ideas for iTunes backups. Including in both cases checks for things like whether contacts etc are being backed up. Nothing would suck more than for someone to do a backup thinking contacts were in there but they aren't cause you are supposed to sync those and weren't. Perhaps it could be a setting that is on by default but the geeks that don't need babysitting could turn it off. 
And while we're on the subject of backups, how about coming up with a way to deal with this 'corrupted data' issue. For those that don't know what I'm talking about, I'll explain by way of example. I have both an iPhone and iPad that are a good 8 months old. About a month ago I noticed that my iPad's battery seemed to be draining faster than normal. I have AppleCare like a good little owner so I called and they did some remote diagnostic thing and said my battery is fine but it was my data. To fix it I had to erase everything and set it up as new. No using any backups cause they might be corrupted. It did fix the issue but it was a total pain setting things back up and since not all my games use iCloud data saves I had to start over which was a bummer. It would be hecka nice if there was a way for the stuff that could corrupt to not get backed up or for us to restore app by app or something. 

Wifi v Cell Data. Back when iOS 6 was announced there was a mention of better automatic shifting between wifi and cell data for iPhones and those of us with cellular iPads. But it never happened. And it seems like every time it detects wifi when you are on cell data, even if you aren't connected, it borks up connections. How about a new scheme like it alerts you that there are new wifi networks detected and do you want to join one. It could be part of the whole 'ask to join networks' scheme. 

More taps and gestures. I know some folks aren't too keen on them but I find the multitouch gestures great. I just wish there were more of them. Swipes or taps. Actually using the buttons should be reduced only to the most vital tasks. Some folks would say get rid of the buttons, especially the home button but that would reduce accessibility which is a big point in Apple's favor. But for those of us that are happy with doing something like a five finger double tap to take a screen shot or even a twist to adjust volume why not give it to us. 

Palm detection and 'muting'. As an artist this is a biggie for me. It's built into a few apps but it really should be universal. I would put with it more precise touch/pressure detection for drawing etc but that I suspect is mainly a hardware issue. But telling the difference between a palm brushing the screen and something making an actual move should be possible particularly with the finger recognition systems that Apple bought last year. 

File System. Okay this is a huge debate with the geek crowd. That crew is heavy into the idea that iOS needs to have a 'Finder'. But I disagree. I don't think that users need to see into the core system in such a way. But what is needed is a single system where all data lives. Doesn't mean that every app can use everything. But at least have common file types in a place where every app that can use it has a single copy to play with. Say like PDFs. Sucks that if I want to see it in iBooks, PDF pen and GoodReader that means I have 3 copies of the file filling up space. And then there's that clunky 'Save to'/'Open from' file sharing system. 

Bugs, stability etc. Unlike some folks that think that Forstall was fired for being an ego, I suspect that the major wifi bug in iOS 6 was the straw. And as a victim of the overage charges, my biggest wish is that there's none of that kind of crap anymore. I'd happily take an iOS 7 that has no new features, UI etc if it is thoroughly purged of all the bugs and the crashing. To this end how about detecting if an app is using a particular large amount of battery without a logical reason like you are streaming Netflix. And detecting and alerting about low memory that might make apps crash. There's also this not cool Music bug that delays responsiveness and another with music files not totally downloading but they still appear to be okay they just don't play. Not cool.

iOS Wish List: Apple's App Store apps

Okay so these aren't really part of iOS but since they go together I figure it's worth talking about them. Well not all of them but the six biggie's that make up Apple's classic iLife and iWork collections

Rather than break it down app by app, I want to talk about some general ideas. Some of these are applicable to even third party apps. 

Fonts
There need to be more options. And preferably on the OS level so we don't have 15 copies of every font filling up space. Doesn't have to be everything. Just perhaps a top ten or so like Arial, Baskerville, Chalkboard, Courier, Gill Sans and so on. Since these would be on the OS level they would be open for any app to use from Mail, Notepad, Pages to whatever.

Plug-ins and Downloadable Content
This is a biggie for me. The apps should be open to plug-ins not unlike how Audiobus not works with Garageband. And we should be able to download more whatevers for apps. Like more sounds in Garageband, more templates in Pages, Keynote etc. More themes in iMovie, brushes and filters for iPhoto, more functions (majors built in, more unique ones as DLC) in Numbers and even things like EndNote and MathType. These last two could be very very useful for all the students at schools that are moving to iPads in place of textbooks and notebooks.
And this sort of thing could apply to the built in apps as well. Perhaps the other papers etc for Notepad I mentioned a couple of days ago could be DLC as could plug ins for sharing to social nets. 

Compatibility with desktop versions
This is another biggie to me. All the apps in general need fine tuning so they work seamlessly with their big brother versions. UI features should use the same icons and arrangements. And as much as the iOS devices have the power they should have the same features. And on top of this there is no reason why the apps couldn't be used in controller modes with their bigger versions. Adobe has created apps for this kind of purpose. At least with the iLife apps it could be a create tool. In particular say being able to use the iOS version of iPhoto to paint brushes onto photos on the desktop. Or iMovieMac being able to open trailers and not just projects from iMovieiOS and having the same themes etc across both of them. (That said, I also wish the desktop versions of these apps was more plug in friendly)

Okay I'm going to go contrary to what I said above about only talking in general ideas to address some of the other apps. 

Podcasts and iTunes U
From what I have been able to suss out there is no syncing of subscriptions between devices and desktop and I'd like to see that. Even if it's just a sort of 'in the cloud' list of what was added on the other items. Since we can now stream content why not have the whole list with some kind of 'update on this device' that would send new episode alerts or download the latest item or whatever. 

iBooks
Three things in this one. 

• First, better organizing perhaps even with tagging items with keywords either by hand or via metadata added on the store level. Some of this can be done in the List Mode but not in the Shelf Mode. It either needs to be consistent in both or dump the shelves/collections. But it needs to be more flexible, allowing items to be in more than one collection and allowing control over sub sorts. So say I want to sort by subject collection then I should be able to sort by author within each. And dump the separate 'in the cloud' view. If we choose to see purchases then we see them. In all sorts, even be able to tag them. 
• Second, we should be able to add notes without having to highlight something. Margin notes are a common tool for students and they are cumbersome in the current version. And even perhaps create multimedia notes like audio clips, add photos. 
• Third, linking between pages and even books. Another trick many students use is to refer to other passages of text or even other books. 

Find my Friends

I would almost rather this was just gone. I like the idea of it but I'm not sure it needs to be a separate app. Perhaps it and the control board for Game Center could be morphed into one app and the actual map display could be some kind of overlay of in the Maps app

I'm sure there's more but that's all that comes to mind today. What thinks would you like to see changed.

iOS Wish List: iCloud

I know I said I was not going to talk about other services but iCloud is so integrated into iOS I really feel I have to include it. iCloud is Apple's latest attempt at a Cloud Service. The key function is syncing select data like Contacts, Calendars between devices such as an iPhone and iPad or devices and computers. It's not totally bad but like many things there's room for improvement.

Notes should really be detached from the email account. For users without Mountain Lion they could create a little Notes App if they like or just make folks go to the website if they feel that's too much bother.

Safari syncing bookmarks rather sucks. It would be nice if there was a way to 'mute' bookmarks or at least folders of them from either computer or device. Or at least a separation of syncing bookmarks and reading lists.

iTunes playlist, ratings etc syncing via iCloud without regarding iTunes Match would be useful.

Shared photo streams, journals etc. Our accounts can be used for a number of sharing items with 'public' web pages as an option. But those pages are all over the place. Why not a concise sharing page where all things are linked. Something like the old Homepage of Mac.com but built off our iCloud sharing and perhaps our iTunes reviews and playlists as an additional option. There might also be widgets that would allow us to put links to our Facebook etc or even an option to log into your own iCloud account to see private streams etc that you have been invited to see. If they do as I hope and bring back Lala.com this could also be linked into it.

Backups need some work. Right now the automated timer only goes off once every 24 hours, if you are plugged in and on wifi, but what if that is the middle of the day and you are in the car. Days could go by with no backup. After like 3 weeks you'll get a warning. A better timer system might be 24 hours after the last successful backup and 12 hours since the last attempted time that couldn't connect. Or even   just every 12 hours. A best move might be to let us decide how often an attempt is made and how often we are warned about failure.

Along with better timing, how about better control over what is backed up. This could be done (although with the timer controls) in an Advanced Mode. In this mode, users would be able to turn off SMS backups either in all or limit it to say only those in one's contacts or only 'favorites'. Voice Memos is another item that currently cant be turned off. That could be all or set the system to know which have been synced via itunes to the computer and allow a selection for those since last sync. In a similar fashion, the camera roll could be set for all, videos only, videos and photos not in photo stream.

Going with better backup control how about selective restoring. One could choose either to restore everything or if you are restoring a backup from say a larger storage iPad/iPhone to a smaller one, picking off things to ignore like not restoring purchases, camera roll, certain apps and their data, and so on. Once the selections are made a choice could come up to delete the other data and continue this device or make backups after the restore a new device and require a new name. So for example, I've been letting my little brother play games on my iPad which I also use for email etc. But now I've bought him his own iPad Mini. He doesn't want to lose his game levels etc so I restore the backup turning off email, safari, camera roll etc. Basically leave just his apps and their data. And tell it that this is to become Toby's iPad while leaving Jaye's iPad with all the data separate (well until I delete the apps and their data from my iPad).

And speaking of app data, why not separate the data in such a way that we could keep the last backup of something even if it is deleted from the device and restore it later. So say if one becomes bored with a game and removes it for space the data is there should a second look be desired.

Recognizing that a device was backed up to iCloud seems to have some bugs in it. From time to time when one uses an iTunes backup to restore, it starts a clean backup with no immediate notice of the old one. That reconnect would be nice even if it was set up to require the owner to choose whether to do it or delete the old backups. And how about more than 3 backup dates on the list.

The last bit is visibility. When you log into icloud.com it should be possible to see details about everything. Not just Contacts etc but also bookmarks, reading lists, when was the last backup and what was in it and even let us delete bits and pieces to tidy things up. Perhaps even the ability (if the data was separated) to delete bits and merge the rest into one backup scheme.

iOS Wish List: Native Apps

In my last entry I talked about trimming the fat and removing non essential utility apps. Today I'd like to talk about the apps that would be sticking around and some things that could stand a change. 

Mail
This one is a biggie for me. Probably because I use it all the time. And there are a couple of things that rather irk me about how Mail is handled in iOS. 
First is setting up accounts. There doesn't seem to be a logic to the whole 'pick an account type' screen. The plain 'enter your email address and password' of the Mac OS version is much less confusing. And they need to update their settings lists including perhaps some warnings for things like ISPs that don't always work if you aren't connected to their network (road runner I'm looking at you). It should be that hard to have a more complete list as they can put it on a server that the device connects to (you have to be online anyway to set up email). 
Second, rules. Now this could be tricky with all the various email services. Especially if you want something that can sync to other devices and computers. But at the least they should be able to do it with their own icloud email. The rules are there if you log into the web version so how about letting us make/edit them on our devices. Included in this would be junk mail tagging, not unlike how Mac Mail handles it. 
Third, mailboxes. This one irks me both on devices and Macs. When you have multiple accounts the Inbox becomes a kind of folder in which all the account Inboxes live. You can either look at each one, one at a time, or all of them together. But if you try to look at Sent, Drafts, Trash, you have to go each account at a time. It would be nice if  they would pick one system and make it universal (my vote goes for the way Inbox is set up). Or even get rid of the idea of rules and moving things into folders by hand and go for something like the Smart system that appears in many apps. Messages could be tagged with keywords and views would be created on the fly, either all keywords or allow us to choose those keywords that would create a 'view'. 
And last, the interface. There's a lot of press about various third party apps that use swipes rather than tapping icons to perform various actions. I find that notion appealing although perhaps only as an option at least for now. Those that would rather the toolbar would be able to  have it. To me the idea might be a swipe from the left to pull up reply, forward, save images, print. A swipe from the right would give you delete, label, etc. And perhaps even a way to remove attachments and keep the message as computer based mail programs can. 

Messages
Couple of peeves in this program. First is that it isn't compatible with 3rd party services like AIM. But that's minor to me compared to the other bits. One is that you can't see the time stamp on any message. Yes if there's a bit of a gap in time it will toss up a stamp but that gap has no rhyme or reason. The other biggie is how group messages get split up in odd ways. Both iMessages and SMS. If you send something to a group it doesn't always stay with the group. Also you should be able to attach new names or only reply to select members of the group and have all that info available to review. Sure it might require some kind of Chat Heads marking but to me there seems to be no logical reason why they couldn't do it. Plus how about the ability to sync SMS to Messages on the computer as a form of backup.

Safari
Most of Safari is okay as far as it goes but one that pops out is the Reading List. It would be great to select a size for how much goes into the list memory. When you are getting close to the limit a warning pops up so that a user can't add more without cleaning some stuff out. 

Contacts
Big one here, which as I recall was actually in iOS 5. Creating and editing groups. Add to this moving contacts between groups (Exchange for security reasons would likely be excluded). Real merging of information to the same card. And better support for including social accounts like Flickr, Instagram etc. And a big big one, being able to input a group name in Mail, Messages etc and have it auto resolve to the member info. 

Notes
There's a bunch of stuff in this one. Handwriting support. Making folders, moving things between them and even accounts. Support for images. Choices for paper color and type (blank, lines, grid) for each note. More font choices and even a few color choices for letters/drawings. Ability to include voice clips (even the melding of the two apps) would be a nice touch perhaps even with the ability to record and have time linked written notes. Might be a bit much this time around but as a future development it wouldn't be bad. Or go the other  route and ditch a notes app all together. It's basically independent and there are tons of options in the App Store. 

Music/Video
Much of what these two apps need comes from the store side but there are two things that jump straight to my mind for the local apps. One is the same 'show purchases in the cloud' option from desktop iTunes for Movies/TV and purchased music for those not using iTunes Match. The other is support for LP and Extras at least for iPads and Apple TV

Photos/Camera
My big thing with the photo app is albums. First and foremost is that they don't sync to the computer. Utterly annoying. Fix that and it fixes a lot. Another thing that would be nice would be separating things that were taken from the camera and things that are saved/Screenshots with controls about what goes up to Photo Stream. 

Game Center
Okay a lot of folks don't like this particular service but when developers fully support it I don't find it that horrid. But there's a couple of bits that could be better. For starters, being able to see Challenges we send as well as what was received and beaten. And how about a little messaging. For those that really dislike Game Center, how about being able to disable the whole thing so it's not cluttering up the home screen rather than just disabling adding friends etc.

Newsstand
Rather like Game Center, many folks would like to see this icon disappear. But for those of us that use it, how about some sorting options and real searching for new titles. When you go to the Store you are going to the whole App Store. Once in that category there's no sub categories. Pain in the butt finding anything. 

Passbook
Aside from wishing more companies would support Passbook and even just have apps so I can reduce my paper junk mail, coupon clipping etc (really Ralphs with your member card you still print my rewards coupons) I wish there was a way built into the system to add cards that don't have an app

One general note for several apps that i would love to see is a swipe to reveal and hide the lists screen. I'm talking mailbox lists, note lists, even the bookmarks pop up. I'm not a big fan of the pop up myself so I'd like to see that changed or us given an option so the popup folks can pop and I and other like minded can swipe. 

I'm sure there are other things but these are the ones that stick in my mind the most. 

iOS wish list: time for a diet

Over the past few months both Microsoft and Samsung have gotten some flack over their systems being very large in size, taking up as much as half the storage in devices. It's so bad that lawsuits have been filed saying if only half the space is available for users then that should be the amount advertised, regardless of the actual drive size. 

This has gotten me thinking about iOS and if it needs to be put on a diet. And while it might be merely overweight and not obese I think that yes there's some trimming that could be done.

First there's those skeuro tricks like the moving shadows in buttons, reflections etc. Those  would require code and as they serve no real purpose why not remove them and take off an easy 'ounce' or two. 

But the real bloat, to me, is the built in apps. In particular things like Compass, Weather, Stocks. These were good, even great, when iOS first started and the App Store was a pipe dream, but now they just aren't required anymore. There are dozens of alternatives, many free and many better, in the App Store. If Apple is truly enamored of their versions then keep them, as free downloads in the App Store, but take them out of the base system and their 'fat' with them.

Another way to handle bloat would be to remove content like keyboards, Siri voices etc until we need them. It would be child's play I would think to download the files during the initial setup since the device has to be online. And a little instruction note could explain that initial items can be downloaded and where to find it in the settings. 

And in how about some better handling of 'hidden' bloaters like cookies, cache files etc. Safari's reading list is a prime example. Give us a way to limit how much storage space it can use with an alert to clear some of it out. Better ways to mass delete emails, messages,photos as well. 

iOS Wish List: Accessibility

More and more I see both older folks and little kids playing with iPads and even iPhones. And it's got me thinking about the Accessibility features Apple put into the software and a couple of things that could be tweaked to make them a bit more useful.

That Triple Click

This one seems to be a bit of a cock up really. It is used for turning on an off Guided Access if you turn that mode on. But it can also be turned on to work for such things like toggling off the Assistive
Touch button. But to me that seems a tad dumb. If you have Assistive Touch on it's generally because the person isn't so awesome with clicking that button. That's why they need the assistance. The last thing, I would think, you'd want is for one of them to accidentally turn it off. And you can also use it to turn on or off VoiceOver, Zoom etc. You can even turn all 5 on and then you have to tap to tell it which one you want. Just seems to me like there is a better way of handling that whole thing.

Guided Access

As I mentioned yesterday, I'd love to see a Restricted Mode so that parents aren't having to hand recreate Restrictions each and every time but can save them. This removes the argument that it's too time consuming so bother with when Junior is screaming to play a game. I'd like to see this kind of saving in Guided Access as well. Perhaps even, as with Restrictions, a way to create 2-3 different modes perhaps for different kids or games.

Fonts

Large Text only applies to Mail, Contacts, Calendars, Messages and Notes which is a good start, but what about Safari, Settings etc. Sure it's tricky with the actual webpages but certainly there's the toolbar. Even if it doesn't go all the way to the huge 56pt fonts if someone picks something up into that level then they must have issues with smaller text so why not do them the courtesy of making those bookmark labels a bit bigger even if they top off at like 40pt.

Keyboards and Entry Points

When using things like larger text, the actual spots for typing in stuff don't get bigger. At least not always. For example, if I turn on 40pt text when I'm in Messages, the bubble gets big enough to accomodate the bigger text size. But in Contacts, the list gets bigger but the data page didn't nor did the edit page. They stayed the normal size.

Nor does the keyboard get bigger. It would be a good option perhaps to allow folks to choose a bigger keyboard even if means going to something akin to the 3 letters on a key style used for years with dumb  phones.

Home Screen Icons

How about a way to zoom the icons to make them bigger. Sure on a phone it means few icons on the screen, perhaps even having to dump the dock, but certainly on an iPad there is a ton of blank space for such an increase to be done without too much shifting things around.

iCloud syncing

This one surprises me that it's not already there. Why don't I have the option to sync my settings across iCloud if I wish.

iOS Wish List: Restrictions/Restricted Mode

Part Two of however many.

Yesterday I talked about some basic ideas for revamping the home screen look. Today I want to look at something more in the tech.

There's been a ton of press of late about kids getting into mischief with in app purchases and just in the past few days notices about the new COPA rules have gone out reminding developers about what they can and can't collect from kids in games etc.

This and the ongoing hue and cry about multiuser in iOS got me thinking.

First I want to say that I disagree with those saying that iOS needs to have user accounts etc. These are designed, I believe, to essentially be single user devices. Yes we sometimes share them, especially between parent and child, but that's not what they were designed for. And I don't think that Apple should change that design. For the most part.

But what I do think is that they need to change up how Restrictions are handled. In a few ways.

My wishes (in no particular order):

• The ability to restrict everything. Seriously. Not just Camera, Safari etc but every app in iOS and every app that is downloaded. 
• APIs that are required for all applications that allow parents to allow an app or game but turn on signing into any networks, or using the camera or whatever. So if I want to let my kid play a game but don't want him to be able to sign up for the chat room/forum within the game I have that power. 
• Disable IAP by default, set password to immediately by default, perhaps even have Restrictions on with a preset password and folks can go to some webpage, put in their serial and see what that preset is and either turn them off or change them or the passcode. 
• Include information about Restrictions in the opening set up and repeat it the first time the App Store is opened. That way folks know they exist etc. Include the whole thing about how some Apps include IAP in both of these and not just a click in the App Store that many folks will miss. 
• APIs, again required, that ensure that ratings are adhered to within apps. So if I download, for example, Comixology and I have 17+ restricted all those adult comics are invisible. 
• Ability to create longer passwords than just four numbers
• Ability to set up a parental Apple ID that can unlock Restrictions in the event that a child tries to figure out the number and screws the device up
• Ability to put in the passcode and one time allow an action, like say an IAP (for saying buying a comic in something like Comixology)
• Ability to sync Restriction settings via iCloud if one chooses

And with it I would like to see a new Restricted Mode. This would be an expansion of the Guided Mode that Apple introduced with iOS 6 but a bit more open. RM would be a saved setting (perhaps even allowing say up to 3 different profiles) where I could turn on a batch of Restrictions at once and simply by doing the same triple click that activates Guided Mode. 

This would allow me to more quickly move from say Open Mode when I'm using it, to Guided Mode to keep my 3 year old niece in her Dora game, to Restricted Mode for her 9 year old brother so he can play his games or his G rated movie but not my R Rated Game of Thrones episodes, get on Safari etc. 

iOS 7 wish list: Interface Design

Part one of several (exact count not yet determined)

Those that read here often know that I'm an Apple freak, so no surprise I'm waiting with semi busted breath for Apple's WWDC keynote to see what is going to happen with iOS 7. And yes I've been checking out all the various rumors, concept attempts etc. Everyone else is tossing in what they think is going to happen, what they hope will, which has made me think about what I would like to see. 

I've already spoken at length about items like the alleged iRadio and what I wish for the iTunes shopping experience so here I'm going to try to focus just on iOS itself not companion services and systems. 

Lets start with the basic interface.

There's been a lot of talk about Scott Forstall exiting Apple last year. I can't say I'm upset. In my opinion he totally borked iOS 6 by missing a couple of huge bugs and taking out some very useful features (more on those later). Most of the talk has focused on Sir Jony Ive taking over command of Human Interface Design (ie how users interact with programs). This is something of note because Sir J has never hidden his distaste for skeuromorphic design. For those unfamiliar with the term, it means making something on a computer visually mock something real life. An example: in real life offices per computer we had filing cabinets with folders and papers we 'filed' so when graphical computer interfaces came out they wanted something that was more familiar than data,documents, directories etc. So the documents became files with icons what look like pieces of paper and directories became folders with icons that look like, yep file folders. 

A lot of folks are saying that Sir J is going to kill ALL of that stuff but I disagree. My reading of all of his comments, not just partial quotes out of context, is that it's fluffy stuff that he dislikes. The whole file and folder thing has a function in making the system understandable particularly to new users and nongeeks. But with iOS 6 a huge deal was made out of cute things like shadows in controller knobs that move as your view moves. There's no point to this and it just adds bloat. THAT is what I think that Sir J wants to remove. 

Along with the cutesy junk I foresee perhaps more simplified icons. I don't mean these squares with letters in them stuff like some folks are pushing out but just take what is already being used and remove the gradient backgrounds, no more reflections etc. Rather like the example seen in this fellow blogger's concept. Peter's Messages App Icon is what I'm hoping is the truth in the rumors, not some of the icons that I've seen in other concepts that totally change things up so they are crude squares with vague artwork. 

Also I think that Sir J might remove some of the potential bloat from other graphics like the paper tears and stitching. I have no issue with that. I'm not much for cute junk myself. 

A couple of other things I could see changing with little fuss would be the dock and "folder" handling. Frankly I think the dock could be dropped. The whole point was to make it easy to jump to commonly used apps but the 'multitask' bar serves the same purpose. They could even add a bar control like there is for notification center where we get to pick what stays in the bar and what is closed completely out if we leave the app. And the folders could be handled more like Launchpad in Mac OS - filling the screen giving more space for icons and perhaps even allowing for a second level of sub grouping. 

Hey Mr Cook, Where are the Girls?

A hot topic in the US right now is what is called STEM Education. That's Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics for those of you without kids or a job at a local school. Basically the US is trying to deal with the fact that that there aren't enough kids learning what they would need to do to actually take the thousands of tech based jobs that open up every year with companies like Apple, Google and so on. So these companies have little choice but to recruit from out of the country. This deficit is also why Steve Jobs once told President Obama that tech products will never likely return to being produced in the United States. 

While Apple isn't really known for leading the pack in supporting STEM they do have one effort on their table and that's their scholarships to WWDC. While not open just to kids, those as young as 13 can apply for a free ticket  to the annual event which discusses not only the current state of iOS and Mac OS but previews the upcoming versions. For kids interested in making software for Apple gear it's a big deal. 

But imagine my disappointment when I saw the announcement page. Seriously Tim? THIS is the photo your company puts up. 

Five boys. Apparently Apple believes that only males code. This doesn't totally shock me when you consider the roster of top folks at Apple currently and over the past few years. 

Steve Jobs

Tim Cook

Eddy Cue

Craig Federighi

Jony Ive

Bob Mansfield

Scott Forstall

Ron Johnson

John Browlett

and so on. 

The only woman on the Board of Directors is listed as an advisor. Yes there are a couple of women in the press office and Sir J might have a woman on his team. But overall the company appears to be decidedly male slanted. A status quo they seem to be encouraging. 

Apple's been big with their environmental focus and their whole "no we aren't using no paid, depressed slave labor in China" efforts. So how about stepping up and actively encouraging girl coders? Designating those scholarships as 75 for boys and 75 for girls would have been a start. But that move will likely have to wait for 2014 if ever. 

Game of Thrones sets new record, but HBO is not pleased

Word has gone out that the HBO hit show Game of Thrones has set a record for the most illegal downloads in the first 24 hours after airing of any single TV show in history.

This 'accomplishment' highlights the dark side of the Internet, where sites dedicated to providing black market videos, often via the BitTorrent system, flourish. And while many are more than willing to admit that their actions are in violation of multiple copyright laws, their desire to see the shows as they air is stronger.

HBO, and almost all of Warner Brothers shows, are not provided to legal services such as iTunes and Amazon until months after the season is over if at all. In fact, the CBS airing show Person of Interest is almost at the end of its second season and the only online video ever to hit iTunes was an 'introduction' video that appeared for about 3 weeks around the time the DVD set for Season One hit the market, only to disappear without a trace.

In the early days of iTunes TV show offerings many studios and production companies spoke out against the service saying that it would only provide pirates with cleaner copies of shows since they wouldn't have to rely on 'wild feeds' (aka the satellite transfers to the networks) for unmarked video. But the myriad of banners, popups etc didn't stop pirates and while a few folks may have figured out how to crack the DRM from sources like iTunes, there has been a surge in HD offerings via the cable companies and the pirates have no lack of resources for their activities which now provide crystal clear video to those that are either too cheap to subscribe to HBO or can't because they are not in the US.

This news, to me, highlights how the studios and networks are stuck thinking old school. People want to see the shows now, they want to talk about them now. Lost was perhaps the first big water cooler show but it was not the last. And it is often cable shows like Game of Thrones, Dexter etc that have folks chatting. Putting the shows on legal sources a year from now grinds this to a halt and since many shows are best viewed without the intimate knowledge of the plot that overhearing your co-workers chatting without you will give, folks will get a copy however they can. Those overseas suffer the email list/forum variant of this and no matter how much you simply say 'then don't read' details seep into things. Yes some folks will live up to their fears and use the materials to provide them illegally to others but many pirates do it for reasons that can be dealt with by the studios, timing of availability being first and foremost

Other issues in this 'it's better to pirate' situation include pricing, which is often ridiculously high. Home disk sets come with major production costs and yet it is not uncommon to find a Blu-ray box set on sale at the local Best Buy or other box store for as little as $20. And yet the digital file sets run as high as $50-60. And then there's quality. Some shows are still not even in 720p which would put them on par with DVD quality (well on par enough for most) and there are seasons missing due to various contract issues. Getting everything up to the highest possible standards (and complete)  on legal sources really is a must unless studios want folks to keep downloading DVD rips, etc. Subtitles, alternate language audio etc are almost needed items. As are getting features on par with those physical sets. Including cutting out stunts like releasing 'box sets' that have features that would require someone that bought the season as it aired or shortly after to buy the episodes again. There's no reason for it when they could easily offer up those bit and pieces to previous buyers even if at small price. I feel certain the server coding exists for Apple extra to do this if the studios would allow it. Just as they could drop the SD track and offer only the one lineup and pricing with free upgrades as new tech allows for better quality and some kind of iTunes Plus like they did for music. These are the things that would make legal purchasing more appealing to those outside of the whole 'I pirate because I can' crew.

The ironic (?) part is that while HBO executives admit to being 'flattered' that folks are willing to pirate in droves so see the show, the creators have countered that if people could legally buy them even for 99 cents an episode and did, they could afford more FX etc.

So HBO, what say you to that? Are you willing to post the episodes now? And at a reasonable price (I'd say $1.99 for an 'hour' long show is more than reasonable especially if it is 1080p, will be upgraded as additional languages and video qualities are ready etc). Or will you remain flattered while you lose money.

Games/Apps on sale

The best part of it being a holiday is that tons of apps, especially games, go on sale for crazy cheap prices. It's a great time to stock up on things for summer trips and the like.

Where's some of the ones that I've stumbled across thanks to various blogs and sites. Enjoy!!!!!

Apple Releases Final Cut Pro X and Studio Apps

Anyone that knows me know that the Fan Girl is a gadget geek. And a photographer and a videographer. So I was excited to see April's preview of the new Final Cut Pro. FCPX was rewritten from the ground up to take advantage of the 64 bit architecture in Snow Leopard along with things like Grand Central etc. Today the new software was released.

New Featured Links for Mobile Users

I would be lying if I said that I'm not gaga for my iPad. Seriously lying.

So I'm excited that I can now include links to my favorite ebook source -- the ibooks store. Unfortunately the links only work if you are reading my blog from your ipad or iphone.

And never fear, I'm not dropping the Kindle support. Cause ya know,  you can read those on your ipad too.

Soapbox: Why Apple's rumored TV rentals could be a great thing

Yesterday Apple, Inc announced Sept 1st as the date for their annual fall product shindig. While not on par with WWDC or their old MacWorld  fetes,  the Sept gig has for the past several years been when the company puts the focus on their ipod lineup and various associated products such as upgrades  to iTunes (both software and the various stores), the Apple TV and so on.

It is expected that this year they will give us the release date for the previously promised iOS 4.0 for the iPad as well as a stack of other goodies. Among the rumors are the elimination of the ipod shuffle in exchange for a new smaller, touchscreen Nano, a Touch with a front facing camera  for Facetime chatting and perhaps a back camera for photo taking  and a new, smaller Apple TV unit. But the big rumor getting a lot of talk around the blogosphere is Apple's long rumored attempts  to put themselves up as a competitor for Netflix, Hulu and even Cable itself. And while I don't particularly care one way or the other about most of the rumors, this last one has piqued my interest greatly.

The dominant scheme presented  in the rumors is the ability to rent a show (ie series) for a minimal cost per month, most often believed  to be $1. So for $1 a month you would have access to all episodes of say, Gray's Anatomy or Criminal Minds or the upcoming Hawaii 5-0  and so on. Now they don't say if its current season only or the entire library of episodes or even if Apple has plans to add to their library. But even if restricted to the most recent season of any currently airing title (and perhaps the entire library of titles currently not on the air), the notion is an exciting one. Episodes would be ad free just as they are on Netflix, but (if the rumors are to be believed) unlike Netflix they would not be streamed but would be timed files not unlike Apple's movie rentals. Using such a system  would allow a viewer to download and watch offline. Or even potentially start an episode on the computer and transfer it to an iDevice to continue to the end.

And a system like this could be potentially better for the consumers. Cable service is typically at least $50 a month just for the basics, adding a premium channel such as HBO or Showtime adds easily another $10 a month per channel. That's not to bad if one is a couch potato and just watches tons of tv all day and night but lets say that the average viewer watches 2 hours of tv a night, all seven nights a week. That's 14 hours of tv. Even if a couple of hours are sitcoms, we're looking at $20 tops under this alleged Apple scheme. Huge savings.

But the really exciting part of this idea, if it comes to fruition, is the implication that perhaps the networks are finally ready to take online viewing seriously. And by seriously, I mean to give credit to shows for their online viewership.  The Nielsen system is totally out of date and behind the times and yet it and the accompanying ad money is all that is used in the network 'make budget' schemes that judge whether a show will continue. Even the viewer numbers presented by the ratings are not correct as they are extrapolated from a sample that is based on the US Census and thus anywhere from 1 to 10 years out of date. Apple would conceivably be able to provide the networks with real viewer numbers based on how many people are 'subscribing' to an individual show, whether that number goes up or down each month, and even perhaps basic demographic information. And it would be real numbers, not some '100 sample viewers which would be 1 million viewers if our sample is correct' numbers.  Plus there is cash money attached to each show which could be theoretically added to a show's debt if the network was so inclined. And I hope they are.  The time has come to give shows all the credit they deserve. With luck, this is a step in the right direction.

Apple iPad unpacking by Lego Crew

It’s been called many names, not all of them nice, but Apple’s latest creation, the iPad is certainly getting noticed. Not just by dogs, cats and little old ladies but also by those guardians of fun, the venerable Lego minifigs. 

One band has been photographed opening their new plaything.