Category
Software
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06.24.10A month with an iPadSo maybe it's over a month, I've not kept count. What do I think of it? How have I ended up using it? Pros? Cons? Read on! My mate Robbo was heading to Las Vegas about a month before the UK launch date of the iPad, and he was toying with the idea of picking one up. "Grab us one, kidda, I'll sort you out when you're back." I says, and he did. Pretty much everyone's first question was "What on earth are you gonna use it for?" (except the wife, her's was more along the lines of cost and current computer ...
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05.20.10Google and the VP8 webm codecSo Google bought the On2 VP8 codec for $124.6 million, then open sourced it (hopefully avoiding patent issues), hoping the up-take would make it the de facto codec online. Opera and Mozilla have been quick to support it, IE 9 says it will with a plug-in (err?) but no word from Apple just yet. Told you OGG was shit.
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02.05.10HTML5 video. Are we getting ahead of ourselves?One thing I really like about talking to some of the Opera guys I know, is that they will take the time to consider another viewpoint. Whilst they're all about the open web, they realise they need to listen to people who are making and creating content for clients, but face real world restrictions like time and budget. I know. Ridiculous... I run a business (well, Pete does most the business end stuff, but you know what I mean) and all this talk about HTML5 <video> tags has kinda riled me a little bit, because it's getting so much exposure, and ...
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02.02.10The problem with Flash as I see it…There's an uproar at the moment on the interwebs. You may have heard about it. The iPad will not support Flash. Just like the iPhone before it, the Flash plug-in cannot and will not run in the iPad's browser. Apple say it's because the Flash plug-in is the single biggest cause of Safari crashes. I can't say I'd blame them for being pissed. The window to the internet on your default install can be crippled by a third party proprietary plug-in. Not cool. So, because Apple have a closed platform in the iPhone and iPad they can choose who plays ball. Continue Reading...
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10.17.09First Wave Intact…After the initial anticipation, and what seemed an age until invites went out, I'm on Google Wave. I've been on it for about a week now, enough time to start forming some opinions on what Google Wave is, what it isn't, and what it could be. Firstly, how I got my invite. Basically it was a sliver of opportunistic luck with a dash of cheek. I'd been to a Northern Digitals meet up in Manchester at the beginning of October, and being an early bird, met with a couple of others before the bar opened. Of these, we struck up conversation with Dave ...
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05.29.09Google WaveHaving been a designer/developer on the web for over 12 years, I can count on one hand the amount of times I've had a "ohmyfuckinggodwow" moment when watching a new product or technology (and no, the Segway was not one of them). Most innovations or services are slow burners. They gain critical mass as more people use them and change their workflow to fit. But every now and then something comes along, pointing out things that in hindsight look so glaringly obvious, that make the product a game changer. At the recent Google I/O event, they previewed a product that's going to ...
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05.01.09Samsung NC10 & OSX—real world thoughtsHello again. Since I've lost the use of my MacBook Pro for a week or two, I've had to fall back to the NC10 for every evening use. Before now, whilst having used it for an hour here or there, but usually a lot less, I'd not really built up a great picture of how good this little laptop really is. Continue Reading...
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02.11.09Using a Mac Mini as a Media CentreFor quite a while, I've had a Mac Mini hooked up the TV, streaming DVDs and xvids to the TV, and all my music on for streaming to an Airport Express. The Mini is on 24/7, also acting as a dev web server for nerding, and running ftp and a few other protocols, allowing me to grab an album from wherever, whenever. As good as Front Row has been, it's just not... geeky enough for me. The wife uses it without issue, and my son yells when the selector is on a few of the menu options he wants. But I want ...
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01.23.09Life with the NC10 and OSXAfter Christmas, I spent two and a half weeks in Spain with my wife's family. Having done this many a time, and having taken many different laptops with me, I generally know what I need from a laptop to keep me semi-sane. One of the best laptops I'd taken in the past was the 12" PowerBook, and believe me, if Apple made an Intel netbook approaching this small footprint form factor, I'd have one. But alas, that's a different blog post waiting to happen. However, the 15" MacBook Pro was a pain in the ass. No desk space to keep it ...
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10.28.08Widgets and free appsOne of the lads on my regular video gaming forum, NTSC-uk, is getting a Mac, and was asking what apps and widgets people use on Mac. No specifics, just chuck some ideas at him. Here's what I said; Continue Reading...
