I have been wondering when car GPS systems would start using Google Maps for their systems. Well, the time is now as Mercedes has a new system that lets you map directions online and send it to your car. BMW has something similar. Other people can even send you directions as well. This is so ultra cool, I wish I could afford a BMW or Benz.
Google Maps to GPS
September 4, 2007 By
iPhone shows need for new wireless network
July 3, 2007 By
An interesting article here, mostly about Reed Hundt, a former chairman at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission and vice chairman of Frontline Wireless who is lobying for spectrum to be made available for a national wireless broadband network. Reed says the launch of the iPhone shows the shortcomings of the EDGE network and the need for a much higher speed network. What caught my attention was a quote by an AT&T spokeman.
“We believe the EDGE network was designed for a product like the iPhone,” Smith added. “We’re confident with its ability to support the device.”
Most every review of the iPhone I have read says the biggest shortcoming of the phone is the slow EDGE data network. This kind of asinine quote is the kind of thing that drives me nuts. Some line written by a pr hack deep inside AT&T with absolutely no connection with reality. It’s so depressingly old school and out of touch. Releasing a statement from some anonymous spokesman saying EDGE is great doesn’t make it so and we all know it.
Wake up and smell the new media landscape AT&T. We don’t use spokespeople anymore and when the emperor has no clothes, we acknowledge it. I want the truth from AT&T. EDGE isn’t as good as it needs to be for advanced smart phones like the iPhone and we’re hard at work on a new, much faster network. I might not be happy that they don’t have that higher speed network ready yet, but I would respect the fact that they are being straight up with me and that they care about improving things as soon as possible.
iZoho Web Apps for iPhone
June 28, 2007 By
Moving us even closer to life in the cloud, online app company Zoho intruduced iZoho today. Users will be able to 
access specially developed and formatted versions of Zoho Writer, Sheet, and Show on the new Apple iPhone. Zoho competes with Google in the online app space, but here the smaller and maybe more nimble company outmanuvers Google to optimize their web apps for the iPhone first.
Google Calendar Goes Mobile! Yes!
June 26, 2007 By
There is a God, and she is good. Google finally released a mobile version of their on-line calendar. One more step toward living full time in the cloud. Now if they can just add some todo features. You know from my last post I am using Socialtext for notes on-line and it’s working really well, but Google does have Google Notebook which is a fairly good web-based note taker itself. People have already been clamoring for an online version of that one. Ok, I admit it, I have become a Google fanboy. Damm.
The Ultimate Notepad is a Wiki
June 24, 2007 By
I have been searching for a long time now for a solution. What I want is a place to store all my notes, random thoughts and ideas. I want to be able to access them from any computer and via a mobile device as well. I have tried various programs on Mac and PC and played with different syncing senarios on Windows Mobile and Palm based devices. I have tried several web-based systems; Nothing has cut the mustard. Every solution worked on one level, but left something out.
I did come to one conclusion; the solution had to be web-based. That is the only way I could have access from any computer, anywhere. No complex sync routines needed. That just left out the mobile component. I began thinking a Wiki might be the best way to go and finally I found what may just be the Holy Grail, Socialtext. The Socialtext wiki is simple and easy to use and most important of all, it was built for mobile access. Socialtext also supports tagging, rss, email into the wiki and more. So far, I’m digging it.
YouTube Comes To The iPhone
June 20, 2007 By
Google and Apple are at it again with regard to the iPhone. First a slick Google Maps app and now a custom YouTube app that will bring online video to the iPhone. It’s nice I guess, but I would be even more interested in an app that allowed me to watch tv shows from the various networks now streaming shows online. Oh but that would go against Apple selling shows on iTunes. I have no interest in buying shows I have already paid for via my satellite bill when they are available for free as a stream with ads.
Oh, and just one more thing… remember when Steve Jobs said at the recent WWDC conference that building web 2.0 apps for the iPhone was such a sweet deal for developers? Not sweet enough for Apple as the new YouTube app is a full native app for the iPhone. Let’s not kid ourselves, web 2.0 apps for the iPhone might work out resonably well but they’ll never be as good as a native app.
Google Gears Is The Bomb
June 13, 2007 By
Wow,
I’ve been playing around with Google Gears and it’s amazing. Gears allows offline access for web-based applications. One of the biggest drawbacks to using an online app is that with no net connection, you can’t access the application or your data; you’re dead in the water. With a Gears enabled web app, you can cut the cord and still do everything you need to do. Changes are sync’ed back to the server when you do get back online. Some of my favorite apps are already working with Google Gears including Google Reader and Remember The Milk. Kudos to the Remember The Milk guys who thought it was cool and implimented it in a weekend. Everyone is really foaming at the mouth for offline Gmail now. Yeah, I’d be into that.
Mitch Joel Explains Twitter
March 7, 2007 By
In fairness to Twitter and before I disparage it anymore, I signed up and am trying it out. It’s strange and interesting at 
the same time. People talk about it being addictive and while I don’t feel that kind of pull myself, I can see aspects of what they’re talkng about. Mitch Joel recently wrote a fantastic post on Twitter. His title is the best description of what Twitter is that I have found.
Twitter Is To Blogging What Post-It Notes Are To Notebooks
If you want a good perspective on Twitter, it’s a must read. Mitch is a good read anyway.
Wither Palm
March 4, 2007 By
It is sad to see the decline of Palm. They were once the hottest thing going, miles ahead of Microsoft, Apple and everyone else. What hapened? In the past few years they have been unable to innovate. Unable to update their signature Palm OS. How could you have that big a lead and through it all away? It’s not that Windows Mobile is such a fantastic mobile OS. But Microsoft has been greatly helped by some terrific hardware to run the OS. Now it looks as if Palm is loking for a buyer, but who? Nokia, Motorolla, and RIM have all staked out strong positions in the market and there doesn’t seem to be much strategic advantage to aquiring Palm. The hardware is big and bulky and the Palm OS is old and rickety. Maybe like an old horse somebody should take it out back and shoot it.
