Fix That New Google Reader White Pain with Stylish

Hate the new Google Reader changes? Google not listening to you, then make the fix with these Stylish themes.

google-reader-mac-os-x-snow-leopard

google-reader-kemwer-black

compact-google-reader

Enjoy!

Fake Copy n Paste on IPhone/iTouch

iPhone Copy and Paste from lonelysandwich on Vimeo. In my previous post on the iTouch upgrade, I failed to mention the other glaring ommissions Apple left out. Like a nice little Office suite or viewers for Word, Excel and Powerpoint, and a little PDF viewer for eBook reading. Come on Steve, this thing is OSX so it can run any Open Source Office app! Another crucial little gem which has been bugging me has been the lack of copy and paste on the iPhone. Why not? Some standard mobile phones have this, why not on this device which essentially a mini MacBook. Apple gets it so right and yet they get it sooooo wrong.

Not So iPod Touch Heaven

This guy really needs to take a chill pil and take stock of things. Kill the arrogance and start listening to your customers. Says me, one definitely pissed customer right now.

Well there I was last weekend mosing around London town when I decided to pop into the Apple store on Regent street, just to see what the latest was. The guys in the genius bar told me they knew nothing about any upcoming plans for the Touch or iPhone, and they were geniuses! It said so on their t-shirts! They added that even when Lord Steve visits them they are not permitted in his presence, and they have to leave the store. I asked if he was God, they told me it seems so. In any case, they advised me to at least stick with my original plan and don't hack the device just yet, as this would void my warrantly and the new third party apps will require official certificates. I left somewhat a little bemused.

Anyway, a couple days later I check Google Reader to discover that a new update is available for the Touch. Entitled version 1.1.3, it enables movie and TV programme buying via the iTunes store for later viewing on the Touch. In addition you require this version in order to add the new mail and weather apps etc, but wait for it, at a fee of $20. That's £12.99 to us Brits. Yes I heard you gasp, so did many journalists at Apple's keynote speech when Jobsy announced it. Aparently, he still kept a straight face. It seems the price may have something to do with Apple's accounts reporting. Some complex Sarbanes-Oxley compliancy or whatever.

Well like all the other poor sods (sucker for the Yanks) out there I handed over the cash, only to get a few apps, and a customisable home screen that jiggles like jelly. You wonder why, well I still cherish that warranty, the only reason why I haven't hacked the damn thing yet. So I plan to persevere for the next few months until Steve shaft's me proper next time.

What you get? A pretty cool mail app that can support IMAP, but no landscape browsing or search. It's a shame as Google's mobile web offering is pretty cool now, with full optimisation for iPod Touch and iPhone screens. In consolation, the beauty of the Touch email client is that you can switch off the WiFi and still read email, which is a must as WiFi eats battery power like a cookie monster. So not that bad, but would have been much happier if it were free Steve!!!

Google sends Android OS to conquer mobile world

It's been rumoured for a while, but Google has officially thrown it's gauntlet down into the hotly contested mobile phone ring with the announcement of it's new open source mobile OS, Android. Bill and his mates should be quaking in their boots, as it may mean lean days ahead for Microsoft, what with other mobile OS rivals already out there including Palm and Symbian Alliance. Now with the new arrivals of Apple and Google's Linux powered system, things are gonna get pretty interesting.


This is just what Linux needed to be taken seriously as a mobile OS alternative. With a the Google juggernaut behind it, together with a host of developers in the open source community, the platform can only go from strength to strength. Who will the winner be when the dust finally settles? Why me and you and the man in the street that's who! Big grin. ;-)

Sexy Google All Pervasive

I recall those early days of the net way back when in the 90s when everything was fairly amateurish a la CraigList and the familiar modem squelch sound when dialling in. Back then when searching for anything, you had a choice from the likes of, AltaVista, HotBot, Excite, Yahoo, AOL, Jeeves, Webcrawler, InfoSeek, and Lycos amongst others.

Those were just some from the top of my head and ones I recall using all the time. Then fast forward circa 1999, I'm working for a large IT and business services firm, and I'm stuck on some design issue so I visit the web design department and seek some help. My colleague suggests why don't I try Google. "Google?" I ask. As she lost her mind? "Yes" she says, "Google.com." That was the first I ever heard of Google. Despite my introduction to the web over the previous few years, many changes were brewing that I was barely aware of. Now we find ourselves squarely in the 21st century, I hardly use any other search engine, apart from the odd shopping directory for bargains. Google has become my benefactor and pervades so many aspects of my digital life. Why even now I am writing this Blog from my Google Blogger account (yes the chip's firmly in the back of my head). Similarly, a recent post on Digital Journal details many of the pervasive and practical applications Google now provides. I sometimes finding myself, just checking one of the alternative search engines just for a change but the results don't seem to be as comprehensive. Why bother leave the comfort of your Google armchair when Google can solve everything for you.

Why stop there? Why don't they just buy out Vodafone, Tesco and News Corp, and clean up all the worlds issues whilst they're at it. Gattica here we come...