Street View arrives in Google's mobile app -- iOS 6 users rejoice
Google has introduced Street View into its web app, bringing back one of the most sorely missed features lost when Apple swapped Google’s popular mapping app for its own much poorer solution in iOS 6. I’m sure you’re more than familiar with the whole sorry tale that led Apple CEO Tim Cook to issue an apology, and our own readers saying they wouldn’t be buying an iPhone 5 because of it, so I won’t dwell on the subject here.
If you followed my advice and added a shortcut to Google’s web app, you’re all set to start using Street View. Its rollout seems to be complete, so you should now have access to it, wherever you happen to live.
Uh-oh, that video won't play? Try Convertilla
Finding videos online is easy. Finding videos in a format you can play is sometimes more difficult, though, which is why you might need a tool like Convertilla to convert movies from one file type to another.
The program’s big advantage is its simplicity. There’s no talk of codecs or bit rates here; conversion can be as easy as dragging and dropping your file onto Convertilla, choosing the output format and clicking Convert.
Dropbox for Teams admins can help users enable security features
Following the introduction of two-step verification, the popular cloud storage service Dropbox has updated Dropbox for Teams to help team admins enable security features.
The service is updated starting today, and will allow admins to verify which team members have turned on two-step verification and to email those that have yet to enable the feature, all through the "Team" tab. The feature is implemented to aid admins instead of offering them the possibility to remotely enable an extra layer of security through two-step verification, and according to the blog post new features will be developed over time.
Facebook reaches 1 billion monthly active users
You know what’s cooler than 500 million Facebook users? One billion. That’s the number of people Facebook says are now using the social network every month. It reached that magical milestone on September 14 at 12:45 PM Pacific time, so it’s probably one billion and a bit, by now.
To celebrate, Mark Zuckerberg posted a little thank you and a fact sheet about the news, which contains some interesting key metrics, including that there have so far been 140.3 billion friend connections, and over 1.13 trillion likes since that feature launched in February 2009. There are 219 billion photos currently on the site, not including deleted ones, which Facebook says totals around 46 billion.
You can do better than the Windows 8 command line
Windows 8 brings fundamental change to many parts of the operating system, but the command line isn’t one of them. It’s just as annoying a place to work as it ever was.
If you’re tired of the console’s many deficiencies, then, we’d recommend you don’t waste any further time waiting for Microsoft to fix them. Just install the open source ConEmu, instead: it’s a powerful console emulator which comes packed with options to make your command line life easier.
TomTom for Android available, but not for any smartphone
Do you find the standard Android maps app to be lacking? There is a solution -- the popular navigation software TomTom is now available for Android smartphones.
Unlike cloud-connected software solutions, TomTom relies on offline maps to offer guided navigation on Android smartphones and considering the 2.3GB free storage requirement the download is consistent to say the least. The app comes with a number of useful features, such as live traffic information via HD Traffic, lane guidance, spoken street names, eco routes to save that extra bit of gas or electricity, automatic day and night modes, as well as other features. There are maps for United States, Europe, United Kingom as well as other geographical locations.
Now in its 28th year, Quicken finally goes mobile
Software company Intuit on Wednesday announced Quicken 2013, the latest version of its long-running financial management software, will have mobile companion editions for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Android smartphones and tablets, and the Kindle Fire. The application gives users mobile access to their checking, savings and credit card account information, budgeting and expense management information, and projection data.
Intuit says these are the first-ever mobile versions of Quicken, which is technically true. However, the company had a number of apps that offered an approximation of Quicken's functionality. In 2009, for example, the Web-based version of Quicken, appropriately named Quicken Online, launched its own iOS application. Additionally, Intuit's Mint provides elegant budgeting and account management apps for iOS and Android.
Is Apple's app Maptastic?
Apple has received pointed criticism for its own Maps application used in iOS 6, which eventually forced CEO Tim Cook to issue a public apology for delivering a less that competent alternative to Google Maps that until the latest mobile operating system iteration was the default app. Wanting to divert from the Mapplegate mishap, Onavo Team calls the app "Maptastic" -- and the pot will likely be stirred yet again...
Onavo Team, recognizing the faults of the built-in app, takes a different approach to Apple vs Google mapping by comparing a set of data that wasn't analyzed until now -- data consumption. According to the blog post, standard and satellite map views were used to provide a basis for comparison between the two, and the result is staggering. Which one came out on top?
Apple maps reveals the difference between Steve Jobs and Tim Cook
I have followed Apple for over 20 years now in various ways as a consumer, an employee, a consultant and as a developer. These are my thoughts about the Maps debacle and what it says about the state of Apple overall.
The core of Apple (pun intended) is the seamless integration of hardware and software. Whereas Microsoft’s play in personal computing is purely software and companies like IBM, Dell, and HP were purely hardware, Apple wants to control the entire process. As a result, the integration is tighter, everything works better and the lines blur between the two.
iPhone 5 now available in solid gold
The way some people covet the new iPhone 5 you’d think it was made out of solid gold rather than glass and aluminum. Of course if it was available in that precious metal you’d have to pay quite a bit more than $399 for a 64GB model. Somewhere in the region of $35,411, in fact.
If you’re wondering how I arrived at that figure, the answer is that’s how much British designer Stuart sells his limited edition 18ct gold iPhone 5s for. Yes, that’s right -- targeting the "more money than sense" market, Stuart has decided to create a new solid gold chassis for the phone, hand-finishing it, and adding an apple logo made out of 53 diamonds (amounting to 1ct) for good measure.
RIM releases BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1
PlayBook may be more than one-and-a-half years old, but that isn't stopping Research in Motion from improving the aging tablet: BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1.
The update focuses on business users, which is underlined by a number of new features, such as Print To Go across Wi-Fi networks that allows users to transfer documents from a PC to a BlackBerry Playbook even among different networks, Folder and Sync Management permits individual synchronizing of ActiveSync-connected folders within an email account or OTA (Over the Air) enrollment with BlackBerry Mobile Fusion for directly pushing email, Wi-Fi, VPN profiles or enterprise apps to the tablet by IT administrators.
T-Mobile and MetroPCS to merge, become the 'value-focused' 4G network
Wednesday, United States wireless carrier T-Mobile USA officially announced it will merge with "baby national" wireless carrier MetroPCS. The combination of the two companies will result in a single carrier with as many as 42.5 million subscribers. Third-place national carrier Sprint had approximately 56 million subscribers at the end of the second quarter in 2012.
The combined company will continue to be called T-Mobile, and will be controlled by T-Mobile's parent company Deutsche Telekom, who will take a 74 percent stake in the merged entity. MetroPCS shareholders will receive $1.5 billion in cash and a 26 percent controlling stake.
Lightroom 4.2 supports 22 more cameras, 37 new lens profiles
Adobe has unveiled Lightroom 4.2, a welcome maintenance release that extends the program in a number of areas.
In particular, the new build adds extra camera raw and lens profile support, makes tethered capturing (the ability to take shots directly from your computer, once it’s connect to the camera) available for more devices and provides a number of bug fixes.
Chrome 23 Beta improves HTML5 video support
Google has updated both Beta and Dev pre-release channels of its open-source, cross-platform browser, Google Chrome to versions 23 and 24 respectively.
While Google Chrome 24 Dev is a minor update, Google Chrome 23 Beta introduces support for a number of APIs and HTML5 technologies that, while superficially of most interest to web developers, will improve both web-based video playback and real-time audio/video communications over the internet for end users.
Skype offers free WiFi across the UK
If you live in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland, you’ll soon be able to access free WiFi through cafés, restaurants, hotels and shops, courtesy of Skype and wireless provider Wicoms.
The new WiFi network initiative, called Free Skype WiFi, will be available to all Skype users and accessed using the free Skype WiFi app. This already allows users to connect to over a million hotspots around the world, but for a fee. Users who don’t currently have a Skype account will be able to sign up on the spot by entering their email address.
Most Commented Stories
© 1998-2024 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy.