Filed under: iPhone, App Review

Google Voice on the iPhone has been something of a sore subject for me. If you need a full-recap of the whole sordid iPhone/Google Voice story see this story from December or more of our coverage. I even started a little site devoted to waiting for Google Voice on the iPhone called IsGoogleVoiceAvailableForTheiPhone.com.

It has been 6 months and 19 days since Apple claimed it had not “rejected” Google Voice but was “studying” it. During the course of Apple’s “study” the company moved to purge all existing Google Voice apps from the App Store.

There were three reactions to this from developers:

Google revamped the Mobile Google Voice page so that it looks a lot nicer on the iPhone.

GV Mobile released its app for free on Cydia for those who have jailbroken iPhones.

The folks behind Voice Central went a different route. They decided to make a web app instead. I’ve been using it in beta for the past few months, but as of today it has been released to the public as Black Swan.

The difference between the Mobile Google Voice site from Google and Black Swan is that Black Swan is stored locally on your iPhone, like Pie Guy from Neven Mrgan of Panic.com. Riverturn calls this a “weblication,” which is a fairly awful name, but apparently they aren’t the first ones to use it.

Continue reading Black Swan brings Google Voice back to the iPhone without the App Store

Black Swan brings Google Voice back to the iPhone without the App Store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Black Swan brings Google Voice back to the iPhone without the App Store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Multimedia, Odds and ends, iPhone, iPod touch, App Review

I’ve always liked Slate Magazine on the web. It’s sometimes sassy and irreverent, but always interesting — an eclectic mix of politics, culture and tech news.

Now, Slate has come to the iPhone in a US$1.99 app that features all the articles from the site, as well as the blog posts, staff tweets and streaming video from the Slate podcasts. Once content is downloaded you can read it off-line, which is a worthwhile feature. Access to Slate on the web is free, and you can read Slate from any mobile browser by going to mobile.slate.com.

So why the charge for the iPhone app? Slate says it cost something to develop it, and it gives you a much richer experience in a portable form. I can’t argue with that, but I can argue with the ads that appear absolutely everywhere. Even the splash screen popped up with an ad. I think that’s a bit much after I’ve paid for the app, but I’m beginning to see a lot of this in other apps as well.

I do like the app a lot, and it is a better experience for me than reading Slate stories in Safari on the iPhone. I even prefer the app to reading the site on my desktop or laptop. I just think the constant intrusive ads are a turn-off that will keep some people from pulling the trigger on what is an otherwise laudable effort.

Slate works on any iPhone or iPod touch with OS 3.0 or greater. I expect we’ll see an iPad version as well.

Full disclosure: In the dim, distant past I worked at the Washington Post Company, which owns Slate.

Take a gander at some screen shots below:

Slate comes to the iPhone, along with a lot of advertising originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Slate comes to the iPhone, along with a lot of advertising originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Gaming, Software, Other Events, Developer, iPhone

The 2010 Game Developers Conference kicks off today in San Francisco, and TUAW is in attendance to check out the latest and greatest in iPhone game development. The conference boasts a whole track dedicated to iPhone gaming this year, and all week long, we’ll be bringing you panels, news, and interviews straight from the conference floor. This morning, panel number one was from Stephen Detwiler and James Marr, two engineers at Ngmoco, to talk to developers about how they put the server software together for Eliminate, the “freemium” first person shooter that’s serving as their flagship app lately.

As they explained during the presentation, they had a heck of a goal with this project: they wanted to put together “the definitive FPS for iPhone,” complete with all of the functions of a standard console deathmatch-style FPS, in just five months with just three engineers. And they started with the toughest nut of all: the networking code.

Continue reading GDC 2010: Ngmoco explains how Eliminate was built

GDC 2010: Ngmoco explains how Eliminate was built originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

GDC 2010: Ngmoco explains how Eliminate was built originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Developer, iPhone

In a step towards transparency, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has made the entire iPhone Developer Program License Agreement available for the general public. This is the document that all iPhone developers must agree to when they become part of the iPhone developer program.

As EFF points out, public copies of the license agreement are pretty scarce thanks to developers being locked under a non-disclosure agreement as part of the contract. EFF used the Freedom of Information Act to get its copy from NASA, which is the version from approximately a year ago (Rev. 3-17-09). The agreement has been updated since then.

The EFF characterizes the agreement as “a very one-sided contract, favoring Apple at every turn,” and that’s not an overstatement. Some of the clauses and conditions in the Apple developer agreement do smack of “our field, our ball, our rules” thinking from Cupertino. Highlights from the 28-page document include:

• A ban prohibiting developers from making public statements about the license agreement; however the contract itself is not considered “Apple Confidential Information.”
• Apps developed from Apple’s SDK are only allowed to be sold through the App Store. You can’t push it anywhere else (Cydia, etc.), even if Apple has rejected the app for any reason.
• Developers are forbidden to tinker with any Apple products, not just the iPhone. This includes jailbreaking.
• Apple is not liable for more than $50 in damages in case something happens on their end to your app. This is laughable, and I’m honestly surprised that Apple has not had a legal challenge over this yet.
• Devices used for testing purposes could be locked into a “testing mode,” and may not be able to be restored to their original condition. That is one way to brick your device.

I discussed the EFF’s post with Mike Rose, and he offered some editorial comment; read on for more.

Continue reading EFF releases iPhone developer license agreement

EFF releases iPhone developer license agreement originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

EFF releases iPhone developer license agreement originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Gaming, iPhone, App Store

Namco is bringing the popular Tekken franchise to the iPhone. It’s not confirmed whether it’s a port of the original game — released back in 1994 in arcades, then on the PlayStation — or the current Tekken 6.

This comes a few weeks after Capcom announced the release of Street Fighter IV for the iPhone, leading to an eventual fighter game showdown in the App Store. While both games on the iPhone is pretty awesome, I’m waiting to see how they will look and play on the iPad. I also wouldn’t mind seeing even more Namco titles on the iPhone - especially selections from the Tales RPG franchise.

Namco has a number of games in the store, including classics like Galaga, which was “remixed” for the iPhone, Burger Time Deluxe, which graced arcades way back in 1982!

Here’s hoping for old-school Tekken.

[Via Gizmodo]

Tekken bound for the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tekken bound for the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Something interesting has happened since I posted my thoughts on the Android SDK. Two interesting things, actually. Both were e-mails from people who work on the Android SDK, one from Google and another from Motorola.

Despite the fact that I was quite critical of several aspects of the Android SDK in that post, neither e-mail attempted to argue with me. Neither took an adversarial approach at all. Both basically thanked me for my opinion and asked me for more information so they could improve Android and address those things I criticized in my post.

It may seem like a small thing, but those two e-mails impressed the hell out of me. Regardless of language or preferred design patterns or any of the other million things that we developers love to argue about over a pint of beer, one of the true marks of a good developer is the ability to take criticism without getting defensive combined with a true desire to make your products the best they can be. Reaching out to somebody who has criticized a product you work on is not an easy thing to do.

So, I felt it was only fair to point this out here because I think it bodes really, really well for Android’s future. I think we’ll see great things out of Android as it matures. I don’t think those things will change my personal desire to work with Android as my primary platform, but that’s simply because I don’t like Java anywhere near as much as I like Objective-C, but I’m definitely not going to bet against Android doing well.

©2008-2010 Jeff LaMarche.
http://iphonedevelopment.blogspot.com

Filed under: Multimedia, Software, Developer, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

I’m much more of a baseball fan (go Cubs!), but of course it is now March, and that means college basketball is about to heat up. CBS Sports has now released an official March Madness On Demand app, and just like the great MLB iPhone app, this one also offers streaming video on demand of 63 March Madness games. Video even comes over 3G and EDGE, so no matter where you are, you’ll be able to keep up to date on what’s happening in the big tournament. The app also offers scores and bracket updates (so you can see how your picks are playing out), as well as connections to Facebook and Twitter, so you can do a little trash-talking, too.

There is a lite version that offers up just scores and news, but the US$9.99 premium version gives you live video of all the games, and/or audio broadcasts as they happen from Westwood One (and the press release says CBS worked in conjunction with MLB Advanced Media, so I’d guess the quality is pretty good). If you’re planning on watching the tournament at all, and think you might spend at least a game or two away from the television, the app will probably be worth it. It’s up for download right now on the App Store — play ball! No wait. What do they say for basketball? Tip off?

CBS Sports March Madness app will stream your games live originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

CBS Sports March Madness app will stream your games live originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Gaming, Software, Developer, iPhone, App Store, SDK

Steph Tirion is an excellent game designer who I’ve had the good fortune to meet a few times. He first released a great game called Eliss on the App Store and he’s now announced the second game he’s been working on, called Faraway. Eliss was a terrific little arcade game that made great use of the iPhone’s touchscreen, and Tirion says that while his first game dealt with “planets and space management in sectors, Faraway will be about constellations and infinite space travel.” Sounds exciting. The game will be playable at GDC this week, so I’ll definitely make time to run by and check it out.

Tirion has also announced a new company to represent and sell his iPhone games, and he’s calling it LITTLE–EYES. It’s really great to see a very smart, independent developer come into his own like on a platform like the iPhone — there’s really no other mainstream gaming platform out there that lets developers really jump in headfirst and release experimental games like these to a a mainstream market. We’ll keep an eye out at GDC this week for all kinds of indie developers making it big. While it’s cool that Valve and other larger companies are finally coming around, we have to be sure not to forget developers like this either.

Steph Tirion, creator of Eliss, annouces Faraway originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Steph Tirion, creator of Eliss, annouces Faraway originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Rumors, Odds and ends, iPhone

The Daily Telegraph reports that a new Apple patent has surfaced which could potentially allow the iPhone, or another Apple portable, to act as a sort of electronic key. The potential applications are as limitless as the number of things locked by old-school metal keys. It could be used for cars, offices, homes, or lockers. Basically, anything that could have an electronic receiver mounted to it in place of a metal tumbler-style lock could then use an iPhone as a key.

While Ars Technica notes that “the patent application itself merely describes a unique way of using motion detection to generate an input, such as turning a virtual combination lock-style dial,” the patent itself, as reported by the Telegraph, says that the device could be “any suitable electronic device such as a portable media player, personal data assistant or electronic lock” that could open up any number of physical lock types just by communicating wirelessly.

Continue reading Apple patent: use your iPhone as an electronic “iKey”

Apple patent: use your iPhone as an electronic “iKey” originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple patent: use your iPhone as an electronic “iKey” originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Apple Corporate, Apple Financial, iPhone

At long last, Apple and China Unicom Ltd. are working to introduce Wi-Fi-enabled iPhones to China.

The iPhone has failed to thrive in China, due in part to an active black market and the Golden Shield Project (GSP), which censors certain Internet content. To comply with the GSP, devices that include wireless Internet have been required to use China’s own WAPI standard. Meeting that requirement forced Apple to re-design the iPhone for China.

In the meantime, a change in policy permitted devices to have both WAPI and Wi-Fi, but by then it was too late, and the 1st round of re-designed iPhones were released in China without Wi-Fi.

Now, Unicom Chief Executive Chang Xiaobing says that iPhones with Wi-Fi will be made available to his company’s customers. He didn’t announce when that will happen, but did suggest that existing customers (without Wi-Fi) will be compensated, perhaps with expanded use of Unicom’s high-speed 3G network.

Unfortunately, this probably won’t send iPhone sales soaring. There’s still a powerful black market to contend with and less expensive iPhones in Hong Kong.

[Via Silicon Alley Insider]

Apple prepping Wi-Fi iPhone for China originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple prepping Wi-Fi iPhone for China originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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