New Photoshop for Android includes Apple potshot
Adobe Systems released a new version of its Photoshop.com Mobile application for Android phones on Thursday night, an upgrade that came with an apparent attempt to tweak Apple's nose.
'Vignette blur' is of the new editing features available in the version 1.1 of Adobe's Photoshop.com Mobile for Android.
(Credit: Adobe)The new version gets more editing options. It adds "vibrant" to make photo colors richer and "pop" for a pop-art style. Also new are "soft black and white," "warm vintage," "vignette blur," "white glow," and "rainbow," Adobe said.
But more significantly, perhaps, the mobile editing software also now can be incorporated by other programs on the phone. "Third-party application developers now have access to the Photoshop.com Mobile for Android 1.1 editor, allowing them to easily make it a part of their applications," Adobe said.
This is where the Apple potshot comes in--a notable move given a public squabble over Apple's unwillingness to include Adobe's Flash Player on the iPhone or forthcoming iPad.
"Unlike iPhone, the Android platform allows us to make the Photoshop.com editor broadly available to developers so they can provide it within any application they are working on. Photoshop functionality can then easily be accessed from an online auction, real estate, or social media application so users can quickly fix photos and make them look their best, before being showcased," Doug Mack, general manager of Adobe's Digital Imaging and Rich Media Solutions group, said in a statement.
The remark is hardly a condemnation of Apple. But I can't remember Adobe ever going out of its way to take sides by calling attention to what Photoshop on Mac OS X can do that it can't on Windows or vice versa.
More details are available at the Adobe site for mobile Android developers.
Apple bans iPhone app that measures cell phone radiation
I have no idea whether cell phone use turns your brain into a doughnut.
But I imagine if someone were clever enough to create an iPhone app that told you how much radiation your phone was emitting, and therefore how big a hole your brain might soon enjoy, you might just be interested.
Unfortunately, it seems that though there might be such an app, you won't be able to partake of its skills on your iPhone.
According to TechCrunch, an Israeli developer called Tawkon created an app that, with the help of a finely tuned algorithm, measures your Specific Absorption Rate. This is the rate at which your whole body, not just your little brain, absorbs energy from a radio frequency magnetic field. The Tawkon app then factors in environmental conditions and phone usage in order to give you some accurate sense of your exposure to bad rays.
Something that seems quite clever to a lay(ing down) person, this app tells you in which location radiation is strongest while you are making a call.
You launch a call through the iPhone's address book and the app then vibrates to the tune of the radiation levels. An alarming tone offers the information that you'd better get out of wherever you are if you ever want to visit your hairdresser again.
If real-time search is the axis around which the world is currently turning, then real-time radiation information seems a fine thing to have at one's ear.
However, Tawkon claims that Apple has banned its invention. It says Apple called and positively radiated regret that Tawkon's app would not find a place on the iPhone as it would create confusion with respect to usability.
I am not sure what usability confusion useful information might create. But I hope that blind panic, the mass tossing of iPhones into watery graves and the elimination of cell phone user sanity were not amongst the fears that led to this decision.
I have no idea whether Tawkon's app is as fine as its makers say. Reports suggest these are serious people with some kind of serious track record. One of its founders, Gil Friedlander, has an enthusiastic and persuasive blog in which he declares that a BlackBerry version of the app is almost ready. And I just know that Google will approve this app because it's just so darned scientific.
Perhaps some time soon, we will all be rushing in and out of various locations, our phones clutched to our ears, sweat dripping from our nostrils, because Tawkon has warned us that our current location is not a safe one in which to talk to our grannies.
More : http://news.cnet.com/apple/?tag=hdr;snav
Apple drops price of Mac Developer Program to $99
The fee to become an Apple Mac developer dropped significantly Thursday to $99. According to Apple the new low cost of membership is in response to the success of the iPhone Developer Program (also $99 per year) and the potential that apps from that platform might crossover to the Mac. Apple had previously sold memberships to the Apple Developer Connection (ADC) Select or Premier programs for $499 and $3,499 respectively.
The newly named Mac Developer Program offers access to Mac OS X prereleases, technical documentation, Xcode 3 and other tools, development videos, member-only developer forums, and two technical code-level support incidents. Additional support incidents can be purchased in bundles of two for $99 or five for $249.
Alternatively, there is still a free version of the Mac Developer Program that gives access to Xcode 3 and other tools, online resources, and bug reporting. This is perfect for students or for people interested in tinkering with Mac development.
Yet, the price drop also entails significant changes. The new developer program no longer includes significant hardware discounts (which helped developers to nearly recoup the entire $499 Select membership fee), 10 support incidents, and WWDC materials that included a WWDC ticket worth about $1,200. Apple's complete FAQ gives full details about the transition and its benefits.
Existing ADC members can keep their current membership and benefits up until their next renewal time. At that point, however, they'll be able to renew only under the new terms.
People who purchased an ADC membership on or after February 1, 2010, can receive a refund, but only if they haven't used one or more of the associated benefits of that program. If that applies to you, we advise you to contact Apple for more information.
What do you think about the possibility of iPhone or iPod Touch apps, especially games, being ported over to the Mac? Let us know in the comments.
Vlingo 2.0 for iPhone: E-mail, SMS dictation now cost
Vlingo is an app that's been around awhile in the mobile space, but a new version for iPhone is causing some uproar. With Vlingo for iPhone 2.0, the company commits the sin of opacity by updating its rather good voice search and dialing application to version 2.0 without making it clear that you can only unlock the intriguing new features with your wallet.
Those familiar with Vlingo's BlackBerry app won't be surprised. There was an equal outcry when Vlingo introduced premium features for the first time, including switching a feature that had once been free to the paid category.
To recap, Vlingo's free voice app can search the Web, dial contacts, map a location, and update Twitter and Facebook with your voice--for free. You'll have a chance to edit before posting. Since computer-aided voice transcription is far from flawless--whether you're using Vlingo or Google Voice (see flubs here)--you may befriend that edit screen, especially when you're in noisy environments, when you're mumbling, and when you speak too quickly for Vlingo's rather sensitive electronic ears.
Vlingo's SMS feature needs some work.
(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)It doesn't help Vlingo's case that one of the two new premium features, which you can get by way of an in-app purchase, doesn't work very well. There's e-mail dictation and SMS copy that copies the transcription of your voice recording to the iPhone's clipboard, but you then have to paste the text yourself into the SMS field before sending it. For $6.99 as a standalone feature, e-mail dictation might be worthwhile; however, its SMS copy feature is not. For $9.99, you get both features, which would be a good deal if the SMS feature didn't require the hack.
Those who don't mind separating e-mail dictation from Vlingo's other voice-triggered features, there's always the free Dragon Dictation app by Nuance Communications (the folks who mainstreamed T9 text input method for cell phones.)
Sorry, Vlingo. We like you, we really do, but either the pricing has to go or the SMS tool does. However, there's no need to delete or avoid Vlingo 2.0 if you're not interested in buying into the new features. Voice search, dialing, and status updates work as they did before the update (hilarious and editable mistranslations included), and these are still free.
More : http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10464800-2.html?tag=mncol;title
Apple sues HTC--court filings
Earlier this morning, Apple revealed that it had filed suit against smartphone manufacturer HTC, accusing it of infringing on 20 Apple patents tied to the iPhone.
Named as exhibits in the litigation, a handful of Android and Windows Mobile devices including Google's Nexus One, the T-Mobile G1, the Droid Eris, the Touch Diamond, the Touch Pro2, and the Imagio.
Mobile phones listed as exhibits in Apple's lawsuit against HTC.
(Credit: All Things Digital)Below, copies of that suit, which was filed with the office of the United States International Trade Commission and the United States District Court in Delaware. But first, a list of the patents at issue here:
• The '331 Patent, entitled "Time-Based, Non-Constant Translation Of User Interface Objects Between States," was duly and legally issued on April 22, 2008 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.• The '949 Patent, entitled "Touch Screen Device, Method, And Graphical User Interface For Determining Commands By Applying Heuristics," was duly and legally issued on January 20, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '949 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit B.
• The '849 Patent, entitled "Unlocking A Device By Performing Gestures On An Unlock Image," was duly and legally issued on February 2, 2010 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '849 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit C.
• The '381 Patent, entitled "List Scrolling And Document Translation, Scaling, And Rotation On A Touch-Screen Display," was duly and legally issued on December 23, 2008 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '381 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit D.
• The '726 Patent, entitled "System And Method For Managing Power Conditions Within A Digital Camera Device," was duly and legally issued on July 6, 1999 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '726 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit E.
• The '076 Patent, entitled "Automated Response To And Sensing Of User Activity In Portable Devices," was duly and legally issued on December 15, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '076 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit F.
• The '105 Patent, entitled "GMSK Signal Processors For Improved Communications Capacity And Quality," was duly and legally issued on December 8, 1998 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '105 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit G.
• The '453 Patent, entitled "Conserving Power By Reducing Voltage Supplied To An Instruction-Processing Portion Of A Processor," was duly and legally issued on June 3, 2008 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '453 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit H.
• The '599 Patent, entitled "Object-Oriented Graphic System," was duly and legally issued on October 3, 1995 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '599 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit I.
• The '354 Patent, entitled "Object-Oriented Event Notification System With Listener Registration Of Both Interests And Methods," was duly and legally issued on July 23, 2002 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A copy of the '354 Patent is attached hereto as Exhibit J.
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