iPhone Speed

Here in the Silicon Valley there are enough iPeople that whenever Apple releases a new product, or Steve Jobs changes his shirt, or buys a latte, it is Front Page News. (Fortunately, Steve never changes his shirt…)

You might think I am exaggerating… and, okay, I am. But not by much. Apple is part of the “valley culture”, and rightly or wrongly, it has been a media darling. Apple is “hip” and it is “chic”.

photo from http://www.iphonebuzz.com

So I cannot help but know that tomorrow a new iPhone will be available to the public. And that there’s much “anticipation”. And much “excitement”. And that it is called an “iPhone 3G S”.
And that the “S” stands for “speed”.
(In the Geek world of tech, speed is “good”.)

Some of the hype: Faster processor, more RAM, more storage, faster Internet, and… “the new phone is packing some serious heat, with an upgraded 3MP camera with autofocus and auto-exposure, video camera with editing, longer battery life, and voice control too.”
And it has a compass.

Hmmm… video editing? The “stat” that catches my eye is that the plain-old iPhone 3G that this new “S” one is replacing will now be $99.

Now, I am clearly out of touch with reality, too old, or whatnot, because I think $99 is roughly twice what a phone should cost — “smart” or not. Or, should include a year of unlimited Internet. (No need to write in. That’s just my opinion.)

I will admit this: I have been thinking about acquiring a new smart phone, and at $99, I am, for the first time ever, considering an iPhone as an option.
If I do go that route, old Tech Paul will finally get to be “hip” and “chic” too.. and that’s worth something, right?

Today’s free link: Internet security blogger Bill Mullins posted an article that looks at a technology that is being implemented in the guise of being “Green” that could prove quite dangerous. Please click here and give it a read. Interesting insight and food for thought here.

Today’s free download: KeyScrambler Personal 2.4.1.1 A browser add-on, is recommended by PC World as one of the “15 Great, Free Privacy Downloads.”  It protects all your inputs against known and unknown keyloggers in IE, Firefox, and Flock: your login credentials, credit card numbers, passwords, search terms, Java, Flash, PDF Forms, web email, and more.

Copyright 2007-9 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

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The WWDC and MobileMe

For the sake of ratings, I simply must write something about the hot topic on the Web right now– a topic so hot (how hot is it?) that the amount of “buzz” has caused the social networking/blogging site Twitter to crash under the burden.
That topic is Apple’s WWDC (aka “Stevenotes”*).

The Worldwide Developer Conference has become (one of) the venues where Apple offers sneak peek (preview) at new products and technologies… A glimpse at what the immediate future holds.
(Personally, I find such teases annoying, but the iFanatics feel different, I guess.)

For instance, this year, we were told about OS 10.6 (aka “Snow Leopard”).. which won’t offer any new features and we might see it in a year. WooHoo!!! Yay!!! I mean.. yawn.
And we’re told about a new version (2.0) of the iPhone’s OS, which will affect every person on the planet. Not.

Can you tell? Even though this event is being held right up the road, and I am a World Renown Tech Journalist, I made no effort to attend, and am too experienced to get wow!-ed by the hype. I also confess, I am not a iPerson/iFanatic.

Yet, there are some interesting and relevant items to note: Namely, Apple’s investment in bringing to us the “wonders” of cloud computing with MobileMe and the 20GB iDisk (and they’re hoping.. the 3G iPhone). This video from the conference explains, and demostrates. (For some reason I can’t embed the video, so you need to click the link. Sorry.)

This $99/year service will work “cross platform” (Windows/Mac/Linux) and across devices.

Here we really are looking at “Web 2.0”, and the future of computing. People, before too long, will be storing their whole lives and all their personal information on the Internet. So that we can share it.
Has anyone considered the security implications?

I’m an old dinosaur, and I’m a curmudgeon to boot.. I think there already is too much personal information available about us on the Web, and I’m not about to go putting my address book and calendar (and.. my accounting program?) there.
But those of the Look At Me Generation will probably be clamoring for it.

[update 8/1/08: I have been following MobileMe in various user forums, and tech blogs– the general impression I get is that MobileMe doesn’t work, and is causing intense frustration amongst the public.]

* A reference to the fact that the keynote address is usually given by Apple founder Steve Jobs.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

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