New MacBook Air Owners Experiencing Graphic Issues, Kernel Panics

According to a report bu Cult of Mac, and confirmed by further analysis on Macworld, a pretty large number of MacBook Air early adopters are experiencing screen issues such as “weird colors in vertical lines”, freezes, crashes and “horizontal sparkling bands”.

Additional reports about the video problem have been posted to Apple’s discussion forums and for the people reporting it the symptoms can vary. I’ve even encountered the problem myself on my 13-inch MacBook Air.

The problem with kernel panics has been experienced by Cult of Mac staff that purchased 11-inch or 13-inch models. Users on Apple forums haven’t complained about this specifically yet, but they have been complaining about their new MacBook Airs crashing.

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Running iPad Apps On The Mac→

Running iPad Apps On The Mac

Dave Winer:

Why didn’t I see this? One of my first wishes when I got my iPad was that this software would run on a Mac. I forgot that, and Uncle Steve said it the other way. The store is coming to the Mac. The store is coming to the Mac. That’s the sleight of hand. What he really meant to say is that IOS software is coming to the Mac. Or maybe it’s the IOS hardware I’m writing this on is running Mac software, kind of the way Carbon ran old lifeless legacy Mac apps. Which one is the “real” OS and which one is running in a compatibility box? I have a funny feeling that right now, as I type this on an AirBook, I’m using the compatibility box. Right?

The iPad can run apps from another iOS device, the iPhone. Will the Mac be able to run apps coming from iOS, even if the Mac is a machine running OS X? We don’t know. The thing is, if iOS is actually OS X coming back to the Mac after 3 years of mobile adventures (and if Lion is “OS X meets iPad”), then Winer’s option could make sense. Developers could adapt iPad apps to bigger screens with relative ease, though I don’t know how you’d be supposed to run apps requiring tilt controls on a desktop computer.

In the end, it’d be a cool feature – as long as you don’t pay attention to the trade-off.  Mobile apps don’t make any sense on the desktop, not as we think. Perhaps Apple will prove us wrong. The way I see it, Jobs simply wants to reinvent the way Mac software is discovered and distributed; a Mac App Store doesn’t necessarily mean the App Store is coming to the Mac.

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1Password Chrome Extension Updated, Looks Great

If you use 1Password (why wouldn’t you?) and you happen to use Chrome as your default browser on the Mac, you may have noticed the latest 1Password beta introduces a brand new great looking Chrome extension. To enable beta releases in 1Password, open the Preferences, go to the Updates tab and check “Include Beta versions”. Install the beta update, and restart Chrome to activate the updated extension.

The new extension looks great, and finally brings proper 1Password support to Chrome. I heard many complaints from users in the past who didn’t want to switch to Chrome due to lack of 1P support.

Those days are over, the new extension looks (and works) very well.

The 58-inch Multitouch Table For iPhone Is Real [Video]

We covered the Table Connect for iPhone (a 58-inch surface that mirrors your iPhone screen) a few days ago, and now the developers posted a video of the “device” in action: as you can see in the video above, the table requires you to start an app on the iPhone (likely available through jailbreak) and plug in the cable. Wifi is not supported at this point.

The two guys in the video seem to access the Springboard just fine, they swipe between pages and launch the Photos app. It doesn’t look like a fake, as many readers claimed. The iPhone also seems to be able to output UI elements on that bigger screen just fine.

The Table Connect is still in development, so we’ll keep you up to date with the project.

Update: some readers have pointed out that the guy in the video holds the power button down when firing up the app required to output the iPhone screen.

“Creating Flow with OmniFocus” Is The Book Every OF User Should Read

October has been a great month for iOS app development-related books: iPhone App Entrepreneur by David Appleyard and App Savvy by our friend Ken Yarmosh are two of the best pieces anyone interested in getting started with iOS development (or anyone interested in iOS, period) should read.

November brings another great book with it, this time tailored to Mac users who have found their productivity setup in OmniFocus. “Creating Flow with OmniFocus”, written by Kourosh Dini, MD – “a Chicago based psychiatrist, musician, author, husband and father who also happens to really enjoy technology” - is the ultimate resource that covers OmniFocus from the very first steps (setting up new projects and contexts) to advanced functionalities such as the much popular and loved Perspectives. Read more

Chalk: Sketching Webapp for iPad by 37Signals

We have already seen what can be achieved with the power and knowledge of open web technologies on iOS thanks to our buddy Steve Streza’s Swearch for iPhone. A webapp that lets you search on a variety of different search engines without requiring you to go look for the app in the App Store and wait for Apple to approve updates.

Great things can be achieved with HTML5, Javascript and a few lines of CSS.

37Signals unveiled today a side project they’ve been working on “just for fun”, available as a free webapp for iPad users at chalk.37signals.com. Chalk is very similar to 37Signals’ Draft (which is sold in the App Store) but it’s entirely browser-based and you can add it to your homescreen to get a nice icon and easy web access. As the name suggests, Chalk allows you to sketch on a chalkboard: you can use white and red colors, pick up the eraser, turn off the lights to focus on what you’re sketching and saving the result to your image library. All within Safari. Read more

Skyfire, Already Approved by Apple, Will Bring Flash Videos To The iPhone On Thursday

As noted by 9to5mac, Skyfire will release its first iPhone app on Thursday, which will allow users to load Flash videos on the device using the startup’s on-the-fly conversion technology.

Skyfire takes a Flash video, sends it to its own servers and translates it to HTML5 on the iPhone in a few seconds. I’m not really sure whether Skyfire’s servers will hold up on Thursday, or if there’s anything more to be noted about this app besides Flash conversion. Read more

Back to the “iWallet”, Apple Allegedly Considering A BOKU Acquisition

According to a rumor published by TechCrunch, Google and Apple are keeping an eye on mobile payments startup BOKU, which allows users to complete online transactions by simply entering their phone number and confirming the purchase with a text from their phone. A simple and unobtrusive system that could really eliminate the need of credit cards and banks online: charges will be added to your wireless monthly bill. Boku has closed deals with carriers worldwide, including AT&T in the U.S.

Apple seems to be really committed to turning the iPhone into a digital wallet-like device you can use to buy stuff on the go and / or online, as we speculated in rumors surfaced earlier this year. Yesterday, Cult of Mac reported Apple not only wants to develop an “iWallet” based on NFC technology – they’re aiming at remote Mac controlling as well. Read more

Notes On Setting Up A New Mac→

Notes On Setting Up A New Mac

Good points by Neven Mrgan, but I especially agree with this one:

Apple IDs and MobileMe accounts need to become connected. I should be able to enter one and have the other pulled in automatically. It’s kind of really weird that the whole setup process skips MobileMe - you have to go into System Preferences to add it yourself.

It’s weird, and it’s one of the things I hope Apple will address in Lion.

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