SMS security flaw specific to iOS
The "reply to" field recently discovered to be a security risk for iPhone SMS transmissions has been confirmed to be an issue isolated to iOS.
A couple of weeks ago, hackers discovered a potential disaster of a loophole in the iPhone's texting protocol that could allow devious tech minds to alter the "reply to" field of a message to fool SMS receivers.
Not long after, Apple replied to the claims confirming that the vulnerability exists and promoting iMessage as a more secure, albeit less ubiquitous, method of text chatting via iPhone.
Now mobile security firm AdaptiveMobile says that other mobile platforms need not worry about this iOS oversight.
"We have tested this issue on Android, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, and Symbian phones," said Cathal McDaid, security consultant at AdaptiveMobile, in a statement to CNET, "and most of them simply ignore the 'reply address' field or display both the 'real' originating address and the reply address as per the specification recommendations.
"The iPhone, so far," he continued, "is the only device which does not comply with these security recommendations."
Securing transmission
The center of this debacle is the apparently useless "reply to" marker in the header of a transmitted text, so why is it there in the first place?According to McDaid, the idea behind its inclusion is to allow companies to send out texts from no-reply numbers to redirect responses.
In theory, the system can work to the user's benefit as well as the company's. In practice, it's not used so it doesn't matter.
Apple has yet to respond to this issue further than the statement promoting iMessage. As of the time of hacking on August 17th, Apple's next iPhone operating system, iOS 6, contained the same vulnerability as every other version.
 |  |
Read More ...
Samsung to launch Windows 8 tablet / notebook hybrid?
Samsung is about to announce a new Windows 8 hybrid device, according to a teaser video posted by the company.
The video, entitled Evolution of Technology, showcases glimpses of a laptop device with rounded edges and a physical keyboard.
There's also an S-Pen stylus featured within the 37 second clip, which would suggest the presence of a touchscreen.
This may mean a hybrid, folding device such as the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga or a detachable tablet like the Asus Transformer line.
The time is near
The video makes no mention of a date for the announcement, but the description says: "The time is near for the big reveal."Take a look at this video for a glimpse into our newest Windows-8-ready innovation."
Earlier this summer, we spoke to ARM which said it had a supercharged Samsung tablet device on the way. Could this be it?
You can see the teaser below.
| |
Read More ...
Samsung faces long product delays, says expert
Samsung's crushing legal defeat at the hands of Apple could cause delays to its next generation of mobile products.
Apple's $1 billion award as a result of multiple counts of patent infringement may mean Samsung will have to rethink and redesign some of the smartphones and tablets it has in the pipeline.
Future devices will have to be litigation proof and that will take time, says one expert.
Chang In Whan, the president of Seoul-based asset management company KTB, told Business Week: "The verdict is worse for Samsung than what many had anticipated, and it will have to change some products in its pipeline.
"There could be delays in developing and releasing new models, which together with a potential sales ban could weigh on corporate value."
Unaffected
Samsung however told the publication that launch schedules will be unaffected.You'd think it may have been planning for this eventuality for some time now, so hopefully plans won't be affected too much.
Another expect says the verdict may force Samsung to change things up a little bit, which may end up being even more threatening to Apple.
Michael Risch, a patent law professor at Villanova University added: "Samsung has deep pockets and they are going to change some designs up," "Not being able to copy may make them do better things than Apple."
| |
Read More ...
Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon, dead at 82
Neil Armstrong, perhaps the technology world's greatest pioneer, has died at the age of 82.
The Apollo 11 astronaut, who was the first man to step foot on the surface of the moon in 1969, was suffering from complications as a result of cardiovascular procedures.
His quote: "that's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" as he stepped down from the lunar module and onto the surface, remains one of the most famous ever uttered.
Armstrong, an aeronautical engineering graduate from Purdue University, said during a rare public appearance in 2000: "I am, and ever will be, a white-sock, pocket-protector, nerdy engineer."
Tributes
US President Barack Obama led the tributes to Armstrong saying "he delivered a moment of human achievement that will never be forgotten.""They (the Apollo 11 astronauts) carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation.
"They set out to show the world that American spirit can see beyond what seems unimaginable — that with enough drive and ingenuity, anything is possible."
A family statement released by NASA said: "Neil Armstrong was also a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. He served his Nation proudly, as a navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and astronaut. He also found success back home in his native Ohio in business and academia, and became a community leader in Cincinnati."
| |
Read More ...
Amazon Cloud Drive now available in the UK
Amazon has finally brought access to its Cloud Drive for UK users.
The cloud storage locker was launched in the US over a year ago but, as usual with Amazon, it has taken a while to ship it across the Atlantic.
Users will get 5GB of free storage, while a subscription to 20GB of data is £6 a year. Storage guzzlers can get 1TB a year for £320.
The company has also rolled-out the Cloud Drive app for Mac and PC, which'll allow users to control files from their desktop. Media files will be available online using the Cloud Player.
Plenty of options
The solution arrives on UK soil to tackle the likes of Apple's iCloud, Google Drive, Dropbox and Microsoft's SkyDrive. With free storage available through all platforms, there's plenty of options available.The timing of the launch may be linked to the mystery Amazon event announced for September 9. Rumours are abound that Amazon will launch a sequel to the Kindle Fire.
Could this mean Amazon will finally launch a version of its tablet on UK soil?
| |
Read More ...
Opinion: Malware on Macs: why you should care
Everybody knows Macs don't suffer from malware, so how come the Flashback Trojan managed to infect half a million Macs?
According to security firm CEO Eugene Kaspersky, from a security point of view there is no big difference between Mac and Windows, and we're entering a new world of Mac malware.
He might be right. It's important to take security firms claims with a pinch of salt, because of course their job is to jump out of cupboards to frighten children and collect their screams in cylinders, which they use to power Monstropolis. Or was that Sulley and Mike from Monsters Inc? It doesn't matter: either way, they have a vested interest in making people scared.
There is a wonderful conspiracy theory that suggests all of the malware on the internet is actually generated by anti-malware companies in the world's biggest job creation scheme. I don't believe a word of it, but I do think that malware firms can exaggerate many threats: to date, the number of security firm press releases I've read about iPhone malware is more than the number of iPhone users who've ever been affected by malware.
That doesn't mean they're wrong about Macs. Malware writers aren't stupid, but they are efficient: they'll only bother attacking a platform if it's worth the effort.
When Macs were a minority choice, they weren't. Now everybody you know has bought one, they are. The more Macs Apple sells, the more tempting a target those Macs become.
If anything, Apple users might be more vulnerable than Windows ones. Windows users have had the security message pummelled into them for years, but I know lots of recent Mac converts who bought Apple because Macs don't get viruses. That's dangerous, because that kind of thinking makes people go, Ooh, an iTunes update from a website I've never heard of! I'll install it right now!
Slow to respond
There's a second factor here. Because Mac malware is a relatively rare thing, Apple hasn't had to be as fast at fixing things as Microsoft has had to. That means its response to issues can be painfully slow, and Flashback is the result of that: it infected Macs but not PCs running Windows or Linux, because the Java update it exploited had already been patched on those platforms. Apple took an extra two months to get round to it.Apple has since given Oracle the responsibility for Java on OS X, but you can be sure of two things: malware writers will find something else on OS X to attack, and when they do, Apple will probably take too long to react. That has to change.
Flashback's success has made malware writers take notice. OS X Mountain Lion's Gatekeeper will make things more harder for them, but hard doesn't mean impossible, and not every Mac owner will upgrade.
I don't think we should panic, but I don't think we should be cocky either. The security firms may have cried wolf for years, but this time we definitely heard a howl.
| |
Read More ...
Opinion: Where are all the 120Hz IPS screens?
An IPS monitor with 120Hz refresh. It's the holy grail of PC displays. So why can't you buy one?
First, let's wind things back briefly and put some basic markers down. IPS refers to a particular type of LCD panel technology, specifically In-Plane Switching. The details don't really matter other than to understand that IPS has the best colour accuracy, great viewing angles and good contrast.
The comparison here is mainly with cheaper TN panels that have the sole advantage of being a bit quicker to respond. TN is worse in every other objective regard.
To slightly confuse the issue, there is another premium panel tech, known as VA or Vertical Alignment. VA does have some advantages, most notably great contrast, but IPS is where all the action is and, anyway, VA screens have pixel response issues that probably make them less than ideal for really high refresh monitors.
For the sake of argument, then, let's just agree that IPS is where it's at. The other part of the equation is 120Hz refresh. In my view, the whole notion of high refresh rate displays has been devalued by the HDTV industry and it's 200Hz-and-beyond willy waving.
I'm not saying that high refresh is completely without value on HDTVs. But given that there isn't any mainstream video content available encoded in frame rates anywhere near 100MHz, much less 200Hz, it's a bit of a hack and all rather misleading.
But not for PCs. Intriguingly, monitors with high refresh rates haven't appeared in response to any image quality demands. They exist because that's what's required to support stereoscopic 3D
based on active shutter glasses, like Nvidia's 3D Vision.
Since each eye is being shown alternate frames from a slightly different viewing angle, you need to double the frame rate of a conventional PC. Thus, twice 60Hz is 120Hz.
Thing is, as soon as hardware hacks like yours truly got their hands on high refresh 3D monitors, they noticed that 120Hz is great for nearly everything (except video playback where, not a little ironically, it makes no difference).
In short, 120Hz makes movement of all kinds more fluid. That means everything from the mouse pointer to pushing windows around the desktop and scrolling.
Prices going up, not down
The biggie, of course, is buttery smooth 120Hz gaming. And 120Hz gaming is great. But it's the broader impact that excites me. 120Hz is great for everything.To date, however, 120Hz monitors have been TN panels. Well, very nearly all. Internet forums have been a-buzz of late with news of preposterously cheap 27-inch IPS screens from Korea that support 120Hz (google "Yamakasi Catleap" and settle yourself in for a long afternoon's reading).
It seems a batch of these 120Hz capable things were distributed on ebay for roughly £200 and as far as I can tell, they're the real deal. Since then, prices have edged up and it seems the circuit boards have changed and no longer truly support 120Hz. There have also been reports of scary failure rates and I wouldn't fancy trying an RMA on a product bought from a Korean ebay vendor. By all accounts, the build quality is pretty average.
But I digress. The important thing is that these things appear to have existed, if only briefly, and at very low cost. So 120Hz with IPS is clearly doable. And the more people who jump up and down at the prospect getting excited, the more likely one of the mainstream brands is to run with the idea.
| |
Read More ...
Review: CM Storm Sonuz
There's something disconcertingly slug-like about this set of cans. Visual design isn't top of the priorities list for a gaming headset, but it does mean each of the Sonuz's features has to work that much harder to compensate for the sensation of donning a slimy invertebrate when you want to hear your games.
Its standout feature is a detachable mic, which can be placed on either side. We don't often see that in a headset, particularly one at this modest price, and while its purpose isn't immediately clear, it boasts the twin benefits of durability and the potential to confuse people as to which way round it's worn (if you're into sub-Rio Ferdinand practical jokes).
The Sonuz's other point of interest is its frequency response range, which swoops way down to 10Hz, allowing it to pump out low-end noise that you can't technically hear, but which can be combined as sub-harmonics to give audible frequencies a meatier sound.
A lot of headsets try this trick with varying degrees of success, but it doesn't quite work for the Sonuz because of that slug-like design; the inner ear cups angle outward at the bottom instead of sitting flat, resulting in a seashell noise that compromises the sound quality.
If you're bored, try it now: touch the tops of your ears with your fingers and angle your hands diagonally. Distracting, huh? For those sub-harmonics to work, the ear cups need to be sealed off so you can feel the bass physically bounce.
Will not comply
These cans aren't very malleable, either. Your only means of tailoring them to your bonce is by extending or retracting the headband, the cups sitting resolutely at an unhelpful angle. At 380g, this headset's no featherweight either, and after long play sessions that lack of flexibility can get pretty uncomfortable.Everything else the headset is of admirable quality for the price - including giant 53mm drivers and a mic with impressive noise cancelling and detach-ability - but they're hard to enjoy in this package.
Elsewhere, it's a matter of what the Sonuz doesn't do rather than what it does that fails to impress. There's nothing really wrong with its volume control and mic switch, but we've seen far more inspired design solutions from Corsair and Sony at this price. It's awkward to have to look down and take yourself out of the game to fiddle with either, which is why Sennheiser's auto-muting mic arm, which shuts off when pushed up, is such a good idea. A volume control on the headset itself would also be good.
CM Storm has missed a good few tricks from rival manufacturers, and the Sonuz lacks anything distinct to shout about, beyond its detachable mic arm. Although we've harped on about it like it pumps hydrochloric acid into your ears, it's important to clarify that the Sonuz is a solid and functional set of cans, and feels unlikely to break any time soon.
But when you're browsing the market and find Creative's Tactic 3D Alpha for just over £40 and Corsair's Vengeance 1300 for under £60, you'd be a fool to opt for this instead.
| |
Read More ...
Apple iPad Mini 'confirmed' for October launch, say reports
Apple will unveil the iPad Mini at a special event in October, according to the AllThingsD site.
The report claims the eagerly-anticipated device will be unveiled at a separate event to the iPhone 5, which, it is believed, will be announced on September 12.
AllThingsD, which has an excellent track record in these matters, goes as far to say as the sub-8-inch tablet's launch is 'confirmed' for October.
"Only after the next generation iPhone is out the door and on sale will Apple announce the smaller iPad it's been working on," says the article.
"That device, which is expected to have a display of less than eight inches, will be uncrated at a second special event, which sources said is currently scheduled for October."
From DOA to A-OK.
The iPad mini has been subject to a ton of speculation in recent months as Amazon and Google continue to perform well with their 7-inch tablets, the Kindle Fire and the Nexus 7.Steve Jobs once claimed that 7-inch slates were dead on arrival, but it appears the company is now ready to pull the trigger on a smaller model, without splitting the spotlight between the Mini and the iPhone 5.
As AllThingsD also points out, holding two launches around a month apart will give Apple to control the tech headlines at an important time of the year.
We'd suggest that there'll be more than a few tech fans already pencilling in both, ready to send that letter to Santa up the chimney.
| |
Read More ...
YouTube starts beta for "Moodwall"
The message boards at Google lit up this week with questions about an unannounced beta testing program for YouTube's emotional experiment, Moodwall.
It's a different way to organize and search for videos, categorized by "vibe". The broader vibe headings include funny, fast, cool, strange, creative, powerful, epic, deep, and of course, gross, as determined by YouTube.
News of the beta for Moodwall comes from James Dart of The Guardian who posted a screenshot of the new experience to his Twitter profile.
User jcarrz1 posted some purported footage of the Moodwall to Screenr, giving YouTubers a decent glimpse at how the full product might function. If the video is legit, then the primary search page for YouTube will feature several constantly updating frames of video choices (most of which are from 2011 at this point) which can be expanded for previews and tagged for favorites.
Not everyone in on the beta test, however, is entirely happy about it, or even aware that it was coming.
A foul mood
A number of threads popped up in the Google Product Forums yesterday lobbying complaints about the unexpected advent of the Moodwall beta.For example, user lagarto220 signed onto YouTube on Friday to find that the browse page had been transformed to the new vibe-driven format, and immediately wanted the old page back.
Apparently, the way to "opt out" of the beta is to clear the history and, more importantly, the cache of your browser, which gets rid of whatever cookie or metadata Google has employed to activate Moodwall's testing.
Google has yet to respond to this bizarre beta rollout, or to speak to the inspiration behind the new experience.
The real takeaway from the Moodwall beta is that Pokemon is fun, Minecraft is epic, and huskies are still, indeed, adorable.
| |
Read More ...
Trial verdict actually a 'sizeable victory' for Samsung, says influential blogger
It's not all doom and gloom for Samsung following its courtroom humbling at the hands of Apple, according to one 'tech evangelist' who reckons the Koreans got off cheaply.
Robert Scoble, an author and creator of the influential Scoblelizer blog, says paying out only $1 billion to become a huge mobile force is a bit of a bargain.
Scoble, a former Microsoft employee, took to his Facebook page to say: "I think this is actually a sizable win for Samsung. Why? It only cost $1 billion to become the #2 most profitable mobile company.
"Remember how much Microsoft paid for Skype? $8 billion. So, for 1/8th of a Skype Samsung took RIM's place and kicked HTC's behind."
"Not too bad. Unless the judge rules Samsung can't sell its products. Even then I bet Samsung arrives at a nice licensing deal with Apple."
Cheaters prosper
Scoble ended his alternative interpretation of the legal proceedings by suggesting RIM, Nokia, HTC and co could have also made bank by copying Cupertino."I bet that RIM wishes it had copied the iPhone a lot sooner than it did. So does Nokia, and HTC and a raft of other manufacturers I bet. Samsung is a much healthier company than any of those BECAUSE it copied the iPhone."
So, although Apple says the verdict in its favour proves that "stealing isn't right," Samsung has proved that stealing can be very, very, profitable.
| |
Read More ...
Evernote and Moleskin team-up to create new smart notebook
Notebook app Evernote has updated its offerings with a feature that can digitise notes and drawings in new Moleskin pads.
The notebooks, released in October, will be made with a special kind of paper, which will enable Evernote users to take a photo of the page and scan for text.
The data from the page will be stored within the virtual notebook and will be synced with the user's other Evernote-enabled devices.
Users can also place stickers on the physical pages so particular pages to be saved to certain folders within the digital locker.
Ending the war on paper
The new hook-up between the two companies aims to bridge the gap between digital and paper notebooks, while Evernote seems to have ended its war on paper."This is a fight that many people in the technology space have been fighting," said Evernote CEO Phil Libin. "We are announcing a cease-fire."
The functionality in the new app is tailored for the new Moleskin notebooks, but not limited to them.
Moleskin's Evernote-enabled notepads will cost £24.95 or $29.95 for the larger offering. They'll come with a three month subscription to Evernote Premium.
| |
Read More ...
Apple likely to seek Samsung sales bans in new hearing next month
Apple seems likely to request the ban of some Samsung mobile devices in the United States following its emphatic courtroom victory on Friday.
A California court ruled that the Korean giant must pay Apple $1.05 billion (£665m) in damages after a jury upheld multiple counts of patent infringement.
Now the two sides will meet again on September 20 for an injunction hearing, where the implications of the verdict will be discussed.
Apple must make its requests to the court by August 27, while Samsung will get two weeks to respond before the hearing takes place later in the month.
Maximum restrictions
It seems fair to assume that Apple will push for maximum restrictions against Samsung, given the strength of Friday's verdict in its favour.The result could be sales bans on multiple Samsung mobile products in the United States.
Meanwhile, Samsung still plans to appeal against the verdict. It had hoped to win $509 million in damages in patent infringement claims of its own. They were dismissed.
| |
Read More ...
In Depth: Sharing with your Mac, iPhone and iPad: the ultimate guide
Sharing at home: plenty of choice
Not too long ago, people tended to own one computer on which they would store all their data, occasionally moving it around using floppy discs, CDs or USB memory sticks. And although we're only a few years down the line from those times, the concept of stuff living on a single machine now seems very outdated.As technology has developed rapidly, the ways in which you can transfer, share and send files have become many and varied. The rise of the internet is the biggest factor in allowing this to happen, providing an increasingly fast and easy way to send documents, pictures, music and even movies between devices and around the world.
Faster home broadband connections are at the point where uploading stuff no longer takes hours, and a good 3G connection when you're on the move can be just as effective for sending and receiving files.
Networking computers used to be a real hassle, but with modern operating systems, it has become far easier. AirDrop in OS X 10.7 is perhaps the ultimate expression of simple file sharing, a system that doesn't even require the two Macs sharing files to be on the same wireless or ethernet network.
Sharing media has become simple too, with apps like iMovie and GarageBand allowing direct uploads to popular streaming sites, and iTunes Home Sharing and Match giving you much more flexible access to your media at home or on the move. Read on to find out how sharing data can free you from your desk…
Sharing at home
There are lots of ways to share files at home, and it's easier than you think...
Sharing your data across a home network has been possible for a long time, but it's only in recent years that it has become really simple, at least if you're using Macs. We'll skip past the old-fashioned methods of using USB memory sticks or burned DVDs to move stuff; although these are still possible, they're quite labour intensive.
These days, it's all about being networked, and the most common way to network computers is using Wi-Fi. There's a good chance you're on wireless broadband at home anyway. And even if your computer connects to your modem using an Ethernet cable, you can still share its wireless connection (and even its broadband connection) to other computers over Wi-Fi.
To do this you go into the System Preferences > Sharing tab and switch on Internet Sharing. To share files between computers, you can create a network on one computer from the AirPort menu and then join that network from the other computer. Neither computer has to have an internet connection for this to work, as you can achieve the same thing by connecting the two machines using an Ethernet cable.
On supported models you can even use FireWire Target Disk mode by connecting two Macs using a FireWire cable and booting one while holding the T key. This boots the 'slave Mac' as a hard drive on the host Mac and only supports the dragging and dropping of data from one to the other, so it's a basic but effective way of connecting the two.
To share files on a Mac you need to go into System Preferences > Sharing and make sure the File Sharing service is turned on. This means the computer will appear in the sidebar of other Macs on your network and broadcasts itself as an available device.
Also in this window you'll find a list of shared folders you can edit and add to. By default, each user's Public Folder is shared and when someone connects to it over a network they'll see its contents as well as being able to drop items into the Drop Box folder. They can't see the contents of the Drop Box, so it's a secure way for people to transfer stuff to you without altering the contents of the folder afterwards.
For each shared folder you'll also see a list of users, and what their access permissions are for that folder. By default, you have ownership of folders inside your Home directory but you can choose to assign other users from your Address Book with specific access, setting them up a password. So if you wanted a friend to be able to access and edit a certain folder on your Mac, this would be how to do it.
Under the Options menu in the File Sharing section you also have the option to turn on file sharing over FTP in addition to the default AFP protocol. If you activate the third option, SMB, you can share files and folders with Windows PCs on a network. Windows uses different file sharing protocols to the Mac, so switching on SMB should ensure that your Mac communicates with any connected PCs and broadcasts itself properly to them.
If you're running a mixed network and need to move files between Macs and PCs, turning on SMB sharing is a must. You may also find that you need to go into your AirPort preferences and find the WINS section, then add your Mac to a Windows workgroup, which will probably be called MSHOME or WORKGROUP. You can find this by going to My Computer > Properties > Computer Name on the PC. It might take a little work, but it should get you sharing between platforms.
Dragging and dropping files and folders between Macs is also possible using AirDrop if you're running OS X 10.7 on both machines. This uses 'invisible' networking with no setup to discover other AirDrop capable Macs in range and make them visible to you in the Finder sidebar. Drag and drop files to a user's picture to share them.
Oddly though, Apple only enables AirDrop on specific, newer Mac models. This is because it uses special features of certain wireless chips, and can work between Macs even if they aren't connected to a network.
As annoying as this is, if yours is not supported, there is a workaround as long as you're running 10.7. Open the Terminal application and type: defaults write com.apple. NetworkBrowser BrowseAllInterfaces 1.
Then quit Terminal and log out and back in again. You should now see AirDrop in your 'Go…' menu. The difference is that it will only work when both Macs are on the same network.
If you have an Apple TV you can stream your iTunes library to it to view on your TV. Third-party apps such as StreamToMe and Air Video can stream from your Mac to an iPad with live video conversion, so there's no need for an Apple TV.
Using the iTunes File Sharing section, you can share media between your Mac and your iPad outside of Apple's syncing system by dragging and dropping movies, photos and other things directly to an app. You can copy movies that are not in iTunes-friendly formats directly to an iPad. You can drop AVI movies and various others without having to convert them to M4V or MP4 format first. Various iPad apps can do this, including VLC, AVPlayer HD, CineXPlayer, Movie Player and GoodPlayer.
How to set up file sharing at home
1. Turn on sharing
Go into the Sharing section of System Preferences. Locate the File Sharing option in the list of services and click its tick box to make sure it's switched on. You can give the computer a unique name in the box at the top - this is what will be broadcast across your network.
2. Add extra folders
Click on the plus icon underneath the list of shared folders and you can choose any folder that you own to share with other users. By default your Public Folder is shared and users will be able to place things in the Drop Box. To create more shared folders, add them here.
3. Set a password
In the list of users to the right, click the plus icon to add a new user. If you select an Address Book entry you can set a password for that user and create an account on the local machine for them. With this information they'll be able to access your shared folders.
Sharing with iTunes
As the centre of your digital hub, iTunes lets you share in different ways...
Apple's iTunes has come a long way since its early days as a simple jukebox. Now it lets you purchase, play and share all your music and movies in a multitude of different ways. It's grown to support all of Apple's iOS devices as well as integrating with iCloud, adding internet storage to its list of capabilities.
If you have an iPad you can connect it to your Mac using a USB cable. Then in iTunes, go to the device and find its Apps tab. Scroll down and you'll see a File Sharing section where various apps are displayed; these are the apps that can swap data with your Mac. It's possible to drag and drop items out of the list to your Mac, or into the list to copy them to your iPad.
If you're running iOS 5, this whole process also works wirelessly if you have enabled Wi-Fi sync in iTunes. At a basic level, iTunes stores all its data inside a single folder on your hard drive, which by default, is located inside your Home directory in the folder Music/iTunes.
Inside this folder it keeps everything, from music and movies to books and mobile apps, as well as your master library file, artwork and backups of your iOS devices. It's important to activate iTunes' option to copy all music to this root folder, so it's not scattered randomly around your hard drive (from previous occasions when you may have dragged and dropped music into iTunes). You can find this in iTunes' Preferences > Advanced section.
It is possible to share an iTunes library by moving it from this directory to an external or networked hard drive so that it can be accessed from different Macs. After copying the whole iTunes folder, go into the Advanced preferences again. In the iTunes Media Folder location box, click to navigate to the folder's new location, which can be over a network as well as on a local hard drive.
On other Macs on the network, hold down the Option key while starting iTunes and from the chooser, select Choose iTunes Library, then navigate to it. You only have to do this the first time you want to use the shared library.
It's possible to share and stream media across your home Macs even without physically moving iTunes' library, using Home Sharing. This feature can be switched on in iTunes' Advanced menu and you'll be prompted to enter your Apple ID. After this, iTunes will broadcast itself to other copies of iTunes on the same network.
If you sign in on those Macs using the same Apple ID, you'll be able not only to play music and videos from the library, but drag and drop them to that Mac's library as well. The ability to physically copy files rather than just streaming means you can sync the files to different iOS devices. The fact that you have to use a single Apple ID for Home Sharing means that piracy is not really possible, but within the confines of a single house, your music and movie collections can be used more flexibly.
If you don't want to use Home Sharing, iTunes has a simpler sharing service, in the Preferences > Sharing section. Activate this and you can share either the whole library or selected playlists locally, with optional password protection. An Apple ID sign-in isn't required, but this service only allows streaming, not physical copying.
Go into iTunes' Advanced menu and you can choose to turn on Photo Sharing from iPhoto to your Apple TV using Home Sharing, and also share any videos that are present in your iPhoto library. If you activate Photo Library sharing from iPhoto, it shares to other copies of iPhoto on the local network.
Control your syncs
As we've mentioned, it's possible to move data between Macs and iPads via the traditional USB cable approach, or wirelessly if you're running iOS 5. Some people still like to use Apple's syncing system, which automatically synchronises music, movies, apps and other media when the two are connected. You can control what syncs by going to the device in iTunes and selecting what to include.
One of the benefits of syncing like this is that iTunes can choose music for you and transfer it. Others prefer to manually manage data since it offers rather more control, letting you drag and drop from iTunes to the iPad. Select the device in iTunes while it's connected, go to the Summary tab and scroll to the bottom. Activate manual management of music and videos - if you're using Apple's iTunes Match service, you'll only be able to manually deal with videos because your music is delivered from the cloud.
Since iOS devices have lower storage capacities than Macs, syncing whole libraries doesn't make much sense if your music and movie collections are large. In these cases, either choose to sync specific playlists, or use manual management to keep control of how much stuff is being fired over so as not to fill up your iPad.
There's also an option in iTunes' Summary tab to compress media prior to transfer. 'Convert higher bit rate songs' will shrink larger file sizes prior to copying, and 'Prefer standard definition videos' will transfer a lower resolution copy where available, both of which will use less space on the iPad.
How to turn on iTunes Sharing
1. Open the Preferences
In iTunes, go to the Preferences section and locate the Sharing tab. Click to turn on sharing and select either the whole library or specific playlists within it. You can also set up a password: those who know it can stream music across the network to their copies of iTunes.
2. Turn on Home Sharing
Go to the Advanced menu in iTunes and choose to Turn On Home Sharing. You'll need your Apple ID and password. With Home Sharing activated on another Mac on the local network, a user will be able to drag and drop music and movies from your library to theirs.
3. Move the library folder
Go to your Home directory and find the Music > iTunes folder. If you have set iTunes to always copy new music into the library folder, this will contain all your music as well as the master library file. By copying this folder to an external drive, you can free up disk space.
Sharing with other people
Sharing with others
When you need to share your files and folders with other people...
The internet has revolutionised the way we communicate and consume and share information with each other. The rise of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter as well as the prevalence of fast internet connections means it's now more convenient than ever to share things electronically.
At its simplest, this can mean emailing things to people. Apple's Mail is great with attachments, and you can drag and drop documents into a new message to attach them. In the case of pictures, there's an option at the bottom-right corner of the message window to resize them prior to sending, which works beautifully. Movies can be dropped in as attachments too, and there's even a Photo Browser window that's able to access your iPhoto albums and even your Facebook albums online, if you have enabled this in iPhoto.
Of course it's also possible to send zipped archives, Microsoft Office and other types of documents. Mail generally encodes files properly, so it's rare to have that one of your contacts find they can't open a file you've sent them. The only thing to watch out for is message sizes: movies or large pictures can easily be over 10MB in size, and most ISPs have a message size limit of between 10 and 20MB. Any bigger than this and the mail may get rejected, so split files over several mails or use a file-hosting service such as Sendspace or Dropbox.
After upload you get a link to send to someone, and Sendspace has a downloadable desktop application to help you manage your transfers. Dropbox is even better since it has iOS client apps, so you can upload, download and manage files across all your devices as well as sharing them with others. It's a particularly elegant way to manage data both for yourself and for sharing across the internet with others.
There are other ways to send links and files to people using just your Mac. iChat is capable of sending files between two users if you simply drag and drop a file into a conversation. Other IM clients like Adium can do the same. Some offer encryption, and it makes sense to zip large groups of files together to minimise upload times, either using OS X's built-in compression tools (right click and choose 'Compress…') or a third-party app like Dropstuff, SimplyRAR or BetterZip.
Photo sharing is one of the most popular kinds of sharing, and iPhoto can share your photos across your local network and also to the internet, from the Share menu. You can send pictures straight to a MobileMe, Flickr or Facebook gallery, complete with metadata and other tags, straight from iPhoto.
If you're running OS X 10.7, you can sign in to iCloud and activate Photo Stream, which pushes all new pictures into the cloud. Your master collection is maintained on your Mac, but all pictures imported to iPhoto or Aperture will be viewable wirelessly on your iOS devices running iOS 5. Snaps you take on your iPhone or iPad will be viewable and downloadable in iPhoto on your Mac.
However, you're the only one with access to these. To create galleries to share with others you need to use the Flickr or Facebook options in iPhoto. There are a number of iOS photo-sharing apps such as Instagram, Camera Plus, Photoshop for iOS and iPhoto for iOS, all of which allow you to upload photos and albums directly to sites like Flickr, Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter.
But it's not only photos that get shared: video sharing is huge now as well, and iMovie lets you compress and upload your productions directly to YouTube, Facebook and Vimeo from your Mac. Pro-video apps such as Adobe Premiere and Apple's Final Cut Pro X also have amongst their many export options the choice to send movies to these sites, with more control than you get in consumer apps.
Obviously these are popular sites, which are advanced enough to handle high-definition content and process it in a reasonable time. You can share movies to these sites from iOS apps such as iMovie and Avid Studio as well, though you really need to be on a wireless connection due to the size of the file transfer involved.
SoundCloud is the go-to site for sharing your music tracks these days, with direct upload support built into many iOS apps and desktop music-creation packages like Cubase (though not yet available with GarageBand or Logic). Of course, you can just export an audio file then upload it to SoundCloud through a browser: it just takes a couple more steps.
SoundCloud is great because its audio players are supported on pretty much every platform, including iOS. It also allows the recording of audio straight into the site, from your Mac or from an iOS device.
iCloud is a great service but it is currently better for sharing your own documents across your own devices than for sharing with the world.
A more open-source alternative is to use Google Docs, a browser-based service that lets you create online documents and spreadsheets that others can access and edit with your permission.
Dropbox is another great solution for sharing documents online, though it allows upload and download of files, not actual online creation and editing, like Google Docs.
Sharing on the go
Even when you're on the road you can still share your stuff...
When you're away from home with a laptop, you can still access all of your Mac's sharing capabilities with a network connection. In fact you don't even need a Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection if you have an iPhone or 3G iPad.
With iOS 5 and the relevant bolt-on enabled with your cellular provider, you can use the Personal Hotspot feature built in to iOS to share the cellular connection to any compatible device including a laptop.
On your iPad 3G or iPhone 4 or later, go into the Settings > General > Network section and tap to turn on the Personal Hotspot feature. You're then able to create a mini wireless network over Wi-Fi and USB, and even over Bluetooth. On the device you can create a name for the network and set up a password, then it should appear as an available network on your laptop.
You can also use this to share your iPhone's connection with your Wi-Fi-only iPad. In other situations you may only have your iPad or iPhone with you, accessing either a 3G or wireless connection. In these cases you're still able to share a surprising amount of stuff from the device.
At a basic level, the Photos app allows you to select pictures to share over email or in a message, and you can do this with videos as well. Photos, movies and other documents can be copied and pasted into emails and iMessages. As long as they're relatively small (say under 20MB) they'll send even over 3G.
Apple doesn't allow much file management on iOS, but with the addition of a third-party app or two you can get better control over managing data. Downloads and Filer come in free 'lite' and paid-for versions, and are able to provide a basic file browser interface for managing files.
They also allow file sharing with your Mac both through iTunes and the provision of a web sharing service, where you can access the iPad or iPhone from your Mac's browser to transfer files. They allow you to download files from websites, copy them from Mail attachments and manage them centrally.
Filer allows connection to Dropbox, iDisk and WebDAV servers to upload and download files, and Downloads also has a very useful feature set for working with and opening all kinds of documents. Dropbox is a more complete solution because it works across your Mac and iOS devices, and allows comprehensive web-based sharing. It also has features such as the ability to control the quality of uploaded pictures and videos, so you can choose between better quality and faster uploads.
Google Docs is a great way to create, store and share documents from any mobile device, and it has a special mobile interface that works well on iOS. Other good mobile apps for sharing documents on the go include QuickOffice Pro HD, Documents To Go and Smart Office 2, with support for many sharing services including Box.net, iDisk and SugarSync amongst others.
Another thing that people want to do while they're out and about is listen to their music. But music collections are so big these days that few of them would fit on an iPad or iPhone, so we have to choose what to load up.
Or at least we did before iTunes Match came along. This £25-per-year service from Apple gives you access to your entire music library wirelessly wherever you are (with a few caveats). It works by analysing your music library in iTunes on your Mac then uploading the information to Apple's servers. It matches every song that has a copy in the iTunes Store and since it has the world's biggest digital store, most of your music will be on there. Anything that's not available can be uploaded from your hard drive, which takes a little time but only needs doing once.
On your iPad or iPhone you can turn on iTunes Match and instead of seeing the music on the device, you get access to your whole library in the cloud. Playlists are maintained and your Mac remains the master library, so any changes you make there are reflected across all your devices, including the purchase or addition of new content. So whenever you have a wireless connection you can play your music library on any of your devices, choosing from thousands of tracks.
It doesn't actually stream to your iPad - it downloads a track, but these can be deleted at any time and a master copy remains in the cloud. The best bit is that even if your original music tracks were low quality, the cloud versions are 256kbps, high-quality versions.
If you don't have iTunes Match you can still stream music using an alternative app like Spotify or Last.fm - the Last.fm-powered iPad client is called On Air. These let you set up playlists and access them over the air, though don't provide access to your music library. There is a charge for some aspects of the service like physical downloading of tracks in Spotify.
There are a number of other interesting mobile sharing apps like Bump, which lets you share contact information with people nearby, Foursquare which lets you share your location with other users and also Apple's own Find My Friends app, which does the same.
How to set up a Personal Hotspot
1. Turn it on
On your iPhone 4 or 3G-capable iPad, go to Settings and then the Personal Hotspot section. Tap to turn it on. This will only be available if your carrier plan includes the option to use the hotspot feature. If you don't have it, it can be added for a fee.
2. Connect to the network
On your laptop, click the AirPort icon and locate the network, which should bear the name of your phone or iPad. Click to join it and enter the wireless password as displayed in the setup screen and you should be sharing the cellular connection.
3. Connect an iPad
If you have a Wi-Fi-only iPad and want to share an iPhone's connection, use the same technique but connect to the wireless network using the iPad's wireless network selection screen inside Settings. Note, you might go through your data allowance quite quickly.
How to use iTunes Match
1. Set it up
In iTunes, make sure you're signed in with your Apple ID and subscribed to the service. Turn on iTunes Match from the Store menu. This can take a few hours, especially if you have a lot of items that need to be uploaded because they can't be matched.
2. Activate on iOS
On your iPad, go into Settings > Music and turn on iTunes Match. If you have a 3G model you'll also see the option to use a cellular connection for iTunes Match. Show All music can be turned off to only show music downloaded to the device.
3. Play music
Fire up the Music app and you'll see your playlists and tracks available to play. The cloud icon means the track is stored in the cloud; tap to manually download tracks or playlists. Swipe to delete a track from local storage - iTunes on your Mac maintains the master library file.
| |
Read More ...
Apple: 'Samsung's copying went far deeper than we knew'
Apple has responded to its landmark win in the US courts, following the decision to award it over $1bn (£660m) in damages.
The decision also sees Samsung gaining no damages from Apple, something the Cupertino brand is glad to see shows it has 'originality':
"We are grateful to the jury for their service and for investing the time to listen to our story and we were thrilled to be able to finally tell it.
"The mountain of evidence presented during the trail showed that Samsung's copying went far deeper than even we knew."
It's about more than phones
Apple is using the decision to trumpet its company ethos too, which is a great chance to do so ahead of the launch of the impending new iPhone 5:"The lawsuits between Apple and Samsung were about much more than patents or money. They were about values.
"At Apple, we value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth. We make these products to delight our customers, not for our competitors to flagrantly copy.
"We applaud the court for finding Samsung's behavior willful and for sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn't right."
From Engadget
| |
Read More ...
Available Tags:security , iOS , Windows 8 , Samsung , Windows , tablet , notebook , Amazon , UK , Apple , iPad , YouTube , iPhone ,
No comments:
Post a Comment