JT's Blog

Ken Ray of Mac OS Ken does live call in show each week via Ustream.  I decided to weigh in on the iPad conversation of the night.  Mac OS Ken is a daily Apple News podcast.  He has an app for it and also provides the recorded audio of the Mac OS Ken Live as a podcast.  If your a fan of Apple and want to get caught up on news about Apple daily, subscribe to Ken’s shows, they are a must.

Do you regret giving out your email address for an online purchase, for an online account or sent an email to a friend or family member who ultimately messes up and gives that address to some marketer? Do you regret it more knowing you paid $99.00 a year for the email address? If you have, worry no longer.  With MobileMe account you can create up to five aliases following these easy steps:

1. Log into me.com
2. Click the gear icon in Mail
3. Choose Preferences
4. Click the Addresses Option
5. Click then Add button (note below) to Create a New Alias
6. Choose your new Alias, enter the name and click done

Now keep in mind that this address will still forward email to your main account, but you can set up a rule to block incoming mail from alias email address.

Have you ever set up Google Voice with your iPhone?  Well if you ever want to stop Google Voice from being your iPhone’s default voicemail then follow these simple steps:

1. To deactivate forwarding and return to regular visual voicemail enter ##61# and hit call.
2. If you are on AT&T in the United States and you not only want to deactivate regular voicemail but your busy voicemail as well, enter ##004# and hit call.

In case you are asking why?, well lets just say Google Voice is not all that it is cracked up to be.

The Apple TV is more than just a hobby to me. When I purchased the device earlier this year I began converting my DVD library for use on the Apple TV.

As I began to import movies I found myself searching Google for poster artwork, as well manually selecting the movie genre. Unlike imported music, iTunes has a hard time importing movie art. Additionally, I wanted to include each movie’s description, but there wasn’t an easy way to find this information.

In the July 10th issue of MacLife I came across the Google utility Subler. Once downloaded simply drag the converted file onto the Subler icon. Alternatively, add Subler to the Application folder on OS X and open files from the menu bar.  Next click the search button and search for the movie. After deciding on the description and artwork click save.

The results of each search may vary depending on the movie. Once completed import the movie into iTunes and the saved information will appear once synced with your Apple TV, iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch device.

I have not received an iPhone 4, but I was able to download iOS 4 on June 21st. It took 20 min to download, install and sync. Others reported different download and install times. It depended on how the download was started and the amount of applications that need to sync.

It took a while to get use to using, but iOS 4 is done very well. Below is a hands on video that can explain the features much better than I can. My favorite parts to the new OS include the following:

• Digital zoom with the Camera, being able to zoom in was certainly missing.  Now can we get some better focus.
• Separating my apps into folders and reducing my pages to 2 is great.  It will take a bit of getting use to now that they are in folders.
• The new iPod controls with the swipe is great as you can lock the screen position.  Being able to keep the iPod in one position while I drive makes me a better driver.

I used my 3GS with iOS 4 today at work, and despite my best efforts to conserve energy, I was down to 68% by the end of my 8 to 5 shift. My use consisted of checking RSS, Twitter, Facebook, Mail, and iPod. The iPod ran most of the day, but I made a few phone calls. The battery life, or lack there of, is not a deal breaker for the new OS.  Being asked every time I first use an app if I want to allow location based service is wearing on me.   Of course many of my apps are not fully ready for multitasking. I can’t wait for the Slacker App to have multitasking.

For a free upgrade I am very happy with the new OS, but battery life may force my hand to buy a Mophie Juice Pack. In the end depending on your iPhone or iPod Touch or how you use your device your milage may vary.  Enjoy!