Another Day, Another Visit to USPS
Posted September 18th, 2014 @ 09:08am by Erik J. Barzeski
Lowest Score Wins continues to do well. Here's a video Dave shot that can work with your 3-15 foot putts (an SV② skill).
Posted September 18th, 2014 @ 09:08am by Erik J. Barzeski
Lowest Score Wins continues to do well. Here's a video Dave shot that can work with your 3-15 foot putts (an SV② skill).
Posted September 17th, 2014 @ 10:34pm by Erik J. Barzeski
Just a bunch of stuff…
My iPhone 6 arrives in two days. Meanwhile, iOS 8 is on my 5S today… 😀
Maps still crappy for you? Apple bolstering 'Report A Problem' Maps options in iOS 8
iOS 8 Features: Hidden New Features - How "hidden" they are depends on how large the rock under which you've been living is, I suppose. Most are pretty good though.
Get to know iOS 8: Changes in the Settings app - A good run-down.
Seven privacy settings you should change immediately in iOS 8 - Meh. I also don't have an "Only when Using" setting in most of my apps. And most of these settings are not new.
How To Fix iOS 8's Biggest Annoyances - Of course, not all of these are annoyances to all. Predictive text you can turn on and off with the little nub, for example.
18 hidden iOS 8 features you probably didn't know about - If you haven't set up your emergency contact card yet, please do so now. For your sake.
The iPhone 6 (Plus) Camera was reviewed really well. I think the cameras are identical in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus except for optical image stabilization (6 Plus only).
Posted September 16th, 2014 @ 02:38pm by Erik J. Barzeski
That was easy. I unlocked the three iPhones we have in our family just like that.
I filed a request (at Customer Device Unlock- Request). I waited at least 24 hours (though I probably didn't need to). I backed up and restored each phone.
Just like that, unlocked.
P.S. The iPhone 4S will be going to Gazelle, I believe.
Posted September 15th, 2014 @ 07:24am by Erik J. Barzeski
Each are relatively easily explained. The coolest ones, though, are the the ones with water at the freezing point… And it's easier to get water at that point than you may think: it stays 32° until it all turns to ice.
I did notice too how the "screen/toothpicks" one, the top of the jar is out of the bottom of the frame. 🙂
Posted September 14th, 2014 @ 07:42pm by Erik J. Barzeski
Posted September 13th, 2014 @ 02:10pm by Erik J. Barzeski
Details on Apple Pay revealed: 'safer' system, Apple gets 0.15 percent - Takeaway? It's pretty safe. I look forward to using Apple Pay.
AT&T To Get iPhone 6-Friendly WiFi Calling In 2015 - Cool. I get reasonable signal inside already, but I know some people who could use better service in their homes or offices.
The video below is pretty funny. He's wrong about the security part, but the rest is spot on.
xkcd: Watches nails it. So does Alex. And of course Ellen does too:
So excited for the Apple Watch. For centuries, we’ve checked the time by
looking at our phones. Having it on your wrist? Genius. #AppleLive
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) September 9, 2014
If you don't like U2, you can hide their album from your iTunes Library.
Last, but not least, I want to read this soon: A Watch Guy's Thoughts On The Apple Watch After Seeing It In The Metal
P.S. I still have zero interest in getting an Apple Watch. None whatsoever.
P.P.S. I'm sad that the iPod Classic is gone. I watched this initial iPod presentation. For some reason I'm too lazy to look up now, I could swear Steve introduced it in Japan or something.
Posted September 12th, 2014 @ 01:50pm by Erik J. Barzeski
I first tried reloading the http://store.apple.com/us/buy-iphone/iphone6 URL a few times throughout yesterday evening. After all, Apple said they'd go on sale at midnight, and midnight occurs east of here at about 7pm.
Unsuccessfully, I stayed up until about 12:20pm, thinking that maybe - just maybe - Apple would start selling things when the east coast of the U.S. hit midnight. I figured there was about a 0.1% chance, but it's not like I go to bed very early anyway.
At 2:36am, my alarm went off.
I walked into my office, and reloaded the page. As expected, "We'll be back." I checked in on Twitter to see who else was awake at that time. I texted a friend to make sure he was awake.
And then we waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Posted September 11th, 2014 @ 10:56am by Erik J. Barzeski
I don't like it.
You're selling products, people. You're not really making the world a better place for war-torn countries, starving infants, cancer patients, etc. Let's not get so full of ourselves that we make stupid videos like this.
Seriously, yuck. This is not how Apple got to where they were. This is not "Think Different" all over again. That had a time and a place, and a tone. This one misses the mark.
Posted September 10th, 2014 @ 11:24am by Erik J. Barzeski
Let's talk about margins. Book margins, mind you…
Now's as good a time as any to point out that Lowest Score Wins – Shoot Lower Scores on the Golf Course NOW has one-inch margins set throughout, and is printed on 70# paper with 12pt covers.
Posted September 10th, 2014 @ 11:15am by Erik J. Barzeski
Common App Rejections - App Store - Apple Developer
I like the "Top 10 reasons for app rejections during the 7‑day period ending August 28, 2014." section.
2% - Guideline 2.9: Apps that are "beta", "demo", "trial", or "test" versions will be rejected
Duh.
Posted September 10th, 2014 @ 08:30am by Erik J. Barzeski
Inside Apple’s Live Event Stream Failure, And Why It Happened: It Wasn’t A Capacity Issue
Unlike the last live stream Apple did, this time around Apple decided to add some JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) code to the apple.com page which added an interactive element on the bottom showing tweets about the event. As a result, this was causing the page to make refresh calls every few milliseconds. By Apple making the decision to add the JSON code, it made the apple.com website un-cachable.
Read the comments on the article above for more depth. Some people don't agree with the theories espoused in the article. For example, one starts off:
I would not give the author any credibility here. He speaks as if he understands dynamic web applications, but fails to understand the difference between JSON, JavaScript and AJAX.
Another:
Quick question then. If the problem was with the code on the webpage, how come this happened on every platform? Meaning, even on the Apple TV.
Another:
The web stream, after about half an hour, started to work flawlessly. Unless you claim that Apple completely rewrote the web page code in that time, I don't see how your theory could possibly be correct. And as others here have noted, the AppleTV feed also had issues, although the faulty page coding you blame was not part of it.
In other words, the article is junk, but the comments are gold.
P.S. My stream worked after about 30 minutes as well.
Posted September 9th, 2014 @ 11:03pm by Erik J. Barzeski
iPhone 6: Will buy immediately (wife gets my 5S, child gets her 5). Might even get Space Grey (white). Buying outright, contract-free.
Watch: Would have bought instantly at $99. Would have considered buying it at $199. $349 is probably the best pricing they could offer, so… it would have been impossible to get one on my wrist (unless someone gifts one to me, and I'm not asking…).
Pay: Cool. But here in BFE (Erie is the "E" :-D), I'm not sure I'll get a chance to use it very much.
P.S. When something goes on sale on "Friday," what time zone is that?
Posted September 8th, 2014 @ 08:49am by Erik J. Barzeski
Brian X. Chen:
To deal with concerns that a bigger phone will make typing with one hand difficult (the current iPhone has a four-inch screen), some changes to the design of the iPhones’ user interface will allow people to type or use apps with just one hand; there will be a one-handed mode that can be switched on and off, two employees said.
I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, Oh, that can’t be. Samsung tried that and it was ridiculous. Haha, the New York Times got punked.
The thing is, I’m not laughing. You wanted Apple to make a 5.5-inch iPhone? This is what you get.
Posted September 7th, 2014 @ 08:45am by Erik J. Barzeski
Posted September 6th, 2014 @ 10:59am by Erik J. Barzeski
Seeing Through the Illusion: Understanding Apple’s Mastery of the Media by 9to5Mac is a long but interesting piece on Apple's mastery of the media.