WiFi--iPod Touch, iPad, More

The first release of Apple's iPad is the WiFi version that makes it act much like the iPod Touch--though with a 9.5 inch (25 cm) screen.

I have been using the iPod Touch and its WiFi capabilities since July, 2009.  I really appreciate the apps and its functionality.  I can use it for eMail, for surfing using Google and Safari, and for a variety of other apps, audiobooks, movies, photos, voice memos, etc.

GPS is one of the weakest applications on the iPod Touch.  I understand its functionality is much better on the iPhone.  When I provide the addresses, the iPod Touch uses Google Maps and provides me directions to get to a variety of addresses.

My GPS for the car (a TomTom) is not working properly and it's great to have the back-up via the iPod Touch.  One of the problems of the WiFi iPod Touch (and, potentially, for the current WiFi iPad) is that many of its apps work only when connected to the Internet via a WiFi network.  While there are many WiFi networks available, there is not yet universal access.

Reading Books on-screen)-Kindle for PC and Kindle for iPhone and iPod Touch

Yesterday I was attending the Virtual Edge Summit 2010 as a virtual participant using the Virtual Beginnings VirtualU 3D software.  Byron Reeves, one of the keynote speakers, mentioned a book he had co-authored--Total Engagement.

In the summer of 2008, I took five graduate courses from the University of Phoenix Online to qualify for some Illinois state approvals for my teaching certificate.  While working on those graduate courses, I became comfortable reading books on-screen.  All of the articles and textbooks used in these courses were available from the University of Phoenix library or other sources as downloads.  I worked with Adobe Acrobat Pro to highlight and to make annotations to all of the on-screen reading material.

Of course I went to Amazon.com to look for the book and found that it was available in a Kindle edition--for a better price than the hard cover edition.  I remembered my experiences with the reading for the University of Phoenix and looked to see if Kindle was available for the PC.  Amazon has a Kindle App for the PC and, via Apple's iTunes App Store, a Kindle App for the iPhone and iPod Touch.  (Amazon is building a Kindle App for the Mac.)  These Apps are free.  Once the Apps and the machines are registered with Amazon.com, customers can purchase the Kindle editions.  Even better, once the Kindle edition has been purchased, it can be read on both the iPhone/iPod Touch and the PC.  Amazon has built-in some annotation software so that I can make the same kinds of annotations I did using Adobe Acrobat Pro.

I downloaded and registered the Apps and purchased and downloaded the Kindle version of Total Engagement.  I started reading it on my iPod Touch last night.

The Apple iPad is coming and I did some research last year on eBook readers--Kindle, Sony, and BeBook,  a European competitor.  I was horrified to hear about the price of a data package for the iPad being marketed by AT&T.  I enjoy my iPod Touch and could see the iPad as an easier-to-read extension of the iPod Touch.  I don't pay AT&T anything directly for the iPod Touch--it's covered in my AT&T bundle of services for my home computer and mobile devices.

I am delighted to be able to read Kindle books on both my iPod Touch and PC.  I am already working with eAudiobooks from Audible.com (an Amazon company) and from the public library (using NetLibrary).  It's nice to add a new resource for the information I am looking for.

Apple's Innovations and Steve Jobs

ABC World News made Steve Jobs their person of the week this week.  Starting out of his garage in 1976, Steve Jobs has seen Apple grow and its innovations pervade the marketplace of ideas and technology.

My first PC was an Apple--shortly after it was invented.  In 1990 I wrote my dissertation on a Macintosh at the university computer lab and purchased my first Apple in 1991.  I have been using Apple and Macintosh computers for years--then had to convert to Windows-based computers for business and later for schools.  (I am still a Mac-fanatic at heart.)

I have fallen in love with my iPod Touch (32Gs) and use it in the wifi mode for everything from surfing the web to e-mail to listening to audio books and more.  The iPad (Apple Tablet by whatever name it may end up with) appears to be a larger version of the iPod Touch--just with updated software and some Macintosh capabilities built in.  (Of course I want an iPad and an iPhone.  I'd be an early adapter except for the new economy.)

A suggestion to Steve and Apple based on my research on improving reading and academic performance, get the iPad to synchronize unabridged eBooks and eAudioBooks so that students can read and listen at the same time.  I've done that with students, especially English language learners, with good results.  In practicing Spanish, I've also listened to a book in English and read the unabridged book in Spanish simultaneously.

I hope that the app process for the iPod Touch and the iPhone will work for the new iPad as well.

Mac vs PC--Marketing at the Apple Store

Mac vs PC takes on a new dimension at the Apple Store on North Michigan Avenue in Chicago.  I went there with two friends today for a series of workshops on how to work with the Macintosh computers, the iPhone, and the iPod Touch.  While there I received free tech support at the iPod bar (across from the "Genius" bar) regarding using Netlibrary with iTunes.

The workshops, also free, provided a good introduction into how to work with the Macintosh and its integrated programs.  I first worked on an Apple computer in 1979 and have always been "addicted" to the Macintosh while working with multiple PCs.

The advent of the iPhone, the iPod Touch, and the latest generation of Macintosh computers and Snow Leopard are moving me to return to the Macintosh at last.  I have recommended the Mac to friends and family just getting started on computers and have consistently found that they enjoy their computer experience tremendously working on the Macintosh.

A few years ago I flew with an Apple executive from California to Chicago and almost switched then.  My problem at the time was that I had too much invested in software that only ran on a PC.

With the new Macintosh programs, those issues have largely faded into the woodwork.  I enjoy my iPod Touch (3Gs, 32GB) and look forward to getting an iPhone (3Gs, 32GB or 64GB) in the near future.  Shortly after that I expect to transition to a MacBook Pro laptop and, later, an iMac with a 27-inch flat screen display.

Global Positioning System--Finding Our Way, Finding Each Other

Global Positioning System (GPS)--consists of a network of satellites linked together to pinpoint locations on the planet.  GPS Navigation Devices--produced by Magellan, Garmin, TomTom, Nextar, and others with applications for the iPhone--allow almost everyone to take advantage of the GPS to navigate from place to place using maps.  Multiple users can even find each other using two GPS navigation units.  Many of these (like the iPhone) are hand-held devices and, while they may be used in vehicles, they can also be used by pedestrians.

The Astrolabe  and the Mariner's astrolabe allowed ancient astronomers and navigators to determine positioning using triangulation.  The GPS of today brings this process to pinpoint accuracy.

Communication--Bridges and Barriers

Benjamin Franklin advocated a standard fee for postal service regardless of the distance involved.  The fee was for delivery, not transport.

In the past, telephone companies charged high fees to recover costs for undersea cable and satellites.  Today telecommunications is much more affordable and may more closely resemble the postal delivery concepts advocated by Benjamin Franklin.

U.S. Cellular offers free incoming wireless calls in the USA.  Most cellular services outside the USA offer free incoming wireless calls.  A friend who is positively addicted to his iPhone found out that AT&T charges US$2.50 per minute for wireless use (data or voice) from the Caribbean.  He sent a note on Facebook.com that he would be "out of touch" on his 10-day cruise.

MagicJack.com and many other Internet-based telephone service providers provide easy access for local and international calling and greatly reduced fees.  Skype (developed by eBay) now offers a free collaborative service that is similar to that provided by paid Webinar providers.

Free e-mail has had a significant impact on the United States Postal Service.  The Internet is a great bridge to communication, allowing people to connect all over the world.  Some of the fees charged by telephone and telecommunications companies are a barrier to this communication.

Most of us like staying connected.  We need to influence a lowering of fees and barriers to this connected communication.

". . . There's an 'app' for that."

I downloaded the free application (app) called "Bump" from the Apple iTunes Store this morning. Apple iTunes has been open for a little more than a year and "Bump" (as I remember) said that it was proud to be the billionth application available for download.

I have the iPod Touch (2nd Generation)  running the 3.0 operating system.  It can work with almost all of the apps available. I just purchased an external microphone for the iPod Touch, so now I can work with all of the apps that call for recording. I just can't take photos or work with the telephone features. To run on the Internet I need to be at a WiFi location.

Enough "tecky" stuff. Apple has done a great job and I can see more and more people getting great value from these products and apps. It was good timing, too, for the introduction of these things.

After downloading "Bump" to my PC and then synchronizing it to my iPod Touch, I downloaded a few more free apps and tested them out--along with their PC-based versions. There are some phenomenonal apps and I found myself investing most of the day in learning how to work the new apps and more expansive PC-based software. One of the best things I found was a new software for making movies of what you do on the PC. The name of the product is "Jing" and it is produced by TechSmith software (http://www.techsmith.com)--makers of SnagIt and several other terrific products I have used for years. I downloaded the free version of Jing and it will allow me to make a free, five-minute movie that I can post to websites, etc. This is just what I need for some presentations and webinars and podcasts I hope to be producing in the near future.

So, did I waste my time "playing" with some apps today? I probably did, though I also added to my personal creativity and found some new tools I needed to get my work done--when I get "down to work."