Found this off gHacks and its pretty splendid. I know alot of people buy national geographic magazines just so that they can admire the wonderfully taken pictures, but have you taught of where to find them and add them as wallpaper?
The National Geographic Wallpaper downloader is such a Windows application that downloads wallpapers from different magazines to your computer at different sizes.
The magazine wallpaper categories include wallpapers from the years 2007, 2008, 2009 as well as wallpapers from the International photography contests of 2009 and 2008.
The website wallpapers currently include the categories photography, animals, science, kids and environment. The developer has already promised to add more categories such as history, adventure, traveler or sea monsters to the next version of the National Geographic Wallpaper Downloader.
This morning, Steve Jobs Unveiled their tablet device called iPad. What do i think of it?
Specs
Display: 9.7″ IPS capacitive display, resolution unknown as of yet. Resolution of 1024 x 768
Weight: 1.5 pounds
Thickness: 0.5″
CPU: The Apple A4, a 1GHz ARM-based CPU powers the iPad.
Input: An on-screen keyboard is used for text, or an optional keyboard can be used. Gestures and touch also work. There is no handwriting input or recognition.
Connectivity: 802.11n Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth 2.1 +EDR, a U.S. contract-free 3G option is available for $14.99 for 250 MB per month or unlimited for $29.99 a month on AT&T which includes free AT&T hotspots. International deals by June, but all iPad 3G models are unlocked.
Storage: 16 to 64 GB of flash memory
Battery: Integrated 25 W/hr battery rated at 10 hours of video watching, web surfing over Wi-Fi or listening to audio.
Peripherals: A keyboard dock will charge the iPad. A case will also be available.
I think its great specs. But its not game changing specs. These Specs are comparable to tablet device we will see coming out nowadays such as the Archos 5. Its actually better!
I believe all the Apple Wannabes will be following this specs.
Pricing
$499 for the base model with 16GB. $599 for 32 GB. $699 for 64GB. 3G adds $130 to any non-3G model.
Seriously i think this price is not bad at all especially for the WIFI only model at USD 500. That will be around SGD 730 which will feel the same as my MSI Wind Netbook.
It is abit steep from my SGD600 buying point but i will go for it if i need it for reasons i will explain below. This device currently commands a USD100 premium over other device.
When will it be available
Shipping in 60 days for Wi-Fi models, 3G models to follow 30 days prior.
What is it attacking?
From the size of the iPad it is fighting the Kindle definitely but also providing that variety for my favorite device space currently which is 5 inch to 7 inch device.
Will it work? I believe it will nullify their threat, especially Android.
Why will it work?
This ecosystem that apple is building with iTunes as the main entertainment operating system is getting so strong.
Because they are so strong they are essentially becoming like a media company. Now not just providing reasonable price Songs, Videos, Games and Applications, they are going to provide Books! Totally one stop shopping for what i do most of the time!
The Best thing really is that if i were to evaluate between buying those wannabe device, or kindle for reading i will choose this at this pricing because it provides a one stop platform.
Whats the one thing that tilts it to this device favor? Existing iPhone OS apps will work on this device. It is this that i am willing to pay for a $100 premium if necessary.
Why? I own at least 10 good USD 9.99 apps and they will work on this device. I don’t have to repay for them again and will enjoy the upgrades that these app developers do to make it work on this iPad.
If i were to buy say another Android device, i need to first find equivalent apps on the Android device and i need to pay another cost for them. Its not gonna be that cheap!
That is, if you don’t buy another device and go for pirated software.
If i were to buy another Android device, i will need to build up my games list again. All existing games should work on this device.
How will the performance be like?
I think it will be good. Judging by the initial video. on 1GHZ Arm this thing will fly. And its not Android which is Laggy
How you will read on the iPad
Now Apple have a bookstore front that enables you to buy books off iBook Store.
That doesn’t mean Kindle and Barnes and Noble won’t work on your iPad. Both have apps that enable you to purchase books and read them.
For your third party books, PDF and pirated books you can use STanza
The best reader on the App Store. FREE and enables you to read all your existing books. Endorsed by Productive Organizer.
How would you Get Things Done on your iPad
The strength of the app store is that it have tons of third party developers vying with one another to develop the best calendar, the best todo list, the best mind manager, the best notes reader and writer.
You will get to use all your existing applications on the iPad and i believe they have a very nice calendar app on the iPad
Check out my list of Apps that you can port over to help you get things done:
If you are a die hard OneNote user and would like to have an application that syncs with your desktop OneNote Notebooks, and access it offline, then you should give this a try.
By far one of the more expensive to do list software but its well worth the money you paid for this. Syncs with Remember the Milk or Toodledo, or Mac Desktop and follows David Allen’s Getting Things Done methods. Endorsed by Productive Organizer.
If Appigo ToDo is too complex or expensive for you, you can always go for the cheaper option eToDo. Just as good and great workout for a Getting Things Done beginner.
How would you game on the iPad
The iPhone OS have tons of affordable games around the price of USD9.99 or less. If you have existing games on the iPhone you can have access to them on this iPad as well.
I just tried the new Google Chrome 4.0 and have to say that this might be the one that equates Chrome to firefox. The main improvements for this version is such:
Extensions
Bookmark sync
Enhanced developer tools
HTML5: Notifications, Web Database, Local Storage, WebSockets, Ruby support
v8 performance improvements
Skia performance improvements
Full ACID3 pass, due to re-enabled remote font support (with added defense against bugs in operating system font libraries)
HTTP byte range support
New security feature: “Strict Transport Security” support
Experimental new anti-reflected-XSS feature called “XSS Auditor”
Needless to say the best change is the incorporation of extensions. Chrome have always been seen as a faster browser but not having that customization feature really stops people from switching to it.
I’m So Excited that i installed my favorite must have add-ons and are happy most of them are here!
it looks like Google Reader is having the same headers as that of calendar and gmail. As it now looks, it seems to be no different from those App Store software like Mobile RSS Reader and NetNewsWire.
This morning Google release their public DNS service and after testing it, for a small configuration it seems to be speeding up my browsing. We got to do more testing to find out.
The DNS Server IP addresses are 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4
Anyway, to configure this:
Go the Control Panel.
Click Network and Internet, then Network and Sharing Center, then Manage network connections.
Select the connection for which you want to configure Google Public DNS. For example:
To change the settings for an Ethernet connection, right-click Local Area Connection, and click Properties.
To change the settings for a wireless connection, right-click Wireless Network Connection, and click Properties.
If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
Select the Networking tab. Under This connection uses the following items, click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4), and then click Properties.
Click Advanced and select the DNS tab. If there are any DNS server IP addresses listed there, write them down for future reference, and remove them from this window.
Click OK.
Select Use the following DNS server addresses. If there are any IP addresses listed in the Preferred DNS server or Alternate DNS server, write them down for future reference.
Replace those addresses with the IP addresses of the Google DNS servers: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4.
With the popularity of Ebook readers like Sony, Kindle and Nook, we might be seeing a shift in the magazine and newspaper market.
Warren Buffett the legendary investor who invests in Washington Post, famously u-turn and declared that this industry is going to die and I have to say he has a point.
The iPhone really change this with its 3.5 inch screen because at that size it can be a good e book reader. Even nowadays i read story books and pdf books using Good Reader on my iPod and i enjoyed it. If not i can read it off Safari which is not too shabby.
With the coming of iTablet and 5-10 inch mobile devices, the book and magazine publishers cannot ignore this segment.
Source says that Time and other publishers are looking at setting up a single web portal for downloading magazines from all different companies to any reader device as well as ordering print copies. The sources described it as like iTunes, but for magazines.
The venture is being driven by Time Inc and Time’s Executive VP John Squires. The companies in on the venture include Time Inc., Condé Nast and Hearst. Between those three they publish more than 50 magazines, such as The New Yorker,Vanity Fair, Vogue, Time, People, Sports Illustrated, Esquire and O, The Oprah Magazine.
The e-magazines will be designed to run on all possible platforms, including iPhones, Ebook Readers, PCs and tablets. No ebooks will be involved, just magazines. The report says the deal is not finalized since more publishers may be coming into the deal, but it could be announced within weeks the next few weeks.
The way i see it they have to offer it in PDF or a universal format. if no universal format is reached the success of this portal will eventually make this an universal format.
What we will see:
The transformation of publishing industry and the cost and revenue associated with it
I found this experimental Add-on for Firefox that is really good. I am sure you guys always have tabs that you always want to be open when you launch your browser. What App Tab is able to do is:
Keep tabs as a small thumbnail. You can have more estate space to put more tabs
Locked tabs as application tabs . This will prevent you from accidentally closing tabs
Here is a what i am using right now. Noticed that i have completely removed my Navigational bar and My Bookmark bar such that i only have 2 rows of bars.
I always go to my Google Reader, Productive Organizer and Hardwarezone Market place so i kept these tabs permanent. I can close them if i uncheck them as “App Tabs”. If i don’t i can’t close them so it works well for me.
This will be useful for folks that wanna keep Gmail, Calendar on permanent without taking up too much space.
I have added this Add-On to Productive Organizer Collection of Add-On. You can download the full Firefox Collection pack or standalone
Some of you would prefer to have a To Do List as a desktop client but would like it to assess a task database on the web. There is a solution for Remember the Milk, now it seems there is one for Google Tasks.
Actually it does more than that.It actually displays google’s application on mobile on an Adobe Air client. Thus the requirement is that you need to install Adobe Air.
I seriously sometimes wonder the rational of this.Everyone knows that the mobile apps are more limited then the desktop web application. So in that case why would someone want one on the desktop? The only reason is if you want to put a small task list at the side of your dual screen setup so that you can take a look at it. if not why not just alt tab to your browser?
Its not often i reviewed Blackberry application but Screaming Toaster seem to have come up with a good application with DulyNoted Pro.
The mind map here explains everything about DulyNoted Pro. Bascially, if you are looking for a solution to capture your thoughts or notes anywhere and you so happen to have your blackberry with you all the time (which most of you are!) this would be a good solution for you.
Your notes will be sync with the cloud server so that you can have access to your notes from any browser.
Been a fan of Evernote and certainly hope this solution at $10 per year leaves up to it. Do give it a try and tell me what you think.
The productive organizer is one who is in control of himself as well as his surroundings.He studies how others define their system and works to improve on it and in turn, educate others how to change their lives.
Here, we hope to bring you the necessary widgets to effectively organize how you work or play. Whether you are at work, on the move, or at home, we will find the right solution for you to get things done.
Its not often i reviewed Blackberry application but Screaming Toaster seem to have come up with a good application with DulyNoted Pro.
