Tim Cook rumors affect Apple, HP stock

Late yesterday morning, a rumor hit the the Internet suggesting that Apple’s COO Tim Cook was going to leave the company to become HP’s CEO. As a result, Apple’s stock took a dip while HP’s showed a sudden spike.

In morning trading, Apple’s stock fell nearly US$17 (or 5%), while HP’s rose by more than $0.40 (over 1%). Clearly, investors like Tim Cook, and saw his rumored departure as detrimental to Apple and a win for HP. Fortunately for Cupertino, it’s not true.

Cook quickly denied the rumor, saying that he “…loves Apple” and is not going to HP. In January of this year, there was a rumor that Cook would become the CEO of GM, which also turned out to be false.

You’ll remember that Cook took over as interim CEO during Steve Jobs’s medical leave of absence in early 2009. The company successfully released several new products with Cook at the top, and many believe that he’s in the running to eventually take over for Jobs.

[Via The Mac Observer]

TUAWTim Cook rumors affect Apple, HP stock originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Sep 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple’s Q4 earnings call will take place Oct. 18

Can Apple continue the string of unprecedented financial success? Will the 4th quarter of 2010 (ending tomorrow, September 30th) be even more successful than the 3rd quarter, now that the iPad has had time to dominate the market for three more months and the iPhone 4 has overcome the negative “grip of death” publicity?

We’ll all find out on October 18th, when Tim Cook, Steve Jobs, and a rogue’s gallery of tech analysts bring us the 4th quarter earnings call for Apple Inc. As usual, TUAW will be providing a liveblog of the event, complete with commentary by our staff of bloggers. The event usually starts about 5 PM ET, and we’ll be sure to give you a heads-up as the day approaches.

[via The Mac Observer]

TUAWApple’s Q4 earnings call will take place Oct. 18 originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Italian Tourism official not too happy with iPhone travel app

iPhone travel app What Country describes Italy as “Pizza, Mafia, Pasta and Scooters.” That isn’t sitting too well with Italian Tourism Minister Michela Vittoria Brambilla, who says that the app’s description of her country is offensive. She is threatening legal action against the developers, Apalon of Belarus.

The US$0.99 app is rated pretty highly by users on the App Store, and it’s described as having “a light-hearted and funny view of the world.”

The Minister, for her part, says that “Italy is a beacon in the world for its history, culture and style, and as a citizen and minister, I cannot allow that our country is discredited by the use of a criminal organization as its testimonial.” But Italy isn’t the only country with a less-than-complimentary description. The app describes Germany as “Beer, discipline and autobahns.”

I can’t see a lawsuit in a case like this getting too far, but the publicity probably won’t hurt the app any, either.

TUAWItalian Tourism official not too happy with iPhone travel app originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A quick roundup of iOS text editors with Dropbox support

This morning we received word from Jesse Grosjean at Hog Bay Software that his new app, PlainText (free, in-app purchase to remove ads), is now available on the App Store. It’s one of several iOS text editors that feature support for Dropbox, so we thought a quick roundup of these apps was in order. If you’re thinking about joining me for NaNoWriMo 2010 starting on November 1st, it’s a good idea to think about what device(s) you’ll be writing on and getting your writing software ready to roll as soon as you can. Text editors make excellent writing tools, since they’re bare bones and don’t get in the way of putting words onto “paper.”

First, let’s take a look at PlainText (see screenshot above). Hog Bay Software is the same company that publishes the wonderful WriteRoom application for Mac and iPhone, which we’ve covered many times here on TUAW.

Once PlainText is installed on your iPad (it also works on iPhone and iPod touch), you can tap the settings button to change Dropbox settings, turn on TextExpander support, or lock the screen orientation. Since I wanted to test several of these text editors with Dropbox but did not want to have a ton of new folders created in my Dropbox, I loved the fact that I could link to an existing folder. As soon as your Dropbox credentials have been verified, more settings become available. Most of those are related to when synchronization takes place.

According to a note from Grosjean, there can be an issue when files are not saved on a computer using UTF-8 encoding. If a file is opened with PlainText and appears blank, the computer didn’t save the file with the proper encoding. What’s interesting is that I had this issue with another text editor app, and the developer of that app didn’t seem to know what the problem was.

TUAWA quick roundup of iOS text editors with Dropbox support originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TUAW’s Daily App: Movie Night Out

Movie Night Out is a fun and free little app that can help with that seemingly ever-present question: “So what do you want to do tonight?” It’s a piece of cake to use. Just punch in what you want to do for your movie night (maybe hit up some shopping, see the movie, and then grab dessert, or do dinner, check out an action hit, and then get coffee). The app will automatically find some options for each of your choices and put together a schedule that will let you do all three. You can check out information and reviews for all of the options, and even map out, share on Facebook or Twitter, or save your “night” for another time. There’s not really anything here that you can’t find in other apps, but the smooth interface and fun randomization of your choices make the free app worth a download.

If there’s an issue, the app probably depends on where you’re looking. I happened to try the app in the middle of Hollywood, and I’m pretty certain that if I tried it in a less populated place, there wouldn’t have been as many places to go. The schedules were also a little fast; sometimes the app only offered 10 minutes to move from one place to another, even when they were a few miles apart (maybe that’s easy to do elsewhere, but not so quick in the middle of Los Angeles). But nobody’s really going to follow a schedule created by an app on movie night, right? If you find yourself needing some new suggestions the next time you want to head out on the town, give this one a download.

TUAWTUAW’s Daily App: Movie Night Out originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Sep 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TUAW review: DomainBrain

I’m not much of a collector, but I do have an inordinate number of websites and domains to my name. How did that happen? You get an idea, buy a domain, and set up a site. Repeat that process a few times, and you find yourself in my situation.

What’s worse is that I’ve been storing the login creds, database details, registrar information, and so much more in text files. Trying to find any bit of data is a real hassle, not to mention a security risk. Thank goodness for DomainBrain. This super piece of software from Anthony Piraino of One Button Mouse has relieved me of my stacks of text files, organized all of that information, and made anything I’m after instantly retrievable. Here’s our review of DomainBrain.

Click for more on the next page, and check out the gallery of images below.

TUAWTUAW review: DomainBrain originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New iOS developer betas posted

Apple has posted several new betas for members of the paid iOS developer program. Point your browser to the developer site, and use your credentials to log in. You’ll find new betas for iOS 4.2 as well as several other items that we’re not sure we can specifically mention without breaking NDAs.

Download. Enjoy. Have fun.

Thank you everyone who pinged us!

TUAWNew iOS developer betas posted originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 19:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fable 3 getting ‘smartphone’ tie-in game called ‘Kingmaker’

Just the other day, I was talking about larger gaming companies using iPhone games to promote their major titles, and here you go: Microsoft and Lionhead Studios’ Peter Molyneaux are set to introduce a “smartphone” game next week (presumably that means iPhone, although given that it’s Microsoft, it might not be) that will tie-in to the upcoming Fable 3 release on the Xbox 360. The game will be called “Kingmaker,” and it sounds like it’ll be an augmented reality title, with UK players able to explore their real-world town and “plant virtual flags for the Royals or the Rebels.” Every flag planted will earn in-game gold, and that gold will transfer over to the full console title when it is released later this year.

Unfortunately, there are still a few questions — a release about the game only mentions the UK, and of course, that “smartphone” label means it might not be coming to the iPhone. But there’s not long to wait, at least. The official site for the game says it’s coming out on October 1st. We’ll keep an eye on both the site and the game — even if this doesn’t end up being an iPhone title, there’s no question that other developers will be watching to see how it works, and thinking about how they might use this strategy for their own titles.

TUAWFable 3 getting ‘smartphone’ tie-in game called ‘Kingmaker’ originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SHAtter Exploit Based Jailbreak Release in Days [not Week]?

Pod2g, the hacker behind SHAtter exploit has tweeted something interesting while responding to someone asking when we should expect Greenpois0n jailbreak “the release date be count by days or week ?”

Checkout Pod2g’s response after the jump…
shatter jailbreak
shatter jailbreak

Dev-team has already implemented SHAtter exploit into PwnageTool and a fews days ago MuscleNerd demoed an iPod Touch 4G jailbreak using a SHAtter based PwnageTool. iPhoneWiki has also been updated with SHAtter entry. All these pieces of info., once connected, enforce our belief that Greenpois0n, PwnageTool or any new SHAttered based jailbreak release is a matter of days now (not week).

SHAtter based jailbreak, once released, will jailbreak iPhone 4, 3GS, 3G, iPad and iPod Touch 4G, 3G, 2G running iOS 4.1 firmware. Just like you iGuys and iGirls, we are eagerly waiting for SHAtter based iOS 4.1 jailbreak to come out. We’ll keep you posted as soon as Chronic dev team pushes the official iOS 4.1 jailbreak tool. Till then avoid the fake Greenpois0n floating all over the cloud. Stay Tuned!

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iOS 4.2 beta 2 Now Available for Download to Developers

Apple has released iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch to developers. Developers can download iOS 4.2 beta 2 8C5101c build from the iOS Dev Center. iOS 4.2 beta 2 new features after the jump…
ios 4.2 beta 2

  • Refined iPad multitasking animation
  • New YouTube video uploading options
  • New Game Center compatibility indicators on mobile iOS App Store
  • Bonus: iTunes 10.1 which supports printing
  • Performance improvements

iOS 4.2 final will be released to masses in November 2010 with full iPad compatibility.

WARNING: Avoid the iOS 4.2 beta 2 firmware if you depend on jailbreak and unlock until further notice.

ios 4.2 beta 2

Download iOS 4.2 Beta 2 8C5101c

iOS 4.2 beta 2 is available to developers only. Developers can download iOS 4.2 from the iOS Dev Center. However, if you still want to give it a shot, Google the queries listed below. (Please don’t ask for the links)

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPad

  • iPad1,1_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__ipad__8C5101c.dmg

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPhone 4

  • iPhone3,1_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__iphone_4__8C5101c.dmg

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPhone 3GS

  • iPhone2,1_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__iphone_3gs__8C5101c.dmg

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPhone 3G

  • iPhone1,2_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__iphone_3g__8C5101c.dmg

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPod Touch 4G

  • iPod4,1_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__ipod_touch__4th_generation__8C5101c.dmg

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPod Touch 3G

  • iPod3,1_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__ipod_touch__3rd_generation__8C5101c.dmg

Download iOS 4.2 beta 2 for iPod Touch 2G

  • iPod2,1_4.2_8C5101c_Restore.ipsw
  • ios_4.2_beta_2__ipod_touch__2nd_generation__8C5101c.dmg

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App Review: iFitness

Available for the iPhone, iTouch, and the iPad with iOS 4 multitasking and retina display support, iFitness is an all-inclusive workout app whose primary function is to provide users the ability to record workouts and track progress, and it does quite well. For about the price of a notebook, this app is a much easier and more organized way to record and track workout information, and it does it much better than a notebook too. However, this only scratches the surface of what it can do.

Features

The makers of iFitness were able to pack many great features into this well organized app and provide all of it to us for only $1.99.  As mentioned before, it allows you to track your workout progress in a simple manner. It also provides you with pre-made exercise routines depending on your goals, allows you to monitor your weight, calculate your BMI, track body measurements, and even have different user profiles.

Review

Let’s review this by going through the 5 tabs that are visible at the bottom of the app at all times. The first one, “Exercises”, lists over 300 exercises that can be sorted in various ways, including by muscle region, a specific muscle, or by the equipment needed. When you select an exercise you can view pictures or a step-by -step instruction of how to do the exercise, and many have videos as well. With this many exercises you’re bound to find the ones you need, but if not you are given the option to create your own, which is quite easy to do. Simply fill in some information about the exercise, then just hit save. This tab is well organized and makes it easy to find the exercise you need, and it can help you find some new ones too if your getting bored of the same workout.

The next tab is called “My Workouts,” and allows you to create your own workout with a simple process. To do this, just hit the “Add” button, and select all the exercises that you would like in your routine, and save it. Next you can hit the “Edit” button, and this gives you many helpful options. You can add custom named dividers to help split up your routine, rearrange the order of exercises, and specify the number of sets and reps that will be done for each. The pencil to the far right of every exercise is what allows you to track your progress. Selecting it allows you quickly enter various information about each set, such as weight, reps, and any notes, and tapping the “Record” button saves it. It then provides you with some handy statistics on the side, such as your 1-rep max and other interesting stats. Here you can also view a graph of your progress over a specified time period. This is an excellent feature as seeing your weights increase is great for motivation, and the graph just makes tracking your progress that much easier.  This same screen also provides two timers which are helpful for tracking the rest times between sets. For cardio exercises you are able to track many different things including duration, distance, laps, calories burned, and much more and it also provides a chart to let you visually see your progress.

One feature that is great about this app is the pre-made workout routines that you can select based on your goal. These are great for those who need a routine to reach their goals, which means this is great for everyone. Under the “Routines” tab there are 21 different workout routines all based on different goals someone might have, including losing weight, building muscle, a routine for beginners, and many more. Chances are they have a routine which meets your needs, and if not, as mentioned before, you can make your own workout!

The following tab, “Logs” is an extremely helpful tab, although unlike the other tabs, this one could use a bit of work and organization. Here you have the option of viewing logs from today, the previous workout day, the past 7, 14, or 30 days, or all records. Selecting any of the last four brings up a list of dates of all your workouts for which you have recorded information, and tapping a date shows that day’s log. The one small problem is that you have to know the date of the workout which you are looking for. It can be found rather quickly by checking each date, but it would be nice allowing you to view logs by the divider names in the workout. This is a small quibble that really is not that big of a deal, and this is still helpful for tracking progress. Underneath you also have the option of exporting logs to your email, allowing you to see your progress on the computer as well.

Finally we have reached the final tab, titled “More.” This tab is where you can easily monitor your weight and use a very accurate BMI calculator. This tab also allows you to record body measurements which also has a graph, but also has some very interesting and helpful features, which you can explore on your own if you start using the app. Here you can also backup your all of your workout data, and create user profiles so multiple people can save their own information. Settings are also found here, and here you can change the timers that are shown in log entries. They give you many different timing options to choose from but it would be nice to be able to create your own timers with custom times.

Conclusion

I would not hesitate to give this app 5 stars, because it is by far the best fitness app I have seen. It includes every feature you could need and does them all exceptionally well. Aside from two small complaints that were mentioned earlier, this app has it all and is a must for everyone from the most casual runner to the hardcore bodybuilder. This is an excellent investment and for only $1.99 you have absolutely nothing to lose. iFitness is without a doubt the best fitness app in the app store, and I highly recommend you give it a try. You won’t be disappointed.

Devs get iOS 4.2 beta, Apple vs. Nokia, and no Firefox on the iPhone

An Android developer decides to try creating apps for the iPhone. Please share your thoughts on this in the comments.

The iPhone Development blog chimes in on this article from Computerworld.

iPhone 3.2 and 3.3 show up in Apple TV firmware. Is it possible these are the version of iPhone other carriers will have?

Apple accuses Nokia of violating nine patents. This one won’t be over for years.

Mozilla made it official yesterday that it will not develop a standalone Firefox browser for the iPhone. Oh well, iPhone users love Safari any way, right?

Challenge: Create A Game In October And Get Sales

Here’s the challenge.

Take a game idea, turn it into a game.. do it by the end of October, and then get a sale (or earn at least $1 in ads).

I’ll be entering this challenge and making an iPhone/iPad/Android game using the Corona SDK similar to the ballon game shown in action game beginner game tutorial.

The reason I’ll be creating it with Corona is simply for time reasons… Corona limits the features I can include in the game somewhat (no iAds, no Game Center) so I won’t have to worry about much feature creep :)

The challenge known as PoV’s challenge comes from Ludum Dare, and lf you’d like to join in on the challenge you can publicize your game on their thread for the October challenge.

[Via: Alex Curylo, Area 161]

©2010 iPhone, iOS 4, iPad SDK Development Tutorial and Programming Tips. All Rights Reserved.

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