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Listen up Apple.

We know you have a sherlocking habit. That’s the slang term referring to Apple’s apparent tendency to put a developer out of business by integrating an app’s core functionality into one of its own operating systems.

Well, Apple, Our Pad (Free, iPad-only) is a concept you need to Sherlock, asap. Of course, TUAW would prefer you did this by paying the developers large sums of money rather than via simple intellectual appropriation as is your modus operandus.

Our Pad lets you browse your favorite websites using multiple user-accounts. That means you and your partner can share an iPad while maintaining separate social networking credentials.

Each user signs in individually using a clever adaptation of the Android-style unlock pattern password. Here, you’re presented with a grid of dots, and your password is a path through those dots.

Here is a discussion of the security of this approach. I slightly prefer the new photo passwords of Windows 8, but this is an elegant solution for fast user switching.

The problem with Our Pad is that you’re stuck in the blinged-up single application browser instead of providing a system-wide multi-user solution in Safari. There are just too many single-purpose browsers.

Apps like Our Pad (as well as all the VLC clones on the market, plus the Flash-enabling browsers) point out where Apple is missing the point. You shouldn’t have to hop out of Safari to get the job. These apps shouldn’t need to exist, and when they do show up, they should not be as newsworthy as Our Pad.

So how did Our Pad do in TUAW’s testing? In a nutshell, it crashed a lot (no, really, a lot), had an eerie fixation on uppercase, had terrible design aesthetics and, in my opinion, over-promises on security. It very well may be secure but I personally would not use/trust this app because I tend to avoid any third party app that wants me to trust its safe-keeping of multiple credentials. We barely know each other, and you want me to trust you with what!!??

At the same time, this is where Apple should be: offering easy tablet-minded password-protected user-switching for devices in multi-user households.

[Via Lifehacker]

Our Pad introduces multiple-account support for iOS social networking sites originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You’re a SoundCloud user. You love playing tracks on your Mac and love the idea of SoundCloud, but hate the fact that your poor old Mac sounds like a jet engine whenever you play a track thanks to Flash. SoundCloud app to the rescue.

The official SoundCloud app brings “the full SoundCloud web experience to your Mac” allowing you to play tracks directly from your SoundCloud account, search, favorite and create playlists all using a native app. The sounds stream pretty instantly, while tag search is also supported so you can go exploring either through keyword search, through users or tags and save the good stuff for later. You can even drag-and-drop SoundCloud URLs onto the SoundCloud dock icon to create playlists.

The SoundCloud app also supports the built-in Mac media keys, so you can pause and skip tracks like you would with iTunes. Growl support is bundled too, so if you’ve got Growl installed it’ll notify you of track changes.

The only disadvantage of using the desktop app over the in-browser SoundCloud site is that only tracks which have been made available for 3rd party applications within SoundCloud will appear in the app. For the rest you’ll have to resort to the website. For me that didn’t make much difference as my favorite stuff was all present in the app without issue.

Recording your own stuff is a doddle with the desktop app thanks to the nice big “Share Your Sound” tab in the top left that reveals a massive “Rec” button that you simply hit to record from your Mac.

If you’re into SoundCloud, but hate that you have to use Flash, then check out the SoundCloud desktop app — it’s free and works pretty well.

Daily Mac App: Sound Cloud originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dear Aunt TUAW,

I’ve had an iPhone 4S since Friday and I love how Siri is making my life easier, and hands-free. However, what’s troubling me is that when I use Siri to send or reply to my friend using SMS, I can’t figure out how to add commas and periods.

This makes the message looks odd, and Siri doesn’t allow direct editing on the message either (at least I haven’t found out).

Is there a way to add punctuations while sending a message using Siri?

Thanks!

Your loving nephew,

William

Dear William,

Just dictate the punctuation you want to use. For example, you might say:

Message Aunt TUAW. Hey comma cap Auntie exclamation point. How are you doing question mark. I asterisk really asterisk love this whole punctuation thing full stop. Love comma William

Hope this helps!

Hugs,

Auntie T.

Dear Aunt TUAW: Help me use punctuation with Siri originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple is poised to expand its presence in California by re-opening the Victoria Gardens Store in Rancho Cucamonga this weekend. The Victoria Gardens store originally opened in October 2004 and was impressive for its time. It had 3,000 square feet of retail space and was packed full of G5 Towers, G5 iMacs, and eMacs when it first opened its doors seven years ago.

Now the store has a new location and has received an architectural facelift. The new and improved store has doubled its footprint and now boasts of 6,000 square feet of retail space. Its entrance has also doubled to 60-feet wide and is made of stone and glass instead of steel, a design change that reflects Apple’s current retail store aesthetics.

The Victoria Gardens store will open this Saturday, October 22 at 10:00 a.m. PDT.

[via ifoAppleStore]

Expanded California Apple Store to open Saturday originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is your iOS device giving you grief? Perhaps your battery is draining quickly or apps are quitting spontaneously. If so, try one of the following fixes. We don’t guarantee these will work for you, at at least one is applying the nuclear option: a full restore.

At the very least, these tips give you something to do while you’re waiting for your Genius Bar appointment.

And bonus: No chicken sacrifices needed!

Reboot. A super fresh reboot can fix a multitude of woes, especially when you have runaway items. Rebooting quits all apps, re-initializes all processes and gives your device a chance to start fresh. Press-and-hold the sleep/wake button until you see “slide-to-power-down.” Perform the power down, wait, and then restart the phone by pressing-and-holding the sleep/wake button again until you see the white Apple.

Reset. Sometimes resetting your device (Settings > General > Reset) either partially or entirely can clean up lingering issues. A nice Network Settings reset may return your MIA tethering options. A simple Settings reset will clean up your system without affecting any content, data or media.

Restore. A fresh restore cleans all the lint off your system. Instead of restoring from backup, set up your device as a new unit. Then slowly add back all the items you need and see if your performance improves. Plus, it gives you a chance to proactively spring-clean everything. Re-sync all the contacts, bookmarks, and apps you need — it takes a bit of time but the result can be well worth it.

If you can, always take screenshots of problems as they occur. Press and hold the home key while pressing the sleep/wake button The screen flashes white and you hear a camera click as the screenshot gets saved to your onboard album (the Camera Roll). These photos help prove you have real problems when dealing with an Apple Genius. And yes, sometimes their diagnostics don’t match up with your real world problems. Screenshots help.

Do it yourself iPhone fixes: The three R’s originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In a very neat collaboration, Moonbot, the developers behind the book app The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, has teamed up with DODOcase to produce a custom book-bound iPad case that’s based on the app.

Morris Lessmore is a story of people who are devoted to books, and in turn the books are devoted back. The US$4.99 book app made its debut at the end of May and has had good reception since. The Morris Lessmore DODOcase is $64.99 and is handcrafted from red faux leather with Morris Lessmore’s hat and cane mark on the cover and his “M” on the spine.

The case is available now, and the book app recently updated to version 1.2 with a new puzzle. We have one of these cases on its way, and a full review of both the case and the book will be on TUAW soon.

Moonbot, DODOcase team up to offer custom iPad case for Morris Lessmore originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continuing in the vein of record iPhone launches stories, AT&T has announced it has activated more than 1 million iPhone 4S handsets as of Tuesday. They say that makes it the most successful launch in the company’s history, which might explain why some customers experienced activation delays on day one.

AT&T is so pleased with the result, it has put together a little video with AT&T staff and customers saying how much they love the iPhone on AT&T. If you’re a user of the carrier, you may feel a pang of pride!

Meanwhile, Sprint realized its best ever single-day sales on iPhone 4S launch day and Apple sold 4 million units within the 72 hours of availability. For a phone that’s not the iPhone 5, the iPhone 4S is causing quite a stir!

AT&T activates 1 million iPhone 4S handsets originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The gMusic iPhone app from Interactive Innovative Solutions does what Google failed to do when it launched its Google Music Beta — natively stream your Google Music tracks to your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad (as an expanded iPhone app). The Google Music service serves as a digital online locker that can store up 20,000 tracks from your music library.

The app is a basic music player that lets you browse your tracks via album, artists, genre and song. It also accesses your playlist information and lets you add songs to existing playlists. You can also create an instant playlist on the fly. It’s great for on the go listening as your music will stream over Wi-Fi or 3G. It’ll also play in the background so you can use other apps while listening to your music.

This gMusic iPhone app is available from the App Store for US$1.99.

gMusic iPhone app is a native Google Music Player originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Samsung shipped more smartphones than Apple in the last quarter ending September 30. According to a person “familiar with the situation,” Samsung shipped 20 million smartphones where as Apple shipped sold 17.1 million in its fourth fiscal quarter, which ended September 24, as announced in Apple’s last conference earnings call. [Noting that shipping units doesn’t mean selling them. Samsung may have shipped 20 million smartphones, but Apple sold nearly that many. – Ed.]

As noted in Apple’s last conference earnings call, sales of the iPhone slowed down in the second half of the last quarter (as predicted) due to speculation and rumor of a product refresh: namely, the iPhone 4S (check out TUAW’s Chris Rawson post taking a closer look at this). However, with the iPhone 4S selling a hefty 4 million units within the first three days of its launch, things could look a bit different at the end of the next financial quarter!

Samsung reportedly beats Apple in smartphone shipments originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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On Monday, the scheduled release date for Steve Jobs: A Biography, Fortune Magazine will publish an exclusive excerpt from Walter Isaacson’s highly anticipated biography of Steve Jobs.

The sections to appear will focus on Steve’s working relationship with the former CEO of Microsoft, Bill Gates, which spanned nearly three decades. As stated by CNN Money, “…the co-founder of Apple and the co-founder of Microsoft were the twin pillars of personal computing — at times fierce competitors, at times key allies.”

Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs will be available on the same day, October 24, 2011. Previously the release date was set for November 21, and before that March 6, 2012. According to publisher Simon & Shuster, “…the book is based on more than forty interviews with Jobs conducted over two years, as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues.”

Fortune to publish first excerpt from Isaacson’s biography of Jobs originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Along with Apple’s quarterly results earlier this week, there’s another report hitting today that covers a growing segment of the mobile device market: Good Technology’s roundup of device activation statistics, compiled from the company’s range of Fortune 500 clients that use Good’s service to provide secure email and calendaring to handsets and tablets. (See previous results here.) The results this time around: interesting but not that surprising. You can see the full PDF report here.

iPhone and iOS activations continue to lead the field, with iPhones representing 61% of all smartphone activations on Good’s platform and iOS devices generally covering 70% of activations (a drop from the 78% share in the previous quarter). Android smartphones, however, picked up some ground on the iPhone over the quarter, showing improvement month over month. Android phones finished the quarter with about 39% of smartphone activations, passing iPad activations again (28.3% vs. 26.3% of the total) after the iPad overtook Android last quarter.

Good’s assessment of the iPhone/Android shift is largely in line with Apple’s spin: customers put off iPhone 4 purchases in anticipation of a new iPhone release in the fall, which is exactly what we got. Good SVP John Herrema did get a look at preliminary data for the iPhone 4S launch weekend, and given the observed 25% bump in activations over the quarterly average for the iPhone 4, he’s confident about an iPhone surge: “Looking forward to Q4, 2011, we expect… the iPhone 4S to be the catalyst for an Apple rally.”

When it comes to the iPad versus the larger universe of tablet devices, the story remains that there is no “tablet market” — the iPad is the only game in town as far as big companies are concerned. The report summary puts it thusly: “To say iOS tablets dominated adoption in the enterprise is to understate the case…. Android tablet activations within Good’s customer base remain in the realm of a rounding error compared to what we’re seeing with iPad and iPad 2.” iOS tablets made up more than 96% of all tablet activations in the quarter.

As always, it’s important to note that Good’s data does not cover RIM’s Blackberry devices, as they are supported by RIM’s proprietary server infrastructure; Windows 7 phones and tablets are also not tracked by the company.

Q3 enterprise adoption: iPhone slips, Android gains, iPad owns the tablet space originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Magic Defenders isn’t new, but it has claimed a lot of my iPhone gaming time lately. It’s a tower defense game, so if you like that genre, odds are that you’ll like this one.

Instead of building towers, you play the game as a mage that’s casting spells against waves of attackers. The game cycle has you casting spells using mana, killing attackers to earn XP, and then using that XP to upgrade your spells to kill attackers more quickly, earning more XP, and so on. It’s a lot of fun and considering that the game has a few different heroes to play through and level up across three invasion episodes, there’s plenty of content to explore. Blazing down enemies is very rewarding, as is learning how the various spells work together. You can slow enemies down with one spell, for example, freeze them in place with a second, and then nuke them all down with a third.

The game’s great on the iPad, too, but the drag-and-drop spell interface makes it easy on any iOS device. And at 99 cents on the App Store for a universal version, Magic Defenders is one of the best bargains out there that you might have missed the first time around. If you like tower defense games or ridiculously addictive game cycles, it’s definitely worth the buck.

Daily iPhone App: Magic Defenders originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I first took a look at the Skobbler crowd sourced GPS app for iPhone back in June of 2010. I found it uneven in quality, but it was free, and if you weren’t going to spring for one of the big boys like Garmin, Navigon or TomTom it was worth a try.

Skobbler has now been updated, and it costs US$0.99. The app has been renamed GPS Navigation 2. Your dollar gets you US and Canada maps in a universal application that adds local search, a “take me home” option, integration with your contacts and iPod playback while navigating. The maps are from OpenStreetMap, kind of a Wikipedia for mapping. Using the map requires a data connection, but you also have the ability to download maps at prices ranging from $5.99 for North America, Europe, and Australia to $3.99 for places like Italy, Ireland, the UK, France and Germany.

How does it work? It’s still a mixed bag. The maps are clear enough, but operation is quirky. You get a 3D map, but if you scroll to the right it suddenly turns 2D. Scrolling left doesn’t get you the 3D map back; you have to hit a “back” button. As I drove, I didn’t always see my car centered on the map, and I often drifted off screen. Navigating back home was a complete failure, as I was told to turn onto a street that did not connect to where my house is.

The app advertises local search. I tried “grocery store.” Nope. Pizza? Zip. Pizza Hut? Uh-uh.

I tried some non-residential addresses and they worked fine, and the voice for turn-by-turn directions was audible and pleasant. The app provides a female voice with a soothing British accent.

There are some other inexpensive nav apps. Motion X GPS Drive comes to mind at $0.99, but features like voice directions cost extra and are subscription based. Waze is a free, crowd sourced nav app, and it gets consistently good reviews.

If you aren’t about to buy a more expensive navigation app, and you feel lucky, this app might be worth a look. The GUI has been considerably improved from the older version, and the added features are nice. On the other hand, if it can’t get you home, it’s really not a good investment, even at $0.99. Screen shots are below.

Skobbler updates its $0.99 nav app with mixed results originally appeared on TUAW – The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Winterboard for iOS 5 is now available for download in Cydia. Saurik has officially update Winterboard with iOS 5 compatibility. You can download Winterboard for iOS from Cydia. Winterboard is a…

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The guys over at WebHostingBuzz.com have posted an excellent infographic that takes a look at how consumers are using mobile technology as well as where they use it and what the future holds.

Infographic: The State and Trends of Mobile Internet by WebHostingBuzz