Disqus - Latest Comments for alwillis

Re: It Just Might Be the Droid You Are Looking For

alwillis — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:13:26 -0000

Every time someone says the iPhone can't multitask, there needs to be a link to an explanation that Apple's apps can run in the background; 3rd party application cannot at this time. You can certainly play your iTunes library through a car stereo via Bluetooth in the background and run a different app in the foreground, also known as multitasking. ;-)

Re: Google Wave crashes on beach of overhype

alwillis — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 23:09:59 -0000

Good to know that the Scoble contraindicator is alive and well. Certainly Google Wave is a tool for the way some of us have been attempting to work for a while now, but have been frustrated because the current tools don't do what we need. While not everything about Wave will become commonplace, lots of it will.

Just like it took 2+ years for a critical mass of people to understand Twitter and create all kinds of use cases for it, we'll see something similar with Google Wave.

Re: Be There For Your Customers

alwillis — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 21:00:08 -0000

While I agree that there should be more than one way to make an appointment, Apple is often a victim of its own success. Many people have multiple ways of getting on the web–neighbors, libraries, schools, friends, additional machines, etc. So it's hard to fault them for making everyone use the web to make an appointment.

For example, there should be an iPhone application that allows you to make a Genius appointment. Huh--I think we just identified what Apple would call a "third party opportunity."

But I get how inconvenient web-only can be when you're in a jam.

Re: Retweet is stupid (Scripting News)

alwillis — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 21:47:46 -0000

I agree—retweet should be a function of the Twitter website and of the Twitter API. I actually said this a while ago: http://www.backtype.com/alwillis/comment/24377567.

As Dave said, retweeting shouldn't take any of the precious 140 characters of a tweet—I couldn't agree more. When Twitter gets out of firefighting mode and starts adding features again, this should be among the first they add.

Re: Moved my 41400 Comments into Disqus

alwillis — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 15:53:51 -0000

As a commenter, I like using Disqus; glad you made the move.

Re: The Perfect Twitter Client: What Apps Are You Tweeting With?

alwillis — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:40:02 -0000

Tweetie for the Mac is fabulous. Fast with a smooth, easy to use interface. TwitterFon on the iPhone--fast, functional and free.

Re: Tweetie’s Desktop App for Mac Has Potential, Integrates Conversation Tracking

alwillis — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 21:36:04 -0000

Been waiting for a next-level native Mac Twitter client for a while now. I really don't like Adobe AIR apps much for a whole host of reasons I won't get into here. I use Twitterific, which I like a lot, but it's fairly limited at this point. The other native clients aren't doing it for me either.

Tweetie looks really good in the demo video; I'm hoping it's just as good when it's available on Monday.

Re: There must be some way out of here (Scripting News)

alwillis — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 09:14:03 -0000

You nailed it; I couldn't agree more--right now.

Re: Who Else Is Disappointed in FriendFeed And Other Twitter Swagger Jackers?

alwillis — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 02:24:31 -0000

While I agree that the beta FriendFeed is a little underwhelming, especially after the build-up it got from some folks, there already has been lots of swagger jackin' going on, with Facebook jackin' both Twitter (realtime status updates) and FriendFeed's (pre beta) user interface.

What's interesting to me: Twitter was fun when it launched, but wasn't taken seriously. Now Facebook and FriendFeed have decided that realtime updates are where it's at.

Should be interesting to see who jacks Twitter's swagger next.

Re: http://blog.louisgray.com/2009/03/twitter-starts-rolling-out-popular.html

alwillis — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:02:28 -0000

The Connections tab is where you'll manage applications that use OAuth to access Twitter on your behalf.

Re: http://blog.louisgray.com/2009/03/location-locationmobile.html

alwillis — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 04:13:59 -0000

The new generation of mobile devices--the iPhone, Android and perhaps the Palm Pre--will enable the mobile web that we all say we want.

The place where the iPhone is leading--and will continue to with iPhone 3.0--is the ecosystem that Apple has created. It's a lot easier to create a kick-ass mobile application or service on the iPhone than any other device. Even if an enduser doesn't know about or understand the technologies behind the product, they can certainly see the difference when using them. Apple's secret sauce is that they have a SDK that's way ahead of everyone else's. WebKit is far far ahead of IE for Windows Mobile and whatever RIM ships.

Also, it's starting to become a numbers game. The iPhone/iPod touch now accounts for 50% of all smartphone traffic on the web. Sure, any developer can create a lowest common denominator service that works in any mobile browser, but that's not what users want. It's certainly not what the 30 million users of the iPhone/iPod touch want. They want slick and inviting, which you don't get with LCD services.

Of course, with iPhone, Android and Pre all using WebKit-based browsers, developers can already create web apps and services that work across these devices, like the offline Gmail app Google showed running unmodified on both the iPhone and the new Android phone.

If anything, users should be telling RIM, Nokia and Microsoft to get their acts together. Once the new iPhone hits and 3.0 is released... well, it ain't gonna be pretty.

Re: Scott Moritz: Idiotic Douchebage Or Moronic Cock-sucker? You Decide

alwillis — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 16:21:23 -0000

When I heard TheStreet.com axed 18 staffers, I was so hoping that Scott Moritz would be one of them. Damn! No such luck.

BTW, I'm kind of leaning towards Idiotic Douchebag.

Re: http://blog.louisgray.com/2009/03/facebook-drops-walled-garden-opens-up.html

alwillis — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 03:02:44 -0000

Whoa, lets slow it down a little. I agree--Facebook is heading in the right direction and is finally starting to open up. That's good; however, shoehorning real-time updates into Facebook's user interface hasn't been great for its users. Many of my friends on Facebook don't like or understand the new interface. Sure, social media geeks think it's great, but the average Facebook user is pretty unhappy right now.

Track--realtime discovery of users and conversations using keywords--is a long way off for Facebook. Again, average Facebook users don't like seeing the information from people they're not friends with--as far as they're concerned, that's a bug, not a feature. It doesn't fit with the Facebook culture. Now, that can change, but it'll take some time.

Meanwhile, discovering new things on Twitter as always been part of Twitter's DNA. And of course, that's where track was invented.

I doubt Twitter will regret not selling out to Facebook--they see a much bigger opportunity. As long as they continue to be the default message bus and build on that, they'll continue growing. We already know that track--and probably a few other features--are running internally. I doubt realtime updates on Facebook surprised Biz or Ev; that's where everything is heading anyway. Because Twitter is lightweight compared to Facebook, they can move pretty fast.

Next up for Twitter is a smooth rollout of OAuth, which will further strengthen Twitter's ecosystem. These next few months should be interesting to watch; I wouldn't underestimate Twitter.

Re: New Twitter Code For Retweet

alwillis — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 10:55:58 -0000

I agree with the folks who are saying we aren't really gaining anything by using the symbol, since it can't be sent via SMS and it requires three bytes (out of 140) instead of using RT, which is two bytes.

Isn't it time that retweeting take it's proper place as standard function, like replies via the @ symbol or direct messages? It should also be added to the Twitter API so all 3rd party clients can access this functionality.

Re: Will Firefox & Opera Make It To The iPhone Now?

alwillis — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 01:43:51 -0000

Thanks for being a good sport about my reply; my intention was to clarify the App Store stuff and explain from my perspective what is and isn't happening with 3rd party browsers on the iPhone.

Re: Will Firefox & Opera Make It To The iPhone Now?

alwillis — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 04:49:42 -0000

The apps approved by Apple aren't really new browsers; they are just different implementations and approaches to browsing based on Mobile Safari's WebKit rendering engine. In other words, the code that renders the web pages in these apps is Apple's.

There's no indication that this opens the door to FireFox or Opera. If anything, it just shows that developers can create new browsers for the iPhone without getting FireFox or Opera involved.

The description for the newly approved Edge Browser clearly states that it's basically a full-screen version of Safari:

See your web page or web app in a full screen Safari Browser. No loss of screen real estate to the address or navigation bars. Specify your URL with any given parameters in the iPhone settings application under Edge Browser.

It's pretty obvious by now that a 3rd party browser based on Gecko (FireFox's rendering engine) or anything else for that matter ain't coming to the iPhone anytime soon, or perhaps ever. Mozilla's CEO has already said as much.This is similar to how there's not going to be Flash or Java for the iPhone either, which I'm completely fine and okay with.

To understand why this is the way it is, you have to understand Apple and the iPhone. They care about the user experience more than almost anything else; anything that messes with that is a no-no. Mobile Flash hogging processor cycles and killing the battery? Nope. A rendering engine that might render code differently than WebKit (which by now hundreds if not thousands of iPhone apps use) and confuse users? Not gonna happen. From a business point of view, they aren't going to give their competitors control of the video/animation, runtime environment or web rendering on their device. That doesn't make sense.

When it comes to web browsing (at least the engine part), if it ain't broken, don't fix it. Some of the newly approved apps provide specific enhancements that will be useful at times; but they won't replace Mobile Safari for most users or render anything differently than it does, a good thing.

Corvida asks, where's the real competition? I'd say WebKit is kicking the competition's asses. WebKit is the rendering engine of every mobile platform that matters: iPhone, iPod Touch, Android and now the Palm Pre. (Some Nokia phones, too.) Neither Google or Palm went with Mozilla or Opera's (mentioning IE was a joke, right?) mobile offerings; that should tell us something.

Re: louisgray.com: 10 Predictions for 2009 In the World of Tech

alwillis — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:40:31 -0000

I love the iPhone - but Apple can support only so much innovation. How silly would it be for Apple to release 20 different iPhone versions? I don't think they have the ability or the desire to meet the needs all all users. The fact that Android is open means everyone can innovate - some phones will suck, but many others will rock.

This is the same approach that Microsoft uses with Windows Mobile—license the operating system and let the device guys "innovate." It sounds great in theory, but in practice, it doesn't work so well. Because of the hardware differences between devices, it becomes more difficult to deliver a consistent user experience for Google and its developers. If your game needs an accelerometer but brand X Android device doesn't have one, what are you supposed to do?

Apple won't make 20 different versions of any device and certainly not the iPhone. However, they will create 3 or 4 versions that address 80% of the market, which is working really well for them right now.

For the record, I think Android will gain traction at the expense of Windows Mobile more so than Apple, especially as Android matures.

Re: louisgray.com: 10 Predictions for 2009 In the World of Tech

alwillis — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:09:11 -0000

What will keep Apple in the lead for the foreseeable future are their developer tools and their ability to add new features that get developers excited about the platform. While some are distracted by iFart and its ilk, developers are creating applications that rival anything that exists on desktop operating systems.

The drop from $599 for an 8 GB iPhone in June 2007 to $199 8 GB 3G iPhone today (and even $99 refurbished 3Gs being sold by AT&T) should show that Apple isn't going to concede the low-end to other companies. If indeed Apple does release a $99 iPhone nano, it'll be even more clear that Apple is addressing the entire market and not just the high end, taking a page right out of the iPod playbook.

Re: louisgray.com: 10 Predictions for 2009 In the World of Tech

alwillis — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 13:28:14 -0000

I believe Louis will be correct. While the iPhone can be a power user device, it also appeals to regular users as well. The current situation is the same as the early days of the iPod: everyone thought there would be an iPod killer and it never happened; it's not going to happen to the iPhone either.

When Apple releases a lower cost, smaller form factor version (the rumored iPhone Nano), it's going to be very difficult for Android or anyone else to gain traction against it.

Re: Life 2.0 - Year of the Reboot

alwillis — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 03:43:36 -0000

Yes, it's all about the reboot; I'll be doing one myself. Good luck to you.

Re: Twitter federates with Google? (Scripting News)

alwillis — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 23:48:57 -0000

Being able to use your Twitter profile as the default profile on Google's Friend Connect is kind of a big deal for Twitter. I can now just update that one profile and any site that's Friend Connected does the right thing.

Re: Twitter federates with Google? (Scripting News)

alwillis — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 23:42:14 -0000

Because of the way Twitter is openly architected, using microformats to markup who you follow and who follows you, Google could already see any Twitter user's social graph via its Social Graph API: http://socialgraph-resources.googlecode.com/svn.... Type your twitter URL and you'll see Google map your Twitter graph; it knows if the follows are mutual or not. This was possible long before any deal happened between Google and Twitter, thanks to open protocols.

Twitter partnering with Google on Friend Connect doesn't give Google anything they already didn't have access to. The important part that's not being talked about is that you can replace your Google profile with your Twitter profile if you wish, making Twitter more of the default profile in the Friend Connect ecosystem. That's cool.

Re: Soon it will be time to start over, again (Scripting News)

alwillis — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:23:27 -0000

I guess if developers don't know what problem OpenID is supposed to solve, that's because they don't want to know or they think it's not important. Otherwise, there's lots of useful information about OpenID available.

The fact that every time you want to interact with a new site, you have to start over with another username and another password and another password policy and another privacy statement is insane and doesn't scale, even though that's the standard practice today.

And giving up your Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo mail account username and password to 3rd party sites so they can check for people you may know on the new site is even more insane.

OpenID exists to end this madness—one username and password that can be used to authenticate oneself on the web that's open, scalable and secure. OpenID and suite of other open protocols (OAuth, portable contacts) exists to end giving out usernames and passwords to 3rd party sites to access information stored there about you. I know, I know—crazy talk.

It's not perfect or universal yet, and it can be a bit of pain to use, but it's far better than what we have today.

Re: Apple releases iPhone 2.2 update, it’s a big one

alwillis — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 02:59:58 -0000

We shouldn’t be expecting Flash for the iPhone, which is just fine with me. I seriously doubt you’re ever going to see someone else’s runtime environment running on the iPhone—Flash, AIR, Java, etc. The way to make apps on the iPhone is to use Apple’s SDK and not anyone else’s. That’s not going to change.

Version 2.2 continues the iPhone juggernaut as the premier handheld data device that happens to make phone calls.

Re: The war against despair is up to you, new media

alwillis — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 02:50:06 -0000

Thanks for the kick in the pants/reminder Chris. Even with all of the bad stuff going on, there are also going to be once-in-a lifetime opportunities—we need to be prepared.