Thriftycoupons: October 2012

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Regional Bluegrass Cellular to offer iPhone 5 on November 2

Bluegrass Cellular is a regional carrier down in the Bluegrass state of Kentucky, and the relatively small network has some big news: It's going to be carrying the iPhone 5. The prices are pretty standard for the various wireless plans, but the biggest part of this news is that a regional carrier has made a deal with Apple at all. If you live in that area, it just means that you have one more option for whatever service you're iPhone is hooked up to.

Bluegrass Cellular previously carried the iPhone 4 and 4S earlier this year, so this is just another phone for them at this point. It is nice to have the iPhone 5 on another network, however.

News like this does show just how much things have changed for Apple since the original iPhone. Yes, it stopped being exclusive way back when the iPhone came to Verizon and Sprint, but the fact that a local regional carrier like Bluegrass can pick up a deal with Apple to sell the iPhone means that the power's almost all in Apple's hands at this point. That is old news now, but back when Apple first released the iPhone, it had to play the carriers' games, rather than the other way around.

[via Engadget]

Regional Bluegrass Cellular to offer iPhone 5 on November 2 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/10/31/regional-bluegrass-cellular-to-offer-iphone-5-on-november-2/

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Apple's 'Master Negotiator and Product Resuscitator' Eddy Cue Profiled

With Apple's management changes announced earlier this week, several current executives have seen expansions of their responsibilities. Among those is Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president for Internet Software and Services, who is seeing Siri and Maps added to his portfolio.

Cue's responsibilities have grown substantially throughout during his 23 years at Apple, from the company's online store to the iTunes Store to the App Store. More recently, Cue has added the iBookstore, iCloud, and iAd to his responsibilities, and just over a year ago he was promoted to the senior executive team.

CNET today published a profile of Cue, offering an interesting glimpse of the executive who has reportedly played a crucial role in holding Apple's content services together in a landscape that involves frequently contentious negotiations with third parties.

The 48-year-old Cuban-American played a major role in the creation of Apple's Web store, iTunes, and iPods. And as Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, he's kept the peace with key partners and helped fix product messes. Few people know that five years ago, he helped prevent the relationship between Apple and the large record companies from collapsing when the sides almost "went nuclear." When MobileMe, the division that oversaw Apple's Web services and software, appeared to run hopelessly off track, it was Cue who salvaged the operation and transformed it into iCloud.

The entire lengthy profile is a solid background on the challenges faced by Cue and how his calm temperament served as a bridge between Steve Jobs and media executives involved in negotiations.

"If you were going to be successful with Steve you couldn't compete for oxygen," [former Warner Music executive Paul] Vidich said. "You had to allow him to be him and shine in the greater glory that Steve sought for himself, and Eddy had this calm demeanor. He never said: 'Hey look at me,' to anyone. He just did a great job."

"Eddy doesn't care about those other guys, the flashy executives who want the spotlight," said an executive who has negotiated with Cue. "He's the kind of person who is happy to be in the engine room making sure that everything is clicking along."

Cue certainly remains busy, not only maintaining the ever-increasing stable of licensing agreements with content providers across music, movies, books, and more, but also taking on the more recent challenges of building out iCloud and now fixing Siri and Maps.

Source: http://www.macrumors.com/2012/10/31/apples-master-negotiator-and-product-resuscitator-eddy-cue-profiled/

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Android 4.2 gallery and camera ported to Galaxy Nexus

That awesome camera app, as well as the new Gallery we saw from the upcoming Android 4.2 release can now be installed on your Galaxy Nexus running Android 4.1.1.

There's still a bug in the photosphere portion, but dmmarck, the fellow working in it, says he has some ideas and will continue to look at things for a fix.

Be sure to visit the forum thread for the full instructions, as this one needs a bit of hackery to install.

Source: Android Central forums

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/j4sowsB9S8M/story01.htm

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Want to Roll-Your-Own Fusion drive? It's not for the faint of heart

If you've been lusting after a Fusion Drive but own an older Mac, a Fusion-like solution may not be entirely out of your reach.

Posts at the jollyjinx tumblr detail how the eponymous hacker built his own Fusion-style SSD/Hard Drive hybrid using features built directly into OS X. Lee Hutchinson over at Ars Technica explains the technology behind this, discussing how Core Storage (first introduced in Lion) can tie two devices together into a single logical volume.

If you're interested in the fundamentals that power Fusion, both Hutchinson's post and jollyjinx's write-ups (Fusion drive on older Macs, More on BYO Fusion Drive, Fusion Drive Loose Ends) offer absolutely fascinating reads.

As for me, I'm just going to use the Apple-built version that should arrive on November 6, according to my shipping statement. If you have a spare Mac with an internal SSD and end up trying this all out, please let us know how it worked for you.

Want to Roll-Your-Own Fusion drive? It's not for the faint of heart originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/10/31/want-to-roll-your-own-fusion-drive-its-not-for-the-faint-of-he/

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O'Neill back for Breeders' Cup in a big way

ARCADIA – There’s no detention barn and every horse is getting his oats cooked the way they like it.

This is the Breeders’ Cup for trainer Doug O’Neill, where he is a free man, unlike the Belmont Stakes, where his every move was watched and monitored by the New York State Racing and Wagering Board as he tried to train I’ll Have Another to a Triple Crown sweep that came up a day short when the horse was injured and retired with a tendon injury to his right front leg.

Gone is the beard that covered his face and disappointment when I’ll Have Another scratched, and it’s now replaced with a clean shaven look and a smile.

O’Neill now walks through the grandstand and barn area at Santa Anita saying or waving hello to anybody he recognizes.

“It was such an amazing run,” O’Neill recalled of the failed Triple Crown run. “I learned that racing is still very much a popular sport and horses are loved by so many people.”

O’Neill was under the watch of the Board and many others because of his past, which included four TCO2 violations, a practice allegedly associated with milkshaking a horse – when a horse’s blood sample exceeds the regulatory threshold of 37.0 mml/L for total carbon dioxide.

The theory behind the milkshake is that its ingredients delay lactic acid from forming in the muscles, preventing fatigue.

“Nothing good comes easy,” said the 44-year-old father of two. “I’ve said it all along that I’m far from perfect and I try to do better every day.”

O’Neill hasn’t had a milkshaking violation since 2010, but just recently returned to training after serving a 40-day suspension after giving up in his fight to deny the charge.

“It taught me how much I love the game,” he said. “The first few days you enjoy recharging the batteries if you will. But there’s no worse feeling than waking up in the morning with all the energy and have no place to go. I don’t ever want to feel that again. It was definitely a harsh penalty mentally for me but it’s good to be back. I’m glad and blessed it’s behind me. It dragged out for a couple of years.”

O’Neill claims he spent close to $300,000 fighting the case.

“It’s the rules,” he said. “You don’t always agree with the umpires call, but that’s part of the game. We’re glad to have it done and are better off for it and glad it’s behind me.”

O’Neill believes most of the drug positives in the sport, which are mainly overages of legal medications, could be avoided if racing had pre-race drug testing, rather than just the post-race test.

“Here we are in 2012 and I can’t believe with the technology we have we can’t do pre-race testing,” he said sitting in his office in barn 88 of the Santa Anita backside. “It blows me away.”

One problem with pre-race testing is that it is more costly than the current post-race test.

“To me it’s more costly not to do it,” O’Neill said. “If the leaders of this industry aren’t looking into this I think it’s a big mistake. We’re shooting ourselves in the foot. We are putting out a perception that horses may be tinkered with and horses that win might be cheating. If you had extensive pre-race test by the time they got to the paddock everyone would know they went through test and they are all clean. It would win back people who question that the game isn’t clean.”

O’Neill believes the post-race test is ineffective.

“For them to say they can’t afford it is a real poor cope out because I really think we can’t afford not to do it,” he said. “I think it’s only way to have clean transparent sport. Not after.

Whoever says it’s too time consuming or too expensive has never been put in situation where there accused of doing something that they swear they didn’t.”

The trainer will saddle seven Breeders’ Cup starters over Friday and Saturday and believes he’s got a live chance to win the Classic with either Richard’s Kid or Handsome Mike, but in the end he’s believes it was worth all the scrutiny of the Triple Crown.

“Life was good prior to the Triple Crown and fantastic since,” he said.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/NydnRss/~3/fVBq8aFtTL8/story01.htm

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Using the iOS 6 panorama photo feature

iOS 6 surprised many iPhoneographers with the inclusion of an unexpected panorama photo feature. Panorama photography using the built-in Camera app on iOS 6 devices has quickly become one of the favorite features of Apple's newest mobile operating system. TechHive's Derrick Story has provided a post today covering tips for using the feature for exciting photos and iPhoto products.

Unlike rival apps like Debacle Software's Pano (US$1.99), iOS 6's panorama feature takes photos in one continuous shot -- almost like shooting video. And unlike Occipital's 360 Panorama ($0.99), the panorama is taken in one horizontal or vertical plane instead of in a virtual sphere. iOS 6 assembles the image as one big photo (up to 28 MP and averaging about 16 MB, says Story) covering up to 240 degrees, and that image can then be opened and viewed in iPhoto for iOS ($4.99).

Story notes that Retina iPads and the iPhone 5 both have enough horsepower available to let photographers view or zoom in and out of them. But the real trick is to use the panoramic shots in iPhoto (iOS or Mac) slideshows, where they are automatically panned in a "Ken Burns"-like effect, or in the Origami slideshow effect. The latter effect shows the panorama unfolding -- very effective for a slideshow. Horizontal panoramas can also be used in iPhoto books, spanning two full pages for a stunning effect.

Have you personally used the panorama feature of iOS 6? Let us know in the comments how you like it. If you haven't used the feature yet, be sure to check out Story's post and then give panorama photography a workout.

Using the iOS 6 panorama photo feature originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/10/30/using-the-ios-6-panorama-photo-feature/

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An awesome contextual app for iPad and social software arrives: NextGuide, future of TV Guides

There are lots of TV guides on iPads, including a pretty good one from TV Guide itself. But the TV Guide one isn’t personalized like Next Guide is. It’s also not as beautiful. Here I meet with Jeremy Toeman, CEO of Dijit, which today is launching this new personalized TV guide.

This hooks up to Facebook and Twitter to bring a beautiful, customized TV guide to you. It’s yet another example of contextual software — one that brings you better experiences the more you tell the Internet about you.

Why is this so cool? Because over the past few years I’ve been telling Facebook more about what my favorite TV shows are. On my Facebook likes page you can see the 129 shows that I like. Next Guide uses this page to customize the layout and choices of TV shows it shows you.

But it goes further. It looks at other social behavior and even other content you liked to suggest new shows to you.

This shows another step toward what’s going to happen across the industry: that nearly everything we touch will get personalized thanks to data that Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, and other systems have been collecting on us.

It is scary when you see our data collection demonstrated in such a way, but it definitely makes for better services and experiences and NextGuide is a very clear example of the benefits of this new, contextual, age that’s coming at us very clearly.

I can’t wait until every app, website, and even our cars and hotels are personalized this way.

Some problems:

1. Facebook limits you to 5,200 likes. I’ve already started deleting likes that aren’t as important to me to make room for new likes since I already have about 5,000. I hope Facebook does away with that limitation.

2. Likes aren’t a very strong signal. For instance, I’m watching Breaking Bad right now in “catch up mode.” Over the past week I’ve watched dozens of shows. I’m hyper interested in Breaking Bad. To the exclusion of all other TV. But Facebook doesn’t know that and NextGuide doesn’t either. That will improve as I use NextGuide and signal to it what I actually am watching.

3. Most of you haven’t put enough likes into Facebook to really provide a hyper customized experience that matches your own experience. I have 5,000 likes with about 130 TV shows in there. You probably only have 25 to 50, and some of you aren’t even on Facebook yet. So your experience will be more generic than mine will, at least at first, until you start using the app and it starts customizing to your tastes.

But this is an impressive step, even given these limitations. I can’t wait to see what’s next.

Source: http://scobleizer.com/2012/09/07/tv-guide-ipad/

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AMD getting into the ARM processor game

ARM-based processors seem to be the future of computing, especially in applications that require power (and heat) efficiency, like tablets and smartphones. Trying to skate to where the puck is going, AMD is starting to research creating ARM processors. Their hope is to supplement their current lineup of desktop, laptop and server processors -- based on an x86 architecture -- with these higher efficiency options.

AMD is quick to point out that their foray into ARM processors is focused on reducing costs and improving efficiency of data centers. That being said, it's hard to believe that it would pump this R&D into making ARM processors without contemplating offering a cheap processor option for phone and tablet manufacturers. It says that the first AMD ARM processors will be coming by 2014.

Source: WSJ

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/4iHqGO1dsCE/story01.htm

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Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Google removes Nexus Q from storefront, not for sale at Play Store

Wouldn't it be fascinating to peek into the R&D vault at Google's Mountain View, Calif. headquarters?

That's what the Nexus Q feels like: a glimpse at Google's more impractical side, a strange device with an unfamiliar aesthetic and dubious practical value.

Yet the Nexus Q was released in July, with an unconventional launch that saw the device delayed as customers who pre-ordered it somehow received one for free.

This week, though, Google appeared to be distancing itself from the social streaming orb, though the company so far hasn't admitted as much.

The Nexus Q's next trick: disappearing?

As of Monday, the Nexus Q can no longer be found on Google's official Nexus page, replaced by just released Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10.

The Nexus Q can still be found in Google's Play Store, though it's no longer listed as in stock: instead its page reads, "This device is not for sale at this time," and reportedly has not been for some time.

According to Engadget, Google doesn't have "anything to share at this time" regarding the status of the Q.

Nexus Q will be missed...maybe

The most ambitious aspect of Google's Nexus Q streaming device is its simplicity. Oh, and the fact that it looks like an alien orb from a sci-fi movie.

The Nexus Q's output and input jacks are minimal, but its wireless connectivity within the Android ecosystem is by far its best feature.

At $299 (UK£185, AUD$288), though, it's a tough sell. Whether Google revamps the Nexus Q or simply squashes it entirely, it seems like the device in its current form simply wasn't meant for wider success.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techradar/allnews/~3/F9uwQ_BSHLc/story01.htm

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Barnes & Nobile Nook HD and Nook HD+ set to ship this week

The holidays are coming early for Nook tablet fans. Barnes & Noble's newest Nook tablets will start shipping this week.

The 7-inch Nook HD and its bigger brother, the 9-inch Nook HD+, should make their way to customers who pre-ordered the devices sometime next week.

Both HD Nooks will also roll out to brick and mortar Barnes & Nobles as well as 15,000 additional stores such as Target, Walmart and Best Buy.

'No shortage of new tablets'

"Our two new tablets offer the best quality reading and entertainment experiences, at the best price," William Lynch, Barnes & Noble CEO, said in a statement about the launch.

"There's no shortage of new tablets in the market, but with Nook HD and Nook HD+, every book read, every movie watched, every game played is rendered in a digital quality never before seen and unmatched by those other tablets."

Lynch is right about the increasingly crowded tablet market. In the 7-inch tablet field alone there is Google's Nexus 7, Amazon's Kindle Fire HD and the newly announced iPad mini (thought it stretches closer to eight inches).

With the holiday shopping season still a month out, the early start should help the Nook HD get a foothold in the market before the Black Friday rush.

Breaking: Huge executive shakeup at Apple. Browett out now, Forstall leaving in 2013

Breaking news: Apple has just announced a major shakeup of its executive leadership. Scott Forstall (Senior VP of iOS Software) and John Browett (Senior VP, Retail) will be leaving the company -- Browett immediately, Forstall in 2013. Forstall will serve as an advisor to CEO Tim Cook in the interim.

Under this reorganization, Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi will add more responsibilities to their roles. The press release follows below.

Developing...

Show full PR text

Apple Announces Changes to Increase Collaboration Across Hardware, Software & Services

Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi Add Responsibilities to Their Roles

CUPERTINO, California-October 29, 2012-Apple(R) today announced executive management changes that will encourage even more collaboration between the Company's world-class hardware, software and services teams. As part of these changes, Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi will add more responsibilities to their roles. Apple also announced that Scott Forstall will be leaving Apple next year and will serve as an advisor to CEO Tim Cook in the interim.

"We are in one of the most prolific periods of innovation and new products in Apple's history," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "The amazing products that we've introduced in September and October, iPhone 5, iOS 6, iPad mini, iPad, iMac, MacBook Pro, iPod touch, iPod nano and many of our applications, could only have been created at Apple and are the direct result of our relentless focus on tightly integrating world-class hardware, software and services."

Jony Ive will provide leadership and direction for Human Interface (HI) across the company in addition to his role as the leader of Industrial Design. His incredible design aesthetic has been the driving force behind the look and feel of Apple's products for more than a decade.

Eddy Cue will take on the additional responsibility of Siri(R) and Maps, placing all of our online services in one group. This organization has overseen major successes such as the iTunes Store(R), the App Store℠, the iBookstore℠ and iCloud(R). This group has an excellent track record of building and strengthening Apple's online services to meet and exceed the high expectations of our customers.

Craig Federighi will lead both iOS and OS X(R). Apple has the most advanced mobile and desktop operating systems, and this move brings together the OS teams to make it even easier to deliver the best technology and user experience innovations to both platforms.

Bob Mansfield will lead a new group, Technologies, which combines all of Apple's wireless teams across the company in one organization, fostering innovation in this area at an even higher level. This organization will also include the semiconductor teams, who have ambitious plans for the future.

Additionally, John Browett is leaving Apple. A search for a new head of Retail is underway and in the interim, the Retail team will report directly to Tim Cook. Apple's Retail organization has an incredibly strong network of leaders at the store and regional level who will continue the excellent work that has been done over the past decade to revolutionize retailing with unique, innovative services for customers.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.

Continue reading Breaking: Huge executive shakeup at Apple. Browett out now, Forstall leaving in 2013

Breaking: Huge executive shakeup at Apple. Browett out now, Forstall leaving in 2013 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 29 Oct 2012 17:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/10/29/breaking-huge-executive-shake-up-at-apple/

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What 4G can do for business?

New 4G network EE, has revealed the results of the world's first global study into 4G business benefits. The Business Benefits of 4G LTE survey looked at businesses in the US, Sweden, Japan, and Germany where 4G already exists and asked what changes 4G had made to their working life.

Over three quarters of US-based respondents (76%) agree 4G has helped their firms innovate and jump ahead of the competition.

More than eight out of 10 US businesses surveyed (86%) get more work done on the move with 4G, and two out of five businesses said sales teams can now get deals completed in the field, without having to come back to base.

Nearly half (47%) said 4G has saved their company money, with one small business based in Los Angeles saving £62,000 ($100,000) through hot-desking, cutting time wasted downloading and uploading, and slashing print costs by exchanging files between devices instead of printing.

How businesses expect to use 4G in the UK

The survey also asked businesses in the UK what they expected from 4G and their timescales for moving to 4G.

Of the UK businesses, almost three quarters (74%) of businesses intend to move to 4G within 12 months. With just over half (59%) expecting the move to 4G to help them increase productivity, while 38% expect it to boost employee well-being and motivation.

Additionally one in two expect to introduce 4G as a quick way of installing broadband into the business, and intend to use it as a way of setting up an internet connection quickly without having to wait for a fixed line to be installed.

Study author, Joseph Place from Arthur D. Little, said: "Businesses are using 4G LTE to bring a more fundamental level of mobility to their organisations. For example, 4G can be used to set up a fully-connected office almost anywhere, dramatically increasing agility and responsiveness. We also expect to see innovative 4G-specific products emerging, for instance in the mHealth arena."

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techradar/allnews/~3/WvQa2PnGEuE/story01.htm

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Evernote for Mac update preview

At some point during this week, we expect to see a beta of Evernote for Mac 5.0, which promises to be a completely rewritten app with a much improved user interface. As reported on the Evernote TechBlog, the Evernote team has spent about a year working on adding over a hundred new features to speed up the app for current users and make it easier for new users.

Some of the big changes include the use of "cards" to display notes, similar to the iOS App Store search function's display. The UI is more "Finder-like" than ever before, with user-added shortcuts and a list of most recently used notebooks. There's a new TypeAhead search feature that searches across all notes, then categorizes results by notebooks, notes, tags and recent searches. It will also suggest searches based on phrases that are used frequently.

Business travelers are going to love the new Atlas feature, which shows notes on a map based on where they were written. "Place Cards" show notes ordered by proximity using geolocation metadata. Check out the details in an Evernote video below.