Tag Archive | "apple"

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iPad Bluetooth services

Posted on 31 August 2010 by Alexander Viken

When i got the iPad I didn’t have a microSIM card and the first thing i tried to do was to try and pair the iPhone and the iPad through bluetooth… guess what; it doesn’t work.. the iPad or iPhone does not see each other as bluetooth devices.

I guess this is the strategy Apple has chosen to sell more of the 3G iPad’s. Would you need a 3G iPad if you could pair? nope….

It looks like the iPad is not able to see any phone or modem capable devices at all by the looks of it, but it can be paired with laptops (at least it can be paired with my MacBook Pro at work) Continue Reading

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You need to have quality control in your mobile application store!

Posted on 12 January 2010 by Alexander Viken

The day we have been waiting for is finally here. Someone published malware in an appstore, and to no surprise it was published to the Android Marketplace.  Norwegian newspaper Digi.no has written/translated an article form The Register about an phishing application written to hijack your banking account information.

This was bound to happen, and this is whythere is such a strict regime to submit applications into appstores like the Apple AppStore and the Windows Phone Marketplace.

Today’s smartphones are trusted devices and the general public does not yet think of their mobile phone as a device that needs antivirus, firewall and malware detection software. But as long as there are vendor solutions like the Android Marketplace; where there is no quality control and no reviewing of applications except for the user feedback from those who already have been fooled by such applications i think things will get a lot worse before it gets better. Continue Reading

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Finger friendly UI controls for Windows Phone

Posted on 26 November 2009 by Alexander Viken

When it comes to application development on the Windows Phone platform things are on the move. Lessons are being learned from the iPhone and its usability experience, from the Android platform etc. The lesson learned is that you need to pay extra attention to how your application looks and feel.

You should not under estimate the possibility of usability and design being the selling point in a purchase decisions before feature richness in a case  where two  similar featured apps are compared, where one looks and feels good, and the other has an extra amount of features beyond the core functionality it should handle.

As i am on the look out for a UI toolkit to standardize our enterprise development at work  on I´ll compile a list of libraries that could do the job as i find them. The criteria for the search is ease of use and finger friendliness. Hopeful others also find this list useful. Continue Reading

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Augmented reality for IPhone 3GS

Posted on 24 September 2009 by Alexander Viken

Norwegian Yellow Pages (Eniro)  have created one of the first augmented reality application for the iPhone.  Augmented reality is the concept of adding value-adding information onto real time imaging. One use i think this could be a really cool tool for is visiting tourists. Hold up your iPhone and get instant tourist information anywhere in Oslo.  The application is due to be launched in November/December 2009 at no cost, but will only be available for the iPhone 3GS because it uses the digital compass.

 

For developers of Android applications there is an AR API called Wikitude. It is a application programming interface which allows for the open development of markerless AR experiences, providing developers with the tools to either create their own android augmented reality applications, or enhance their existing Android applications with an AR camera-view engine. Continue Reading

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.netcf code on the iPhone

Posted on 15 September 2009 by Alexander Viken

mt-logo

Norwegian online paper digi.no (Norwegain article) has an interesting article today about an anouncement from the open source project MONO. They have completed a SDK called MonoTouch. MonoTouch is the Mono edition for Apple’s iPhone and Apple’s iPod Touch devices.  MonoTouch allows developers to create C# and .NET based applications that run on the iPhone and can take advantage of the iPhone APIs as well as reusing both code and libraries that have been built for .NET as well as existing skills. MonoTouch also includes XCode integration.

Md_hw_iphone8MonoTouch is not open source and comes with some quirks when it comes to application distribution and licensing but it is a good step in the right direction.

MonoTouch comes in three version Personal for $399, Enterprise for $999 and Enterprise 5 for $3 99. Continue Reading

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Why iPhone #fail as business device

Posted on 24 August 2009 by Alexander Viken

One of many new features that came with the iPhone OS 3.0, was that the IPhone should now be ready for the business market. With improved PIM functionality, true push and better integration with Exchange all of the needs for the professional user should be taken care of – that just #fail!

Iphone is business #fail

Iphone is business #fail

Basic PIM functionality is something that exists in every device there is that is used by the semi-professional mobile user. Continue Reading

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Mobile accessible blogs

Posted on 14 May 2009 by Alexander Viken

I live about 1 hour of commuting with bus and subway from my office and my favorite past time getting there or home  from work is to listen to music and read blogs.

Mobile browsingOne of the blogs I like to read in the morning is www.smallsurfaces.com. A good blog about mobile user interfaces, but as irony strikes it, not very reader friendly on a small surface.

More blogs should be available with mobile friendly user interfaces!

I have used both my HTC Touch Diamond, and now an iPhone. Continue Reading

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The history of Personal Digital Assistants 1980 – 2000

Posted on 10 April 2009 by Alexander Viken

Psion netBook of Y2K

Psion netBook of Y2K

What’s now called a smartmobile, smartphone or pocket pc was once called a PDA – it was a Personal Digital Assistant and part from Psion’s first attempt in 1984, no one has had any real success until Apple launched the iPhone. As a curiosity in this day of buzzword technology – Psion released a netBook in March 2000. The first netbook, as they were first with the PDA? Exciting to see the result on the oncoming counter suit from Psion for Intel’s use of the term “netbook”

The early years Continue Reading

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About the author, Alexander Viken
Working as Chief Mobility Consultant at Creuna Norway. I received MSFT MVP for Device Application Development in June 2010 and are interested in mobility trends, the market, technology, software development for Windows Phone, iOS and Android mostly, but not exclusively. Scrum master that fights to keep it lean.
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