Computer Woes Solved? Multi-browser, Multi-system Malware Stopped! [I Hope]

Me, until a couple of hours ago.

Noted here in the last couple of posts, I've been beset by computer woes since some time mid-weekend. Somehow, all of our devices were plagued by malware, weird ads and attempts to get us to install various software. Neither of us knows how it happened, but I seem to have sort of solved the problem. I think. It's too early for cartwheels.

But I'm going to explain in as detailed a way as I can, so that if you have a similar problem, you can try the same thing.

We were getting popups, over-sized browser windows with either a) legit looking ads, b) fake looking ads, c) alerts to either install or upgrade video players, plugins and whatnot, and d) actual attempts to install files, all you have to do is click "ok." Fortunately, both of us here are smart enough not to install anything, though the source of this problem remains a mystery. And that's not all. Clunky, ugly, blinking, 90s-style "scare" ads started showing up in areas of web pages that ordinarily hold Google AdSense-type ads. But the weirdest part is, this was all of the sudden happening on a Windows 8 PC, a Windows 7 PC, a MacBook Pro running Mavericks, and a Galaxy S4 phone running Android Kit Kat.  And on these devices, it was happening in Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome and Safari, variously. Weird, right?

Didn't matter what device or operating system.

I called Cox, our internet provider, because even though I'd run every malware and virus program I could think of, the devices themselves were insisting that they were clean. It must, I thought, be either the router or the modem. The first lady was nice as could be, but had no idea what my problem might be. The second tier of help was too smart for me, two or three notches ahead of my experience level (which isn't ordinarily too shabby). But she got me the solution that is holding at the moment:

Factory reset the wireless router. Rename the router. Change the password, and keep it complicated. Then, I restarted all of the devices, one-by-one got them onto the network with the new settings. Also, I opened the internet pages I knew to be experiencing phony ads. I then reloaded the pages holding the shift key in. Poof, the bad ads

Didn't matter what browser either, though it
affected different browsers on different
devices.

disappeared. For reals. So far, the popup ads seem to be gone as well. On all systems.

So, though I won't even pretend to understand where this came from or what was really going on, it's clear that this goofy malware was coming through the router and running clean, because no anti-virus or anti-malware software could even see it running. Doesn't this sound kind of new to you? I've certainly never heard of it.

EDITED TO ADD: The Cox tech lady also advised me to assign individual MAC addresses to individual devices, somthing that is both a little outside my experience level, AND, seems to me like it would be awkward when we have guests, or want to add devices. So, I'll reserve that trick for if this bizarre occurrence ever happens again.

Gimme a Break! Next Android Operating System: "Kit Kat"

For months, the tech sites have speculated that the next iteration of the Android phone and tablet operating system would be called "Key Lime Pie." It was so prevalent I thought it was official. Turns out, they all got it wrong. The next version will be called Kit Kat after the Hershey (Nestlé outside the US) candy bar. Most previous versions have been named after sweet treats, such as Cupcake, Éclair and Ice Cream Sandwich. Now, apparently they're opting for a brand name, which is interesting. It's low-risk for Hershey and Nestlé, since even if the operating system turned out to be buggy and glitch, would be unlikely to damage the reputation of a top-five favorite candy bar. I bet you the Jelly Belly people are sorry to have missed the boat with the last release though.

[Excerpt]
 
Break Me Off a Piece of That: Kit Kat Will Be the Name of the Next Version of Android

". . .Android chief Sundar Pichai announced Tuesday via Twitter and Google Plus that Android had hit 1 billion activations and also added a little treat. The next version of the operating system -- Android 4.4 -- won't be named Key Lime Pie, as rumored, it will be called or codenamed Kit Kat. And don't worry, that's a fully licensed name and partnership too. . ."

Read more at: ABC News

Apple Fanboys Rejoice: Lots of New Goodies

The new iPhone operating system,
from CultOfMac

Apple released a whole bunch of news about their product lines this week, sending the Cult of Mac (which is overdue for a name change) into a quivering puddle of mess. I'm primarily a PC and Android user, so I can mostly just roll my eyes, but I also have a MacBook Pro as my laptop, so I can also wonder what the new OS X 10.9 "Mavericks" has in store for me. Provided it will run on my not brand-new system. And what's up with Mavericks? All of the previous releases have been named after cats. They couldn't think of a better cat than a Mountain Lion?

Anyway, the iWorld will be abuzz for a few weeks, taking the thunder away from the new Android phones, and the new upgrade to Windows 8.  It's just hard to read about it all, if you're brave and enter the comments sections of any of the Apple news sites. Apple fans are insufferably "superior," much of the time, and they've inspired a bunch of backlash from "fandroids" and PC fans. It can be entertaining, but it's kind of stupid. By now, you can buy an awesome phone and a very cool computer for any platform. Personal preference shouldn't have an attitude.

That said, I think the new iPhone interface, iOS 7, looks kind of cartoony. The aim is "flat," which seems to be the new thing for everybody. Dropping excessive gradients, shadows, lens flares and the like makes for a cleaner look. And Apple didn't go completely stark. But I'm not sure this sets itself too far away from Samsung, itself saddled with some cartoonish icons. And as an Android user, I still don't like the iOS default app tray start screen. I much prefer having a start screen, with the clock, weather, frequently used apps. I wonder if iOS 7 allows that kind of modification?

Anyway, for the most part I don't really care, so here's where you go if you do care:

Cult of Mac

Or here, if you want a little less slobber: MSN

Apple Adds New Samsung Galaxy S4 Phone to Lawsuit

The phone on the left is not a Galaxy S4, and
no way is it that small, no matter what
PC Magazine might imply.

Wow, I didn't know you could do this. Apple and Samsung have been locked in suits and counter suits over alleged patent infringements. From what I've read of the cases, a lot of Apple's claims are fairly broad, to the point of ridiculousness, and yet they initially won a huge settlement. But the cases go on, and now, Apple--already claiming 22 different Samsung models violate their patents--is scrubbing one, and replacing it with a new one. My new Galaxy S4!

Now, I know I'm no patent expert, so I won't sound off too much. But I can tell you that my phone in no way resembles an Apple product. It doesn't function like an Apple product. There isn't a soul who would be confused, or fooled into thinking the S4 was an iPhone. And--unlike the picture used in this and other articles--the phones aren't even remotely the same size. The S4 dwarfs the iPhone in every way except build materials. Yes, both phones have a glass touchscreen, a button and are roughly the same shape. Both have icons you press to get to programs, a logical extension of any computer operating system. But the Android operating system (layered with Samsung's TouchWiz and each individual carrier's add-ons) has evolved in quite a different direction from iOS. They're now very different ecosystems.

The thing that annoyed me about my (admittedly) cursory examination of the cases, is that the claims on patents seemed to focus on what the hardware and software do, rather than how they do it. If I press a button and a program opens, you shouldn't be able to patent that. If you get the program to open via a patented code, and someone steals the code? Fine, you win. But that doesn't seem to be the case here. It seems like Apple wants to lay claim to concepts. Should they really be able to do that? I mean, dozens of manufacturers manufacture similar TVs, microwave ovens, printer all-in-ones, keyboards, lamps, speakers. . . Once a product exists, you don't get the only company allowed to make something like it. Should Apple really be the only company allowed to make a rectangular touch-screen phone, with applications and a camera?

[Excerpt]

Apple Targets Samsung Galaxy S 4 in Patent Case

Apple wants to add the Galaxy S 4 to a list of 22 Samsung devices its believes infringes on its patents. Cupertino said it is willing to drop one of those 22 gadgets and swap in Samsung's newest flagship smartphone. . .

Read more at: PC Magazine

Blast from the Past: The Past Repurposed as Ringtones

A good bit of my weekend has been taken up getting used to my new Samsung Galaxy S4 smart phone (and don't worry, I'll stop talking about it soon). But it got me to thinking--as I loaded it up with my usual ringtones and notification sounds--that it might make a good topic for Blast from the Past. In fact, it might make a good psychological study. New phone, same old tunes and sounds.

Notification: Samantha from Bewitched's nose twitch. This is from the old days of my Windows 95 computer themes. I found that this particular sound effect was one I never got tired of. And those themes were usually tiring. Ironically, it's paired in this clip with easily the most annoying sound on earth: Fran Drescher. And here's the Bewitched theme for the sake of it. I have it saved on my phone too.



Default Ringtone: Theme from Match Game '76. Though I can't claim I got half of the jokes (or even knew that the cast was shitfaced) on this classic, long-running game show (with PM and '74, '75, '76, '77, etc. editions), I loved it as a kid. The theme seemed to know it was cheesy, and that's what I liked about it.



The Other Half's Ringtone: Making Our Dreams Come True by Cyndi Grecco, the theme from Laverne & Shirley. I'd like to say it was because of the song's indefatigable spirit of togetherness and can-do friendship. But it's really because we both loved the show. For a while, I had Georgie Girl by The Seekers, but it seemed like a confusing androgynous tune for my husband, so even though it's a favorite of his, it had to go.



Mom's Ringtone: Is Three Dog Night's Mama Told Me Not to Come a little too on the nose? Well, at least I'm using that instead of the theme from Halloween 2 I once used!

Sister's Ringtone: Enjoy the Silence by Depeche Mode, which was always one of her favorite bands, and Brother's Ringtone: You're Driving Me Crazy by Squirrel Nut Zippers, because, well, sometimes he does. . .




Others on my custom list are my friends Dona and Lester (Puttin' on the Ritz by Taco and Green Onions by Booker T and the MGs, respectively), Jeff and Sandy (Top of the World by The Carpenters), Denny and Kardinal (Sympathy for the Devil by The Rolling Stones and Hit Me with Your Best Shot by Pat Benatar), my boss ladies (You're the First by Barry White and I Love the Nightlife by Alicia Bridges), and my other boss (Popcorn by Hot Butter). But putting all of these clips up would wreck your browser, so here's just a couple of them.



What I've found out over several phones (and others' phones) is that you have to pick songs that you'll hear clearly, you need to edit clips that have the good part of the song right at the beginning, and you need to make sure the sound level isn't too high, or the tinny cell phone speakers will distort. Also, I've found that putting songs onto an Android phone is fairly easy, and doing the same on an iPhone is a multi-step process that taxes your patience. Oh, also that downloading sound software--even from a reputable site like CNet.com is very, very risky. I was up until 3:30 am on Friday night purging the gremlins from my computer.

And with that, we'll end this week's edition, and wish you all happy Monday!

Samsung Galaxy S4 Update

I said I'd update my experience with my brand new Samsung Galaxy S4 phone (on Sprint), as a help to anyone who is trying to decide to buy one. Here are just a few quick notes on my experience so far:

Pros
- Integration with my car stereo (via blue tooth) is much more successful and useful than my old HTC Evo was. Synching was easy, and I figured it out without a manual. Pandora worked like a dream, with full functionality, album art, song description, thumbs up and down, etc. DAR.fm, the radio recording service is a little more glitchy, but them's the breaks.
- A phone call through blue tooth in my car was clearer. I've only tried one, but it was a better experience than my Evo.
- Useability of the actual phone functions are clearer and easier. HTC's phone and contacts programming was just awful, so even though Samsung's TouchWiz is a bit cartoony, it is very functional.
- Still digging the sharpness of the screen. It's gorgeous.
- One of my favorite app games, 3D Bowling, offers much more precise control. I was able to pick up spares I never had a chance at before. But it takes a game or three to get your bearings.
- I like the lock screen, the default splash sound and ripple effects are fun.
- I was worried about sound quality, since that was the strongest selling point of the HTC One (a phone I'd also considered). But the S4's sound is a notch up from my Evo or The Other Half's Epic. Not disappointing at all.
- I'm getting used to the size and weight of this phone. Even with the rubber cover that Costco supplied, the phone feels slimmer and lighter than my Evo. It is of course larger in its other dimensions, but I think it manages to come in just under "too big." And it dwarfs my friends' iPhone 4S and 5! Hee-hee!
- There's an intangible glee that I get from simply having a brand new, newly-released major phone. That may sound silly, but I've been behind the curve on these things for so long, and you're basically trapped with your choice for two years. I will read the news of the Galaxy S5 and S6 in the coming years, and who knows, the HTC Two? Three? And you know that iPhone 5S, 6 and 6S will be on the horizon while my 2 years play out. But I can rest easy for at least the remainder of 2013 before feeling phone lust again!
- Everything zips along at a faster clip than my old phone could manage. Internet is actually approaching real computer-level functionality on phones like this, though it isn't a substitute if you have a computer or tablet nearby. That may change, however, when the 4G service finally hits Las Vegas (or your area).
 


Cons

- The included pedometer is not useful. I took it on my standard 4-mile walk, and it only registered a 1.6 mile walk. Unless there is some sort of calibration. I will check that out.
- Voice activation--a feature that is unnecessary, but cool--isn't reliable. It works when no one is watching, but when I try to demonstrate by saying "Kirk to Enterprise!" it makes me look stupid by not doing anything!
- The "bloatware" on every home screen is kind of over-the-top. It's nice that Samsung includes so much cool stuff, but I doubt I'll use much of it, and it doesn't need to be taking up so much real estate. Sure, you can take it off the screen but if my previous experience holds true, you won't be able to actually delete any of it.
- Touted features like touchless scrolling and the like haven't worked very well for me yet. The "wave your hand to answer" feature does work, but it's a "look how cool I am" feature more than anything else.
- The default clock/weather app is very nice, pretty and informative. But it is opaque and takes up almost half of that big screen, obscuring any wallpaper you might have. So, though you'll want it front-and-center, you're stuck with it unless you find a third-party solution. Also? It insists that I live in "Arden, NV." Before this, I'd never heard of Arden, apparently an unincorporated region of southern Nevada about 8 miles from me. In reality, I live in unincorporated Clark County, in Paradise Township (the same township as the Las Vegas Strip). This could be the fault of the towers around me, I suppose.
- The biggest con is one recently publicized: Samsung's software takes up a huge chunk of the 16GB internal memory. How big  of a con that is, I won't know until I get deeper into my contract. Right now, I have lots of room. The phone also has a mini-SD expansion slot, but some smarty-pants at Samsung decided to disable the ability to move apps to your external chip! WHY? That said, the HTC One doesn't even allow an external chip at all, so that choice may limit a person even more.

So, I Got a New Toy: My New Samsung Galaxy S4

These are the phones I've owned.
Until today.

So, here's the deal. With all of our previous cell phones (dating back to 2004), we've never had a top-of-the-line one. That's not so strange, I don't guess. We got in late, bought our first phones just for emergencies and convenience. And as we progressed every two years, we got better, fancier ones. But never the best, newest ones. This time, we realized that if you're going to be stuck with a phone for two years, you should start out with a great one. It's going to stay "new" much longer this way, and not be so far behind the times as our outgoing Samsung Epic 4G and HTC Evo 4G were.

So, this time I was determined to wait until the time was right. My contract was up in March, and The Other Half's just this last week. I'd been running Google Alerts on the Samsung Galaxy S4 (S4 from here on out) and the HTC One for months, so I knew I had to wait for a few weeks. Through all of this, you just get dribs and drabs about what is coming, when it's coming, and hints about how much it'll cost. But it's all mostly rumor. The cell phone manufacturers and the wireless companies (ours is Sprint) are ridiculously secretive, and cagey, and won't be specific about anything. I'm sure it's a competition/one-upmanship issue, but it is maddening.

From Gingerbread to Jelly Bean (I missed Honey Comb
and Ice Cream Sandwich). Next comes Key Lime Pie.

Especially when your old phone is starting to act up. And only one of the two phones you're torn between is released, and you can't compare them. And then when the other one comes out, but in  limited amounts, and eventually is in stock, but only for full price. Costco, I had learned through my studies, sells the phones about $50 cheaper, taxes you less, and includes an accessory package. But when I'd called them earlier in the week, they had none, and had six of them coming in on Monday. Next Monday.  So, who could believe it that when I called on Friday, the six (not cases, phones) had just come in. I reserved two, one black, one white, and now I have them. I couldn't believe it.


When new-phone lust turns to actual acquisition, you come back down to earth. You have to remember all of the stuff you want to save from your old phone. And what you want to dump. You have to transfer to a new ecosystem, even if you're still in the same brand name. I went from
"Gingerbread" Android to "Jellybean" and from HTC's to Samsung's. And with the new S4, there are so many new features (and three years of progress), that I just have a lot to learn.

This is why I didn't even ponder the iPhone.

I picked the S4 over the HTC One for several reasons. The HTC is gorgeous, no doubt. So, I made a pro/con list in my head: what would I regret about getting one over the other? When it came down to it, all that I'd regret about not having the One is that it was pretty, and that it has dual speakers. If I'd skipped the S4, I'd be giving up the replaceable battery, the expandable memory, a bigger screen, a better camera and a bigger company behind it that will probably roll out updates faster. So, S4 it is, and I finally got them.

So, how is it? It is about time I got to that, isn't it? Well, it's pretty nifty. The big screen is gorgeous, and much, much clearer than I'm used to. The touch screen is responsive (though I haven't quite got the new hover-finger thingy down yet). Though the phone is very large, it isn't unmanageable at all. It'll take you a little while to get used to where to place your hands when typing. I like the improvements since my old 2010 phone in the ease of typing, the auto-fill of words. . .it's a little more correct than it used to be. The speed is very definitely better, and I'm not even getting 4G speeds in Las Vegas (of course we rarely did, even with their old WiMax 4G). Searching for something on the internet is getting comparable to to using a desktop PC, and that's new.

They're ugly, but we need more of 'em.

The plastic back of the phone--the key sticking point for so many people--didn't bother me at all. It's got a nice prismatic design, it feels fine in my hand, and most people put cases on their phones anyway, don't they? That was actually the clincher for me before I bought the phones, I wasn't put off by the design. Aesthetically, the Samsung TouchWiz interface is a little disappointing. It's kind of like Windows XP in its cartoonishness, after the improvements of Windows 7. I think that's just me having gotten used to HTC's Sense interface. It's probably even something you can tweak. And who knows what Android Key Lime Pie (due very soon) will be like.

I haven't had the phone long enough to give a more extensive review, though I may write a follow-up. I need to go through the manual, check out all of the new features. But so far, I'm pleased. The getting is rarely as satisfying as the chase makes it feel, but it's obviously a much better phone than I had, and I doubt that two year's hence I'll feel as far behind as I did this last time. Especially if Sprint finally gets those 4G towers up. But that's a whole other post.

My (early) grade: A

Nokia Lumia Commercial Mocks iPhone and Android Fans

It's hard out there for a Windows phone. How do you make a splash when you're on a platform that is way, way behind iPhone and Android in the mobile phone race? By making a  brilliant and funny video that skewers Phandroids and iPhans, that's how! It's true, there is a war brewing between fans of Android and Apple's iOS platforms. It's ultimately pretty silly, no different than the PC vs. Mac wars of recent years. [Story continues below]


The whole thing stems from a perceived snobbishness by Apple product users (ie., "The Cult of Mac), who look down their noses at Microsoft and now Google users. I've experienced it first hand, it really is a "thing." I myself am bi-platform on computers (whee, look at me!), And only picked Android due to the timing of my previous phone's unceremonious drowning in the washing machine. The iPhone 4 wasn't out yet, and I needed a phone right away, so I opted for the Samsung Epic 4G, after toying with a lesser phone. That was replaced by the HTC Evo 4G when the Epic got crushed by a car. Now, the Evo is on its last dying breath, and I'm eagerly awaiting a Samsung Galaxy S4 (the enormous phone in the commercial), though I flirted with getting the HTC One. . .still could change my mind, who knows.

But I never pondered a Windows phone (or BlackBerry, or iPhone) as a replacement. It's not brand loyalty or fandom. I want--finally--a top-of-the-line phone at the very beginning of my 2-year contract. I don't want an immediately obsolete one. I'd have to wait several months for an iPhone, and my old one isn't going to last that long, and by now I'm not sure I'd want to switch anyway.

But good on Nokia for giving it their best shot.

How Do I Justify Buying an iPad?

All my phones, from 1995 to 2013

I have too many screens in my life. I spend all day at work with my PC's 22" flat panel screen a foot from my face. While there, I frequently check my Android phone for things. I spend roughly 9 hours all said, and I head home. In the car, I have a stereo/backup camera screen in the car, which interfaces with my phone if I want it to. When I get home, I plug my Android phone into the USB cable to my desktop PC with its 23" screen. But I don't turn the PC on when I get home.

If I have sufficient motivation, I may go for a 3-4 mile walk, in which case, I'll unplug that phone, and pop in some earphones for my walk, periodically checking the screen for mail, messages, and to change what I'm listening to. Back home at last, I put the phone back on the PC to charge, get cleaned up, and head to the family room, where I have a 60" DLP HDTV. Off to one side, is my MacBook Pro 15", which will migrate to my lap, to the arm of the couch and back again for as long as I watch whatever I have on the big TV.

This screen lost its marbles last month, so I upgraded
to a newer MacBook Pro

I may make dinner with the big TV running in the background, or maybe take a brief break from screens while I prepare the meal. But more often than not, I'll take my dinner plate into my office, and put it in front of the PC screen. I'll usually turn on the 20" flat panel desk HDTV. I will then spend an obscene amount of time with two screens, maybe three if you count the times I check on the phone. 

You'd think that when I head to the john, I'd be free of screens. But no. I have a  cheapie Andoid 4.0 tablet, bought mostly as a reader, and I'll sometimes take it to the loo to play Scramble or Words With Friends. But because the tablet is so slow, I'm more likely to just take the phone in there for the same purpose. Through all of this time at home, The Other Half is using his own screens (if not sharing mine), and will sit in his own office on his 21" flat panel on his PC,  or lay in bed, watching the 39" HDTV we have in there.

The screen in my car

Doesn't this amount to a less functional version
of my MacBook Pro?

Whew! That's a long way to go to illustrate the absurd amount of time we spend (well, me mostly) with 1, 2 or 3 screens going. In fact, it is a rare moment when I don't have one nearby. In a few weeks, I will be upgrading my phone (a near antique 2010 Evo) for either the HTC One or the Samsung Galaxy S4, either way a 5" screen. I've already upgraded the MacBook, and will shortly be giving The Other Half my i5 PC, and upgrading to Windows 8 in my office.

So, really. How can I justify buying an iPad? I'm never away from a screen, or computing device. And while an iPad would undoubtedly take up less room than my MacBook Pro, I use that puppy. I'm a touch-typist, and use graphics  programs,  both things better suited to a full-fledged computer. Whichever new phone I get,  its near-tablet size will be much larger than my current phone. Other than "I want one," what possible justification do I have for getting an iPad?

Does "because I want one" justify spending hundreds of dollars for a toy? I'll give Apple this much: they have a talent for inventing expensive items you never needed, but really, really want.

Obama, the iPhone and False Equivalency

That's not an iPhone anyway.
Image from Washington Times.

We talk a lot about false equivalency, and it's because we have to. Constantly, seemingly every single day, there is some sort of news nugget that screams, "bad analogy." Today's item is that President Obama can't work an iPhone. And so, it's the same as John McCain's cluelessness with technology in 2008 and George H.W. Bush's unfamiliarity with grocery scanners in 1992. And fine, whatever, have your fun, but. . .

The reason that this is a false equivalency is that Obama isn't clueless about technology. He is widely known to have been a Blackberry fiend on the campaign trail in 2007 and 2008, to the point of being restricted by the campaign. The iPhone came out in 2007, and the President had been in office for most of its lifespan. Anybody--tech head like me or not--will not know how to use the phone instantly upon first picking one up. I'm an Android user, and though I'm the only one in my office that can figure out how to load paper in the fax machine, change the ink in the printer, map a drive, and get the router online, I am unfamiliar with iPhones.

Beyond that, the core of Mitt Romney's base is old white people who are very likely, as a group, unfamiliar with how to operate an iPhone. But as I said, go ahead, have your fun. But you're not going to gain any voters with this one. And you know what? I'll bet that Mitt--unless he's being schooled right now--is unfamiliar with iPhones. . .or Androids.

[Excerpt]
 
Tech challenge: Obama has trouble with iPhone
 
On the campaign trail, President Obama is constantly talking about the importance of technology, but he met his match in an iPhone Sunday. . .
Read more: Washington Times

Apple Kills Star Trek

This expresses my feelings about Apple's odd victory in court. . .

Apple's iPhone Victory Over Samsung Might Not Stick?

I know that some of the more ardent disciples of the Cult of Mac were doing cartwheels that Apple won a massive victory over Samsung in court, but they may be celebrating prematurely. And hey, honestly, why would anyone get so emotionally invested in a corporation anyway?

iPhone and Epic 4G. Nope, these aren't really the same, sorry.

Then again, I've always been a MacPhobe, AppleAverse, iDon't. Well, until the last few years. I've owned exactly three Apple products: an iPod Nano, a PowerBook G4 and a MacBook Pro, which I still have. But Apple has never fully hooked me. I don't see them as "better," merely as different, and more expensive. For that reason, and also because of circumstance, I ended up with an Epic 4G phone, on the Android platform, by Samsung. I chose the phone on the strength of its beautiful screen, and because it had a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, which I preferred to the on-screen keyboard.

The Epic was not an iPhone. It doesn't look like an iPhone, it doesn't feel like an iPhone. . .nobody thinks their Epic is an iPhone. So, how did Apple just win a lawsuit that claimed patent infringement, based largely on look and feel? One of the key points was about how the icons were square (wow, only Apple ever thought of that), and that they "bounce" when you reach the end of a row of icons. Holy moley, stop the presses! And there was a thing about a glass screen, on a rectangle-shaped phone with rounded corners. Really???

I allege that Apple stole the idea for the iPad from
Star Trek.

It stands to reason that if Apple had decided to shitcan the iPhone idea (which allegedly almost happened), that somebody would have come up with a touch-screen phone. It would very likely have been a rectangle with rounded corners and a glass screen. This is not an original idea, it's a distillation of a flat-panel monitor, a typical non-smart phone, an MP3 player, a camera and a touch-screen. It's a combination that would have happened.

Now, if Samsung literally copied the technology required to make the phone, I can see Apple having a point. But if they merely aped the look? Tough toenails. How different are different brands of HDTVs? Car Stereos? Refrigerators? Dishwashers? All-in-one printers? Everybody apes everybody. You don't get to declare that you get the whole marketplace to yourself, and still charge out the ass for it! And anyway, how did only Samsung get on the hook for this? What about HTC, Google, Motorola, Nokia and all the rest? Is everyone supposed to go back to making flip-phones, and give the market to Apple?

[Excerpt]

Why the Apple v. Samsung Ruling May Not Hold Up

Late in the process yesterday at the Apple v. Samsung trial, when the parties and the judge were reviewing the jury verdict form, Samsung noticed that there were, indeed, inconsistencies in the jury's verdict form, a possibility Samsung anticipated [PDF]. Here's the jury's Amended Verdict Form [PDF], amended to fix the mistakes. Here's the original [PDF]. Here's the note [PDF] the jury sent to the judge when told to fix the inconsistencies. What are they, they asked? "Please let the jury know," they wrote in the only note ever sent in their deliberations, "of the inconsistencies we are supposed to deliberate on. . ." 

Read more at: Gizmodo

Envious of iPhone's Siri? Android Now Has Iris

I'd have named it "Andy" for Android, but Iris is cool.
Image from source, CNN

Steve Jobs was really infuriated by Google's Android smart phone operating system. Jobs may have had a case if the software actually stole actual Apple code, or was involved in some sort of corporate espionage or something. But it seems like he was just pissed that someone decided to rival the iPhone.


Well, imagine what he'd think of Iris.


[Excerpt]


Siri, Iris and the dream of just talking to our phones 

The only scene I really loved in "Star Trek: The Voyage Home" was when Scotty tried speaking verbal commands to a Macintosh Plus. Keyboards always seem to get in the way of doing what I want to do -- and nowhere is this as apparent, or frustrating, as on smartphones and tablets. . .

Read more at: CNN

Steve Jobs Wanted to Crush "Stolen" Android

Image from source, MSNBC

I can surely understand why Steve Jobs was perturbed about Google's Android phone and tablet operating system. After all, more phones are sold with Android than with Apple's iOS. But I'm not sure I agree with his reasoning, or am even sympathetic. After all, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates basically stole from Xerox when they created the Macintosh and Windows, respectively.


I might agree if Google actually stole technology. But if they're merely making a similar product? Whoop-de-friggin'-do! Edison didn't have exclusive rights to making records or record players. There are many manufacturers of very, very similar dishwashers, clothes washers and dryers, refrigerators, cordless phones, televisions, stereos. . . I understand wanting to trounce the competition. But you don't get the eternal right to no competition. I'm starting to wonder if the upcoming Steve Jobs biography is going to sully his image more than enhancing it.


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Jobs tears into Google in upcoming biography

Google can only hope that Steve Jobs' final vendetta doesn't haunt the Internet search leader from his grave. 

The depths of Jobs' antipathy toward Google leaps out of Walter Isaacson's authorized biography of Apple's co-founder. The book goes on sale Monday, less than three weeks after Jobs' long battle with pancreatic cancer culminated in his Oct. 5 death. The Associated Press obtained a copy Thursday. . .

Read more at: MSNBC

Image from source, The Last Word

Oh, the Cult of Mac must be in full swoon at this news. I've always thought that Steve Jobs was pretty cool (in the 80s he was kind of adorkable), though I've had unpleasant run-ins with his company's followers. I think that without Jobs, the 2000s and beyond would look a bit different, and probably not as plugged in. And even if Apple has produced some ugly things (the toilet seat notebook), some things that didn't age well (the original jellybean iMac), and some irritating fans, they've also pushed the computer and media world along with them. It's doubtful I'd have an Android phone/music player without Steve Jobs.

[Excerpt]

Steve Jobs steps down from Apple

The man who brought us the iPod, iPad and those tiny white "buds" that snugly tuck inside ears is stepping down from his position as Apple CEO. Steve Jobs formally announced his resignation today, sending shock-waves through the tech and business world. . .

Read more at: The Last Word

Sprint to Get iPhone 5? Bastards.

Image from source, Slash Gear

Great. Sprint, my mobile phone provider since 2004 is finally getting the iPhone. Five months after I signed a two-year contract. Five months after my old phone went for a swim in the washing machine right before a trip. Five months before I settled for an Android phone.

Well, the joke's on them. After toying with a Samsung Transform, I traded up to the Samsung Epic 4G. And even though that is going to be supplanted by a sequel phone (Epic 4G Touch), I totally dig my phone. I was holding out for the Apple iPhone 5, and was even willing to switch to Verizon or AT&T. But my little accident forced a quick decision. And for once, I'm not sorry.

Now, when my contract is up in 2013, and Apple is teasing the iPhone 7, then I may have a new decision to make. For now, I'm loving my 'droid. Still waiting for the Gingerbread upgrade, but I can wait.


[Excerpt]


iPhone 5 Release for Sprint in October

It appears that Sprint, one of the “big four” carriers in the USA to NOT have gotten their hands on any version of the iPhone thus far, will be amongst those lucky 3 (T-Mobile still not included) that are able to sell the next-generation device come October. . .

Read more at: Slash Gear

Axis of Awesome: Four Chords

I found the link to this video while reading about Journey's Don't Stop Believin' on Wikipedia after having heard it on Pandora on my Google Android phone while out walking. Which is a small snapshot of how I get a lot of my ideas. Don't Stop Believin' is a song with an unusual structure. Its chorus doesn't hit until almost the very end, sort of what they did with Michael Jackson's Thriller when they did the video version. But the song has a very distinctive, very familiar four chords. Watch the video, and you'll understand.